University of Georgia Athletics
Quick Chat: Sarah Ashlee Barker
February 20, 2021 | Women's Basketball, The Frierson Files
By John Frierson
Staff Writer
Georgia women's basketball freshman Sarah Ashlee Barker and her twin brother Harrison, a quarterback at UAB, are experiencing being away from each other for the first time. Growing up, they went to school together in Birmingham, Ala., they had many a one-on-one battle at their house, and they shared the super-tight bond that most twins do.
Being away from her brother is one of many adjustments the 6-foot guard, the 2019-20 Alabama Miss Basketball and Gatorade Alabama Girls Player of the Year, has had to make since coming to Georgia. After averaging 23.2 points and 9.9 rebounds a game as a senior at Spain Park High School, and leading her team to the Class 7A state title, Barker is averaging 5.8 points and 2.8 rebounds in 17.4 minutes a game off the bench for the No. 22-ranked Lady Bulldogs.
During a recent Quick Chat, Barker talked about adjusting to college on and off the court, being a twin, Mexican food, and much more. Here's some of what she had to say:
Frierson: What has it been like to be a freshmen student-athlete at Georgia during the pandemic?
Barker: It's been very different; it's not what I thought it was going to be like, if I look back from a year ago. I've had fun at times and sometimes it's been hard, especially with school. I had to get used to the online nature of things, and now I really love the online. I actually really like online now. At first, I didn't really like it but then I started to get the hang of things and figure everything out.
The basketball part has been different, too, just because of all the protocols we have to follow and the testing and the masks. I just look at it as, this is something that I can't control with Covid going on and you've got to do what you've got to do.
Frierson: What do you like most about the online classes?
Barker: Probably just the free time that I have. I kind of get to choose when I sit down and do my work. On Mondays we're off, so I usually sit down and do most of my work. And then Wednesdays we practice in the morning and then I usually do most of my work in the afternoon. I don't have to sit down and be in a class every single day, and that's what I like about it.
I get to choose when I want to complete assignments, which is sometimes good for people and sometimes not. For me, I have an awareness and know when I need to get stuff done.
Frierson: As a player coming in to a very senior-heavy team and coming from high school when you were averaging about 23 points and 10 rebounds a game, what is it like to now be coming off the bench and contributing?
Barker: It's definitely been an adjustment. In high school I didn't come off the bench, I was always on the floor, I rarely even came out of games. Having to get used to sitting 7 or 10 minutes and then you've got to come in and contribute and hit shots right when I come in, and to have to impact the game as soon I come in, that's been an adjustment. I don't have time to get settled in and stuff, I have to contribute right away.
It's making me a better player, having to do something that I'm not used to doing, and so I'm definitely learning off of that. I think it's going to help me down the road to be successful.
Frierson: Because this is the first time you've had to sit for a while and watch from the bench in a long time, have you had to learn what to watch for and how to get into the game mentally from the bench?
Barker: When I'm on the bench, I'm watching to see how the defense plays and I'm watching to see how we play defensively. If I see something that one of my teammates did wrong and the coaches point it out, well then you know you've got to go into the game and not do that. Or if they did something good, you've got to know that this worked and this other thing didn't.
Against Missouri, it was maybe the third play of the game, Que (Morrison) came off of a ball screen and they went under the screen, and as soon as they went under I was like, that's a shot. And the first shot I took at Missouri was a 3-point shot over the screen. That shows something that I picked up on, seeing how they read screens and how they play.
Frierson: What other sports did you play growing up?
Barker: I started out in soccer and then I played softball. I started basketball — funny story with basketball, my mom was like, "Do you want to play basketball?" And I was like, "No, no." I was probably 6 to 7, and then my twin brother, he had a basketball practice and I went to watch. Then I was like, wait, I want to play. She put me on the time with him and that's how I started playing basketball. Ever since then I've loved it.
Frierson: Is it odd being away from Harrison? Do you two have the whole twin thing where you can practically read each other's minds?
Barker: I think we definitely have it. I would sit here and tell you right now that he is my best friend. I can tell him anything and we have such a good relationship. It was hard, this is the first time I've not gone to school with him and the first time I've ever been away from him for so long. That's been pretty hard.
He Facetimes me all the time, he texts me, he'll watch our games and be like, "Why didn't you do this?" He's kind of like another coach. I give him a lot of credit for the basketball player that I am today because he would always get me in the backyard and play one-on-one, and he made me as tough as I am.
We definitely have a really good connection and I love having a twin. It's awesome.
Frierson: What's something you could eat every day and never get tired of it?
Barker: I would say Mexican food, like cheese dip and stuff like that. I like La Fiesta and La Parilla — I call it La Pa. Those are two places I like.
I might have it once on the weekend every two weeks or something like that. I try and eat as good as I can while we're in season, but every now and then I want to go get something that tastes really good and is not healthy.
Frierson: Do you have a creative side? Is there anything creative you do or wish you could do?
Barker: I wish I could draw, I really do wish I could draw. I have some friends that can draw, Caitlin Hose can draw, and I've seen some of the things that she's drawn or painted and I'm like, I wish I could do that.
I also wish I could dance. I would love to dance. All the girls on our team that can dance, they dance so good and I'm just like, wow, that's awesome, I wish I could do that. It's a lot of fun watching them dance.
(This Q&A was lightly edited for length and clarity.)
Â
Staff Writer
Georgia women's basketball freshman Sarah Ashlee Barker and her twin brother Harrison, a quarterback at UAB, are experiencing being away from each other for the first time. Growing up, they went to school together in Birmingham, Ala., they had many a one-on-one battle at their house, and they shared the super-tight bond that most twins do.
Being away from her brother is one of many adjustments the 6-foot guard, the 2019-20 Alabama Miss Basketball and Gatorade Alabama Girls Player of the Year, has had to make since coming to Georgia. After averaging 23.2 points and 9.9 rebounds a game as a senior at Spain Park High School, and leading her team to the Class 7A state title, Barker is averaging 5.8 points and 2.8 rebounds in 17.4 minutes a game off the bench for the No. 22-ranked Lady Bulldogs.
During a recent Quick Chat, Barker talked about adjusting to college on and off the court, being a twin, Mexican food, and much more. Here's some of what she had to say:
Frierson: What has it been like to be a freshmen student-athlete at Georgia during the pandemic?
Barker: It's been very different; it's not what I thought it was going to be like, if I look back from a year ago. I've had fun at times and sometimes it's been hard, especially with school. I had to get used to the online nature of things, and now I really love the online. I actually really like online now. At first, I didn't really like it but then I started to get the hang of things and figure everything out.
The basketball part has been different, too, just because of all the protocols we have to follow and the testing and the masks. I just look at it as, this is something that I can't control with Covid going on and you've got to do what you've got to do.
Frierson: What do you like most about the online classes?
Barker: Probably just the free time that I have. I kind of get to choose when I sit down and do my work. On Mondays we're off, so I usually sit down and do most of my work. And then Wednesdays we practice in the morning and then I usually do most of my work in the afternoon. I don't have to sit down and be in a class every single day, and that's what I like about it.
I get to choose when I want to complete assignments, which is sometimes good for people and sometimes not. For me, I have an awareness and know when I need to get stuff done.
Frierson: As a player coming in to a very senior-heavy team and coming from high school when you were averaging about 23 points and 10 rebounds a game, what is it like to now be coming off the bench and contributing?
Barker: It's definitely been an adjustment. In high school I didn't come off the bench, I was always on the floor, I rarely even came out of games. Having to get used to sitting 7 or 10 minutes and then you've got to come in and contribute and hit shots right when I come in, and to have to impact the game as soon I come in, that's been an adjustment. I don't have time to get settled in and stuff, I have to contribute right away.
It's making me a better player, having to do something that I'm not used to doing, and so I'm definitely learning off of that. I think it's going to help me down the road to be successful.
Frierson: Because this is the first time you've had to sit for a while and watch from the bench in a long time, have you had to learn what to watch for and how to get into the game mentally from the bench?
Barker: When I'm on the bench, I'm watching to see how the defense plays and I'm watching to see how we play defensively. If I see something that one of my teammates did wrong and the coaches point it out, well then you know you've got to go into the game and not do that. Or if they did something good, you've got to know that this worked and this other thing didn't.
Against Missouri, it was maybe the third play of the game, Que (Morrison) came off of a ball screen and they went under the screen, and as soon as they went under I was like, that's a shot. And the first shot I took at Missouri was a 3-point shot over the screen. That shows something that I picked up on, seeing how they read screens and how they play.
Frierson: What other sports did you play growing up?
Barker: I started out in soccer and then I played softball. I started basketball — funny story with basketball, my mom was like, "Do you want to play basketball?" And I was like, "No, no." I was probably 6 to 7, and then my twin brother, he had a basketball practice and I went to watch. Then I was like, wait, I want to play. She put me on the time with him and that's how I started playing basketball. Ever since then I've loved it.
Frierson: Is it odd being away from Harrison? Do you two have the whole twin thing where you can practically read each other's minds?
Barker: I think we definitely have it. I would sit here and tell you right now that he is my best friend. I can tell him anything and we have such a good relationship. It was hard, this is the first time I've not gone to school with him and the first time I've ever been away from him for so long. That's been pretty hard.
He Facetimes me all the time, he texts me, he'll watch our games and be like, "Why didn't you do this?" He's kind of like another coach. I give him a lot of credit for the basketball player that I am today because he would always get me in the backyard and play one-on-one, and he made me as tough as I am.
We definitely have a really good connection and I love having a twin. It's awesome.
Frierson: What's something you could eat every day and never get tired of it?
Barker: I would say Mexican food, like cheese dip and stuff like that. I like La Fiesta and La Parilla — I call it La Pa. Those are two places I like.
I might have it once on the weekend every two weeks or something like that. I try and eat as good as I can while we're in season, but every now and then I want to go get something that tastes really good and is not healthy.
Frierson: Do you have a creative side? Is there anything creative you do or wish you could do?
Barker: I wish I could draw, I really do wish I could draw. I have some friends that can draw, Caitlin Hose can draw, and I've seen some of the things that she's drawn or painted and I'm like, I wish I could do that.
I also wish I could dance. I would love to dance. All the girls on our team that can dance, they dance so good and I'm just like, wow, that's awesome, I wish I could do that. It's a lot of fun watching them dance.
(This Q&A was lightly edited for length and clarity.)
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Assistant Sports Communications Director John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files. He's also on Twitter: @FriersonFiles and @ITAHallofFame.
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