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NIT POSTSEASONMarch 27, 2012Andre HollinsTubby SmithRodney WilliamsNEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK MINNESOTA – 68 Q. Andre, at the end of the regular season when you were going through that slump, did you think this team had this kind of run new guys? ANDRE HOLLINS: Yes, most definitely. Coach just preached to not lose confidence and stay positive and I think that's what we did. We stayed through the struggle, we stayed strong and we believed in each other and we are getting the job done and we are looking forward to playing Stanford in the championship. Q. Can you take us through that last stretch in regulation; looks like the ball came to you, seemed like you didn't get a handle on it. ANDRE HOLLINS: Yeah, we drew up a play to get the ball in and to keep me running and Joe got the ball, he shuffled it and it came a little fast for me. I should have caught it and I should have just ate it up, but it slipped out and they got the ball and scored. You know, we had to gut it out in overtime. Q. What did you think about overtime after that? ANDRE HOLLINS: I just had to control the tempo of the game and make sure we didn't stay stagnant like we did at the end of regulation where they made their run. Q. What is it about this team that's made it successful in the last several games? RODNEY WILLIAMS: I think it's just everybody believing in one another. You know, we had a tough stretch towards the end of the regular season, but everybody stayed together and everybody is on the same page. You know, once we got that loss in the Big Ten tournament, we kind of just came together and said, iffy with get into a postseason tournament, we are going to play our hearts out and that's what we are doing now. Q. What goes through your head when they got a hold of that ball? ANDRE HOLLINS: Just hope they don't make it, that's what was going through my mind. But after they got it in, I knew we had to come down, get a shot up. We got a good look at the basket and I mean, it didn't go in. So we had to go into overtime. Q. You guys have been through so many overtimes this season; does it feel like that experience helps in a game like that? ANDRE HOLLINS: Most definitely. We know the mind‑set we need to go in with, just pick up the intensity and match the intensity of the other team because they brought it. Q. What does this mean if you win the NIT Championship going into next season? ANDRE HOLLINS: It's huge. I think it will be momentum carried over into next year and it will boost your confidence. We know what we can do when we are playing our best basketball and we are locked in and concentrated. This is a great experience for us young guys, and it will be a great accolade for the older players and the younger players. Q. What did you see different from the Huskies in the second half? RODNEY WILLIAMS: I think they were just a lot more aggressive all around. They really hit the boards a lot harder, I feel like in the second half. You know, I think they just kind of woke up and, you know, they kind of‑‑ I guess you could say we are prepared for it, but I guess we just didn't match their intensity the whole second half like we should have. Q. (Inaudible)? RODNEY WILLIAMS: No, I didn't change anything I was doing. I tried to stay aggressive going to the hoop and I tried to stay aggressive on defense, as well. They just didn't really give the ball to the men I was guarding until Ross. Q. Can you talk about‑‑ (Inaudible)? ANDRE HOLLINS: We knew they like to go one‑on‑one and we were prepared for that. They like to come off the ball screens and Tony likes to go left a lot. We scout them well. The coaches prepared us well and we just prepared to play one‑on‑one. Q. You guys were really physical; is that something you wanted to do defensively? ANDRE HOLLINS: We like our physicality. Our physicality is part of our defense and we want to do that every game. Q. Did you sense them getting frustrated at all? ANDRE HOLLINS: Yeah, we kind of made their offense a little stagnant, but then they started picking up the intensity on us on the defensive end, and I think we butted heads and that's what got them back into the game. Q. Coach, you go up by 12 in the first half; what was the difference in the second half? COACH SMITH: Well, I thought they gained some momentum right before the half. Any time you can score right before the half, that gives you confidence and they came out in the second half and we went about three or four possessions, didn't get a good look. We turned it over, and just a comedy of turnovers there. That kind of takes a lot of the wind out of your sails. That gives them life and puts a real damper on what we are trying to accomplish and I thought that was the key of them getting back in the game is our turnovers. They became more aggressive, as André mentioned, they became more physical and I thought there was some times we probably should have shot a few more free throws. But still I thought that's how they got back in the game. Their rebounding, I thought, again, they just got very aggressive on the boards, because we were leading at halftime and rebounding, but they ended up beating us on the boards overall. Q. How proud are you of your guys for making this? COACH SMITH: It's been an up‑and‑down season. We got off to a great start. I'm just proud of their perseverance, and their ability to overcome so many, you know, distractions. Just amazing. I've been really amazed at how we have stepped up and really played‑‑ you know, we've got a lot of potential, but we still have guys that are growing and because they are so young, that's why I'm so proud and so happy for them, because they have worked extremely hard. It's one of the hardest‑working group of kids I've ever worked with; said that from the beginning. It's the best group of kids I've been around in a long time, and they have proved us right by their attitude and their effort. Those are the things that they can control, and they have done that all year long. We haven't had any distractions other than the injuries, and that's been‑‑ those have been numerous. But to overcome those types of adversities and those types of obstacles is really a sign of kids of character and that's what I pressure about them. Q. The way that you guys have been able to count on him‑‑ those free throws and in overtime as well, does that speak to how far he's come‑‑ COACH SMITH: It's a matter of growing up and maturing; you know, trusting the system, trusting that, you know, Coach sort of knows what he's doing. We know what we're doing a little bit. Just give us a chance and accept what we are trying to teach you. You know, try to eliminate‑‑ we always talk about those voices in your head, not just in your head, but around you, that are saying, hey, this is what you should be doing; whether it's with the media, whether it's with your family, whether it's with your girlfriend, your buddies. Until they can be honest with themselves, I think that's the big challenge for most people, especially players, to be honest, that, hey, Coach is being honest with me about where I am and what I have to do to get better. And as soon as they can get that, then the teacher and the coach can step aside and it becomes easier. So the last few weeks, it's been that way. It really has been less coaching, because they have‑‑ you know, they are leading the right way and they are practicing the right way. Not that they haven't been before, but you can see their attitude is better about that. That's why you see a guy like André, who was up‑and‑down, he was a freshman, he was injured and starting at the beginning of the year. So now that means you've got to deal with that phase of it; why am I not starting, or something like that. And that's everybody's reaction; why, why, why. And then once they can pressure and understand their roles‑‑ and that's what happened to him. That's a long‑winded answer, but that's the way I see it. Q. Is there something about this team that's made it successful‑‑ COACH SMITH: We have played a lot of close games and the Big Ten is the toughest conference in America, and we were in just about every game except for maybe one or two all year long. So we were very close to having an outstanding season, but there's no room for mistakes in the Big Ten. You've got to close games out; we weren't doing that, so we were putting the ball in André Hollins' hands, and he's delivering. Austin has made big shots all year long. Our biggest problem, we have been rebounding well up until tonight and that's been a big key for our resurgence to becoming a better team now, but I look down here tonight and that's been one of our bugaboos is turning it over. So we need to eliminate that against a very good Stanford team. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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