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ATLANTIC COAST CONFERENCE BASKETBALL MEDIA CONFERENCE

February 21, 2011

Leonard Hamilton

THE MODERATOR: We have with us Florida State Head Coach Leonard Hamilton. Coach, if you could a few comments about your team, and then we'll open it up for questions.
COACH HAMILTON: We're a basketball team that still seems to be in a little bit of transition, trying to make the adjustment from loss of Chris Singleton. And our players have worked very hard and tried to just move forward. We played against a Wake Forest team that was very well prepared.
And they did some things to us defensively. The guys slid out of rhythm in the first half. They did a great job. They executed their offense very well. And made it kind of tough for us. But the second half I thought we played a lot better. And we were able to get some easy baskets, do a lot better job defensively. And ended with the lead and able to come away with a very much needed road victory at Wake Forest this weekend.
THE MODERATOR: Questions?

Q. Teams definitely have picked up the slack while Chris has been out. How does this win boost the team's confidence heading into the final four games of the regular season?
COACH HAMILTON: I think we have so many new guys, inexperienced guys that we're trying to work in that any level of success obviously is a boost to the guys' confidence. Defensively, I thought we played solid defensively, basically the whole game. I thought we moved the ball a lot better the second half against Wake Forest.
And so we played basically three-fourths of the game last week at home and basically the entire game there. So I think we're still learning a little bit more about each other, trying to get Miller rotated back in. We're trying to get Xavier Gibson back involved and Terrance Shannon, trying to get him back acclimated and trying to get our rotation down to see who is going to fill the void from losing Chris.
So we're still a little bit in transition, but I thought we adjusted pretty well, at least the last two games.

Q. And how is Chris doing since the surgery? What are the odds he'll make it back in time for a potential NCAA berth?
COACH HAMILTON: I have absolutely no way of using any type of guesstimate as to what the odds would be that whether he will or will not. I think that's in God's hands. Everybody rehabs at their own genetic rate. So what we're not going to do is try to speculate and be looking over our shoulder.
What we want him to do is take whatever time is necessary for him to get properly healed and whatever time that is we'll deal with it when that time comes. But it's one of those things that I think we just have to kind of move forward and hope the best for Chris.

Q. Not to belabor the Chris point, but what kind of progression do you think he's made as a player up until that injury?
COACH HAMILTON: Chris maintained an even keel. I think he loved defending. He loved doing the dirty work, the things that a lot of guys don't enjoy doing. He loves switching out on point guards and running folks down and blocking shots and getting steals, deflections.
He thrives on that. That excites him, which makes him kind of -- and he's extremely an unselfish player. And he doesn't have to have a high volume of shots in order for him to be successful.
And people are always trying to compare him. If he doesn't go out and get a whole lot of points, because of his potential and his ability, they concern themselves. To be honest with you, I think that's one reason why I think our team plays so unselfish, that he's our best player and he's very capable but he's had such an unselfish spirit that that filters through the team.
So he had made tremendous drives. He was being a little more aggressive offensively. He shot the ball real well at Georgia Tech. He was 4 for 4, 2 for 2 for 3 in the game that he got hurt in. And he was realizing that now he's gotten his teammates involved, now it was time for him to step up and be a little bit more aggressive offensively. And that's what he was doing. And unfortunately he came down with the injury.

Q. You're going up against probably the most productive big man in the ACC. Do you have enough big guys to handle him? And who probably is the best candidate?
COACH HAMILTON: Well, I don't think any one particular person can guard him. We always -- we make very little adjustments with our defensive schemes. I mean, we know this is who we are and hopefully it will be enough. But hopefully we have enough fresh bodies to play.
But he's a handful. There's no doubt about that. I mean, he's an excellent player. And we give him all the respect.

Q. In terms of Shannon coming back, does that give you -- obviously he's another big body, but he seems to have a physicality that might be helpful in that situation.
COACH HAMILTON: Al, you were talking about Williams, I'm not sure you really stop players of his caliber. You just try to hold the other guys down as best as possible and hopefully create an atmosphere that he has to work for what he gets and try to hold everyone else down. No one has really held him.
I think he has, is it 20 double-doubles that he has?

Q. Yes.
COACH HAMILTON: I'm not sure I've played against a player with 20 double-doubles.

Q. Just in that vein, though, getting Terrance Shannon back gives you another physical big body that can contest down there, right?
COACH HAMILTON: No doubt about that, now. I mean having Terrance back really gives us a plus. But most of our guys are inexperienced.
I mean, Terrance and Bernard and Xavier. Xavier is our most experienced guy, and he's coming off his injury. Jon is adjusting, and so is Okaro. But he's a very mature youngster. And I enjoy watching him. He seems to -- the game seems to come easy for him. He's definitely a load, there's no doubt about that. He has great hands. Good passing skills. Great footwork. Draws fouls and runs the floor very well. He definitely has the whole package.

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