Opening Statement
“It’s an ACC basketball game. It was extremely hard fought. I don’t know that’d you’d say either team felt like they played great, but I think kids rose and stepped up and made big plays. Adam [Smith], in the first half, was 4 for 5 [in three point shooting]. Second half, he made one with Marcus [Paige] having one finger and one nostril, and another finger and another nostril, and still made the thing. And then he made that one at the top of the key when it was a six-point game, and if he misses it’s a huge, huge miss. But I thought he was sensational. Marcus Georges-Hunt for them, kept getting to the free throw line, and we couldn’t keep him off the free-throw line. I was pleased with our rebounding. They are one of the best rebounding teams in the country. On their offensive boards, I think they are fifth in the country. Gave up a couple of early rebounds to them, but after that I thought we did a much better job. I told Bryan [Gregory], this was before the game, that I liked his club. It’s so so much better than they were last year, and he’s done a great job with them, got some new guys that look like they’ve been there the whole time the way they’ve bought into what he wants for them to do. But when you’ve got a three-point shooter like [Adam] Smith, you’ve got a guy that drives it to the basket and gets to shoot 15 free throws like Marcus and you’ve got [Charles] Mitchell and those guys doing everything inside, it’s tough to guard that kind of team. For us I thought Joel Berry made a couple huge, huge plays. I didn’t think he’d played well at all until that point. First half, he had two turnovers that were sort of unusual, Nate had three. Second half, Joel [Berry II] had three more turnovers. That’s just unusual for him. For a guy to slap it from behind as you’re dribbling down the court, that shouldn’t ever happen. But he stepped up and made a big three. I think it was a two-point game, and then we got a stop and he took it to the basket, got fouled, made the shot for an old fashioned three-point play, and to me those were the two biggest plays in the game right there. I think we scored again, maybe Justin Jackson the next possession. But for us we finally got some stops on the defensive end of the floor, were able to get out of there, felt good about some guys, and you look down the line and you get six guys in double figures, you love that. And I thought the big fella early, Joel [James], was really something for us. I think he would have scored one of the other times hadn’t he dribbled it before trying to go up, but is 5 for 6 for a guy like that. He tries really hard. Can’t be a greater kid, a greater person than Joel James. So I’m extremely happy for him. It was a Joel and Joel party there for a while tonight and I was happy they were both with us.”
On the team’s execution down the stretch
“You know, we’ve got some guards who have played. Marcus is a forth-year, Joel [Berry II] is a second-year, Nate is third-year. Those guys do a nice job. Justin Jackson played last year. Brice stepped up and made the free throws. I think Joel [James] missed one and Joel [Berry II] missed one. Down the stretch, I know we only missed two. So I think that I like guys who can finish games, and I think we finished it by the way we handled the basketball, [we] didn’t turn it over and I think we also are pleased at by the way we made free throws. You know, we changed a little bit defensively just to see if we could make something take them a little longer, but you know we got some good rebounds. It’s the game of basketball, we ‘re one defense and they took a long three right in front of their bench, and guess who didn’t box out – Marcus Paige, dadgum Academic All-American didn’t box out there. It’s basketball.”
On some of the turnovers and sloppy play in the first half
Defensively, they're good. First half we shot 45 percent and turned it over 7 times and we haven't been doing that, so give their defense credit. Again, I don't care, if you're a point guard at this level and somebody knocks your ball away from behind your brain is somewhere other than where it should be. But if you look at Joel's statistics all year long, he's 4 assists, 5 turnovers today, I would guess he's probably 2-and-a-half-to-1, and I think the last game he had 11 assists and 1 turnover. So it's unusual and weird, and I'm gonna say weird because hell that's not supposed to happen again.
More on Joel Berry
He's a tough kid. We called a play for him to shoot the 3 right in front of our bench in the corner and that one didn't go in. But we played one of those games in Kansas City he wasn't very good - he was awful - and I told him during a timeout, 'We're going to run this play for you to shoot this one from the corner and I know you're going to make this shot.' That was a big shot in that game. He's a tough kid, there's no question about that. he got whacked upside the head on the first or second play of the game, he thought he'd taken a charge and he banged his head on the floor. It helped him make the last 3 and a bunch of free throws so it would be alright for him to fall again.
On Brice Johnson showing so much emotion
That's Brice. My gosh, he's done that for four years. He's demonstrative when I ask him what he wants for lunch. It's just him. I think he charged that guy, I didn't think he hit him quite that hard but I think he charged the guy and he jumps around and I screamed at him, but that's just Brice. And I think the officials even know that. He's demonstrative. Think about it, when a all goes his way demonstrative, against him he's demonstrative, when he dunks the ball what is he? He's not a little flower, he stands there and he growls and pounds his dadgum chest like he's done something. So, that's him.
“It’s an ACC basketball game. It was extremely hard fought. I don’t know that’d you’d say either team felt like they played great, but I think kids rose and stepped up and made big plays. Adam [Smith], in the first half, was 4 for 5 [in three point shooting]. Second half, he made one with Marcus [Paige] having one finger and one nostril, and another finger and another nostril, and still made the thing. And then he made that one at the top of the key when it was a six-point game, and if he misses it’s a huge, huge miss. But I thought he was sensational. Marcus Georges-Hunt for them, kept getting to the free throw line, and we couldn’t keep him off the free-throw line. I was pleased with our rebounding. They are one of the best rebounding teams in the country. On their offensive boards, I think they are fifth in the country. Gave up a couple of early rebounds to them, but after that I thought we did a much better job. I told Bryan [Gregory], this was before the game, that I liked his club. It’s so so much better than they were last year, and he’s done a great job with them, got some new guys that look like they’ve been there the whole time the way they’ve bought into what he wants for them to do. But when you’ve got a three-point shooter like [Adam] Smith, you’ve got a guy that drives it to the basket and gets to shoot 15 free throws like Marcus and you’ve got [Charles] Mitchell and those guys doing everything inside, it’s tough to guard that kind of team. For us I thought Joel Berry made a couple huge, huge plays. I didn’t think he’d played well at all until that point. First half, he had two turnovers that were sort of unusual, Nate had three. Second half, Joel [Berry II] had three more turnovers. That’s just unusual for him. For a guy to slap it from behind as you’re dribbling down the court, that shouldn’t ever happen. But he stepped up and made a big three. I think it was a two-point game, and then we got a stop and he took it to the basket, got fouled, made the shot for an old fashioned three-point play, and to me those were the two biggest plays in the game right there. I think we scored again, maybe Justin Jackson the next possession. But for us we finally got some stops on the defensive end of the floor, were able to get out of there, felt good about some guys, and you look down the line and you get six guys in double figures, you love that. And I thought the big fella early, Joel [James], was really something for us. I think he would have scored one of the other times hadn’t he dribbled it before trying to go up, but is 5 for 6 for a guy like that. He tries really hard. Can’t be a greater kid, a greater person than Joel James. So I’m extremely happy for him. It was a Joel and Joel party there for a while tonight and I was happy they were both with us.”
On the team’s execution down the stretch
“You know, we’ve got some guards who have played. Marcus is a forth-year, Joel [Berry II] is a second-year, Nate is third-year. Those guys do a nice job. Justin Jackson played last year. Brice stepped up and made the free throws. I think Joel [James] missed one and Joel [Berry II] missed one. Down the stretch, I know we only missed two. So I think that I like guys who can finish games, and I think we finished it by the way we handled the basketball, [we] didn’t turn it over and I think we also are pleased at by the way we made free throws. You know, we changed a little bit defensively just to see if we could make something take them a little longer, but you know we got some good rebounds. It’s the game of basketball, we ‘re one defense and they took a long three right in front of their bench, and guess who didn’t box out – Marcus Paige, dadgum Academic All-American didn’t box out there. It’s basketball.”
On some of the turnovers and sloppy play in the first half
Defensively, they're good. First half we shot 45 percent and turned it over 7 times and we haven't been doing that, so give their defense credit. Again, I don't care, if you're a point guard at this level and somebody knocks your ball away from behind your brain is somewhere other than where it should be. But if you look at Joel's statistics all year long, he's 4 assists, 5 turnovers today, I would guess he's probably 2-and-a-half-to-1, and I think the last game he had 11 assists and 1 turnover. So it's unusual and weird, and I'm gonna say weird because hell that's not supposed to happen again.
More on Joel Berry
He's a tough kid. We called a play for him to shoot the 3 right in front of our bench in the corner and that one didn't go in. But we played one of those games in Kansas City he wasn't very good - he was awful - and I told him during a timeout, 'We're going to run this play for you to shoot this one from the corner and I know you're going to make this shot.' That was a big shot in that game. He's a tough kid, there's no question about that. he got whacked upside the head on the first or second play of the game, he thought he'd taken a charge and he banged his head on the floor. It helped him make the last 3 and a bunch of free throws so it would be alright for him to fall again.
On Brice Johnson showing so much emotion
That's Brice. My gosh, he's done that for four years. He's demonstrative when I ask him what he wants for lunch. It's just him. I think he charged that guy, I didn't think he hit him quite that hard but I think he charged the guy and he jumps around and I screamed at him, but that's just Brice. And I think the officials even know that. He's demonstrative. Think about it, when a all goes his way demonstrative, against him he's demonstrative, when he dunks the ball what is he? He's not a little flower, he stands there and he growls and pounds his dadgum chest like he's done something. So, that's him.
