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NIT SEASON TIP-OFF

November 22, 2006

Roy Williams

NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK

ROY WILLIAMS: The best team won the game tonight, and the coach that did the best job was on the other bench, that's the bottom line. Their team was much more focused, they were more intense, they were sharper. You know, we're still a little bit of a work-in-progress, but if you shoot 36 percent, and you out rebound a little bit and the other teams shoots 52 percent, you're normally going to lose.
I love the way our kids tried to compete and know that the game wasn't over when we were down 16. We cut it to two, and they get a layup on the other end and we didn't react defensively at that point, and we were supposed to have a double-team and didn't have a double-team but let the guy get to the rim and we foul him and he makes the free throw. One time we had it to four we had a traveling call.
Again, I think the best team won, and the guy that did the best job was sitting on the other bench. I have a tremendous amount of respect for him, and I'm not just saying that because I like him so much. I think that his team was far more ready to play. They executed what they wanted to do and we did not execute what we wanted to do. We had some open shots, had some looks, had some free throws we didn't make, but it's too simple to say that you didn't shoot the ball well. Their defense had something to do with that and we didn't defend well enough. We had some opportunities and it would have been a fun, fun game to come back and win. But we didn't play well enough to get it done.

Q. Could you talk about what they did with Tyler and how they limited him offensively?
ROY WILLIAMS: They played a little bit of man and a little bit of zone, both. They tried to do a good job of fronting him and when he didn't get fronted, they had people around him. They don't necessarily get out in the passing lanes and try to deny your passes, so they are sagging back in the lane a little bit.
We did a very poor job of giving him the basketball and he probably did the least effective job he's maybe ever done as far as moving without the basketball. I mean, one time we bounced it to him but the pass bounced right between his legs. Those are the kind of things that -- one time Danny blocked a shot and it came right back to the guy and he never shot it in. Sometimes you think it's one of those kind of nights, but again that's making it too simple.
I think it's both. We didn't do a good job in the second half, we tried to feed him in the post wing and he over-threw it by eight feet. Eli Manning is getting crap in the paper, he never threw a pass as bad as that. We didn't do a good job of getting it to him and he did a very poor job of moving.

Q. How is Brandan getting acclimated?
ROY WILLIAMS: In the second half I thought did he a nice job. I jumped on him in halftime because twice they are laying up and he is standing four feet away and doesn't even make an attempt to go block the shot. I think that Josh really challenged him early in the game and shot it right in his face and I think Brandan responded well in the second half and his blocked shots were extremely important to us. He's going to be a very, very good player and we've got to learn it's a long, long season. I've been here, I guess this is our fifth trip; the first three times we won the whole thing and the last time I was up here we lost both games, but the last night of the season we were playing for the National Championship. It's a long season and just one game. But North Carolina beat us and Florida beat us and at the last game of the season, we played Syracuse for the National Championship.

Q. Playing a team like Gonzaga, you felt you were going to learn a lot about your team; what did you learn?
ROY WILLIAMS: A lot of negatives. We didn't execute. Coach Holladay asked me if I thought I was going so slow holding people back trying to wait for, you know, some of the newcomers to get caught up, and I probably have been. You know there at the end it's hard to make a comeback when you can't even get guys to run the right stinking play.
As I say, I'm not trying to sugar coat. I did a terrible job with this team tonight and probably already this season.

Q. When you cut it to four, you had a couple of nice open looks and just didn't go. Have you ever seen Willie shoot it that poorly?
ROY WILLIAMS: Every one I thought was going in. He's such a tough, competitive rascal. It would have been a lot of fun. One time I think it was seven when he missed the one that was really wide open on the other side and then I think he did miss one of those when he had it to four as well. But again, I've got to do a better job of making him be more confident with it.

Q. Roy, you played 12 guys tonight, and I guess nine of them 12 minutes or more, is that something you think is going to sort of continue for the season? Are you searching for combinations? What are your thoughts on your rotation and your combinations?
ROY WILLIAMS: You know, all of the experts say that it's a bad thing to do. But, you know, I've got to coach my team. I've had teams before, nine guys averaging double figures, minutes. I'm going to coach them the way I want to coach them and all of the guys on TV are the ones that say how dumb I am and how smart someone else is if they win. I have zero problems coaching nine or ten guys and getting them minutes. I've done that several times. 11 or 12, maybe that's a little bit of a reach, but nine guys got double figures, and I think that's pretty easy to do. Some guys feel comfortable playing six. Some guys feel comfortable playing five and I feel comfortable playing eight or nine easily and sometimes can even go to ten. But the deal is when you get in the game, you've got to play and when you play well, you've got a chance to get in the game.

Q. Everyone in the college basketball world has seen this for a long time, but what does a Gonzaga/Butler championship game reveal about the parity of the sport?
ROY WILLIAMS: Well, I think there is a great deal of parity. People don't like to hear it and sports writers don't like to write cliches all the time but there is some truth to that. I think that as I was trying to remember, and maybe Gonzaga had zero -- you guys have to help me -- I think they had zero guys that were McDonald's All-Americans. There's a lot of really good players and if you can get your group to do what the coach wants him to do better than the other team was what their coach wants him to do and everybody be so concerned about the front of that jersey and executing regardless of how menial or how small their task may be, it would be just like any business. The person that puts the stamps on, if they do a good job it helps. If they don't put the stamps on, doesn't get out doesn't help.
That's what college basketball is, George Mason had a team last year that beat a lot of good teams. I think that Butler and Gonzaga in The Finals, it's good. It's not good for North Carolina right now but I have no problems with that. I think it's what makes our game the best game there is.

Q. How much do you know about Tennessee? I know Pearl plays somewhat of a unique style, and what do you know about Duke Crews?
ROY WILLIAMS: I love Duke, how competitive he is, he's undersize compared to a lot of guys but makes up for it. I think Bruce does a great job, his style of play is a little unique in full court pressure all the time. It fits his personality and that's the way he feels comfortable coaching. I've got to coach the way I feel comfortable but I don't know a lot about him. I watched some of the game tonight and one of my assistants had Butler and another had Tennessee. Right now got to go back and see if I can find a way to the roof and jump off the building. (Laughter)

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