North Carolina
Hubert Davis: Give credit to the entire team for making them work hard to get shots
UNC's Hubert Davis on 79-70 win over NC State
The difference in that spur only in the second half straight shots. It's all year for this team. It's always the defense that fuels offense. That's something I talk about. That's something that I preach. That's what our team is for us to be the best that we can be. We have to step it up on the defensive end. We've got to rebound and take care of the basketball. But defensively, you know, we stepped up in the first half. NC State was shooting nearly 60% from the field, just not gonna get it done. They were running their offense like they do in shoot around getting wide open shots. We weren't impactful physical on the ball and that's something that we had talked about before the game is being competitive on the ball, whether it's a one on one situation, ball screen in the post and in the second half, we stepped up and, um, I, I felt like we were making them work so hard to be able to get a shot that it was allowing them to miss shots. They were coming up short because of our, our presence on the ball. And so, and I felt like when things got a little Chippy, it ignited us a little bit as well and I was really happy with how the guys responded in the second half. I don't mind. Chippy. There's nothing happening there. I, I played, I played in the nineties where a fight could break out and you could still play that. That was nothing. Do you like to see your team kind of have stuff like that because it just kind of gives them a, we don't need that. But I mean, I just felt like in this particular game that chips ignited us even more. And, um, but we talked about, you know, having that competitive fire, but also keeping your composure and I felt like we did that also and our ability to get to the free throw line and make free throws. I know kind of going over that this isn't the first TV game you guys have played this year. But what do you think it is about? I guess the personnel of this team that kinda allows you guys to respond in the way that you guys do it and almost, you know, I guess, kind of fuel, uh, you guys for, I guess the, well, our, our guys from the start have always enjoyed, um, competition and competing. Our practices are spirited, they're competitive, physical and that's the way that this group has, has played and practiced all season. So what you saw out there at the game, that's what I see every day at practice so that we're not out of character. Um when we do that out there on the floor and, mm you know, to hold them to 22% in the second half as, as good as NC State is as gifted as they are, especially on the offensive end. Um That was an elite performance by the guys defensively in the second half said that that was the difference maker for you guys. And he thought that he was really impactful. You, you feel that way. I, I feel like he was very impactful, you know, uh Elliott's from a, from an offensive standpoint, you know, it's just his ability, whether it's one on one or ball screen action to be able to get into the lane and be able to make plays, he's, he's strong and he can, he can, he can penetrate through contact, he can score, he can find guys distribute. He was finding guys from three, cutting to the basket. And so his ability to be able to get into the paint really opened up a lot of things for us. And he played, you know, he played well at NC State that's, you know, back to back games playing against state that Elliott has played really well and I was really proud of him back down, you know, from, from the physicality and the confrontation, this type of game is kind of a Harris type game, isn't it? Like he sort of feeds? He likes that kind of stuff. He does. I, he was Harrison was Harrison today, you know, having a guy on your team that as soon as he walks into the locker room, everyone is just smiling and laughing. His personality just lifts people up and then on the court, he, he just changes, you know, he's a, he's a guy that can guard multiple positions, he can rebound, he can post, he can hit threes offensive rebound, make free throws. He adds another ball handler for us. So with pressure, we can give him the ball and he can bring it up and initiate offense. And you never have to tell Harrison, let's play hard. He just instinctively in anything, practice, shoot around. Obviously, a game brings tremendous energy for us and it fueled us today. Ironically, Harrison actually said the team came out a little flat and first half. Do you agree? I don't think we came out flat. I just didn't think we were playing very good defense. I thought our pace and offensive end was good. I, I felt like our energy and our effort needed was actually, was pretty good in the first half. The, the little discipline and details defensively that wasn't good. We were a miss box out here, a missed coverage on a ball screen there going up for a shot, fake different stuff like defend. We were fouling, putting them on the free throw line. So that was our problem in the first half. But obviously Harrison's energy was higher than anyone else's in the first half and it really lifted us and to be honest with you kept us within eight in the first half by his play in the first half. What is frustrating is that for you on one end of the court on offense? You're shooting 54%. No, 10 and three. So those are the numbers you expect to be up and going the little things on the other. Well, I mean, that's what we talked about at half time that, you know, and I didn't even think that we were as, as efficient as we could be in the first half and that, you know, our defense and, and, and that's something that we talk about on a daily basis about, about what allows us to be successful. It is what it is, you know, it's nothing about offense. It's everything about us defensively having a presence, us being impactful and winning the boards on both ends and us taking care of the basketball because NC State does a great job of getting steals and deflections. But at the end of the possession, what can you say about the leadership that he provides even when the shot may not be, not be scoring? Well, we knew that, I mean, well, all year, I mean, he's gotten, you know, defensive pressure and coming off of 42 I'm sure they weren't going to allow him to get clean, looks out there. And, ok, you know, again, that's one of the things that I really like about this team is that it could come from different areas. So like Virginia, it came from Cormac. Um you know, the next game, it, it came from RJ, this game, it started off, it came from Harrison and then everybody else just fills in. So when you go into it, you can, you can focus on one person, but there's a number of parts to this team that allows us to be successful. And that's, that's a sign of a pretty good team. The way got it rolling in the, in the, he's so good, he's so good and the way it ended, you know, with the, the way he pulled up on, in there, um, like going into halftime, what, what did you want to change on him? And what did you think you guys got accomplish in the second half against him? Well, I thought, you know, 11 of the things I always tell the guys like at this level a as good as players like, like, you know, DJ Horn, you have to play defense before you play defense. It isn't like high school where you just start playing defense. When your man gets the ball, there's, there's a preparation in, in the way that you play in order to put yourself in a position, even have a chance to stop somebody defensively. And I thought, you know, Cormack took that challenge, you know, he came to me a number of times and he said, you know, I, I want the challenge defensively that goes back to Cormac. The, he brings so much to this team that allows us to be successful, not just his shooting and his leadership, but his competitiveness to step up and defend. And I really felt like in the second half, we made him work harder to get shots much like they were making it hard for RJ to get open. And because of that, that wears guys out and that's when you see jump shots hitting the front rim and not going to the basket and not getting to the free throw line. So I, I really think Cormack and you have to give credit to the entire team for making them work hard to get shots. And I thought that was a huge key for us grind out, especially this time of year. So teams playing desperate every game is competitive for us. I, you know, it's in terms of this is what is required to win games. Uh, uh It would be nice to win every game by 50 but that's not life. You're gonna have to work, you're gonna have to compete, you're gonna have to prepare, you're gonna have to practice and it's gonna have to translate on game day and that's what our guys are doing. And they've done that all season. So we knew coming into this game how talented NC State was and we knew what kind of game it was gonna be. And I was just happy with the response in the second half, especially on the defensive end. The crowd was amazing. I mean, there's just something, it's all, they're always great. But Saturday afternoon AC C games in the Smith Center, it's even better than great. It's like magical. And so the crowd really helped us today. Anybody else? Ok. Thank you. Thank you.