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

March 21, 2021

Jay Wright

Bankers Life Fieldhouse

Villanova Wildcats

Postgame Media Conference

Villanova - 84, North Texas - 61

THE MODERATOR: We're joined by Coach Jay Wright from Villanova. We'll start with an opening statement from you, please.

COACH WRIGHT: I'd like to start by congratulating North Texas on a great season. And they're an outstanding team. We played well. And we made shots. When you make shots like that it's hard to beat anybody. But we really respect Coach Mack and his squad. And Javion Hamlet is a hell of a player.

Very proud of our guys. We have two captains left, Dhamir Cosby-Roundtree, our senior captain, and Collin Gillespie, our other senior captain, are home and Philly. Shout out to them. We miss them. And our other two captains are Jermaine Samuels and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, who since we got here have done an outstanding job of just demanding of our guys, focus on detail, attention to detail.

And they just started the game leading our guys defensively and rebounding and making the right plays. I think those two were really important to both the games we've played here. And we look forward to getting some practices together and trying to get better.

Q. When you guys were down early by eight, I think it was, what finally clicked in for you to, you know, kind of put the game, put the momentum back on your side?

COACH WRIGHT: You know, we had a plan going in defensively. And we knew that Hamlet was such a dynamic scorer. We knew we just might have to adjust. We didn't think we'd have to adjust that early. But Cole Swider came into the game and defensively started -- we changed our ball-screen coverage, put Cole in there. And Cole did a great job doubling him and getting back to his man. And then we got a couple of stops and hit some 3s in transition. And I thought that made a big difference.

Q. This was the first time you guys had shot over 50 percent since the Marquette game in February. What was it like to have the rims a little bigger tonight?

COACH WRIGHT: Everything looks great when the shots are going in, man. And I think our guys have learned to play through some games when our shots weren't going in. And I think that's important for us, you know? And so when this happens-- I think we played well enough defensively that if we weren't shooting like that we still would have had a shot at this game because I thought we were pretty good defensively. But it sure is nice when they're going in.

Q. Couple of Arch questions. Were there specific conversations pregame of if you've got it, you've got to take it? And then my second question is, just go back to Providence, pre-Providence, was there debate? Was there spirited discussion among the staff -- are we going with Arch, what are we doing after Collin's injury?

COACH WRIGHT: We definitely thought -- they have a really -- they've got a really unique defensive package where they don't play one guy and they help with him a lot. And we thought it might be Arch. And it was. And so he was ready. And he's a good shooter. It didn't surprise us. He's a good shooter.

But they wouldn't know that because they don't really get to see him play that much, you know? When Collin first went down we knew we'd use Arch. He's one of those guys at practice that we always say to him, just be ready Arch because we'll throw you in the game at any time. Because you know he knows what we're doing, he's tough, he's smart.

And I always would say to him during the season, Arch, just be ready. We don't play him on the first team in practice because he's always so good at running the other team's plays and it gives him great experience. And he was ready. He was ready for this. And our whole staff knew it.

Q. Coach Scott Drew is now made Sweet 12s, a pair of Elite Eights, but never a Final Four. If you're one of the people who thinks they have to beat the best to be the best, do you remember a specific win that changed the public view of your own program from just a great team to a serious championship contender? Maybe beating Duke in '09 or Kansas in 2016 or something like that?

COACH WRIGHT: Yeah, I mean, you know, I would think -- the Baylor program is very, very well-respected no matter what they do from here. And I think Scott knows that. We all know that in the basketball world. But I definitely get your question, because there is a different -- there's a public perception that is different. And I hope we're not the game that changes the public perception. But I get it.

They beat us a couple years ago in a tournament game in Myrtle Beach. Was that last year or two years ago? And I thought -- we were pretty good and they were better that day. So I can't really answer like what the media perception is, but I think in the basketball world they're very well respected.

Q. When you make this Sweet 16, this means you win the national championship, right, that's the way it works with Villanova?

COACH WRIGHT: I hope so, man. I don't remember all those types of stats, but I like when you guys bring them up.

Q. On a more serious question, I know it's probably hard to sum this up, but did it take the team a few games to learn how to play without Collin? Because it seems like every game it's gotten a little better. Is that your perception?

COACH WRIGHT: Definitely. And we did not play poorly against Georgetown. But they were playing great basketball. We played a great game. They hit two foul shots at the end to win it. So we felt like we were getting better.

And even the Providence game, we were down big at the half, second half we came back and played well. We felt like the second half of Providence, Georgetown we're getting better, getting better. As long as we can keep playing we can keep improving. And that definitely made a difference. And we're looking forward to a few days of practice here; I think we can get better.

Q. Could you go over your overall performance tonight, how everything was clicking tonight?

COACH WRIGHT: We were pretty good defensively. I think we did a good job. I think our guys are getting comfortable, our young guys are getting experience. And I think them coming off the bench -- like we had a session when Bryan Antoine came in, Cole Swider came in. And we brought Chris Arch back in and made a good run. And I think that was helping. And I think it was a really good offensive effort. We made shots, that always helps.

Q. You talked about learning from previous experiences. What can you tell your younger experiences who have never experienced it making it to the Sweet 16?

COACH WRIGHT: I think this is such a different year. In one way I feel bad for the guys because when you go to the Sweet 16 you get to go home and everybody's excited, there's a lot of hype and you get to rest a couple days. They're missing all that.

But on the other hand, these NCAA games are really valuable for our young guys, really valuable. And there's not the same -- there's not the same kind of pressure in a normal NCAA game without the crowds and people around you. There's not as many distractions. So I think it's pretty fortunate for our young guys.

Q. What are your initial thoughts about going up against Baylor?

COACH WRIGHT: They're awesome. We played them last year. And they've got all the same guys back and they beat us last year. And we lost the first-round draft pick. So we know how good they are. But we've got a few days of practice here, try to prepare.

And I just -- I think they've been one of the best teams in the country, them and Gonzaga, all year. So we'll get to play the best. And that's why you play in the NCAA Tournament. You look forward to these types of games.

Q. Just talking with Jermaine, he talked about the fact that he's not surprised by that next-man-up mentality playing out right now with this program. Obviously it's one thing to say it, but it's another thing for the culture to end up in the results. What can you say about what you've seen in the next-man-up mentality turning into those results for this program? And how much is it a testament to just the kind of guys you bring in?

COACH WRIGHT: It all comes down to the players. Like you said, you can talk about that, but when you get your opportunity, what do you do with it? And I'm very impressed. I can't say we're surprised. And I think that's what Jermaine's telling you. These guys work really hard in practice. You might not see a Chris Arcidiacono play a lot. Or you might not see a Bryan Antoine or Eric Dixon or even a guy like Trey Patterson, who got in tonight. You don't get to see them, but we do every day. And you see the improvement. You see the attention to detail.

And then they get their chance and they get their chance and they come through. That's what makes a player -- you've got to get it done and it's a tribute to these guys. They're talented guys, that they've got their opportunity in a really difficult situation and they produced.

Q. To that point, can you speak to where this team was about ten days ago when -- like you said, you played well against Georgetown, it was a tight game; they don't miss a free throw in that game, and you just fall short -- to where you are ten days later now in this role of advancing to the second weekend which surely is not something that's easy to do?

COACH WRIGHT: You know, publicly I can see the perception is that you got knocked out, you lost your last two games, you got knocked out in the first round, that's true. You are what your record is. But on the inside we knew we played a great second half against Providence. We knew we played a really good game against Georgetown, without Justin Moore having any practice being at 50 percent. We knew we were getting better.

Then we had great practices in New York. Our time spent in New York after getting beat by Georgetown, staying in the bubble there, practicing at Basketball City, we got a lot of good work in. We had three really hard days of practice. It's nice when it pays off for the guys. Sometimes you do that you play a Winthrop team, they hit 3s and you lose. But on the inside you've got to know you're getting better. But I'm really proud of these guys, really happy for them.

Q. You guyed faced adversity when you lost Collin. What does it say about the team to battle through that adversity and now make it to the Sweet 16?

A. Most importantly, we have really good players. It always comes down to that. It really does. We've got really good young players that stepped up when they got their opportunity. And we've got, I hate to say older, because Jeremiah is only a sophomore and Justin is only a sophomore, but Jermaine is a senior and Caleb Daniels, Brandon Slater and Swider are juniors. They're really good players.

And they just took it up a notch and they took more responsibility. And they got their opportunity and they proved themselves. It's a really beautiful thing in sports and as a coach when you get to see your guys do that.

Q. I think after the eight-point North Texas lead, I think you outscored them 34-6 the rest of the first half. In the tournament that seems like it's been reigning supreme by lower seeds and upsets, how great was it to go into the half with that big lead against a team that has played with that underdog mentality especially after that upset of Purdue on Friday?

COACH WRIGHT: There's an advantage to being an underdog in some sense in the NCAA Tournament, especially early in the tournament. Actually anytime in the tournament there's a little advantage. But there's a reason you're not the underdog. So I really thought getting Bryan Antoine and Cole Swider and Chris Arcidiacono coming back in, those three gave us great energy defensively and changed the game.

Because we got stops, we got out in transition, got some easy baskets, some easy 3s. In the beginning of the game we couldn't stop them. And Hamlet was just isolating us and scoring. We were going up against a very good North Texas set defense. But I thought those three coming into the game made a big difference and got us on the run.

Q. Can you speak to -- this is not the first time you've lost a player to injury in your long career -- but what goes into trying to reboot and readjust when a key guy like Collin goes down? And how much of that is technical in terms of putting your players in different spots, and how much of it is mental in kind of letting them know they can carry on and still keep the same success going?

COACH WRIGHT: You're right. It happens to everybody. Everybody loses players, every team. And it's happened to us a lot. But a guy like Collin, he's everything on the court for us. And then off the court he is, too. So there's a lot to it talking to Jermaine and Jeremiah about you're the only two captains left. Our other senior captain, Dhamir Cosby-Roundtree, is out for the season too. So you're the only captains left. A lot more responsibility on you guys. Talked to the juniors; you've got to step it up. You know what Collin does off the court. You guys have to do that.

Then there's a technical aspect when the guy you run your offense through is out, and you've got to change the focus of your offense. But most important is players, players have to step up. And we talk all year to our guys about the fact that you might not be playing right now but you know you're getting better every day. You know you're ready. So you never know when you'll get your chance; it might be next year, but you know you're ready.

And good teams have guys that are not playing but they're good enough to be playing; they just have better guys in front of them. I think that's what came down to it with our guys, guys that played like Chris Arcidiacono and Bryan Antoine and Eric Dixon. They've been ready and they're talented guys. And I think that's making a difference.

Q. You referenced obviously you have good players on the team; the cupboard is not bare. But how would you characterize this in terms of degree of difficulty for you coaching this year compared to maybe some other issues you've had over the years with the number of guys you've had go down?

COACH WRIGHT: This year -- you can't even compare this year to any other -- it's so crazy. I think at the end of the season you're going to hear a lot of coaches tell some crazy stories of what went on this year. And let's keep it in perspective. There's far more serious things going on -- people losing their jobs, their lives; it's way more serious. But in our tiny little basketball world it's craziness.

So all of our quarantines and then these injuries, it's been a crazy year. It's definitely the craziest year in our coaching career. But I think most of the coaches will say that to you.

Q. Obviously like you mentioned earlier, no going home in between first round, second round, Sweet 16, Elite Eight. What's the schedule going to be looking like this week?

COACH WRIGHT: You know what, I'm not sure. I was talking to our assistants. One of the things we definitely want to do is get these guys outside for a couple days. We literally -- the NCAA has done a great job here of setting everything up so you can schedule time outside at Victory Field. But the days we were scheduled it rained. And on the nice days we were busy with practice and game prep, we didn't get to do it. So we haven't been outside since Monday.

Definitely want to get these guys outside. We definitely want to get a couple practices in. We need it and we want it. Our guys are excited. A lot of times this time of year you just -- you don't want to practice anymore. It's a long year. But we missed so much practice this year, like, our guys literally enjoy practice. So I know we're going to do that. And I don't know when we're playing. So I don't know anything else about it.