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ATLANTIC COAST CONFERENCE BASKETBALL MEDIA CONFERENCEJanuary 28, 2013Jeff BzdelikQ.  I just want to ask you about playing Duke again, the idea of playing them without Ryan Kelly this time. Does that change the way you approach the game? JEFF BZDELIK: Not really. Obviously Ryan Kelly's presence allows them to space the court better, but they're going to do what they do. They're going to defend and they're going to move the ball, and they're going to be aggressive with their mentality. The first time out we turned the ball over, I think we had 13 turnovers in the first half, and they hit a barrage of threes on us. I think they got their first two‑point field goal with 8:20 to go in the first half, and we coupled that with us only making three out of 13 shots within three feet of the rim in the first half. We've got to do a better job of finishing, we've got to do a better job of handling the basketball and getting out on their three‑point shooters. Q. Since you played them the first time, you guys have made some progress. Certainly I know there are ups and downs, but the win last week against NC State, does it provide a confidence level for a young team that you can play that well? JEFF BZDELIK: Well, obviously you can talk about all the confidence you want to, but you have to validate it by having success. We're 3‑4 in the league, and that's‑‑ they're starting to understand, number one, that they can have success, and number two, what allows success: Playing well. And we've played well at times and we've played poorly at times. We practice very hard to make sure that we're playing better all the time, and then we watch film and we see things that we aren't doing well, and it's a constant learning process with this basketball team. Q. I was wondering if you could shed a little bit of light on who you feel may be your top glue guy is, a guy who kind of does maybe the dirty work or isn't one of the more appreciated guys outside your program. I was wondering if you could share your top glue guy is and kind of what it is that that particular guy does for your squad. JEFF BZDELIK: Well, I think, number one, we have a very talented freshman in Devin Thomas, who is averaging double digits and rebounding here in the ACC, the young ACC season already, and he's someone who defends very well and rebounds the ball very well and starts our break with some quick outlet passing. He's someone who continues to‑‑ obviously needs to improve his offense, finishing around the rim, and he's gotten to the free‑throw line a lot. Not shooting a very good percentage right now, but the fact that he isn't scoring as much as maybe some of these other highly regarded freshmen has put him under the radar, but from a defensive rebounding and offensive rebounding standpoint, I think you're going to be hard‑pressed to find a better younger player. In fact, he's very good for no matter what age he is. But he's someone obviously with defense and rebounding that is a glue guy. So I would say probably Devin Thomas in terms of what he brings to our team that's not from the scoring aspect. Q. And if you could maybe also share your perspective on the fact that any successful team has to have a guy like this, a guy who doesn't necessarily in some cases jump out or maybe isn't your top scorer, whatever it may be ‑ you mentioned the defense and the rebounding ‑ that every team has to have a guy like that year to year to kind of build the program and win games. JEFF BZDELIK: Exactly. I think the mentality that those kinds of players have, it's just about winning. It's not about what their stat line is in terms of scoring, it's about just helping the team win, doing the things that necessarily don't show up in the box score but making‑‑ he's a willing passer, for example, he's a defender, he's a hustle guy, he's an energy guy, because all those things are contagious is how I would characterize that kind of player, just interested in one thing, and that's winning. Q. Your Deacons freshman class leads the ACC in combined points scored, averaging almost 33 points a game as a class. Have you ever had to rely on this many freshmen in your 10 years as a head coach? JEFF BZDELIK: No. No, not at all. Yeah, we don't like to use the word freshmen because that airs excuses. No, it was one of my New Year's resolutions never to use that word. It's a dirty word. We're youthful I guess is the right way to say it, but this is really going to accelerate their learning process, the experience, because there's no substitute for experience, and they're gaining valuable experience the hard way. We've had some great moments and we've had some clunkers, but they're battling through it, they're working hard, they're willing learners. It's a group that's very cohesive, and so that really excites all of us about our future. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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