	products recent interviews FastScripts archive about ASAP Sports

Our Clients:

Browse by Sport

Find us on

Subscribe to RSS

Click to go to
Asaptext.com

View our
e-Brochure

ATLANTIC COAST CONFERENCE BASKETBALL MEDIA CONFERENCE

January 17, 2011

Sidney Lowe

THE MODERATOR: Coach, a few comments about your team and then we'll go to questions.
COACH LOWE: Just came off a loss at Florida State where I don't think that we played defensively as well as we're capable. And we've got to play, definitely play better defense in our next ballgame against Duke.

Q. I was wondering if you could talk about last year you guys played one of your best seasons or best games of the season against Duke, talk about what you guys did to be successful against them and whether you think you can do it again?
COACH LOWE: I hope we can do it again. Last year we really executed offensively well. We set good screens and we were very efficient with what we were doing. We didn't take a lot of bad shots. When they switched, we were able to at times take advantage of a mismatch or something like that.
Then our defense was decent. We matched, we played some zone. We played a good ballgame, and we needed to against them. It's going to take an even better effort this year and concentration from everybody. You know, even our young guys. It's a big adjustment for them from a defensive standpoint and offensively. But that's what we did last year. We really executed well.

Q. What makes Duke hard to beat?
COACH LOWE: I think it's a couple of things. Number one, they really push each other to play hard. They're smart. They don't make a lot of mistakes. They have four guys that can make shots and sometimes five when you put Ryan Kelly in there.
And they just know how to play. They play good, sound basketball. They're constantly moving and they're constantly pushing each other. They're one of the best teams at challenging each other on the floor to do the right things. Then that says a lot for your team.

Q. Coach, if I'm not mistaken, I think C.J. Leslie, Ryan Harrow and Lorenzo and were all at the game against Duke a year ago in the stands. Is there a value for them to have seen that firsthand?
COACH LOWE: I don't know, other than the fact that they know it's a great match-up in terms of the history and tradition. I don't think watching those guys play can do them any justice in terms of helping them on the floor now. It's a totally different animal now.
Now they're out there and they get to see and get toss experience the atmosphere and the toughness and, again, how good the players are in our conference and we're playing against some great players on Wednesday. So I don't think it helps in that standpoint in terms of how they play on the floor, no.

Q. I know you talked about working with Ryan defensively. Specifically, what are the areas you need him to zone in on a little bit more?
COACH LOWE: Sometimes it's not just on the ball, it's off the ball. Being in the right position, which is very different for these young guys. They're used to roaming. They're used to roaming around and at times not playing any defense for fear of getting fouls.
Right now I'm trying to get him to understand how important it is from that position to defend. As I say, that is the head -- that is the head of the defense right there. If you breakdown and you're not in position up top, it hurts the team. It hurts the team's defense.
It's always a constant. It doesn't end until we get a rebound. And I'm trying to get him to understand how important it is to keep his guy in front and not allow people to get into the paint.

Q. I know injuries have been a factor in the ACC, with your team as well. But I'm wondering if there is a big picture as to why the conference is struggling? Also is there a concern that the ACC on a bit of a decline right now?
COACH LOWE: I think everything is perception, really. I don't think it's a decline. I think when we don't have some of the teams that are normally ranked in the Top 5 or Top 10, then people think that the ACC is down. I wouldn't say we're down when we talk about ranked teams. We may not be in there. But I still will take the teams in the ACC and with time and experience against anyone else in the country.
That's just my personal opinion on that. There's no question about it when you look at our conference anybody on any given night can beat the other team. And I don't think that is something to say that the league is down.
We don't have the ranked teams, but we do have some young teams in our conference and in new situations. But I think in time with the experience factor, I think still the ACC can play with anybody.

Q. So do you think youth is the key to why it hasn't been the kind of beginning that the ACC might have hoped?
COACH LOWE: No question it has something to do with it, yeah, it does. I don't mean that as an excuse. It's just with experienced players, they have an edge. They just have an edge.
It's something that I think has happened and it happens all the time with teams when they're young. They have to make a lot of adjustments, and they don't play as well especially early as they will later.

Q. How's your team's morale doing after these two tough losses this past week?
COACH LOWE: Well, I tell you what, taking a break right now and they're shooting right now. We've been going through practice this morning, and we're having a great practice. The morale is good, the effort is good, the energy is good. So, yeah, it's certainly is good.
Disappointed in the loss, and they were. And they understand that we really still have a lot of games to go and things can happen. There's going to be moves made with other teams and we need to get a win. We need to get another win and see what happens around the conference, but the morale is good.

Q. Similar challenge in Nolan Smith to Reggie Jackson with how do you approach him and try to cut off some of what he did in the lineup, what Jackson was able to get against him?
COACH LOWE: Yeah, yeah. It's a tough match-up for anybody around the country. Nolan's an excellent player. We have to make it tough for him. We can't allow him to run around and get open shots and get to the basket and create shots for other people.
We have to try to control him. Not an easy thing to do. But no question about it, when he's going, they're going. When Singler's going, they're going. We have to try to handle him first, and Singler, and then the other guys. But no question when Nolan is going, he makes them a better team, no question.

Q. One of the things with Reggie was either switching off of him or trying to stay with him. Obviously you'll try to stay with Hill, but what will be the point of emphasis there?
COACH LOWE: The point of emphasis is never leave him. Communication is what it is. If there is a situation where there is a switch or jump out there, whatever it might be, then he is now your man. We got confused a couple of times.
It's all about communication, that's what it is. We didn't talk on those deals and it allowed him to get open. That's against anybody. If you don't talk, anybody can burn you that way.
Certainly Nolan is one of the best in the country, and we just can't allow him to be free. So we have to talk. We really have to communicate.

Q. Halfway through the overall schedule, where do you think the freshmen are compared to what you were expecting? And what do you think has to be done? What do they have to do in the second half?
COACH LOWE: Yeah, I wasn't sure where they would be. I knew they would have to make a lot of adjustments and they're still making them. You can see it with some of the things that are happening whether it's mistakes they're making on defense or just talking to Ryan about starting our offense.
I showed him on the film how he was starting our offense out at the 28-foot marker when he's got to get the ball down lower. Teaching him how to do that again, how to take the ball one way and then get to your spot quick.
It's the learning now with the pressure on. And they have to continue to learn how to play the game on this level and the things that they have to do. It's not as easy as it used to be for them. They're not there yet. They're not there yet. We're going to need them to get there. We're going to need them to get there soon and be a factor.
I'm still pretty much pleased with the way they've played so far, but I know they're going to get better. But it's all the learning process. It's all the learning and understanding of how they have to play on this level. You can't relax on guys when you're on defense because they'll burn you. Things like that that they could do in high school, you can't do that now.

Q. With two tough teams coming up this week with Duke and Miami, is there anything special that you're doing to prepare for them that you just couldn't do in normal practice and preparation?
COACH LOWE: The things that we didn't do well were some fundamental issues. Like not talking, weak-side help not getting off. That's really where we struggled, setting screens. So we're just back to the basics really is the first thing that we need to do.
Then as far as strategy's concerned, we have some thing that's we want to do. But the first thing we have to do with a young team is we have to get the fundamentals back down again, and understand as the competition gets tougher, you have to execute better. You have to set harder screens. You have to play tougher defense. You have to block out more, tougher, harder, more aggressive. That's the adjustment that we're trying to make and get back to for 40 minutes, not when we're down, but at the start.
When teams are trying to hold you and bang you when you're on offense, that you don't give in. You go in and set those screens and you come off hard. It's really more the fundamentals and getting back to the basics.

Q. Following up, given all the freshmen that you have, how frustrating is it as a coach at this point in the season to still be working on fundamentals? Is that something that is usually the case?
COACH LOWE: That is something that is usually the case. We watch film, and watching some of the teams and watching games and we see things that happen as well with some younger guys where there is a mix-up in something.
The first thing we say, you say, wow, how did that happen? And then you look and say, okay, he was confused on it or whatever it might be. I think that's something that is a natural thing.
Now some tend to pick it up a little quicker than others. Some pick it up a little quicker than others. But it is a progression of learning. Learning from mistakes and believing in something then doing it.
Getting young guys to get off on help-side and not worry about their man way out there, that is different. They're worried about that guy getting a shot and not putting themselves in the right position early. But I think that is just something that happens with young guys until they've been in it for a while and really understand it.

Q. Having just come off the game against Florida State, I wondered what you thought of the way Derwin Kitchen's playing right now?
COACH LOWE: I think he's playing great. I think he's doing whatever the team needs. He had a great game against Duke. Then he played well against us, running the show, taking it when it was there, getting the ball to the right people. He's playing with a lot of confidence right now.
What's happened is the other guys are following his energy ask his lead. One of the things that happened from my understanding is they had a players-only meeting. The teammates told him that he needed to step up. He needed to score more. He needed to be more aggressive with things and he's done that. He's done that.

End of FastScripts

ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297