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NCAA MEN'S REGIONALS SEMIFINALS & FINALS: LOS ANGELESMarch 28, 2015Sam DekkerJosh GasserFrank KaminskyBo RyanLOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA Wisconsin - 85 COACH RYAN: Well, I know it's hard for somebody like me to be speechless, but the way we shot the ball in the second half and to win by the margin that we did, we were very fortunate. Arizona played hard, played well, played smart, played physical. And that was a battle. I'm just glad I wasn't playing in that one, because I think it would take me three or four days to recover, I know that. But I'm so proud of these guys to be able to say that they've answered the bell in the second half in almost every game we've played here in the last seven to 10 games. They're a tough bunch, and I hope they don't change. Q. Sam, you had 20 points in the second half. You went 5-for-5 from three-point range. How did you get in that zone, especially coming out of halftime? Did you have to go dig into yourself a little deeper or what happened in that second half? SAM DEKKER: Not really. I just knew I had to stay aggressive. Getting to the line that last play of the first half really gave me some confidence knowing I could take them off the dribble inside. Rondae and Stanley are two physical, good defenders, but we as a team were able to get them into a little bit of foul trouble and that really helped. So that opened up the driving lines for myself, and Bronson got me some good looks from the outside and really got my shots going. So all in all, it was just a lot of confidence. I was put into a position to hit some shots and they were able to go down for me. Q. Sam and Frank, when last season ended, how much did you guys talk together about what you were going to do? Did you kind of commiserate about do we want to go to the NBA, do we want to come back? And now that you're back to where you were last year, how happy are you that you decided to come back to school? SAM DEKKER: Well, it wasn't a tough decision for me, how painful that loss was and how much I wanted to improve my game. So it wasn't too tough a decision for me. Frank and I both, we really didn't have to talk about it much. Then that loss left a sour taste in our mouth, so we wanted to get back. As a team we set some goals of what we wanted to do, and now we're two games away from our last goal that we had. All our guys came together, and couldn't be prouder of these guys, and I'm honored to be on this ride with them. FRANK KAMINSKY: Same thing. It wasn't a tough decision at all. You come back to school for moments like this, to share it with your teammates, your friends, the people you've been with the last four years of your life, very significant people that are going to be in the rest of your life as well. A moment like this is the most memorable moments of our lives, and I'm sure we'll remember this for a very long time, every single guy on this team. I can't be more grateful for the opportunity that the school has given me to be put in this position. I'm just so happy right now. Q. What do you attribute your team's second-half shooting success to? COACH RYAN: Well, they've been like this pretty much all year, not at that percentage, but they are a disciplined group. Those shots were good shots. They were open. Teammates put them into position. It was a pass before the pass to Sam that set Sam up for a couple of his threes. The way these guys have played off of each other. Sometimes we have guys that are pretty smart, and what they're trying to figure out in the first half is where we need to go, what we can do to get good shots, because in the second half they've done a much better job of getting the good looks. Then guys got hot. You don't shoot 79% every day in a half. But they were good shots and probably shouldn't have missed the other four. Q. Obviously everyone shot well in the second half. But Sam was hitting threes with future first-round picks right in his face. Can you guys just comment on what you were thinking watching the 'Sam Dekker Show'? JOSH GASSER: Yeah, it was future first-round picks going at it, Sam and those guys. Sam's just a heck of a player. He's really picked up his game now when it matters the most. In the past few weeks, he's had a great year. And this tournament, he's really shown his full arsenal offensively and defensively. Once he's in a rhythm like that, I know he's pretty hard to stop. So it was almost get him the ball because you could tell he wanted it. When he's confident like that making plays, being aggressive, this is the stuff that happens. Q. You hit a three to put you guys up 79-71, shot clock was winding down and you just kind of tossed it at the rim. Were you just feeling it at that point or were you just trying to get a shot off? SAM DEKKER: He thinks that was like the shot I had in high school to win State. Kind of. I don't know who exactly it was, but I had to get it up a little higher. But actually I had a good, clean look at the rim, I just had to put a lot of arc on it and kind of float it towards the rim. It felt good off the hand. Trae was standing right behind me and he yelled, Buckets, because he saw I had a good line. I was confident it went down. So it was the end of the shot clock, and we knew we needed a shot and didn't want to get a turnover or something. So I wanted to put one up and was able to get a pretty clean look and I was able to knock it down. Q. I was going to ask you something similar on that arc on the three. So I guess, Frank and Josh, what were you thinking when you saw him take two dribbles and go up at that moment? And when you saw how high that shot went up, what were your thoughts? JOSH GASSER: Well, it felt like the ball was in the air forever from my standpoint. I was standing at the top of the key and just kind of watching, watching them go to work. I've seen him make that play hundreds of times, not necessarily in games, but just in practice and open gyms throughout the summer. That's a shot that he can make. So even though it may have looked tough, to him it was pretty routine. It's obviously not an easy shot to make, but when he took it, there was no doubt in my mind he had a great shot to go in. And obviously as it got closer, it looked right on the money. Q. Sam, can you talk about the last two games, like what was the difference for you? Back-to-back career highs in the NCAA tournament, it's not often that that happens. What has happened for you in the last two games? SAM DEKKER: I just try to stay aggressive and play my game. Try to be an attack-first guy. I have the ability to use my athleticism. Sometimes I don't use it the way I should, and when I'm in tune with that and doing it and using it to my advantage, it makes the game come a lot more smoothly and naturally. It also helps to have this guy next to me get a lot of attention. Some guys turn their heads and I'm able to get some easy looks. So when you have a guy like that that can also off the dribble find you, it makes the game a lot easier. I guess for the other guys on the court, we've got a lot of unselfish guys. They're just telling me, Stay on top, be aggressive, and look for my shot when I get it. Q. Josh, last year you guys got to the Final Four and basically the whole team came back almost. This year there is this feeling that this may be the last look at this team the way it looks at this point. So how do you feel differently going into the Final Four this year than you did last year? JOSH GASSER: Well, we obviously lost a big piece in Ben Brust. He played a lot of minutes for us. We had a core group of guys coming back, so last year it was a great feeling getting to the Final Four. It was almost like we were on top of the world. This year we kind of got the attitude like 'what's next' type thing. I don't know. It's a little different feeling. We know we've got more accomplished. We obviously have had a really good year thus far, but we've got bigger goals and stuff on our mind. But Wisconsin basketball, I mean, every year it seems like guys graduate, guys leave, and other guys step up. So that's just going to be the case for this year. We're going to lose a good chunk of our team obviously, but trust me, there are some good players who haven't been on the court yet and who will be coming back next year as well. Wisconsin basketball has got a really bright future. Q. Frank, what was it about Arizona's length that may have given you some difficulty in the first half, and what changed in the second? And for Josh, do you want to talk about your interaction with Reggie Miller in the final seconds? FRANK KAMINSKY: Yeah, I was a little out of control in the first half, throwing up some wild shots, trying to play too fast, trying to make everything. Get a 10-point lead in one shot. So I just knew I had to calm down in the second half and work through my teammates and work within the offense and try to figure out what we needed to do to push out the lead. And I was able to get some stuff inside. I hit a three to start the second half. So it was just one of those things where I was trying to make too many things happen in one possession. So just had to play it possession by possession. JOSH GASSER: I said, Sam's got stones like you. Q. Did he say anything back? JOSH GASSER: Kidney, kidney stones, yeah. I don't know. He laughed. He agreed with me. He gave me a good head nod. SAM DEKKER: He gave us the nod. COACH RYAN: Tell them about Reggie's demonstration of his passing ability at the shootaround. JOSH GASSER: I mean, Reggie's not a passer. He even told us that. So, Sam? SAM DEKKER: The ball went -- we were in practice, and the ball went over by him, went up and got it, threw a nice pass inbounds. And you said something like, That's your first pass ever. COACH RYAN: I said, Guys, I want you to look at this. Reggie Miller is passing the ball. SAM DEKKER: He said, I didn't do that much in my career. But he didn't have to with his jumper. Q. Sam, how much has your ankle's health been a factor in the last few games? SAM DEKKER: Well, that was a topic of conversation early in the season, but it's all good now. There is no pain, nothing is going on. Just that first month. It was just like coming back from any injury. You've got to get back up to speed, get your confidence back and play through it. Yeah, it might suck at times, and sometimes it might feel good, but you can't make excuses. You've got to go out there and play, and realize it can get better. These guys have played through injuries, the whole team has. But it's always nicer to get healthy and play your game, and I'm happy that I am healthy at this point. Q. To follow up, you mentioned the shot that was kind of reminiscent to the high school championship game when you were a senior. How would you compare winning a state title with your dad to doing what you've done on this level? SAM DEKKER: Well... JOSH GASSER: The competition was a little better. SAM DEKKER: Yeah, they're both pretty sweet, obviously. Winning state is something that's always really cool, especially in your senior year, like you said, with your father as a coach. But that's 1A and 1B. Can flip-flop them. But going back-to-back Final Four with these guys and Coach Ryan and the staff and all the guys and the whole school, it's something you can't replace and you wouldn't give up for anything. It's the stuff you dream about. When we committed, I know coach said to me, We want to get to Final Fours and we want to bring championships to Wisconsin, and now we're one step closer. We've got 40 more minutes guaranteed. Hopefully we'll take care of that and get another one. So this is what we want to. I've got a great group of guys with me, and we're just trying to take full advantage of it. Q. What was your reaction when Bo said that to you? SAM DEKKER: I said, Let's do it. I don't see why we couldn't. Last year a lot of times we said, Why not us? And now this year it's trying to make them believe again, and I think we've done it pretty well so far. Q. Frank, at this point, do you feel like offensively you're always the one dictating? Meaning when Rondae's on you, you're willing to take him off the dribble. When Tarczewski's on you, you're willing to take him in the post. Do you feel the guys guarding you have any role in how you approach the game or is it all on you at this point? FRANK KAMINSKY: I don't really care who is guarding me at this point. I'm just going to try to do whatever I can to help our team. However they want to play us is fine. We'll make adjustments to whatever, and we're ready for whatever. We know we're going to see a lot of different things in the tournament, and no one wants to go home. So they're going to change up their defenses and do whatever. If you see how our whole team played in that second half, it doesn't really matter to us. We're just going to figure out a way to win the game. It's just been so much fun so far. Sam and I had a pretty good offensive game, but the rest of the guys on our team made huge plays that helped us. Josh with that save at the end. Josh with that big three that I didn't know why he shot it, but it still went in. It's just plays like that that you're going to remember for a long time that help you win games. Q. Frank, you did SportsCenter last night, right? FRANK KAMINSKY: Yeah. Q. So a lot of teams when they get to this point in the season, they go into lockdown mode, no distractions. You guys are having so much fun. How have you managed to stay this loose, and how much sweet talking did it take from coach to let you go on SportsCenter last night? FRANK KAMINSKY: We're just trying to have as much fun as possible. We're still kids. At the same time, we know what we're trying to accomplish and what we want to have the outcome be. But at the same time, I'm 21 years old. I'm having a blast. I'm trying to do all the fun things that I can do while I can still do them. I didn't even talk to him about it. I kind of just walked over there. It was fun. I wish I would have had some better clothes to wear. I didn't know I was actually going to be on SportsCenter. But it was a blast. We've just been able to do so many cool things while we've been in LA, and I'm sure Indianapolis will be just as fun. THE MODERATOR: Your team scored season highs against Arizona, 85 points, 55.6% shooting from field goal percentage, 12 three-point field goals made, and a 66.7% three-point field goal percentage. Those are all opponent highs against Arizona this season. If we told you that was going to happen yesterday, what would you have told us? COACH RYAN: I'd tell you to find another line of work. Yeah, these kind of games happen every so often. We've had other teams do it to us. I was talking the other day in the press conference about a guy that got hot against us with threes, and we tried everything in the world to stop him, and the kid was still making them. So we were making shots and that fuelled everything else. Q. I want to know your thoughts on why your team has been so loose? How have they managed to keep that going? And what do you think about it? Do they make you laugh too? COACH RYAN: Yeah, I knew he was going over to SportsCenter, and that's fine. He represents Wisconsin. He's a grownup. We don't monitor our guys and say, You can't say this, you can't say that. There's a lot they're learning while they're in college, and it all isn't in the practice gym or on the court. So they've handled themselves very well and represented the university in a first-class way. They're okay. They're a good group. They know when to get serious. THE MODERATOR: Is this one of the looser teams you've had in terms of personality? COACH RYAN: Yeah, yeah. I coached a lot of engineers in Division III for 15 years. Their sense of humor isn't always the same. Do we have any engineers in here? Engineers are pretty serious. Civil engineers, mechanical engineers, so, yeah. This is a group that -- and I said it before, with Frank coming back, it kind of set the tone for everything. The commitment from all the teammates. It's not that we weren't going to have a good team if he didn't, but he really sparked something, I think, in all of his teammates, and they've answered the bell so far. Q. What do you think if it's a Kentucky rematch next Saturday? COACH RYAN: I don't know. What is the score right now? We've got stuff on both teams ready to go. One coach has Kentucky, the other coach has Notre Dame. So they're probably back in there right now putting everything together. Q. (No Microphone.) COACH RYAN: We're just happy we're playing. We'll play whoever is on that other line. That's okay by us. Q. How long will you let your players obviously celebrate and be happy about this before they have to start concentrating on looking ahead to Saturday's game? Kind of what is your schedule over the next few days? I guess you leave here tomorrow? COACH RYAN: We took 17 tests Wednesday and Thursday. Today is Saturday. Yeah, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, so there is break next week. We'll have things for them to do to get ready for when we leave for Indy. There won't be a shortage of things for them, believe me. Q. How long can they be happy for this before they can start looking ahead? COACH RYAN: You got a chance to eyeball all three of them up here. Doesn't it look like three guys that are pretty happy? Q. Yeah. COACH RYAN: They're not totally satisfied. They feel there is more out there and they'd like to get home from this charter. We'll probably get back about 3 in the morning, so tomorrow we won't be doing anything other than downloading games on their iPads of the team that we're going to play. It's a smart bunch of guys. They'll look at those films, look at those games, and it helps when we put in the scout and we put in how we're going to play them. Also there are veterans there, which really helps. Q. You've been coaching a lot of years. Have you ever had a shooting performance like that in the second half in that big of a moment, like an Elite Eight game, Final Four-type game? COACH RYAN: No, I only remember the ones where we got bumped when we didn't shoot well. No, I can remember getting hot the last five minutes, hitting like your last seven shots, 10 free throws in a row. I can remember some of those. But this one I'm going to enjoy quite a bit because Arizona gave us everything they had. And I'm sure Sean is looking at that and going, Come on, how many times is that going to happen? You know, there is a team that won their league, won the conference tournament, got to this point. We were in the same position. One of us had to stay home. But, no, I don't remember one like that, not in a half. Q. Like Sam said when he first came in, you told him about making Final Fours and that kind of stuff. Why was there so much confidence with the group of players a few years ago that you guys could be able to do stuff like this? COACH RYAN: Well, I knew he was a special player and that from early on. We had it over in no time and he said he wanted to be a Badger, because he always wanted to be a Badger. He's a great passer, a gamer in clutch situations. He made big shots in high school. Made big shots in the AAU circuit. And for a player like him to say, Okay, yeah, I'm in. I'm going to be in red and White, that tells you something about him. He's like, Okay, yeah. I've seen some good teams. It's not like we hadn't won any games or been to the NCAA tournament or anything like that. It's not like I was asking him to come and change the program. But I just felt like he was the kind of guy that could affect people around him. Q. How does the feeling you have right now compare to when you first reached the Final Four last year? COACH RYAN: Again, you know, don't take it the wrong way, but I had coached in five Final Fours, so that game and then a game, only in Division III it's back-to-back games, I was as excited then as I am now, because I'm excited for the players. I'm excited for our fans, for our students, for our alumni. My appreciation and my feelings of what makes me feel good is that there are so many people affected by this win in a positive way. Anybody hear anything about State Street tonight? Is everything okay? Last year everybody got a little excited. Did you hear anything? Was it all right? The ones that didn't make it to California, they're heading to State Street in Madison. Q. Sam, after the last two games, has noted when he uses his athleticism like he should, that this is the kind of result that happens. Is that something that you have to stay on him about? COACH RYAN: Oh, I've been known to prod as a coach. You have to. Make points of emphasis. Maybe not the way I'm talking right now, but, yeah, Sam needs that at times. But that's okay. He's not the only one. His heart is in the right place and his mind is. It's like all of us, we need a push now and then. Q. You and Sam both mentioned that you compared his last three to push the lead to eight to a shot he made to win state championship in high school. I guess for those of us who are from out-of-state and don't know that shot that well, could you tell us what you remember about that shot back then and why the one he made tonight reminded you of it? COACH RYAN: Well, the nice thing is I can tell I wasn't there because we were playing in the NCAA tournament. That's why. But then it goes on what I don't have, Twitter or something, Facebook. So people are showing it to me. I'm like, Oh, wow. But, yeah, he hit a three at the buzzer to win a game, and kind of like the one he just hit. You can probably still pull it up, I guess. But that was cold-blooded, I can tell you that. THE MODERATOR: Nigel Hayes hit a couple threes in the clutch down in the second half. You want to talk about him and his performance tonight. COACH RYAN: Yeah, he didn't get down on himself. There were some fouls that he felt that he didn't commit, imagine that, and he was getting a little frustrated. Then an air ball, that is not Nigel Hayes. But he didn't get down. He didn't pout. He came back and really defensively did a nice job for us and also hit some big shots. Those two threes in the second half were huge. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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