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NCAA MEN'S 1ST AND 2ND ROUNDS: CHARLOTTEMarch 18, 2018Roy WilliamsJoel Berry IITheo PinsonCharlotte, North Carolina Texas A&M - 86 North Carolina - 65 ROY WILLIAMS: There's a hundred things I could say, and yet there's not a lot to say. We got beat by a team that played better than we did. Got beat by a team that the coach, head coach coached better than I did. These two guys up here have given me so many thrills and taken me on so many unbelievable rides. That's the overwhelming feeling that I have right now. It's one of sorrow and sadness because we didn't play as well as we wanted to play. I didn't picture it ending it like this. I pictured it ending with these guys having a huge smile on their face, but that's not college basketball. I congratulate Billy and his club. I told him I was really happy for him personally, and I meant that from the bottom of my heart. We had a difficult time. We went about a 6-minute stretch there where I was just figuring it up in the stat sheet we were 0-6 and three turnovers, 0-7 and three turnovers in a 6-minute stretch from like 11 minutes down to 1137, down to 6-something and five to six minute stretch there we weren't very good, and then we were playing from behind. And I've done a poor job of getting these guys in what they need to do at that point. So, it's -- again it's on me, but, you know, in coaching, you have some great, great moments. You have some tough ones. These two guys right here particularly been involved in some of the greatest moments I've ever had, and right now I'm very appreciative for them and I can't -- I can't think of anytime where I'm sadder. So, if you guys will ask the questions to the players first so they can hustle on back and get showered, that would be great. Q. Actually for both, as you guys know, fans are outpouring their love for you guys and thanking you for the years that you played. Marcus Paige just tweeted that, you know, he remembers you guys coming in as freshman, dancing and yelling and arguing 24/7. He thanked you guys for what you've done for UNC. What do you say to fans as your last time playing ball for UNC? JOEL BERRY II: I wish it wasn't my last time. I've had so much fun here and I really felt like coming to North Carolina really turned my life around and changed me into a young man. And I think that's the most important thing, and just thinking about coming freshman year and, you know, with a short haircut and not looking good on the court and then to now. I mean, I just got to thank my teammates and thank my coaches for believing in me and having the confidence in me. And like I said, just been a lot of fun. But, you know, everybody sees what happens on the court, but, you know, the biggest thing for our program is to -- well, for coaches to develop players and make -- get the best out of them, but also, at the same time, make sure that he's continuing the morals and values that our parents taught us when we were in high school. And that was the biggest thing that my mom wanted Coach to do, and I think that he did that for me. And so more than anything on the basketball court, I appreciate Coach for doing that. THEO PINSON: I don't really know what to say. I didn't take any of this for granted. I came in every day with a smile on my face, wanted everybody to have a smile on their face, even on the lowest of lows when we were going through stretches where we losing and always came in to try to be that spark as far as putting a smile on everybody's faces. I know we don't have that right now, but that's because the three up here are competitors. Everybody knows me, I'm -- I'm always smiling and stuff, but like this is tough but it's life. Q. Joel, you guys got off to a strong start and I believe was up 20 -- 13. What changed after that and brought on the stretch that Coach was talking about? JOEL BERRY II: Yeah. At the start of the game, we were getting to the basket, being aggressive, and that's what we wanted to do. And then we just started settling for outside shots and, you know, the 3 wasn't going in, but every time like we got the ball inside, we were getting some productive. And then on the offensive end, on the defense end for us, their big guys got going and it was just tough. It was tough to stop them and go shoot and outside shot and miss and come back down and get the ball inside and shoot it right at the basket. I think we just stopped being aggressive after we got the lead, and that's why everything turned around. Q. Roy, I apologize if this is repetitive, just back -- THE MODERATOR: Student-athletes first. Q. Does it feels, guys -- I was asking your teammates, they all said it feels less like the end of a season and more like the end of an era with you guys walking out. Does it feel that way for you as well? THEO PINSON: Just tough because me and Joel, we're the type of guys who really try to bring joy to everybody and we hope we did that. It wasn't like we was trying to. We just being ourselves. I want people to know that. It's like hope nobody thinks this was an act. This is me like. I want everybody to have a good time, enjoy the moment. Probably the main reason I'm not crying right now is because I've enjoyed every single moment I had with Coach, Joel, and all my teammates in the past, teammates in the locker room right now, just -- that's the hardest thing. I won't be able to get on a plane with them, five hours to L.A. to spend more time with them. It's over. That's the toughest part. It's tough. Q. Just in the locker room talking to Andrew and Brandon Robinson, Kenny, and some of the guys. They were talking about what they learned from you guys, seeing you kind of grow -- some of them just one year, some two years, seeing you guys grow and develop to become what you were going into this weekend. Do you guys have an understanding of how much you've taught these other guys, how much you passed on to them these last couple of years from work ethic to competing and all that kind of stuff? JOEL BERRY II: For me personally, I just tried to get them to understand that you got to put in the time and the work to be able to get what you want out of being at this program. And, you know, it's hard coming in as a freshman and trying to adjust to being on your own and trying to just being away from home and learning how to be an adult. Not everyone can do that. And, you know, you got freshman year I kind of took it for granted a little bit. Once I started realizing that I had to put in the time and it's what I love to do, I had to put in time for it. And that's when everything turned around for me. Hopefully more than anything, I just hope I can leave for those guys that, you know, if they want to get the best out of what they want to do, you have to put in the time and the effort out of anything. That's what I want to leave here and hopefully they can take that from me. THEO PINSON: Yeah. Like I said before, Coach -- like I said on senior night, he let me be me. Learned how to -- as far as when it's game time, I know the time and place when I need to be serious and the time where I can play around little bit just to keep everybody loose. I mean, that's not -- hasn't been that way since I've been here. As y'all say, we always loose. We won a national championships last year, probably as loose we've ever been. Just have fun playing the game. That's the biggest thing I try to teach the young guys, have fun playing the game and play for each other and the coaching staff. THE MODERATOR: Joel and Theo, thank you. Congratulations on a great year and a great career. Questions for coach. Q. Coach, the attachment to players is beyond evident. Talk about how this program is bigger than basketball, because even after they graduate they always gravitate back towards you. It's evident this program is much bigger than what's on this court. Can you talk about the bond that you built with these guys? ROY WILLIAMS: I hope it is. It's my dream, that's my goal. Best time as a coach is when you see your players accomplish something. It was really difficult to see the look on their faces. There's nothing better than that. Nobody has got any job anywhere anytime that's better than the feeling I have at those moments. I do try to coach the game of basketball, but I do try to tell them it's part of life too. I told them it's the most inadequate feeling I ever felt. Feel it all the time, last game of the year. I think I felt it more today than any other time. I'm not ashamed to say I love these kids and if you only had any idea how much fun that they have been for me, and three of the last four years have been very difficult and those kids were my salvation. They really were. Things were not pleasant. I didn't like what people were saying to me. Didn't like what they were saying about me. I didn't like getting a piece of mail that was addressed to "Mr. Cheating Bastard." Those kids in the court -- on the court, excuse me, were my salvation and you have no idea how much fun that was. And I don't want to be too dramatic, but that was hard for a long time there and those kids really, really made my day everyday. And I've been the luckiest man alive because I had kids that made me feel like what I said was halfway important and, you know, when I was a younger coach, you guys know me, shoot, I can cry at the drop of a handkerchief. I dropped it just a minute ago trying to wipe something away. I had a writer one time say that, you know, I guess we're going to watch Roy cry today. I told that sucker, "Don't tell me that to my face." He ran his ass out of the room quickly, too. That doesn't bother me in the least bit. If you're coaching and you try to give them something that can stick with them forever. That's always been really important to me. It's corny but that's always been really important. Q. Coach, how often do you think of retirement? ROY WILLIAMS: The last 30 minutes (laughter). You know, I don't do that, guys. I think about the next practice, the next game. One of my best friends in the world, Jerry Green, asked me when I was Coach Smith's assistant, what's your five-year or ten-year plan. I said never have one, never will have one. I try to coach and do the best I can today and hopefully get a chance to do the same thing again tomorrow. I realize I'm 67. I can't run up and down the sidelines, I can't get out and demonstrate like I used to. And I wasn't a very good player, but I could demonstrate what I wanted to. No, I don't think about that. I think about jumping off the top of the building right now, but I don't think of retirement. Q. Coach, how much satisfaction do you get out of watching two guys like that grow and mature and pass that on to the younger guys, the way they were just talking about in the locker room? ROY WILLIAMS: I get satisfaction out of that. I got a lot more satisfaction out of them talking about those things last year after we won, too. But I want to give them some things. My high school coach, you coach a guy and you see some things you gave him 30 minutes later. It's your job to make sure it's something positive. That's me. But I have a desperate -- probably not a good word -- I have a desperate desire to win and to see the looks on their faces and in that locker room as opposed to what I looked at a few moments ago. Q. Roy, why did their zone bother you so much? And when they weren't in it in the second half, did that surprise you a little bit? ROY WILLIAMS: Well, it bothered us a great deal, and I was surprised because we've handled some pretty good zones pretty well and we've shot the ball really well. I've always talked to you guys about having great balance. I thought that was the most important thing on the offensive end is being able to score inside and out. We've been way too far to the perimeter shot. Every big game in the NCAA Tournament every game gets a little bigger. Last year people thought it was an ugly game and it was if the only thing you care about is a field goal percentage. You're playing for the National Championship, there's a little pressure on the kids and perhaps my guys got a little more pressure today than I wanted them to have because we had a basketball -- being a basketball player at North Carolina carries some responsibility with it and -- no, you go back and look. I don't know that anybody has really hurt us with the zone. We didn't change anything last 48 hours. When the shots didn't go in early, I really jumped on them because we had never gotten the basketball inside and go 1-13 from 3 and then miss a wide open one the first or second possession of the second half and they make two of them. It's hard to keep the guys up. Q. Roy, your last answer sort of gives me a couple of questions. The first one being, when you talk about the pressure that a Carolina basketball player is feeling today, are we talking about a pressure that comes from within or are we talking about a pressure that came from Texas A&M? ROY WILLIAMS: Oh, I was talking about pressure comes from within. If we lose two games, people jumping off the boat and think we're about to go whacko or something. We stayed the course pretty much the whole time. There is, we've won. I like that pressure. People ask me does it bother me. Hell, there's no person ever -- my boss is sitting right down there and Chancellor, they've never put any pressure on me like I put on myself. No, I think you feel a responsibility. I feel -- I feel a tremendous responsibility to be successful, yes, but I do it to myself. Q. The dynamics that affected the game today, did you see Texas A&M -- did you find that their size affected you? ROY WILLIAMS: You watched the game. They blocked 70,000 shots. Come on now. It was a more difficult game for us inside, which we knew, but, let's make sure we don't do one thing, let's just don't say North Carolina screwed this up or North Carolina didn't do that. Texas A&M is pretty doggone good. They did some good things. What they did to us inside early in the game shocked us even though we knew they were good, because it shocked us because we weren't making outside shots and now all of a sudden I felt like I had kids looking at the scoreboard tonight more than I ever had kids in my life. Let's make sure we give Texas A&M credit, too. Q. Just a follow-up on that. Roy, did it feel like yesterday you saw a little bit of this coming in terms of the matchup for you guys and their size? I'm sure you take no solace in being right. It did seem like their interior play got the best of you. ROY WILLIAMS: They did. We've beaten people up over the years and the tables were reversed today. We've been able to mask the problem all year long by making enough jump shots and getting to the free throw line, doing some things. We weren't able to do that today. Joe, you see probably most of the games if not all the games this year. I'd say probably the only game where somebody just dramatically handled us inside or maybe at a higher level, but they were good. I tried to recruit Tyler Davis early and Robert Williams. Nobody jumps any higher and blocks more shots. I still think that Garrison, Sterling, Huff and Walker, they are -- those guys are going to be good players. I said a couple of times the last couple of weeks that the kind of guys we have, when they're juniors, sophomores, I'll say because that means next year, too, sophomores, juniors, seniors, they're able to handle some of the more gifted freshmen. Well, today they had guys that weren't gifted freshmen. Tyler and Robert have been around awhile. I think our guys are going to be good, but today was a fear. I guess we dodged it quite a bit all season long. Q. Coach, you play in a tough conference, one of the toughest conferences in America, and last week you had a grueling week getting all the way to the Championships game. Then you have to come back and do it again. Do you think that ever takes a toll on your team or maybe the teams in the conference based on what happened to Virginia and what happened to y'all today? ROY WILLIAMS: You know, I don't know. Maybe because I'm not that deep a thinker, but I didn't think we were -- we had fresh attitude or fresh legs, either one today. I told them I hate some things about summer basketball. I love other things because it gives kids a chance to be seen and far more positive than they are negative. I watched a game one time where one of my guys I eventually got made one of the stupidest blankety blankety plays before the end of the game and they lose. They come over and Coach says all right guys, grab your stuff, we're on court 3 in one hour. I don't like that because winning by God is important. If you make mistakes I want you to feel badly about it. It's more teaching and training, but I did feel like -- and one of the coaches even said they were acting like it's a summer league game. We got another game in an hour or so. I don't have an answer for why we didn't feel like we were at a high level physically. I don't have an answer for why we didn't feel like we were at a high level mentally. But I thought they had much more a workmanlike attitude than we did and really pretty early in the game. And that's my thought as a Coach. THE MODERATOR: Okay, Coach. Thank you. ROY WILLIAMS: Thank you, guys. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports   |
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