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ATLANTIC COAST CONFERENCE BASKETBALL MEDIA CONFERENCEJanuary 16, 2012Jeff BzdelikQ. When you were hired, can you talk about the conversation with Jeff Battle that you had about keeping him on staff, and what value he brings to your program? COACH BZDELIK: Jeff was the first one that I talked to before I talked to any player or any faculty or administrator after they offered me the job.  I talked to Jeff and wanted to do everything I could to make sure that he stayed in place. Just have tremendous respect for him and his knowledge. Of course, he's been here for a long time and he understands Wake Forest, to be honest with you, as well as anybody. He brings so much to the table in terms of his ability to relate to players, to coach players, and to reach through players. It's really important that I secure his presence on our staff. Q. He said he's been grateful with how you've been flexible with his situation with his son and everything. What's that process been like for you guys to kind of accommodate him? COACH BZDELIK: Well, I mean, it's simple. I think you don't have to work seven hours a day 24 hours a day, you need to work effectively. Jeff manages that really well. We need to remember that there is something a little bit more important than this, and that is family and making sure that you're having an impact on your children in the right way. So you can do both. You can balance both. Those that compromise that ultimately pay a price. So it's really important that I allow him to do that. That's the way I would want to be treated. So I just give him flexibility to do his job, and I know I have great confidence that he does his job as well as anybody. Q. With the quick turnaround this week, Thursday night at Duke, Saturday at Boston College. How does that affect your preparation this week? COACH BZDELIK: We're up to after our performance on Saturday, we're just learning about ourselves right now. We're just focusing in on doing things that we're supposed to do and doing it better: Getting open, screening, making good decisions on the break, rebounding. I thought that we had a hiccup the other day in terms of I think we just our inexperience got the best of us as we fell behind. We got a little frustrated. But it's a growing up process. For the most part we've done well, and that affected us on what we do right now. Q. When you played Duke last year, they had a couple of guys, Smith and Singler, that you obviously have to focus on. This year it's a more‑‑ it's a different kind of situation. Dawkins had the big night the other night, and sometimes it's Curry, sometimes it's Rivers. Does it make them more difficult to prepare for in not having one or is it maybe a little better not having one guy that you know is a stud that is going to be there every night? COACH BZDELIK: Well, obviously Duke is very deep with their talents. You're exactly right. They can come at you with so many different weapons. They play extremely hard. I think the thing that impresses me most about Duke is that they take everybody's best shot. So they play extremely hard, and that's something that our basketball team needs to learn is the intensity and the toughness. I think what is toughness? A lot has been said about what defines toughness, so I don't have to go into all those things. It's screening, it's guarding the ball, it's bringing back in defensive transition, it's executing your offense when everybody knows where you're going. You still get it done. Making big shot when's it counts. Sticking together, all those kind of things. Duke does it extremely well, and they're extremely talented. When you throw in the fact that at home their fans make it a great place for them to play, that's why you have what you have there at Duke. But, yeah, we have to play extremely well and do what we do and do it to the best of our ability together for all 40 minutes to have a chance to, you know, to win a game. Q. The other thing I wanted to ask you about was Ty Walker. He's had a tough career, but since he came back and has been eligible, it looks like he's playing the best basketball I've seen him play. Is that fair or correct? COACH BZDELIK: Well, you're right. It's a combination of a couple of things. Number one, he's grown up through the years. I think this past experience that he had to endure has made him appreciative of the opportunity that he has. He understands also too that there is an urgency here that he only has a handful of games left. If he's going to make anything of his career and leave a mark, it needs to be done now because there is no tomorrow. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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