Louisville at NC State Postgame Quotes

Louisville Head Coach Chris Mack
Opening Statement
"I think coming into the game we knew that NC State had played really well the past three game-- playing really well at Virginia, suffering a tough loss at Georgia Tech that could have gone either way and dropping the game against Carolina. We expected to come in here and play a team that was desperate and wanted to punch us in the mouth thoroughly. We didn't handle the ball very well for the entire game. You have to give NC State credit because we haven't been a high turnover team all year and we had a lot of turnovers today. We took some chances and dropped the ball and charged a couple of times. We have got to get better in that area in order to do what we need to do.

"I thought we kept the ball out of the lane. During the second half, they were making offensive rebounds and really turned it on offensively, and we did a good job of stopping the momentum. Ryan McMahon was phenomenal today. He goes off a lot like that in practice because he has unlimited range. He doesn't let one or two makes affect the next one. If I had made a better play call at the end of the first half, he probably would have been shooting 100% going into the half.

"I am really happy because anytime you go on the road in this league and come away with a win, you are fortunate."

On halftime message
"We had to do what we were doing down the stretch without fouling. You can't put a team in the bonus only four minutes into a half. We talked a lot about taking better care of the basketball and trying to establish some type of rhythm with moving the basketball without throwing it to the opponent. I felt like if we could come back into the second half and have the defensive effort that we had at the end of the first half, we wouldn't have to worry too much about our offense. Down the stretch, we got a ton of stops in a row that allowed us to get that separation."

On how many scorers and playmakers they have
"I told our team in the locker room that Ryan McMahon had just coming off a few games where he had played 12 or 13 minutes and never complained, never turned up his nose, and never came to practice quiet. That is a credit to not only him, but so many other players on our team that have reacted the same way. When our guys look back 20 years from now at this season, they won't remember if they only played 18 minutes a certain game. They won't even remember how many points they scored. There is a really good camaraderie between our veteran group and our freshmen, both those that play and don't play. They have a good spirit, which we are going to need throughout the season.

"We had Lamarr Kimble step up tonight and make two big threes at times when the momentum was going the other way. That gave our team a lot of confidence in ourselves and helped us all to play better."

On road success
"I think that we are a confident group and we are experienced. They have been in a lot of road environments, such as the first game of the year at Miami, when you do not really know what your team stands for. We were short-handed, but I thought this game gave us a lot of confidence. Even though we lost to Kentucky, I thought that game was a big boost because it was such a tight game. The environment is one of the hardest to play in and I thought this game taught us so much. We know that teams will make a run at home, I just have a tough team that will not splinter under pressure. We may not win, we may not play well but my team will not point fingers."

On turnovers in the first half
"I feel as if we did turn the ball over a lot but they did not score off those turnovers. NC State missed a lot of baskets off of those turnovers. Even though we did turn the ball over a lot in the first half Ryan McMahon kept us in the game and made six three pointers. That makes up for the mistakes Ryan scores 18 points on seven attempts.

On Ryan McMahon's work ethic
"While he has had down games he just gets in the gym and works hard to improve. He knows we want to get him shots and he is becoming very aware on and off the court. He is getting better at using the screen and passing. Every time he shoots the ball I think it is going in."

NC State Head Coach Kevin Keatts
Opening Statement:
"First of all, I want to give Louisville a lot of credit. They are probably the best basketball team we have played so far. It is obvious when you look at those guys and see that they are 10-1 in the league and 19-3 overall, that they are playing really good basketball. I thought we did a tremendous job on the boards, and a good job on Jordan Nwora.

"I thought Ryan McMahon had a tremendous night and shot the heck out of the basketball. We knew coming into the game he could make shots, but some of the shots he made in the first half were pretty good. That being said, I like our team's fight. I thought the second half we shot extremely well. With 11 minutes into the game we were down 56-52, and then we went for a long drive without scoring. We are having a hard time scoring, and think the reason is because we have not had a lot of practice time with all of our guys out there together.

"Obviously one of the frustrating things for me, as a guy for the majority of my career scoring 70s and 80s, right now we have had some games where we have been in the 60s. Some of them were due to the fact some of the teams we played were better teams. There were some bright spots tonight, like we finally got CJ Bryce going again. I thought we turned the ball over, and did not make shots, and I have to figure out how to get everyone playing well. I like our grit and fight. There is a lot we can take away from this game, but obviously if we do not score, then it will be tough on us. I want to be able to score the basketball a little bit more than we have been doing in the past few games."

On Braxton Beverly's back injury:
"He is probably the toughest guy in that locker room. What he has going on with his pain, most guys would sit out for three to four weeks, but he won't do that. He wants to help his team. He doesn't have a serious injury, he is more just banged up. It is one of those things that I talk to him every game and ask him how he feels and if he feels like he can play tonight. He has never said no. We have been trying to limit him in practice so he will feel better in games, but he is just banged up. That being said, he is the same type of guy that will go out there and try and take a charge and get on the floor after a loose basketball.

Our whole team has been injured and struggling. This season has been a challenge because for the first time in my career, we have had one season with three concussions and guys getting banged up one after the other. We have got to figure out how to get everyone a little bit healthier and more on the same page so we can score some points offensively.

On not capitalizing on good defensive effort in early first half because of missed shots:
"We are really struggling to score the ball. I am sitting over there just like you saying, "We have done a great job, gotten them in foul trouble, and stopped them from scoring, we just can't score the ball either." Like I said, basketball is not that complicated, and I have got to figure out how to get my best players on the floor at the same time and put us in the best position to score the ball."

On the offensive team he wanted for the season:
"As you know, for the past few years, we have probably lead the ACC in forced turnovers, if not first or second in the conference. We have been able to do it by picking up full court. We have one of the best field goal three-point defensive teams in the country because we press you and you don't shoot as well as a result. We get after you defensively and we take your legs away. We showed some glimpses of it and I think we did a good job in those areas. When you look at Louisville, they only had twelve assists but they had eighteen turnovers.

"The problem today, and it's been for the last couple of days, is that we haven't been able to score the ball. So I thought we did some good things and I thought if we had scored the ball with the halftime score, even though Ryan McMahon was tremendous in the first half, I thought we would be more in the 39-41 range. We missed some opportunities, like chippies around the basket. In the second half we shot the ball a little bit better from the three than we did in the first half, but that's something we need to figure out. It could be as simple as taking another day off, we're off tomorrow but there is a chance we will take two days off just to get them some rest. The most important thing for us in the program is rest."

On overthinking shots:
"Just giving them confidence. What I tell these guys is just shoot the ball. Pat Andree's biggest thing, or someone like him who is a fifth year, just wants to play so bad, they love the game so much but if you don't have the lift because of your ankle, it's tough on you. He came in and was making shots early on but then he started missing shots because he was overthinking. Then you start to question should or could you play at this level. Obviously he can because of his shotmaking ability, but it comes down to confidence and feeling good about it. He's a guy that hasn't practiced. We had him at limited reps yesterday so he can play in the game. Normally I have a policy that if you can't practice you can't play, but he was able to get out and practice a little bit. Although he is playing with a bum ankle right now. In terms of overthinking, he just needs to know that I believe in him and every shot he takes."

On discussion about Ryan McMahon:
"I thought Devon Daniels did a tremendous job in the second half. Everytime the ball went to him he closed out with a high hand and decked the basketball. It wasn't so much that he got wide open shots, but I think the player who was guarding him skipped the ball and we did a good job. I also think we did a good job in getting Steven Enoch put away. They skipped it and that helped our defense get caught inside. It wasn't as much as the guy who closed out for the shots but the player who was guarding the basketball wasn't using active hands or guarding the basket. I thought that because of that, they weren't able to make direct passes across the court and made some threes. Once someone gets going and is that kind of shooter, they're capable of making any kind of shots."

Junior forward DJ Funderburk
On scouting report of Ryan McMahon
"Don't let him get any open looks and force him away and not get any open shots. He is a great shooter."

On Louisville having Ryan McMahon score 20+ off the bench:
"I don't know what it says about him. They have a great team overall. We just didn't pay attention to the scouting report."

On what NC State can do to gain confidence and get things back on track:
"Just get in the gym and get ready for a tough team in Miami on the road and come out of there with a win."

On being a veteran and maintaining the morale of the team
"It is not just me, it is all of us. We have to work on that. I don't have too much to say on that."

On mental mistakes and not following scouting reports of Ryan McMahon:
"think they just came out here and hit a couple of shots. He was 6-for-6 in the first half-- some were contested, some were open. We have to focus on keeping a hot hand off the ball."

On frustration because they have to talent:
"It is always frustrating losing the game, but it is a basketball game at the end of the day. I'm just ready to go home and relax then come back and work hard and get ready for Miami."

On what NC State did well when they made the run to make the game tight:
"We just hit shots. At the end of the game we were not hitting shots and they were."

CJ Bryce
On knocking down shots:
"I never lost any confidence in my game. I am a guy who works on my game every single day with my teammates. We are in the gym. We work our offensive and defensive games. It was good to see the ball go in, but we still lost today and we have to get back to practice and get better."

On the end of the first half:
"McMahon had a career game. He shot the ball well and we were able to limit the shots and touches of other players but it is the details. Down the stretch, we have to play better and we will play better. We are not worried, we are going to build off of this loss."

On getting back into a rhythm:
"I had a couple of good shots in the second half as we were starting to get back into the game. Defensively, we need to pay attention to the details. Switching, communicating, those are things we need to become better at."

University of Louisville Athletics

Players Mentioned

Steven Enoch

Ryan McMahon

Jordan Nwora

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