NCAA MEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP: REGIONAL SEMIFINAL: CREIGHTON VS GONZAGA

March 28, 2021

Andrew Nembhard

Hinkle Fieldhouse

Gonzaga Bulldogs

Sweet 16 Postgame Media Conference

Gonzaga - 83, Creighton - 65

THE MODERATOR: We're now joined by Andrew Nembhard. Andrew scored 17 points and had 8 assists in the 83-65 victory over Creighton.

Q. Hi, Andrew. You guys just had an absolutely dominant passing performance tonight. Just how fun is it for you to be out there and dropping those dimes? Is it sometimes more satisfying than scoring a bucket?

ANDREW NEMBHARD: Yeah, I think that's been our identity all season. I think we play best when we're just moving the ball because we have so many pieces and so much versatility. It's just like playing a part with a bunch of guys that click so well. So it's been really fun.

Q. You look like your mindset was pretty clear, attack mode early on. Was that the case? And it looked like also they maybe were letting certain guys shoot the three ball, or at least daring you to shoot them.

ANDREW NEMBHARD: Yeah, yeah. Coach just told me to start the game off aggressive, and I think I was one of those guys and a few other guys were kind of getting dared to shoot. I think we came out, and we shot aggressive and shot confidently, and they went down early for us. So it was good.

Q. Hey, Andrew, I wanted to ask you about defense. You guys ran them off the three-point line, gave up only five, held them below their scoring average. For all the credit you guys get for offense, does your defense get overlooked? Do you think you're a better defensive team than people give you credit for?

ANDREW NEMBHARD: Most definitely. I think we're very overlooked defensively. When we have that side of the ball clicking is when we're really at our best. I think today we locked into the scout and changed up coverages. They had some great offense, and they were sticking with us at first, but we got a few kills, and that led to kind of our run and our lead. So definitely.

Q. Your brother committed to Creighton. You play for Gonzaga. What have the conversations been like leading up to this game? Any rivalry? Was he pulling for you? What was the deal there?

ANDREW NEMBHARD: Yeah, he's obviously always going to want to see me do well, and he's not there yet. So he's definitely rooting for me, but excited to see me play against his team. I think he's in great hands with those guys over there because they do a great job for sure.

Q. Hey, Andrew, when you first got to Gonzaga, you weren't even sure if you were going to be eligible to play. How easy was it to kind of assimilate into this team and into this offense?

ANDREW NEMBHARD: I think it was really easy, honestly, just because of how the team played and how I play. I think I can bring versatility. I can pass. I can score. So they can put me in different roles in every game. I can plug into different spots easily, and the way we run and move the ball so much, it's just easy -- really easy to fit in.

Q. I was actually going to ask you a similar question, so I'll change it up. Just wanted to ask you about the number of bounce passes you were able to make to guys today and how that all came together for you.

ANDREW NEMBHARD: Yeah, I think I was just reading the game, reading what the defense was giving to me. They were kind of putting two guys on the ball sometimes with the passes, pretty open. So just finding those guys going to the rim.

Q. Congrats on the win. It just seemed like, when you and Drew were on the court, it just seemed like it was effortless for you guys to create offense. Can you just speak to that connection you have with Drew and why it's so easy for you both to create offense.

ANDREW NEMBHARD: Yeah, I think our connection has grown this whole year, and I think that it's not even just our connection, it's just the way we move our parts off the ball, and guys can't get off of Corey when he's lifting. So it just -- the other guys make it so much easier for us to play that two-man game because they're moving and distracting the help side defense for sure. So it's basically two-on-two at that point.

Q. I know you've been through a lot of ups and downs in your basketball career, beginning all the way back to your high school year when you had your intestinal condition and then going through Florida. What does it mean to you, I guess, to kind of be able to persevere through all that and to perform on this stage?

ANDREW NEMBHARD: Just exciting, and I'm so grateful to kind of be able to be out there playing every day, especially with COVID this year too. It's just nice to see that I'm back on the court now and doing good things.

Q. I just have a question. You guys have all talked about the fact that the undefeated record doesn't mean much to you. It's more about winning the title, but I just wonder, as this has continued on for you guys, normally pressure ratchets up a bit, and you guys don't seem to be affected by that at all. I'm wondering what allows you to be as free as you are when, obviously, that's kind of hanging over you as a great accomplishment?

ANDREW NEMBHARD: I think we always talk about just being us. We're not too satisfied about winning a championship. What we do with each other and how we make each other better, that's what we're more satisfied with every day. So I don't think we see too much pressure in it.

Also, at this point, every team has to go undefeated now to win the tournament. So there's not really pressure to keep that streak. It just is what it is.

Q. I just wanted to ask you kind of what your takeaways and thoughts were going up against Marcus Zegarowski tonight, finished with 19 points, and there were some points throughout the game where he was really hot and getting his shots up. I just wanted to ask what your thoughts were playing against him.

ANDREW NEMBHARD: Yeah, I thought he was really good, honestly. I thought he was really quick. He got to his shots quick. He attracted multiple players at times. I thought Jalen did a really good job on him tonight. He's a tough guard. He's done really good for them.

Q. I've heard that your most challenging games are your in-house five-on-fives, and I know you guys are trying to stay humble here, but you just don't look like you've been tested yet. Is there something that you believe that exists with this team that would still surprise America, who are unfamiliar with you guys? Are there parts of your game that you have not had to unleash yet? I'm just wondering if you feel like you've exerted all the horsepower your team has to offer.

ANDREW NEMBHARD: No, I definitely don't. I think we always talk about just squeezing out that last 5 percent, especially at this point in the season. You can always get better. We can always work on things. We can always make adjustments. We always talk about expanding our package.

So I definitely think we're still improving and there's still work we can do.

Q. Hey, Andrew, I was watching Drew Timme's interview, and he talked about the mustache and how that's something he does just to keep things light and just make things a little more fun on the court.

THE MODERATOR: Everybody's asking about Drew Timme's mustache.

Q. Yeah. How much do those things help you guys to stay in focus and also stay kind of loose?

ANDREW NEMBHARD: Yeah, every time he has that 'stache, he's been playing well. I'm all for the 'stache, honestly. He's that type of person with that type of personality. It fits, and we're all for it at this point.

Q. Are there any other little things you guys do to also keep things light?

ANDREW NEMBHARD: I think just naturally, the way we warm up, the way we interact with each other, we always keep it light. We don't mix business with pleasure, but we know when we kind of have our time to have fun and have our time to kind of get locked in and focused.

Q. Andrew, so much has been made, Coach Few saying that he wants you to attack the game, attack the rim. In that first half, are you starting to learn the moments in the game when you can attack, assert yourself, and use your offense?

ANDREW NEMBHARD: Yeah, I think the biggest thing for me is to just stay aggressive at all times on the court. I think, when I get passive, it's not good for myself, and it's not good for the team. So Coach is always telling me to kind of be aggressive and look to score and look to the others involved. I think I've been doing that good lately.

Q. You have a lot of championship game experience. I believe you won a high school national championship and won a silver medal with Canada a few years ago. My question, what has your experience taught you about what it takes to win a championship?

ANDREW NEMBHARD: I think playing on good teams in the past, you just get the same feeling from playing on those teams and just the camaraderie and togetherness and the ability to fight through adversity. I think that's what I see in this team too. Yeah, that's really what it is.

Q. You guys have so many weapons offensive and defensively. Do you feel like you guys have even peaked yet?

ANDREW NEMBHARD: No, I don't think we have peaked. I think that, as I said earlier, we can always get better, and we can always work on our stuff. So I think that we're getting close, and we need to squeeze that 5 percent out that we talk about.

THE MODERATOR: Andrew, thanks so much for your time today. Greatly appreciate it.