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NCAA MEN'S 1ST AND 2ND ROUNDS: RALEIGHMarch 17, 2016Andy EnfieldNikola JovanovicElijah StewatRaleigh, North Carolina Providence - 70, USC - 69 THE MODERATOR: We're now ready to start the USC press conference at this time we'd like to ask Coach Enfield to make an introductory statement. ANDY ENFIELD: It was a hard-fought college basketball game. Give Providence credit. They competed just like our team and they made the last shot. THE MODERATOR: At this time we'll open the floor up for questions for the student-athletes. Q. For either of you, just what are you feeling right now? What did you feel right as that final shot went in? What is kind of going through your head? NIKOLA JOVANOVIC: Honestly feels really hard and tough and kind of disappointing, because we were up five points like 30 seconds, 45 seconds until the end of the game and we had some turnovers and we didn't make some free throws that we usually do, and we weren't able to close out the game so we basically lost a won game. It's really hard. ELIJAH STEWART: It feels surreal. I didn't really see the shot go in, but I seen the score change, and I just ran down court to try to get the last shot up, but, yeah, we had some defensive lapses towards the end. Q. With both of you possibly returning next year, probably returning next year, what does this game propel you for in the offseason? ELIJAH STEWART: Just do what you're supposed to do during the offseason, just get better, work on your weaknesses and improve on your strengths. NIKOLA JOVANOVIC: Yeah, it's definitely a big-time learning experience. We just need to get back in the gym and learn from it. I think we're going to be better and stronger next time. THE MODERATOR: Okay. Gentlemen, thank you very much. You're excused. NIKOLA JOVANOVIC: Thank you. THE MODERATOR: At this time we'll open the floor up for questions for Coach Enfield. Q. As you guys got down the stretch, what were some of the things you were telling your team in some of those time-outs when things were going back and forth? What was kind of the coaching points there as it got towards the end? ANDY ENFIELD: It was a game of runs. We had the lead down the stretch. I thought we played excellent defense. In the second half, we rebounded the ball and we did everything we needed to do to win the game. We had a couple crucial turnovers. Last couple minutes we took a five-point lead with 2:10 left and immediately threw the ball away, and next possession we turned the ball over again. It's hard to do that. And we still had a chance to win, and missed two front ends of a one-and-one. Then we missed a lay-up with 38 seconds left. At that point we were up one, we needed to hold the ball with 38 seconds left in transition and we missed a lay-up. So, there were some learning chances to watch the film and learn from this for the future, how to close games out. And we had our three guards with the basketball down the stretch. And so, I'm not going to say anything negative about our team because they had such a great year. They played their hearts out. We just missed a couple shots and had a couple crucial turnovers down the stretch. Q. Andy, what happened on the last play where Bullock, looked like nobody covered him or maybe someone forgot where he was on that play? ANDY ENFIELD: It looked like we took their first and second option away, but one of our players made a mistake. The inbounder was supposed to be under the basket and that's not supposed to happen. I think they anticipated something else because I think it was probably maybe four seconds it took to get that pass in. I think -- I'm not sure who the play was supposed to go to but it looked like the first or second option. It's one of those things where they made a great play, and we made a mistake. Q. Obviously a heart-breaking loss. How do you summarize the entire season having the best turnaround of the power five teams? How do you summarize what you guys have done this entire year? ANDY ENFIELD: I'm very proud of our players. Coaching staff spent a lot of time in the offseason, and during the season, working with our players. I have a terrific assistant coaches, strength coach, and staff, and I give our staff and our players credit. They just worked so hard. They believed in what they're doing, and they've improved in every area of the game. And I think you saw that tonight. We're a good basketball team, and the biggest thing going forward now is to try to learn, and keep getting better and learn how to close games, and also win on the road and I think that's the next step of our program. We're still young, but I'm very proud of our players, and it's a heart-breaking loss, but they competed and we have nothing but positive things to say to them. Q. You talked about the missed lay-up with about 35 seconds left. Did you want Jordan to pull up and run some time off the clock in that situation? ANDY ENFIELD: Yes, that would have been the appropriate move. I thought they would have had to foul us, probably or we would have called a time-out and run a play, but that was a decision I'm sure he wishes he had back. Q. On that last one-and-one, why did you have to hold everyone back and only have the shooter up? ANDY ENFIELD: Well, first of all, I thought he'd make it, but we wanted to get our zone set and we didn't want any transition baskets. We thought he would make one or two, but even if he did, we wanted our zone to be set. We were playing great zone all night, and we actually stopped them when they came down, but then the offensive rebound, we didn't get our hands on it. I guess we did get our hands on it because it went out on us. That was the official call. We actually stopped them on that possession, we just didn't rebound the ball. And I couldn't see what happened, but obviously we had our hand on it because it went out on us. Q. With a lot of these guys returning, what does it mean to even get the experience of playing in this game in the first place? And how did the last seconds happen like it did? ANDY ENFIELD: Well, players learn. They learn from their experiences. This is an unbelievable opportunity to compete for a national championship in the NCAA Tournament. They played their hearts out tonight and they played great basketball for the majority of the game against a really good team in Providence. So I'm very proud of them, but it's heartbreaking for them to lose a game like this, because they had a chance, a great chance, to win it and didn't. So I'm sure they will be thinking about this in the offseason, and we have a lot of players returning. We're trying to build a program with building the success, and I think this experience for our players will propel them to improve in the offseason and come back next year and want to be back here, and there's nothing like experience in the NCAA Tournament to help you down the road. So I'm very optimistic, and I believe in our players, and I think they believe in themselves. THE MODERATOR: All right. Coach, thank you very much. ANDY ENFIELD: Thank you. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports   |
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