|
|||
|
|||
|
 |
|
|
NCAA MEN'S 1ST AND 2ND ROUNDS: SALT LAKE CITYMarch 16, 2017Brian JonesQuinton HookerDrick BernstineSalt Lake City, Utah Arizona - 100 North Dakota - 82 COACH BRIAN JONES: My biggest thing is I couldn't be more proud of our group of guys, our coaching staff for the season and the job they've done from start to finish. It's been such a special year. I thought we played -- we stayed true to ourself today. We played our style regardless of who we were about to play. Obviously Arizona, being a well-coached and great team in their own right, even though they're extremely young. It's so promising. I'm proud of our guys. We didn't flinch. We came out and played, and we played to our abilities, I felt, for the most part, but we just stayed true to ourselves. That's all we can ask for. Focused on our energy, our preparation, our unselfishness, and these guys did a phenomenal job. I couldn't be more proud or more happy for them not only for tonight but throughout the course of the season. Q. When you cut the deficit to 7, you hit them on their heels. What was working at that point that got you back into the game there? QUINTON HOOKER: I think at that point just moving the ball and keeping it hot. There was quite a few rolls at that point, too. At that moment they started missing some shots and we were able to get out and guard in transition, get to the free throw line. At that moment, at least that stretch we were really focused in and making the extra one and was able to hit some shots. DRICK BERNSTINE: I'd say the same thing. I think we all kind of locked in there for a minute. I don't know if it's because we got gassed or they started making the shots. At the end of the day we were pushing the ball, grabbing and going. And I think that was working. Then Kadeem Allen made a layup, and that shook us up or something, because they went on a run after that I remember. It was really transitioning, just trusting each other, moving the ball. Q. Talking about that run, you guys get to that 7-point deficit, you cut it down. The crowd just erupted out there. What did it feel like to have the crowd on your side like that and know you were in this game? QUINTON HOOKER: Man, it was something special. It really -- especially during that moment you could just feel the energy, feel the vibe. God has put us out here for a reason. And during that time, that period, you could really feel it. To be able to go in that stretch and get our crowd, who traveled hundreds of miles to see us, made overnight drives, flights, it was unbelievable, just the experience overall. And to be able to get them on their feet and going was great. Q. Talk about the caliber of the team you guys played. That was a great Arizona team you had to take on tonight. You'll remember that for a long time. DRICK BERNSTINE: That team was really good from top to bottom. It seemed like everybody impacted the game at some point. The bigs were really big and we battled with them for the longest. And on top of that they had really good guard play. Overall a really talented team and it showed at the end. QUINTON HOOKER: Yeah, they're 2 seed for a reason. And I think they just -- they played hard and when we had that stretch they stuck together and did what great teams do. Something that is going to be hard for other teams to beat them as they continue on their journey throughout this tourney. And I think it was good for us to let them know that it wasn't going to be easy to come and play North Dakota and it was going to be a fight. Q. Now that things are over, how proud are you of this team, both of you, of what you guys accomplished this year, what you did for the program for the first time in history? DRICK BERNSTINE: Overall you've got to be proud of the seniors on top of that. When I got here they took me under their wing, and they got us where we are. From Tommy to Devon, to everybody. Q, you know what Q does. Q has made a major impact in North Dakota which will never be forgotten. It's an amazing feeling to play with these guys. Every day you come in to practice and it's a grind. And that's what I think really got us to where we are. Coach really talked to us about embracing the grind. Not ever coming out on the court with any extra baggage. And when you come out on the court and focus on the floor at practice I think it shows up in games. QUINTON HOOKER: I'm extremely proud of this team. It's been a long time coming, especially with the younger guys, last year going through the ups and downs, it all came together this year. For me it's even more special. Going out as a senior, for other seniors, too, all the hard work, the shots, the time, the blood, sweat, tears, it all came together. And I'm just extremely proud of these guys and everything we've accomplished. And to be 20 and tourney was our mission the entire. It started last summer. That's when it started, was the off season. And I'm just extremely blessed to be in this position and to be the first to do this is an honor and something that I will never forget about forever. Q. When you did cut it to 7 did you get the sense that the crowd thought maybe you did have them on their heels? COACH BRIAN JONES: I did. I was probably just as excited as the fans. It wasn't just our fans, that was the thing, it was the whole building, outside of their fans at the other end. The building really got electric during that time. And it was -- it really lifted our guys up, because they were about spent. That was a big run for us, it took a lot of energy out of us. We got a big timeout. But that's what this team has been about. I feel they play the game the right way. They have no quit in them. And I think that's why fans start to -- that's why our fans for sure rallied around them as the last two years has rolled around. They're good kids, as you know, but they're -- they try to go out and play unselfishly, but never give in, never give up. Never have been given anything. And I think tonight was another example of that. They were going to fight and claw. They were going to make sure that their first opportunity in the Dance was one that they were going to remember. They might not remember -- they can fool some people on some things, but they couldn't fool themselves or their teammates with their effort. And I think they did a tremendous job of staying the course with that. Q. Great start for your guys, it was at 12:11 they start to go on a run and generate some space. What were they doing to pull ahead and take control? COACH BRIAN JONES: I think they started really pounding the ball inside. We had a couple of turnovers that let up to some transition baskets. We talk about catastrophic turnovers, meaning you turn it over and can't get your defense set, they get out and they get a layup or whatever it may be because you've mishandled the ball. They really dominated the paint in that first half. We thought we did a good job of fighting and trying to make them battle for catches further out on the floor. But they were so big. They'd go to a countermove and shoot right over the top of us. But really it came down to our -- that stretch there if we took the lead, they came down and scored some shots right at the rim, but then we took some quick shots, which was something we try to stay away from. And then we had some mishandles and a lot of credit to their defense, they knocked it loose and got out and got some easy ones. Q. In the first half Markkanen had 16. Can you sort of speak to what sort of makes him such a tough matchup. And what did you do to try to slow him down the second half? COACH BRIAN JONES: He's such a tough matchup. He shoots at a high level. For a young player he's so poised he never gets rattled or sped up. We were switching and trying to keep them off balance by giving them different looks. And they did a nice job of just getting him the ball. And he was patient with it. And they made some tough shots. They were contested -- one of our biggest goals defensively is force contested long two-point shots. And he was making a lot of midrange shots. That's kind of a lost art in today's game. But he did a tremendous job of scoring that in the first half. The second half I thought we did a better job of taking up his space. We tried to deny some catches further out on the floor, switch sometimes on ball screen stuff to force them to maybe try to force it inside. Sometimes when you switch a guard on a big the ball stops moving. And you really try to thread needles and get the ball inside. And I think at times the ball stopped moving for them and we were able to get some spots. Obviously we got back in the game, but once they went on that second run, they were able to get ball movement, get the ball inside and get some high-percentage shots. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports   |
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
About ASAP Sports •
FastScripts Archive •
Recent Interviews •
Captioning •
Upcoming Events •
Contact Us
FastScripts | Events Covered | Our Clients | Other Services | ASAP in the News | Site Map | Job Opportunities | Links |
|
ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297
|