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ATLANTIC COAST CONFERENCE MEN'S TOURNAMENTMarch 15, 2013Mark GottfriedC.J. LeslieScott WoodGREENSBORO, NORTH CAROLINA North Carolina State: 75 COACH GOTTFRIED: Let me start off saying I think it was a good win for our team. I think our team is beginning to find, you know, that "groove", I like to use that word. I think we're gettin' in a good spot. Defensively, I think we're improving, getting better and I thought today, you know, Virginia missed some shots but I thought our defense had a lot to do with it, I thought we defended them well, Scott did a good job on Joe Harris, not letting him get free looks, our help was better and defense was better and offensively we moved and shared the ball really, really well. Good, good team win for us, now we got to get ready to play a really good team tomorrow. Q. Coach, C.J. and Lorenzo combined 8 for 27 against a team like Virginia that doesn't really do the recipe for getting a big win. What do you think helped you get this big win with those guys struggling at the offensive end. COACH GOTTFRIED: First thing, even though we struggled to score at times we did a good job, shot the ball well and we thought there was a couple of stretches where Scott took the game over. You know, it was a week or so ago or few days, whenever it was, when the voting came out for Owl‑ACC Selection, I was shocked that Scott Wood wasn't on somebody's first, second, third, honorable mention, to me that's amazing. When you play our team one of the first thing you have to do is figure out how you're going to guard Scott Wood. He stepped up today and not only was he working hard defensively but he changed the game, changed the game, period. He's been doing it all year for us, he's won games for us at the end and today I thought he had a couple of stretches where he was outstanding. Q. Scott, following what Coach said earlier about getting in a groove, how do you think this team is confidencewise right now? Looks like you're playing with a lot of confidence. SCOTT WOOD: I think we're doing a good job so far, the main thing is on the defensive end. We know we have a bunch of people that can score the ball, and anytime we're in our stance, guarding our scouts like we know we should, that makes us a dangerous team. Q. Coach, you were talk about finding a groove, why do you think you're playing that way now? COACH GOTTFRIED: I don't know if I know the answer to that. I think every coach, if you knew how to get your team playing really well at the end, we would do it automatically. It sometimes happens that way. I think putting T.J. in the lineup there six or eight or ten games ago, I think it took time but I think it's beginning to help our chemistry. We had a stretch there where Lorenzo was hurt, missed three games and a couple of games he was probably not even 75%. Now I think he's much healthier, that's helping us some and veteran players that when you get down to the end of the year, you got some seniors and upper classmen, they want to play differently. I think all those things contribute to that. Q. Scott, when you got it going there, especially in the second half when you made those three straight, what did it feel like? Did you feel like you can't miss at that point and do you ask the guys to get you the ball or do they look for you? SCOTT WOOD: I'm not one to go into the huddle and say "give me the ball" but it feels good when you're knocking down your shots and gives you the confidence to know the next one is going in. They did a great job finding me to get me easy ones and C.J. and T.J. and Richard did a good job of settin' good screens to get it to me, open. Q. Scott, follow‑up to that question. You had 17 in the second half. Was your mind‑set any different when you came out from halftime? SCOTT WOOD: Not really, any time I get an opportunity to get a good look I'm going to take advantage of it, my teammates did a good job of setting screens and gave me a couple of good looks and once I started knocking them down it gave me confidence. Q. Coach, Richard got kneed in the leg and he said it was painful, have you ever seen him grimace so much? COACH GOTTFRIED: Not really but he's a tough, tough guy and he plays through about everything and I asked him a couple of times if he was okay and I knew he wasn't but he didn't want to come out of the game and he battles like that. I thought it was interesting because, you know, I think Calvin is usually good for us and I think there were stretches where Richard was hunting for Calvin because he was hurting a little bit and they did a nice job of passing the ball to one another in there and they kept battling all night. Q. C.J., it looked like you were trying to set the tone offensively and defensively, did you feel the pressure to set the tone, or is that how the offense worked early? C.J. LESLIE: I knew if I got going and got the energy started early, my team would follow behind me and we would do a good job of picking each other up. On any given night it could be a different person, whether it's Rich, Scott, or whoever, we piggy back off each other. Q. How can you specifically prepare for Miami? COACH GOTTFRIED: We played 'em once at home and they beat us, so first of all, we remember that. They have proven from start to finish that they have been the best team in the league so far, their record was that. We have a lot of respect for them, they're big inside. With the three big guys in there, they're not just tall, they're thick. Larkin had a phenomenal year, and he's dangerous to guard at the top of the key, or wherever he may be. They have guys that can make shots and they have guys that are built to win, very few teams end up with that many veteran players at one time who are that good and Jim has done a great job with them. We got our hands full, we know it, we respect them and they beat us at home and our guys will be excited about playing them. Q. C.J., in the game against Miami, there at the end of the game, and I can't remember if you were on the court, but were you ‑‑what do you remember about that tip‑in and frankly are you glad to have another shot? C.J. LESLIE: Yeah, of course I am. That was a one of a kind game for us and we felt like we had that game under control and they got us at the end. One of the things is that we know we have to‑‑ it's a tough team. We have a tough match‑up with the big guys. We're going to come out and be prepared. Q. Coach, as a guy who hit 48% of your 3‑pointers yourself, when you see great shooters, like Scott, hot today, Joe Harris cold today, did you see just hot and cold or did you see more than that to explain those? COACH GOTTFRIED: I thought‑‑ I think Joe Harris is really, really good and he's proven it, but Scott guarded him for a lot of the game and Lorenzo had him for some of the game and we made it hard for him, even when he curled off the screens on the wings we did a nice job of not allowing him to dribble drive to the basket, which he does well, he's strong enough to get to the rim, we eliminated some of that and Scott had the hot hand offensively. We kept goin' to him and he kept delivering. When he gets goin' like that I'm not sure there is a better shooter in the country, I've said that many times. I told him he's the second best shooter in the gym behind me but he's gettin' close. He is as good as anybody in the country, there is no doubt in my mind and he was awfully good today. Q. Coach, early in the season, Brown got injured and you lost three straight, including the last‑second loss to Miami, can you talk about his impact on and off the court? COACH GOTTFRIED: You can see his impact now. I'm not sure what our record is from what he came back, but it's pretty good and it's good before he got hurt. He affects the game defensively, he settles our team down, we have great confidence in him, he finds guys with his passing, he can score when he needs to. He affects the game in so many ways and obviously we're a different team when he's healthy and hopefully he's getting close to 100% now. Q. You played five starters 30 minutes, you didn't have the bye, are you worried about fatigue or not an issue? COACH GOTTFRIED: No, that's a rule we have, you're not allowed to get tired. Our guys will be fine. That's the rule we have. They will be anxious to play tomorrow and ready to go and we will find strategic ways throughout the game to rest our guys, which we have and they will be ready to go. THE MODERATOR: Thank you. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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