Wake Forest Holds Basketball Media Day
10/12/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Oct. 12, 2011
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - Signaling the imminent start to the 2011-12 basketball season, Wake Forest held its annual Basketball Media Day this afternoon in the Budd Gym in the Miller Center.
Head coach Jeff Bzdelik and the Demon Deacon players were on hand to speak with the local media. The Deacons welcomed in over 30 members of the media on Wednesday, including local newspapers, television stations and campus outlets.
The Deacons open up practice this Friday, Oct. 14. Wake Forest will kick off the 2011-12 campaign on Nov. 11 vs. Loyola (Md.) at the Lawrence Joel Coliseum in Winston-Salem.
MEDIA DAY QUOTES:
Head Coach Jeff Bzdelik
On his excitement to get the season underway...
"I'm very excited. I really am. We have a great group of young men who are collectively working their tails off. They care about one another. They want to do well. They want to learn. It's a fun group to be around."
On the difference between last year's team and this year's team...
"Maturity. There was a lot of immaturity on last year's team. All you have to do is read, and you can see one thing after another. You have no chance to win under those kinds of conditions. If you do win, it's not by how much you should have won. We're in a different place. We made great strides from last year to go where we want to go. I'm excited about that, and [the players] are, too."
On what strides the team has made...
"We've gone from immaturity to maturity, and that is huge. Second of all, those young players who played huge minutes last year gained experience. They played a lot of minutes, and they have an understanding of what it takes to win and the physicality and the speed and the quickness of the game. The third thing is, they've changed their bodies. They've gotten stronger. Physically they are better. Mentally they are better. Collectively they are better, as a team. It's fun to be around them. They want to learn. I don't have to motivate guys to give an effort. I can now teach, and that's a great feeling for a coach."
On last year's struggles...
"In my 34 years of coaching, or whatever it is, it was the toughest year. I spent the majority of my time with a minority of the players just trying to get them to do the right thing off the court instead of doing what I love to do, and that is to teach on the court. That's as honest as I can say it."
On the type of team we can expect in 2011-12...
"We are going to maximize the talent that we have. We are going to be a fun team to watch because they will compete and they will work extremely hard. And they care - they care about Wake Forest. They want to be a part of the Wake Forest team. Yes, we are the Wake Forest basketball team, but there is also a bigger team here, and that's the Wake Forest team. We have a team that works hard, a team that is together, a team that is hungry and humble and a team that is feeling the pain from last year, as I am. We want to do all that we can to erase that pain."
On how the team is responding to last year's record and some off-the-court issues...
"We're winning back this campus. If you were to talk to people, we're winning back this campus very rapidly because of the way our young men have conducted themselves. We were involved in the Brian Piccolo walk. We were involved with Habitat for Humanity. We did a diversity clinic here in conjunction with Winston-Salem State. We had our Black & Gold Madness here the other night. We had Tim Duncan here and Josh Howard here and Chris Paul here. Len Chappell was here. It was awesome."
Junior Guard C.J. Harris
On his excitement level for the season...
"I'm extremely excited. It's my third year, my third go-around. I feel like I've been there and done that, and I'm ready to step into that leadership role. We've got a lot of young guys and they need somebody to look up to that's been here and been through the ropes, and I'm more than happy to help them out whenever they need it."
On adjusting to the loss of key players from last season...
"It's definitely different, but the guys that are left here are really starting to bind together. They made the transition easier because they've made us that much more of a team. Everybody's just trying to stick together."
On the overall strengths of the team...
"We have every piece of the puzzle when you look at it. We have great point guards that can get in the lane anytime that they want with Tony and Anthony, great guys that can shoot like Chase Fischer, big guys that can step in or step out and of course Travis as an all-around player who can do anything out there. We have all the pieces, so we just have to put them together to make a good team."
On the most improved player...
"Everybody has made huge progressions from last season, but I'd have to say Tony Chennault. You didn't see him much last year because of his foot injury, but this year he's been amazing at the point guard position by getting in the lane, distributing and just being a smart player. He's going to make a big difference for our team this year."
Sophomore Forward Travis McKie
On if this season is going to be different from last year...
"It's definitely going to be a different season. We have a completely different team than last year. We have more chemistry, more experience. And we're just ready to go."
On what you're seeing from Tony Chennault and Carson Desrosiers...
"This year Tony is fully healthy. He's been very competitive in the workouts. Carson is 20 pounds stronger. He's more physical. And we both have a year experience under our belts so we're going to be much better this year."
On whether or not you can play the "3" position this year...
"I'm at a 3-and-a-half. I'm not fully there yet. I have a lot more work to do. [I have to work on] my ball-handling and more consistent shooting. My overall quickness is the biggest thing. I'm just going to keep working and keep doing what I need to do."
Sophomore Point Guard Tony Chennault
On what you mean to this team...
"I'm just trying to be a leader. That's something we didn't have last year. We were really inconsistent at that. I'm just trying to set the tone every day in practice for us to get better."
On the biggest lesson you learned last year...
"You can't give up on plays. I would play hard for 25 seconds in the shot clock. The last 10 seconds I would just die because I would get tired and mentally fatigued."
On having to deal with having some familiar faces not on the team this season...
"We just have to work with what we have. This is the hand we've been dealt and we're not complaining. Everyone on our team is working hard each day in the weight room and conditioning so we're just trying to get better each day."
Freshman Guard Chase Fischer
On what he can bring to the court as a freshman...
"I feel like I can contribute immediately to the chemistry of the team. I can stretch the defense with my ability to distribute the ball. Even as a freshman, I feel like I'm a good leader as well. I can bring guys together and always keep a positive vibe around them."
On whether he will make an immediate impact...
"Definitely. I think that there's a great opportunity for me to play immediately. I think I've been practicing really well with the rest of the team. Every team needs a good shooter, so I feel like I can step into that role right away."
On the biggest difference between high school and college...
"Everything's faster and everyone's stronger. I think those are the biggest differences. I've put on a lot of weight and gotten faster, and I've acclimated well. I think the hardest thing is managing your time between school, practice, lifting and everything else. Your body starts to wear down, so you have to take good care of it. You also have to have enough time to study and get sleep, so it becomes a whole different game at this level."
