NCAA MEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP: SECOND ROUND - NORTH TEXAS VS VILLANOVA

March 21, 2021

Jermaine Samuels

Bankers Life Fieldhouse

Villanova Wildcats

Postgame Media Conference

VIllanova - 84, North Texas - 61

Q. Did you expect Chris Arch to come out firing like that?

JERMAINE SAMUELS: Yeah, anytime -- Chris is always ready to fire. He just hasn't really got an opportunity to do the past couple of games because he's making plays for others. But Chris has always been ready and he's been working on it since he stepped into this program. So, yeah, glad to see him make shots.

Q. Was there some actual conversation -- go ahead and take it?

JERMAINE SAMUELS: No. That's just make a play. We trust him to make that play. He trusts himself 100 percent to make that play. And yes he just made shots.

Q. Want to ask about the overall game. I believe you guys made 15-of-33 and six turnovers. I know it's not perfect but is that about as perfect a game as you guys have played all season?

JERMAINE SAMUELS: It might be. That's not necessarily our goal. Our goal is to play Villanova basketball for 40 minutes. If shots go in, they go in. If they don't, we rely on playing defense. Tonight we made shots and we just move on and get ready for the next matchup.

Q. Can you talk about the overall performance of you guys tonight, just how things were clicking?

JERMAINE SAMUELS: Everybody was out to, you know, play Villanova basketball for 40 minutes. We'd been talking about it all the season, trying to be the best team by the end of the season and proving to each other we're all in this together. We're here to make plays for each other. And, again, we're playing 40 minutes of Villanova basketball. And I think everybody was going out there to execute that and prove that to each other all the way to the end of the game.

Q. How does it feel to make the Sweet 16?

JERMAINE SAMUELS: It's actually surreal. I haven't really thought about it, honestly. But it's pretty cool. I'm not going to lie.

Q. How do you think you guys have handled things so far in the bubble of Indy?

JERMAINE SAMUELS: I think we've been great. We've been laser focused and staying together and getting better at the same time. I'm not getting over these guys at all.

Q. How are you and your teammates passing time in the bubble? And how are you kind of staying in check in the controlled environment?

JERMAINE SAMUELS: We have dinners -- we see each other in our rooms. It's plenty of basketball to watch. But every time we have breakfast, lunch, dinner together, film sessions. So we're together a lot. And we're getting better every chance we can. And that's pretty much how we pass the time. And as far as protocols go, doing everything we're supposed to do. Staying out of harms way, sticking together and again remaining focused.

Q. Do you feel like the protocols are a help or a hindrance to kind of staying locked in heading into the Sweet 16?

JERMAINE SAMUELS: They're definitely a help. We've been doing it all year, basically. We've been in a tournament -- we've been in two tournaments where, you know, it's been lock down and we have to be careful what you do and stay close to each other. So we're pretty much used to it by now. And now it's all about just keep getting better as time goes on.

Q. This is the best shooting game you guys have had in about six weeks. What was it like out there tonight to pass to a teammate and know that there's a good chance they were going to make the shot?

JERMAINE SAMUELS: It felt great. I was more excited about, you know, just playing Villanova basketball, just proving it to each other on the defensive end, making extra plays for each other, making extra passes. Shots are always nice, but it's just that togetherness on the floor is more than just making shots.

Q. How are you and Jeremiah meshing? You guys are doing it all whether it's inside or passing on the perimeter. What's it been like lately?

JERMAINE SAMUELS: It's been great. Me and Jeremiah had that chemistry since last year. We try to build on it every day, be prepared for anything and try to make plays for each other. And he's a great person to have on our team especially for me he definitely makes life easier and I make life easier for him.

Q. When you guys fell behind in this game, North Texas gets off to that hot shooting start, you were down 17-11. Then you go on a 22-2 run. What changed on the defensive end?

JERMAINE SAMUELS: We refocused. We know they're a very, very offensive gifted team. They can make shots and make up points quickly. We knew it was going to be a grind. We got back to timeouts -- stick to Villanova basketball and stick to our core values and go back out there and execute. And the rest will take care of itself.

Q. When you think about this team's journey, I'm sure that these last couple of weeks, the wave of emotion, right, because of just how much of a heart and soul guy Collin is to your program, and I know you're playing for him every game. But can you speak to the last ten days, when you think about where this team was ten days ago on that Thursday in the Big East Tournament when you had just come short to Georgetown to now the fact that this team is about to go to the Sweet 16, what does it say about this group?

JERMAINE SAMUELS: It just proves our commitment to Villanova basketball. There's a lot of things that are going to happen throughout the season. It's a journey of a season but our goal every year, every time we step on the floor is to be the best Villanova basketball team by the end of the season. We may have gone through a little rough patches. But at the end of the day we were going to get better as the season went along. And that's still our mission to try to be the best Villanova basketball team by the end of the season.

Q. How big is it to see, I'm sure, everybody but particularly Caleb and Cole? They combined for 20 in this game. Just what's the emotion that you have seeing those guys find their groove here? And how important is it for this group to have that complementary scoring from those guys?

JERMAINE SAMUELS: I'm extremely happy for them. They worked their tails off all the time when no one's looking, even in practice, everything. So they deserve it. And those guys are a big help.

And going down the stretch and especially during March Madness, I know Caleb hasn't had a chance to be in March Madness. Cole was there with us my sophomore year, but he didn't really play too much. But just them having that experience and also contributing is everything to us.

Q. Can you sense that things are getting more normal -- I don't know if that's the right word, without Collin? In other words, over these last four games is there a sense that, okay, like, this sort of feels like we can continue doing this? Did you need some adjustment time?

JERMAINE SAMUELS: Yeah, definitely there was a big adjustment. But we always have this mentality that it's next man up. All the guys that are playing right now off the bench have been working since, I don't even know how long, since they stepped into the program -- Bryan, Archie and Eric Dixon. They've been working so hard and they've always been ready. So even though Collin does go down, we were ready to have those guys make an impact.

Q. I have a question regarding the job that Jay has done with Collin going down. How has he handled this, in your opinion? And how has he adjusted on the fly so late in the season? What kind of job do you think he's done, in your opinion?

JERMAINE SAMUELS: I think he's done a tremendous job of adapting. That's definitely not an easy situation especially Collin going down, one of our main guys. But they went back to the drawing board -- not just even just Coach, the entire coaching staff, all the assistants -- they went to the drawing board and tried to make things as simple as possible for us and making sure that the most important thing we do is go out there and play Villanova basketball. And that was going to be the bottom line, regardless.

Q. In the time that you've been around Jay, what are the things that stand out to you that just allows him to make these adjustments, to keep you guys confident and move forward when things like this happen?

JERMAINE SAMUELS: One thing is, the thing we always preach, attitude. There's no feeling sorry for ourselves. There's no being down on ourselves, blaming each other for anything, it's just the next challenge, next man up, and keeping that laser focus on trying to be the best team we can be. And whatever happens, happens. And that's just the mentality that he spread on to all of us as players through his mentality.

Q. Obviously North Texas came off an upset against Purdue in the first round. How did you guys approach what could have been a trap game for you guys? And how did you go from beating a 12 seed to beating a 13 seed in the second round?

JERMAINE SAMUELS: We just knew how explosive they were going to be as a team. Regardless, all of their guards and even their bigs all play together and make plays for each other, play extremely hard. And we knew -- I mean they beat Purdue, so they were going to come in hungry and ready to go. And the team is not a slouch at all. So they're there for a reason. They're a great team. And we were ready to accept the challenge.