NCAA MEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP - FINAL FOUR: NORTH CAROLINA VS DUKE

March 31, 2022

RJ Davis

Caleb Love

Leaky Black

Brady Manek

Armando Bacot

Puff Johnson

Caesars Superdome

North Carolina Tar Heels

Semi-Finals Media Conference

THE MODERATOR: We're joined by student-athletes from North Carolina.

Q. Leaky, you're a North Carolina kid. Governor Cooper just declared North Carolina the center of the basketball universe. So I think you more than anybody would understand the significance of this game. Being from North Carolina, can you kind of speak to that? And what are you hearing from people from North Carolina that you may have grown up with regarding this matchup?

LEAKY BLACK: Honestly, I haven't really heard much because I stay off social media. I don't really see too much. But just walking around campus and stuff, it's all love and positivity. A lot of people just rooting for us.

Nobody really thought we'd get to this point. So just proving a lot of people wrong, seeing a lot of friends. They get bragging rights because they've always believed in this kind of thing. But other than that, I haven't really seen too much.

Q. Armando, I'm curious because there's a lot of people who say that that night at Cameron Indoor, when you guys go in there and beat Duke the way you did, served as a point to take off. Do you believe that that served as an igniter?

ARMANDO BACOT: No, I think all year our belief of how good we are never changed for us. I feel like more nationally, more like with the media and stuff. We finally got that quad 1 win, like a big-time win like that versus Duke, especially being at Duke. I think it made everyone believe in us. But for us we always had that belief. We may not have shown it but we always believed we were that good.

Q. Brady, being in the Final Four, obviously this is, I assume, what you transfer for. And I was hoping if you could speak about what the sport looks like to be able to go to a program like North Carolina and now be playing on the sport's biggest stage.

BRADY MANEK: It's special. When I decided to come here, I knew the history. I knew that North Carolina plays in big games. I didn't expect to be in this stage, but the way the year has gone, the last month and a half for us, it's been unbelievable. And we've been playing really well and we've earned it and that is why we are here.

Q. Could you each share some thoughts on Eric Hoots, what he's meant for the program and for you guys?

ARMANDO BACOT: Eric Hoots, he's really a staple of Carolina basketball, all that he's done for us and former players in the past. Nothing that we do will really be able to get done without him. He handles just about everything. That's why he's kind of the famous Eric Hoots.

BRADY MANEK: He's big-time. You need something done, you go to him. He's always willing to help us. He's just a really, really caring dude and puts everybody else first.

LEAKY BLACK: Pretty much what they said. He really handles everything. He doesn't really get tired of it. He's really the man for the job.

Q. Leaky, you've been around Coach Davis a good while now. I'm curious what your thoughts are about how he's handled the challenges of a first-year coach of getting you guys to this point. And also he's someone that's played in Final Four for North Carolina. How much value is there experience for you guys knowing he's been in your shoes?

LEAKY BLACK: His experience is a lot. Because when we get rattled, he just reminds us he's been in that position before. He just gets us under control. We're not too big for the moment. All the work that we put in with him is for that moment, (indiscernible) kind of thing. He knows how to get us under control.

Q. After you finally landed last night, after that interesting plane flight you guys had, what was the first, oh, wow, Final Four kind of moment that you guys experienced since you got here?

LEAKY BLACK: I guess when we pulled up to the hotel, there was a lot of people out there waiting for us to get off the bus in the hotel lobby. For me that was pretty much it.

BRADY MANEK: At the same time, just a lot of cameras, a lot of people, a lot of excitement around our team and us arriving. It was really cool to see.

ARMANDO BACOT: What they said, the arrival was pretty surprising having all those people there because we don't play until Saturday. I think it kind of caught all of us offguard.

Q. Brady, you have the assignment to guard Banchero in that game at Cameron. What did you take out of that you will apply on Saturday?

BRADY MANEK: He's a really good player. He's tough. He shoots it well. He drives it well. He's a big guy. He's hard to guard. So just trying to limit as much as possible and just play hard.

Q. Armando, you guys are each a different class, but how much intersection, interaction on the court did you have with David McCormack and Mark Williams as you were coming up through Virginia basketball?

ARMANDO BACOT: I've been knowing all of them since middle school. We've all played on the same AAU team. At some point we all played with each other on the same team. So I guess it's kind of cool just to see all of us make it to the Final Four and be the big man for each team. And we're definitely all going into the weekend to come out with the bragging rights.

Q. What do you think the atmosphere will be like Saturday night, not only the Final Four, obviously, first time Duke, Carolina here in the NCAA Tournament? What do you just expect the atmosphere to be like?

ARMANDO BACOT: I don't really know what to expect. I know it's going to be sold out. I know it's going to be a high-stakes game with it being Carolina versus Duke game. But I think that's just the great part. We really don't know what to expect. But it will definitely be a lot of fun.

BRADY MANEK: I think the biggest thing for this is that we're in the Final Four. No matter who we would have been playing, who we will play, I mean, I think the games are going to be big no matter what. So I think just being in the Final Four brings that attention, and then Duke-North Carolina game, it just brings it even more.

Q. Leaky, does it make a difference that it's Duke?

LEAKY BLACK: Does it make a difference it's Duke? No. At the end we're at the Final Four. We came here for one thing, that's to bring something home. And no matter who we're playing, that's our goal.

Q. Brady, can you just take me through yesterday's travel experience? You guys get stuck on 40, the stairs, the weather. What was that whole thing for you guys?

BRADY MANEK: It was long. I was asleep for most of it. It was pretty long. A lot of sitting around, waiting, anticipation of just getting here. It's been good, though. We're here. We're ready to play.

Q. I'm curious, guys, you know what's out there. Everybody talking about the opposition and the last ride for that head coach. It's the first ride for your head coach. What is it about playing for Hubert Davis that we don't know enough about that you guys get to see from him day in, day out?

LEAKY BLACK: Playing for a guy like him, he really just is hell of a motivator. He'll get you just like pumped up and ready to run through a brick wall for him. He's not really an X and O's kind of guy. He's a motivator. That's my biggest thing with him.

BRADY MANEK: His passion for the school, for the game of basketball, it's unmatched. He brings it every day. He brings it to every practice, every shoot-around, every game. And like Leaky said, he gets you motivated and he can get you ready to go.

ARMANDO BACOT: I would say also just how great of a coach he is. And I think possibly he could probably go down as one of the greatest coaches of all time. Him being like a extension of Coach Smith and Coach Williams, how he kind of revolutionizes Carolina basketball as a whole, I think is something really good to look forward to.

Q. Armando, how much did you hear that you guys were soft earlier in the year? How much did that motivate you or did it not really affect you guys?

ARMANDO BACOT: When you said it, it definitely pissed us all off. I'm not going to lie. Yeah, it was something -- it was kind of upsetting just because I didn't think we were really a soft team; I think we just weren't playing together. We were going through tough stretches and growing pains as a team. We have a lot of new faces, a lot of new players, new system we were implementing. We were just really figuring it out.

But I feel like even getting to this point we just showed how much farther we are from being a soft team. We're probably actually the toughest team.

Q. I'll take credit or blame or whatever. I deserve it. When did it flip? When do you think it flipped? Obviously March 5th was a big one for your guys' confidence, but it seemed to flip a little bit before that.

ARMANDO BACOT: I would just say kind of just after the Wake Forest game. Just it was a lot of tough stretches. Like I said, we just weren't playing together defensively. We were just worried about stopping our man versus playing team basketball.

Offensively we were playing hero ball, just not playing together, not making extra passes, not setting the screen and rolling certain ways just because we didn't think we'd get the ball, just little things like that.

I think after that we said, we just drew the line and said we have to stop being selfish. In order for us to get it done we have to play together as a team. And I feel that's what's been helping us and getting us to this point.

Q. Hubert has all these sayings -- "energy, effort toughness," "everyone gets an opportunity," "coaching is missionary work." Leaky, you mentioned one, like bejeebies the other day. What do you guys think of all these sayings he has and how do they resonate with you?

LEAKY BLACK: At first I thought it was kind of goofy. Hearing bejeebies for the first time, it was kind of weird. But right now we don't really pay too much attention to it. We pretty much get the message. And that's pretty much it.

BRADY MANEK: At the beginning of the year, he was very repetitive on certain things, like the things you were saying. And you don't really know where he's going with that.

But the last month, month and a half, we've really bought into what he's been saying. And it's all been making sense. We all have to play together. We've all gotta play smart. We've all got to bring our toughness to every game. So he's been doing it for a reason the whole time.

Q. Caleb, could you describe the mentality it takes to do what you've done in some of these games where the first half maybe you don't shoot well and then you get going. The Syracuse game you went the whole game you couldn't hit anything then came through in the clutch. How do you do something like that and be successful?

CALEB LOVE: Never losing your confidence, I know how much work I put in and how much time I put in the gym. I feel like my confidence never wavers, that I know that I can come up big in late moments and do what I do.

Q. RJ, some of your teammates were just talking about Coach Davis and just the way he talks to you guys and just a guy who played here and coached here. Are there any stories that stick out in your mind that he's related to you about kind of his playing days and whether it's in a Final Four or just playing Duke or some other moments that resonated with you?

RJ DAVIS: I would say his stories about his time as a UNC player. His times as -- when he was in in the NBA playing for the Knicks, just the motivation and the passion he played with. And his personality is like a dog mentality.

I think when he speaks to us, it definitely gets us motivated, when he's telling the stories and definitely gets us fired up to play. We definitely appreciate him relating those stories to us.

Q. RJ and Caleb, Coach has talked earlier this year a few times about how you guys had trouble dealing with prosperity. You'd play well for a week or so and something would happen. Have you gotten to a point where you don't have to worry about prosperity, especially given the fact what you achieved the other day and the stage that you're on now?

CALEB LOVE: Just not getting complacent. I feel like in the beginning, the middle of the season we'll win a couple games and get complacent or relax and feel like we've got it made. Just knowing that next game mentality and not getting satisfied with winning big games or winning a few games in a row. I feel like Coach Davis put that in our mentality. And ever since then, after the Miami and Wake Forest game, it just shifted.

RJ DAVIS: To piggyback on what Caleb said, he's always preaching our practice, our preparation, our play. I think we really took that and put it in our minds and carried it along the way. Right now we're just working on our preparation, getting ready for the next game. I think that's carried on how well we're playing successfully as a team.

Q. There's been a lot of buzz on social media lately as far as Carolina potentially being the Cinderella team that's appeared in three of the last six Final Fours. Is it a fair assumption to say that Carolina is a Cinderella in this year's Final Four?

PUFF JOHNSON: Honestly I don't think we're a Cinderella team because I knew from the beginning of the season that I felt we could do this as a team. Honestly, throughout the whole season, we knew we were capable of making it this far. So in our eyes, I don't feel like we're a Cinderella team.

Q. Hubert's got these sayings like "energy, effort and toughness," "practice, preparation and play," "everyone gets an opportunity." What do you think of those sayings and how they resonate with you?

CALEB LOVE: It's just building our mentality and every time he says something, it resonates with us. And we just try to -- he always talks about playing with his personality. And his personality is competing and showing up every game and showing up every time we're on the court.

So I feel like him giving us those sayings, like I said, it resonates with us and we go out and show it on the court.

PUFF JOHNSON: Going on what Caleb said about playing with his personality, I think it's big for us, just because he's real fiery and real emotional. And I feel like when we carry that onto the court, that's when we play our best basketball.

Q. RJ, I know you faced him twice already this year, but to be on the Final Four stage, what's it going to be like to see your old high school teammate there on such a big stage and facing him?

RJ DAVIS: I mean, it's crazy just to go from high school teammates to now, being in the biggest rivalry in college basketball. It's just another game for me, another day in the office. But at the same time I know what me and my teammates have done to get here. It's good to see a high school former teammate. But now we're going against each other.

Q. How often did you guys talk this year? How much do you guys think you helped each other in high school get to this point?

RJ DAVIS: We haven't talked often, a lot this year. But just to see our growth from high school to now, this is amazing.

Q. Puff, how have things been for you? For the way you gained your role in the middle of the season to this ride now, how have things been for you and how have you kind of taken on this whirlwind?

PUFF JOHNSON: Since the beginning of the season, and ever since playing basketball, my big thing is just trying to help the team in any way possible, whatever Coach needs.

And I'm not real focused on stats or anything like that. My big thing is just trying to make winning plays and plays that will help our team at the end of the day have more points than other teams. That's a big thing I try to pride myself on.

Q. RJ, if you asked players what the turning point was in the season, some say the Wake, after the Wake game, some say the Pitt game, the Duke game in Cameron. In your mind when did things really change for you guys?

RJ DAVIS: I would say the Syracuse game. That was, like, a gut-out win. It was a down-to-the-wire kind of game. I think that's when things really started to turn for us. After that we played Duke. We played together as a team that game. We executed plays down the stretch and maintained our composure. I would say that was a turning point for the season.

Q. Obviously you guys saw what the team was last year, and I think your Coach has mentioned that there was maybe some veteran pieces missing in the sense that you're kind of learning the ropes on how to play your position by yourself. When you add somebody like Brady Manek, who has experience with another team but has that veteran leadership and has the tournament experience, what kind of extra element has he brought to the team both down the stretch of the season and also in the NCAA Tournament?

CALEB LOVE: Having Brady is amazing all year. He opens up the floor a lot because he can shoot the ball so well. And so it opens up everything, driving lanes and stuff like that. So I feel like him being with us has been nothing but great. And I'm grateful to have him as a teammate because he does make winning plays, and he does compete every time he's on the floor. He's probably one of the most competitive players I've played with. So just having him has been great all year.

RJ DAVIS: Brady is a one-of-a-kind kind of player, the way he can shoot the ball. He's hard to guard, the way he moves well without the ball. It's been great having him, not just on the court but off the court. His personality brings a lot of laughter throughout the locker room. And I'm happy that he came to UNC. And I'm happy to be his teammate.