NCAA MEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP: FIRST ROUND - BOISE STATE VS NORTHWESTERN

March 15, 2023

Chris Collins

Chase Audige

Boo Buie

Golden 1 Center

Northwestern Wildcats

Media Conference

THE MODERATOR: Our next group of student-athletes representing Northwestern are here.

Gentlemen, welcome to Sacramento. I have one question. Northwestern, such a great institution, you had a really, really good year this year. Even some games that you didn't win, you played close. Was there any one factor that you felt as players that the team kind of came together and really gelled?

CHASE AUDIGE: I think it's just our experience. I think the seniors on the team, we've been together all four years. The new guys we brought in really kind of bought into the leadership and everything that the coaches and we wanted as a team.

I just think our togetherness, everything about stuff that happened in the past, has brought us together more. I think we kind of just took that into the year, in the summer when we started. I think it just kind of carried us through the whole year.

THE MODERATOR: Questions.

Q. Why are you guys so good defensively? Your numbers, percentages, what makes you tough defensively?

BOO BUIE: Yeah, I just think, like he was saying, it's our connectedness, the leadership, the coaching. We really, really dwell on our defense and take pride in it. Our defense requires all five guys to be out there and be connected.

When we're dialed in, we can really make it hard for the other team to score. We just try to do the best job we can helping one another out and just having each other's backs.

Q. What are your thoughts on the Boise State, what they do well, the challenges they present tomorrow?

CHASE AUDIGE: Definitely a really good team. Everybody playing in the tournament is a really good team.

I mean, the Mountain West is a great league, they have great players on their team. They definitely do play a little bit different than the teams we played in the Big Ten.

I think we just got to stick to our principles, do the things that the coaches want to change up for this game offensively and defensively.

I think it's going to be a great game. Both teams are great defensively. They're an older team, play tough. I think it's going to be a great and fun game to play in.

Q. Chase, the game against Penn State, how do you mentally rebound after a night where maybe your shooting is off? How do you reset? What do you do to reset?

CHASE AUDIGE: I think it's just confidence. I think good game, bad game, I believe in myself and my abilities, whether I play well offensively or whatever, I'm going to play the game the right way. I'm going to play hard, do what I got to do, be a good teammate, just trust my work. I put in a lot of work. We all put in a lot of work as a team, as individuals. Just go out there and trust that, see how the cards fall.

Q. This was a big year for the program, especially for Coach Collins who many thought his job security came into question. Did you feel coming into this year you had to play for him, play to keep him in his position at all?

BOO BUIE: Coming into this year, I wouldn't say that we were looking at it that way at all. There was definitely rumors and things being talked about.

I think just in the seniors alone, in the guys returning with this group, along with the coaches, we kind of just banded together and decided we were going to create something that was super special, that no one on the outside looking in thought would be possible.

From the moment the season ended last year until where we are now, Coach has kind of just made the statement of this is who we are, this is what we do, we're going to do anything we have to do to prove people wrong.

You know, it wasn't we're playing for him or he's coaching for himself. It was just a collective group effort of we're going to do this thing. That's what happened.

Q. Chase, you look at you guys' numbers on the season. You hold teams under 65 points, you're 20-1. If you allow them over that, I think you're 1-10. Why is that such a magic number for you guys?

CHASE AUDIGE: I honestly never did know that stat until you just said it (smiling).

I think it's just kind of what you just kind of alluded to. Our defense is such a big part of our game. Some nights we struggle. At the end of the day we got to bring our defense no matter where we go. I mean, I don't really know why it's 65, whatever that number is.

I think in the past if we hold teams under 60, then things usually end up being good for us. That's usually our goal, to hold teams as low as possible, especially half to half, each four segments of the game. Crazy stat. I don't know. Just got to do what we got to do.

Q. Boo, you've spoken before about how you kind of came into this with a chip on your shoulder a little bit. Can you describe how that has prompted not only your development but this season for you?

BOO BUIE: Yeah, I mean, I've always kind of came in with a chip on my shoulder ever since coming in as a player from high school, just being super under-recruited alone.

But I feel like this year, based off of last season, we had a couple games where it was close, and we ended up losing them late down the stretch. Had we won three or four more games last year, we would have made the tournament.

Just coming in with that chip, knowing if those games go differently, we make the tournament. I feel like everybody on the team came in with that chip and attitude. Now is the time, there's no more time to wait. The chip hasn't gone anywhere. We're still coming into this tournament with that chip. Win or lose, we're always going to have that chip on our shoulder. We're the same team we started out in the pre-season that no one believed in. We're just going to continue to prove people wrong.

Q. Chase, you mentioned they play a little bit different than some teams you played. Can you describe what you mean by that. Boo, can you comment on what you're seeing from Boise State.

CHASE AUDIGE: All five of their starters are in double figures. They're a very balanced team. Even if their leader scorer, Degenhart, he's a good player, but their go-to guy is the point guard most of the time. They are very balanced. They run a lot of actions, different stuff that, like I said, is different than what we've seen in the Big Ten.

I think it's nothing that we're not ready for. I think it's going to be a fun game.

Q. Boo, you provide your team with almost 25% of their scoring. How do you deal with that pressure? It certainly seems like you have a smoothness to your game. How do you deal with that pressure when you're struggling to score the basketball?

BOO BUIE: Yeah, I mean, I kind of just try to make the right play every single time. I have the ball a lot, so... If teams are trying to take me away, then the play is to pass the ball.

If I can get to my spot, get to one of my shots, I'll do that, as well. I think everybody has done a good job, guys have found me, I try to find guys.

Like, we always pride ourselves on defense because you know offense hasn't been super great for us this year. Has gotten better. So we kind of all just come into the mindset of getting stops and letting the offense come.

I kind of just let the game come to me, try to get my teammates involved. I think they do the same, so...

Q. You and Boise State alike have great defensive metrics. Do you get excited about the prospect of this being a defensive slugfest?

BOO BUIE: I get real excited. I think it's going to be a fun game. We got a lot of things in common with Boise State, older team, a lot of guys scoring around that 10-point area. Then we're both defensive-minded teams. It's going to be a battle of the defense.

Q. Boo, could you tell me what you see out of Boise State point guard Marcus Shaver Jr.

BOO BUIE: I see an older player, smart point guard. He leads the team. Just controls them. Try to pick up pressure a little bit, yeah. That's what I know from him. Not really much different than anybody I haven't seen, so... Ready to go.

THE MODERATOR: Gentlemen, thank you.

We're joined by Northwestern coach Chris Collins.

Chris, welcome to town.

CHRIS COLLINS: Thank you. We're excited to be here, excited to compete in the NCAA tournament. Great time of year.

THE MODERATOR: In your opinion, was there a turning point in your season that you knew you had improved from the beginning of the year?

CHRIS COLLINS: I think our early slate in the non-conference was incredibly important for us. We had lost a couple of our big guys, but we still had a lot of guys returning. There were a lot of guys in new roles.

We had our early-season tournament in Cancun, Mexico. We played a really tough Auburn team that's going to be in the NCAA tournament. Lost a one-point game.

Just watching our team out there, the way they competed, we played Liberty and beat them first game. To see how we competed in those two games, then to come home and about two weeks later we went up to Michigan State and won our first conference game at Michigan State. I think kind of during that time period as we saw my team, the kind of grit and toughness, how we were evolving as a team, I said, We have something here. We got to keep improving, keep getting better, but we have a good group, a connected group. This is a group that can be a good team if they continue to improve, which we did.

Obviously really proud of how we were able to accomplish during the regular season in the Big Ten and put ourselves in a position to be out here.

THE MODERATOR: Questions for Coach Collins.

Q. You've had a couple days to look at Boise State. What stands out to you about them?

CHRIS COLLINS: I think the thing I'm most impressed with is their balance. Obviously it's an older team, a tough-minded team, really good defensively. I think you're going to have two defensive-minded groups that have really taken pride in that side of the floor.

Any time you're playing a team that has five guys averaging over double figures, it's harder to defend. A lot of times you might have two guys or three guys that get the bulk of the shots and you can play around that. These guys, it's game to game. Shaver could have a big game, Rice gets 25 to 30. Obviously Degenhart is a terrific player, inside, outside big who can do a little bit of everything. Smith can do what he does. Agbo makes threes.

They present a challenge having five guys on the floor that can score. You have to be connected on the defensive end, locked into what they're doing. They run different stuff. They're a connected group. Just an older, tough-minded, winning -- you can tell they're a winning program. They do what's necessary to win games.

I think we know we're going to have our hands full with that. They're a really tough team. Leon does a great job. It's going to be a tough game for us, for sure.

Q. There were a lot of hot takes coming into this season about job security. I'm curious, if it's true, you were coaching for your job this year?

CHRIS COLLINS: I never viewed it like that. I'm super competitive. I never -- that narrative. It was about being best for my guys. Every year I've always had the approach, Just do your best, can you be at your best for your team. I know that kind of became the public narrative and perception. I never felt that.

Coaches always put pressure on themselves. That's what we do. We put pressure on ourselves to be at our very best, to help our guys be successful out on the court.

Obviously we had a couple years where we didn't get over the hump. Last year was frustrating because I felt we had enough talent and we didn't get there.

We were anxious to get into the year this year, get after it, kind of prove that we could win.

I never felt like it was make or break in any situation. I was trying to be at the best for our guys and do our best as a staff to help them win.

Q. What is it about this team, yourself included, that you feel like makes them so great at responding to pressure? This was a pressure year.

CHRIS COLLINS: I just think your experiences. We haven't an older group. Our two guards, Boo and Chase, have been three- and four-year starters. Robbie Beran has been a four-year starter. Ty Berry, Matt Nicholson. They're older guys. They've been through a lot. They've been through some wins, but also been through some tough times, losing streaks, negative noise from the outside. You got to learn how to deal with that and hopefully use it as fire and as fuel to get better, to get to the other side.

I think our team really rallied around each other this year. The kind of noise around that we couldn't do it. It was a nice rallying cry because we believed we could. That was great. We went out there, we didn't listen to what people were saying about us, we didn't listen to pre-season prognostications. Let's focus on getting better, what we can do, let's go out there and win.

It's such a great thing for these guys because they're the ones that have put in the time, they're the ones that have done it. To go out there and have the season we've had, put ourselves in position to be out here, has made it really special for me as a coach.

Q. You mentioned Max Rice's name. When he makes threes, Boise State is a tough team to beat. What have you seen out of him and what he brings to this Boise State team?

CHRIS COLLINS: Typical coach's son. He's really smart. He's tough. Can really shoot the ball. I mean, obviously had a chance over the last three days to watch a lot of their films.

He's scary because he's one of these guys if he hits one, I've seen him go on a run, four, five in a row. I just watched their last home game against San Diego State, all of a sudden he scored 15 in a row in the second half to kind of single-handedly win the game.

You have to be accountable for him at all times. You have to make sure you're there when he catches the ball. He's so crafty. Stay down, make sure you don't foul him. He's a good player, really good scorer. I've been impressed watching him on film these last few days.

Q. It seems like points are going to be tough to come by. Both teams are outstanding defensively. How do you see your team getting points? What is your offense?

CHRIS COLLINS: I think they're so good, when you allow them to set their defense. So we have to do a good job in those instances of executing and making the right reads, right passes, certainly making some shots. That's been a struggle for us at times. We've had our problems on the offensive end in terms of shooting the ball.

I also think opportunistically can we get out in the open floor a little bit. Can we force some turnovers or long rebound where you might have a four-on-three or a numerical advantage where you can attack. I think both teams, if you let their defenses get set, it becomes harder. I'm sure the same thing with them.

If you can opportunistically find ways, out-of-bounds plays, what you call kind of special teams, any time you're playing in a game where points are hard to come by, you have to maximize every opportunity. The margin for error is slim because you know it's not going to be a super high-possession game. I think both teams realize that.

I want our guys to be ready to attack when they have numbers and attack the open court. When you have a good shot, you got to take it. When you play against good defensive teams, if you don't take the shot that's available, you might not get another good shot.

I think those are going to be all things that are really important in this game.

Q. When it comes to Boo, we talked about pressure and stuff. How much does he put on his shoulders to be your guys' scoring presence on offense? Overall, what has he meant for your program? I'm assuming you probably wouldn't be here without him.

CHRIS COLLINS: It's been a great not transformation but evolution of his game. We gave him the ball when he was a freshman. Lived through some of those freshman year point guard in the Big Ten. There were nights you saw talent, nights you saw a lot of turnovers and bad shots. Every year he got a little bit better with his decision-making, his maturity, his leadership. Now it's all kind of come to fruition here his senior year.

He's been our leader, obviously scoring-wise, making plays. There's a lot on his plate. That's what great players want. The really good players, like I've said, when you get to this point, the really good players need to play well in the NCAA tournament. You need your better guys to step up and play well in order to advance. I know he's looking forward. It's his first chance to play in the NCAA tournament. It's been a lot of work, a lot of ups and downs along the way. But now to be here in his senior year, I know it means a lot to him. I know he's excited to compete.

Q. I want to ask about Tydus. He's an area guy, from Manteca, just about an hour south of here. What does he bring to the court and the team? How special is it for you as his coach to see him wrap up his career in the NCAA tournament in more or less his hometown?

CHRIS COLLINS: Yeah, Tydus has really been a great addition for our program. It's no mistake, we lost our two bigs at the end of last year, Pete Nance and Ryan Young played all the minutes. They graduated, moved on. Coming into the year, that was going to be the biggest unknown. We knew we had our guards back, some of our wings. What was going to happen on the front court.

Tydus along with Matthew Nicholson have really stepped up and done a great job of filling that void, playing to their strengths. I'm excited for Tydus, the grad transfer, he's a great, high-character guy. He fit in seamlessly, been great for our program, he's been a great veteran for our guys who has played a lot of basketball.

For him now to come home, at the end of his career, play close to home, he was one happy guy. Had a big smile on his face when Sacramento popped up. He's been telling all the guys until we got here what it was going to be like coming out. I know he's going to have a lot of friends and family.

It's great. He hasn't played in an NCAA tournament either. This is a first for him. To do that in your hometown is pretty special.

Q. Obviously there's a lot of fanfare when you came to the tournament for the first time six years ago. How is it different this time? What do you need to do to make it more regular?

CHRIS COLLINS: I think it's equally as exciting. The first time, there's nothing like a first time. Historically, for the history of the program, first time in whatever, 75 years, it was almost like going to a Final Four or a national championship for a lot of our fans, the people involved in our program.

We haven't been back in the last five years. That was frustrating. We weren't able to sustain that level. But we've worked really hard to kind of rebuild it with a new group. None of those players that played on that team are on this team. It's the first time for this group, which to see their smiles, to see their joy, to see their excitement, that keeps you energetic as a coach.

Obviously we're here to compete and we're locked in on finishing this season out. But it's going to be certainly important for us to try to work just as hard to be able to sustain what we weren't able to do last time.

We'll draw upon our experiences as we head into the off-season and certainly try to keep our group together the best we can and continue to add to our team, try to make it where it's a more regular appearance.

I think coming a second time, it's gratifying because if you go once, it's great, but it can almost be like kind of the one-hit-wonder type of deal. To be able to now stamp it and be back a second time, hopefully that will help us as we continue to build for the future.

Q. Chase, his game against Penn State was not reflective of what he's truly capable of offensively. How do you see him respond to games like that?

CHRIS COLLINS: Yeah, I think the great thing about Chase is he's a super confident player. He's been one to kind of get amnesia about having a tough night, which is great. That's what you want with a really good player, is to be able to learn maybe from what you saw, maybe what a team did to you. He had some looks he normally makes that I'm confident he'll knock down tomorrow.

He's been in a good mindset. He's had a couple of good days practice. All of us, once you get through the regular season, your conference tournament, it's a new lease on life. It's a national tournament, a fresh start for everybody.

I'm just confident he's going to bounce back. He's a tough-minded guy. Obviously we're going to need him. He and Boo are two huge parts of our team. We're at our best when they're playing at their best.

I know he's going to bounce back, he's excited. I don't want him to put pressure on himself. I want him to go out there, throw himself into competing, take what the defense gives him, then do what he does defensively. That's what's great about Chase, even when he's not scoring, his ability to impact on the defensive end is equally as important to our team.

Q. You talk about all five starters have played in a NCAA tournament game. You have older players. Is there anything to this, doing these big press conferences, the open practice? What do you think about experience this time of year?

CHRIS COLLINS: I definitely think when you've been here it matters. That gives them an advantage. They've been through this before. This is all new for our guys. They're excited. You feel when you get to this venue, do the press conferences, get out to the open practices, to me that's when you really feel like you're there because you get that tournament buzz.

The thing I've really tried to stress with my team is we want to enjoy it. This is a culmination of a great thing, we want to celebrate what we've done but also understand why we're here and to not stray from the formula. Let's have our same preparation.

At the end of the day when the ball gets tipped at 4:35, or whenever we tip tomorrow, it's still a basketball game, and you got to lock in to doing the things you have to do playing basketball. You can't get swept up and make the game bigger than it is because if you do, you're going to be in trouble.

We're trying to keep the normalcy as much as we can with our preparation, with our film watching, with our practices, things of that nature. Hopefully, even though it's the first time for a lot of our guys, the fact they're a little bit older, a little bit more mature, hopefully they'll be ready to really lock in once the game starts.

THE MODERATOR: Coach, thank you very much.

CHRIS COLLINS: Thank you, guys.