UNC guard Marcus Paige, after win over UCLA:
On Brice Johnson missing so much time in 1st half
Our whole team picked our energy level up at that point, when he came back. He (Brice) started locking in defensively; we could leave him on the court when he's doing that, and when he gets the ball, he's pretty much an automatic bucket, about 60 percent from the floor, and he's a matchup nightmare.
He was active defensively, and offensively he was just Brice.
Honestly though, I wasn't even aware of how long he was out until you guys just said it; when you're in the game, sometimes you lose sight of the rotations and all that. I was in the game and trying to figure out what we needed to do to get some stops.
On end of 1st half surge by UNC
Our momentum to close the first half was big for us, and it translated into the second half; we started the game so sluggish. They were the ones who travelled across the country to play, we're the ones who just came up from North Carolina, and you would think we would have the advantage there. But for whatever reason we didn't come out with the right intensity, but we started finally playing our brand of basketball. Pressuring, causing turnovers, that was the key.
On breaking UCLA's defense down in the second half, why UNC was able to pull away
I think our defensive pressure really got to them, it disrupted them. Obviously the transition, on that end of the floor if you're frustrated then it's going to affect you on the other end. It's harder to compete on the defensive end if you can't get what you want on offense.
We went small, a little smaller in the 2nd half; we spaced the floor and got Brice all the room in the world to operate; and we also got a fantastic game from Joel Berry, attacking their defense.
On Joel Berry
He's a stud, I've been saying for a long time it's only a matter of time before he turns the corner and now he's starting to do that.
Today he was attacking in transition more than he has been; he was getting the ball and attacking the defense; he's not just running the show, he's attacking and putting the defense in situations they're not comfortable in, and that's the 1 thing Carolina point guards have always done: attack the seams, get shots for others. But him putting pressure on the defense is different and better than him just running the show on offense.
He's got to be motivated to be more aggressive.
On Roy's message afterwards
He was happy with the way we competed; I don't think we did as well on the backboards as we should've, or gotten enough 2nd chance points. But the effort from the end of the first half, through the second half, was much better, it was night and day different.
Coach (Hubert) Davis always says we'll be all right in any gmae as long as we play hard, and we showed up to play with about 8 minutes to go in the first half, and that was North Carolina basketball from there on out.
On UNC not shooting 3's well today
Yeah, Brice had it going on inside, attacking the basket; I set the tone from the 3-point line with that shot that went off the top of the backboard; I was struggling to make shots all game, but we got a lot of points in transition and Brice was fantastic.
That's the 1 thing that's different from years past. If I'm not doing well, other guys are getting it done. instead of relying on me to take tough shots and force the offense, we've got guys who are comfortable picking up my slack.
On adjustments not having Kennedy Meeks for a few weeks
We're going to be smaller, we're going to have to have the guards pick up some rebounding, you see Joel had 7 rebounds tonight. But it also presents us with some other opportunities to space the floor and attack, just get extra spacing.
Our offense usually has 2 big guys around the rim; with his absence, we'll see more lineups where Theo or Justin is playing the 4, and that will give us more spacing and help us spread the floor.
Kennedy is good for 9,10 rebounds automatically; we've got to do a better job rebounding in his absence. We need all 5 guys contributing to rebounding on both ends. Kennedy is our best low-post scorer; Brice is good at posting up but he doesn't always get the ball all the way to the paint.
On Theo
He's got his legs back; he's so good at doing the little things, and he brings so many intangibles to the table. he's not always going to have double-figure points, but he makes good defensive plays, he can rebound, he can space the floor. He's just a glue guy.
On the black uniforms
They're sweet, I liked them. It is different, a lot of fans don't like messing with the tradition; A lot of people believe we have the nicest uniforms in the country, but it was a nice combo. I wouldn't be opposed to bringing them out again. I'm not the "traditional" guy, so I liked them.
On UCLA's Hamilton hitting 3's early, then not much after that
We just had to start showing up defensively; he had a lot of wide-open shots early on, he got in a groove. Last year against us he didn't make a 3, and this year he came out attacking. We just pressured them; once myself and Joel Berry got into their guards and pushed their offense out, they weren't as comfortable and couldn't get much going.
On Brice having a dirty mouth
You know, basketball's an emotional game! Things happen, guys get frustrated, but he's obviously a guy who shows his emotions, wears his emotions on his sleeve. You know, he dunks it, he's flexing his muscles; he fouls, and he slams the ball. We feel like it's sometimes a negative thing, you'd like him to monitor it a little better, you know, there's kids at the game, but we do like his passion
On Brice and Roy's relationship
Coach knows Brice is a good kid; he always pushes Brice for more, he's trying to get more out of him. Brice is so good, he can do better than he did tonight, which is scary considering he had 27 and 11 or whatever he had. He's the most talented player on our team, but Brice makes a great offensive play and then gives up a basket and Coach gets on him.
On UNC doing so well today despite him not having one of his better games
It's extremely encouraging; offensively I was shooting the ball all over the place, but that's the difference this year, is we have different guys who can score. It's more about what UNC is doing, and less that if Marcus is struggling, than Carolina is struggling. It's now about what Justin has been able to do as a sophomore, what Justin has been able to do as a sophomore, and obviously the leap Brice is making being more aggressive on the block.
On Brice really being great since the Texas game
He only played 4-5 minutes in the 1st half of that Texas game; we can't have one of our best players on the bench the whole game; he's got to understand how important his presence in the game is to us. When he's on the court he's one of our best players and we have to get him the ball as much as possible.
More on Brice
He's always had this (great play) in him; he just turns it on and off too much. His focus is not his strength, but when he's locked in, he's one of the best power forwards in the country, no doubt about that. he can turn the corner and dial in defensively for us. If he's on the court, he's going to score.
On UNC's defense matching its intensity on offense
That is the key; I can't think of too many times this year where our offense has stalled and it hurt us; we've got too many guys, too many good shooters and inside players; defensively when we're on we're just a different team. Two completely different teams today; if we can have our defensive intensity be there for 40 minutes, or as close to 40 as possible, then I don't think anyone's better than us.
There's no magic answer, we just have to come out from the start and do better. Once I figure out how we can do that, I'll let you know.
On playing in Brooklyn
We had great Carolina blue support, great seeing Wayne Ellington here. This is one of the coolest venues I've played in; probably my favorites have been this and Staples Center in L.A.; It was great, Big Blue Nation is out here I'm sure.
It was a cool event, Chicago was great last year, and I think next year we go to Vegas, well, I don't go to Vegas I'm out of eligibility.
On Duke losing today
I have no reaction!.
On playing small-ball now, without Kennedy
I think you'll see us go small, because our rotation almost demands it. Theo needs minutes, Isiah needs minutes, and Brice can't play the whole game. Justin is 6-7, Theo is 6-6, so we can do that. The guards can penetrate a lot easier with the floor space available.
If you think about the teams that hurt us this year, Texas, Connor Lambert is a stretch 4; UNI, Paul Jesperson, he played the 4 a lot, it's a look that everybody's trying, it's so hard to contain those guys, with the new defensive rules about hand-checking and all that, it can really benefit you if you have that stretch 4.
On Christmas gift wish list
I've got everything I need! I'm good, I'm good. Just getting to get home and see my family is huge; we've got a couple days off, and I only get to see them a few times a year. I'm not really a material guy, I've got everything I need.
On Brice Johnson missing so much time in 1st half
Our whole team picked our energy level up at that point, when he came back. He (Brice) started locking in defensively; we could leave him on the court when he's doing that, and when he gets the ball, he's pretty much an automatic bucket, about 60 percent from the floor, and he's a matchup nightmare.
He was active defensively, and offensively he was just Brice.
Honestly though, I wasn't even aware of how long he was out until you guys just said it; when you're in the game, sometimes you lose sight of the rotations and all that. I was in the game and trying to figure out what we needed to do to get some stops.
On end of 1st half surge by UNC
Our momentum to close the first half was big for us, and it translated into the second half; we started the game so sluggish. They were the ones who travelled across the country to play, we're the ones who just came up from North Carolina, and you would think we would have the advantage there. But for whatever reason we didn't come out with the right intensity, but we started finally playing our brand of basketball. Pressuring, causing turnovers, that was the key.
On breaking UCLA's defense down in the second half, why UNC was able to pull away
I think our defensive pressure really got to them, it disrupted them. Obviously the transition, on that end of the floor if you're frustrated then it's going to affect you on the other end. It's harder to compete on the defensive end if you can't get what you want on offense.
We went small, a little smaller in the 2nd half; we spaced the floor and got Brice all the room in the world to operate; and we also got a fantastic game from Joel Berry, attacking their defense.
On Joel Berry
He's a stud, I've been saying for a long time it's only a matter of time before he turns the corner and now he's starting to do that.
Today he was attacking in transition more than he has been; he was getting the ball and attacking the defense; he's not just running the show, he's attacking and putting the defense in situations they're not comfortable in, and that's the 1 thing Carolina point guards have always done: attack the seams, get shots for others. But him putting pressure on the defense is different and better than him just running the show on offense.
He's got to be motivated to be more aggressive.
On Roy's message afterwards
He was happy with the way we competed; I don't think we did as well on the backboards as we should've, or gotten enough 2nd chance points. But the effort from the end of the first half, through the second half, was much better, it was night and day different.
Coach (Hubert) Davis always says we'll be all right in any gmae as long as we play hard, and we showed up to play with about 8 minutes to go in the first half, and that was North Carolina basketball from there on out.
On UNC not shooting 3's well today
Yeah, Brice had it going on inside, attacking the basket; I set the tone from the 3-point line with that shot that went off the top of the backboard; I was struggling to make shots all game, but we got a lot of points in transition and Brice was fantastic.
That's the 1 thing that's different from years past. If I'm not doing well, other guys are getting it done. instead of relying on me to take tough shots and force the offense, we've got guys who are comfortable picking up my slack.
On adjustments not having Kennedy Meeks for a few weeks
We're going to be smaller, we're going to have to have the guards pick up some rebounding, you see Joel had 7 rebounds tonight. But it also presents us with some other opportunities to space the floor and attack, just get extra spacing.
Our offense usually has 2 big guys around the rim; with his absence, we'll see more lineups where Theo or Justin is playing the 4, and that will give us more spacing and help us spread the floor.
Kennedy is good for 9,10 rebounds automatically; we've got to do a better job rebounding in his absence. We need all 5 guys contributing to rebounding on both ends. Kennedy is our best low-post scorer; Brice is good at posting up but he doesn't always get the ball all the way to the paint.
On Theo
He's got his legs back; he's so good at doing the little things, and he brings so many intangibles to the table. he's not always going to have double-figure points, but he makes good defensive plays, he can rebound, he can space the floor. He's just a glue guy.
On the black uniforms
They're sweet, I liked them. It is different, a lot of fans don't like messing with the tradition; A lot of people believe we have the nicest uniforms in the country, but it was a nice combo. I wouldn't be opposed to bringing them out again. I'm not the "traditional" guy, so I liked them.
On UCLA's Hamilton hitting 3's early, then not much after that
We just had to start showing up defensively; he had a lot of wide-open shots early on, he got in a groove. Last year against us he didn't make a 3, and this year he came out attacking. We just pressured them; once myself and Joel Berry got into their guards and pushed their offense out, they weren't as comfortable and couldn't get much going.
On Brice having a dirty mouth
You know, basketball's an emotional game! Things happen, guys get frustrated, but he's obviously a guy who shows his emotions, wears his emotions on his sleeve. You know, he dunks it, he's flexing his muscles; he fouls, and he slams the ball. We feel like it's sometimes a negative thing, you'd like him to monitor it a little better, you know, there's kids at the game, but we do like his passion
On Brice and Roy's relationship
Coach knows Brice is a good kid; he always pushes Brice for more, he's trying to get more out of him. Brice is so good, he can do better than he did tonight, which is scary considering he had 27 and 11 or whatever he had. He's the most talented player on our team, but Brice makes a great offensive play and then gives up a basket and Coach gets on him.
On UNC doing so well today despite him not having one of his better games
It's extremely encouraging; offensively I was shooting the ball all over the place, but that's the difference this year, is we have different guys who can score. It's more about what UNC is doing, and less that if Marcus is struggling, than Carolina is struggling. It's now about what Justin has been able to do as a sophomore, what Justin has been able to do as a sophomore, and obviously the leap Brice is making being more aggressive on the block.
On Brice really being great since the Texas game
He only played 4-5 minutes in the 1st half of that Texas game; we can't have one of our best players on the bench the whole game; he's got to understand how important his presence in the game is to us. When he's on the court he's one of our best players and we have to get him the ball as much as possible.
More on Brice
He's always had this (great play) in him; he just turns it on and off too much. His focus is not his strength, but when he's locked in, he's one of the best power forwards in the country, no doubt about that. he can turn the corner and dial in defensively for us. If he's on the court, he's going to score.
On UNC's defense matching its intensity on offense
That is the key; I can't think of too many times this year where our offense has stalled and it hurt us; we've got too many guys, too many good shooters and inside players; defensively when we're on we're just a different team. Two completely different teams today; if we can have our defensive intensity be there for 40 minutes, or as close to 40 as possible, then I don't think anyone's better than us.
There's no magic answer, we just have to come out from the start and do better. Once I figure out how we can do that, I'll let you know.
On playing in Brooklyn
We had great Carolina blue support, great seeing Wayne Ellington here. This is one of the coolest venues I've played in; probably my favorites have been this and Staples Center in L.A.; It was great, Big Blue Nation is out here I'm sure.
It was a cool event, Chicago was great last year, and I think next year we go to Vegas, well, I don't go to Vegas I'm out of eligibility.
On Duke losing today
I have no reaction!.
On playing small-ball now, without Kennedy
I think you'll see us go small, because our rotation almost demands it. Theo needs minutes, Isiah needs minutes, and Brice can't play the whole game. Justin is 6-7, Theo is 6-6, so we can do that. The guards can penetrate a lot easier with the floor space available.
If you think about the teams that hurt us this year, Texas, Connor Lambert is a stretch 4; UNI, Paul Jesperson, he played the 4 a lot, it's a look that everybody's trying, it's so hard to contain those guys, with the new defensive rules about hand-checking and all that, it can really benefit you if you have that stretch 4.
On Christmas gift wish list
I've got everything I need! I'm good, I'm good. Just getting to get home and see my family is huge; we've got a couple days off, and I only get to see them a few times a year. I'm not really a material guy, I've got everything I need.
