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NCAA MEN'S 1ST AND 2ND ROUNDS: BOISE

March 17, 2018

Boise, Idaho

Gonzaga - 90, Ohio State - 84

THE MODERATOR: We'd like to welcome Gonzaga.

MARK FEW: Well, what a great weekend for us here in Boise. Just what a great performance by my guys. We beat a heck of a basketball team in Ohio State that's got a ton of fight and so well coached. And the run they made at us in that second half, that had us back on our heels. Just like these guys have done all year, they responded and were able to figure out a way to get some stops down the stretch, the real stretch of that game. And then had some guys step up and made some big shots on the offensive end.

But, Ohio State is good. And just so impressed with how much they've improved since the PK-80. We couldn't be happier. There aren't many things better in life than winning one of these games in the NCAA Tournament in March. I tell you, they are something special.

Q. I know yesterday was a special moment for you hitting that three. But you had a season high 28 points, double, double. Do you like this game better or what were your thoughts on that performance from your team today?
ZACH NORVELL JR.: I like this one a lot. Getting 12 rebounds is a big thing for me.

MARK FEW: He goes a month sometimes without getting a rebound.

ZACH NORVELL JR.: That was big for me. I always have confidence on the offensive end, but helping the guys on the board was big. Ohio State is a great rebounding team. Helping the bigs was great.

Q. It seemed like the entire stadium was cheering for you guys. How does it feel to have your fans travel so well, and the neutral fans seemed to be cheering for you guys?
JOSH PERKINS: As we all said before, we have the best fans in the country. For them to do that for us, especially when that run hit, we heard it, they stuck with us and we fed off the crowd. We stuck together, and the crowd was a big reason.

Q. Coach did a handstand in the locker room to celebrate. Is that a regular occurrence in a NCAA Tournament or all games?
JOSH PERKINS: When he does it, we're all happy. We want him to do it again so we can keep winning. He did it a couple of times last year, when Coach pulls out a handstand, it's a good performance team-wise, and we need to see it at least four more times.

Q. How are you enjoying this run now, these two games? How much are you enjoying being a part of March Madness?
ZACH NORVELL JR.: Sitting last year was big. Behind great guards, I learned a lot from those guys, and to be in the moment, to be out there is huge, being a competitor, and also being surrounded by a lot of guys that want to compete as well, is great.

Q. I have to know about the nickname "Snacks." Where did it come from, was it something when you were little and you told your teammates? How did they find out about it?
ZACH NORVELL JR.: Growing up all I wanted was candy and chocolate. Everybody called me "Snacks." On my recruiting visits my dad called me "Snacks." The coaches took it on and campus and everybody around the country calls me "Snacks."

Q. A lot of foul trouble for the bigs to get through. Looked like Rui played a big role.
JOHNATHAN WILLIAMS: Yes, our bigs have been doing a great job all year. Corey came off the bench and Rui did, too. They came off the bench for us.

Q. You guys were down 67-62, the game seemed to be swinging a little bit. But Zach hits that big corner 3. How big was that? That seemed to get you going.
JOSH PERKINS: That was a huge 3. This guy's making tough shots for us day-in and day-out. You saw one yesterday. But I've been seeing it the whole season. He hit that corner 3, and that was the spark plug we needed to get that run. I'm glad he took it and hope he takes some more in the future.

THE MODERATOR: Questions for Coach.

Q. Zach red-shirted last year. How happy are you to have him on the team?
MARK FEW: It's not just because of that it, it's because of the whole package, he's got a persona that we really need in our program right now, quite frankly. We have an overabundance of introverts, and that's one thing he's not. And so I call him our spiritual leader, he gets us going every practice, even the ones they don't want to be at.

And he's just a firey guy with some swag from Chicago, and we need that. And then you add in the fact that he's right there with probably one of the most clutch players I've ever coached, going back to Dan Dickau or Adam Morrison, he's got an amazing ability to -- the shot before the 3 missed by eight feet. I don't know if you remember that one. And to come back and swish the next one. That's like me shanking two into the water hole and then hitting a hole in one or something, which doesn't happen.

So he's got an impressive fortitude about him. And there's so many things to like, we're very blessed to have him.

Q. It seemed that you were able to sway a lot of neutral fans to cheer for your team. What is it about your team that makes them so likable and gets people behind them?
MARK FEW: I don't know, the neutral fans. Boise is a Zag-friendly place. We have a bunch of former players down here. I have tons of family down here. It meant everything to me to finally get my team to come down and play in Boise.

My father-in-law was a basketball player himself, played at the College of Idaho, and was just kind of a legendary humble man around here, and just absolutely loved the Zags more than anything. He passed away this summer. He missed it by six months. But I could feel his presence, looking down on us and smiling when Snacks and Rui hit that big 3.

It's special to do it in front of our family and former players. And like I said, this is definitely a Zag- friendly spot for us.

Q. What's up with the handstand thing? I've never seen that before.
MARK FEW: I did it a couple years back. It's not quite as prevalent as it was after I hit 50. And there's some rotator cuff issues that I worry about. But in the moment and the guys motivated me enough, I lose my mind and attempt it once in a while. This happened to be one of those times.

Q. It wasn't just Zach, Rui had a tremendous game, 25 points after the bench. How big is it to have a guy like that come off the bench and score that many points for you?
MARK FEW: It's a luxury to have. We have seven guys score 20 points this year. Again, I thought Corey Kispert came in and gave us good minutes. It was great to get Rui going again. I think he was disappointed with how he played Thursday.

Obviously I think we all knew he was going to play better, but for him to play this well was huge. We needed every point. We needed every rebound. And lost in all this was Perk. Josh Perkins has put two really, really solid games, kind of managing the throttle of our offense, and taking great care of the ball, two assists, two turnovers tonight, and he had a big shot.

Everybody hit the floor for us. We needed every basket, because they definitely pushed us to the limit.

Q. You mentioned Josh Perkins. How has his game evolved and improved over the course of the year as your point guard? He had struggles early on.
MARK FEW: Again, with Josh, Josh is as high a level shooter I think in the point position in college basketball. Him and Joe Barry are very similar to that. He's always had a little bit of flash and stuff to his game that he values probably more highly than he needs to. And I think he's really been able in the last -- since we dropped that home game to St. Mary's he's came eons from where he was as far as understanding winning plays and just figuring out who to get the ball to at the right time, when that guy is going or what the matchup is or hunting his own shot or getting us in the right sets at the right time and place.

That's been as big a key for this run we've been on is him understanding winning basketball as opposed to just and-one stuff.

Q. It seems like we're talking with streaks, four straight Sweet 16's. How much does that mean to you?
MARK FEW: Like I said, certainly there's some personal things out there in your life and family. But as far as professionally I can't think of any better feeling than winning games in March.

I was telling -- Leon Rice and I went out to dinner, the head coach here in Boise, any win in the NCAA Tournament I think is the hardest thing you do. They're harder than road games in league. They're really, really hard to come by.

And to be able to advance now to that second weekend, to get another -- we're guaranteed of at least five days more with our team with the hope of getting to that next week that many of us have experienced how special that is.

Along with that, somebody brought to my attention in the locker room that we've got two guys in Perkins and Silas that have made it to four straight second weekends. And with all this day and age with people leaving early and doing this and doing that, I don't know how many players in college basketball can say they've been a part of four straight second weekends. I know there's obviously some. But that's got to be some elite company.

Unbelievably proud of not just those guys but the whole team, but our whole program, the administration and everything. We've built this thing the right way. And we do have followers all over the country and it's because my guys are what college basketball is all about.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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NCAA MEN'S 1ST AND 2ND ROUNDS: BOISE

March 17, 2018

Mark Few

Johnathan Williams

Josh Perkins

Zach Norvell Jr.