Postgame Quotes - Wake Forest 82, Duke 72
3/5/2014 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
March 5, 2014
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Postgame Quotes
Wake Forest 82, Duke 72
March 5, 2014
LJVM Coliseum - Winston-Salem, N.C.
Wake Forest Head Coach Jeff Bzdelik
Opening Statement...
"I am just so very happy for my players. I am so very happy for Travis McKie and Coron Williams. It's a great night."
On the eight stops in the last four and a half minutes...
"We have worked extremely hard defensively over the last couple of days. We did a really good job, we really did. We worked on their offense and what they do against a zone. We worked very hard. Our guys communicated well and anticipated well."
On being the first Wake team in five years to beat all three in-state ACC teams...
"Well we have nine players that are freshmen and sophomores. We haven't been as consistent as we all would have liked throughout the course of the year but we try to get better every day and they are beginning to mature. Hopefully, this was another big step in the right direction in their development. We just have to keep moving forward."
On playing so much zone defense...
"We have some challenges defensively. We have gotten better at the 3-2 matching up and defending ball screens. We made some adjustments throughout the course of the game. Early on in the second half they hurt us by running a perimeter player through and their two bigs kind of stacked and played off each other and we made the adjustment. Our guys did a really good job of listening and what we did was take a perimeter player and we followed the cutter through and stayed match up with the bigs and they are starting to understand that."
On taking advantage of matchups tonight...
"We did a really good job of recognizing where we had some advantages. They weren't as aggressive because of fouls. Our guys are maturing and understanding and adapting to the play calls to take advantage of matchups where we might have an advantage because of fouls or size."
On points off turnovers...
"In the first half their pressure bothered us, but in the second half we had just three turnovers. We did a good job of being ball strong and executing our offense. We got some stops and that enabled us to get the ball down in the open court and get some easy baskets."
On the win for Travis McKie...
"For all the stuff Travis has gone through over the last four years, I am really happy for him. It's a great way to finish on such a high positive note at the Joel. I am really happy for him."
Wake Forest Senior Forward Travis McKie
On the overall night...
"It doesn't get much better than this. The energy in here was great and the team effort was amazing. We did whatever it took to win and look what happened; we beat the No. 4 team in the nation."
On the 17-0 run in the second half...
"It was electric in here. We just fed off the crowd. Our main thing was composure. We knew they were going to make their run at some point, and we knew we just had to counter back with one of our own, and we did. We just kept going with it."
On what it means to beat Duke for the first time in his career...
"It means a lot to me. I have not beaten them in four years. We swept the entire state: NC State, Carolina and Duke."
On what was memorable about this night...
"Just how special it was. You had to be here to see the energy we had all together, from the fans to the players. Everything was perfect."
On looking ahead to the ACC Tournament...
"Maturity will be the key. If we play the same way we did, we will be fine. We cannot get hung up on this win."
Wake Forest Graduate Student Guard Coron Williams
On the overall night...
"I could not have asked for anything better. Leaving here with a great win against a great team; I could not have asked for anything better."
On the effort shown by the team...
"The guys really responded tonight. I think the fans had a big impact and all that is effort and concentration with the guys and making big time free throws. It started with communicating and finding the shooters. I give credit to the guys and to the fans."
On Travis McKie...
"I am hoping this is the biggest win of his career. All that he has been through and to get out of here with a big win against a prestigious program is something great."
On this win's impact down the road...
"This is what we wanted. We wanted to get the win here, so we can go to Miami with confidence. Hopefully we will not come out lagging and we can get that win."
Wake Forest Sophomore Forward Tyler Cavanaugh
On what the night means to him...
"It means a lot. We have been up and down all season, but I am really happy. Travis has been through a lot these past years, so for him to beat Duke and leave on top, I am happy for him."
On his career high...
"I have to credit it to my teammates. They got me the ball in places where I felt comfortable, and I made my free throws, so that was good. It was a total team effort. Everyone was great."
On the 17-0 run in second half...
"Heart, we played with heart. We know we can play with anyone. We have had our struggles, but we showed a lot of heart today, and it means a lot to us."
Duke Associate Head Coach Steve Wojciechowski
On the week-long break...
"First of all, I want to give a tremendous amount of credit to Coach Bzdelik and to his staff and his kids. They were outstanding tonight and they deserve to win. They are certainly a much different team at home than away. I thought they got some inspired contributions from their point guard (Codi Miller-McIntyre) who really dominated that position and I thought Tyler Cavanaugh came off the bench and had a great performance. They had a great overall team performance. I am not sure with the week off that we were as prepared from an emotional standpoint. When you are in five games in 11 days and you are in constant competition you have an edge that is required. When you step away from that you can lose it and I do not know if our guys had the needed edge to compete against a Wake Forest team that played their hearts out."
On Wake's zone defense...
"Their zone was very good and I thought at times that we settled for perimeter jump shots and they were not going in. We were not able to get the penetration that we would have liked to get and we did not get to the foul line. We cannot be a team that just relies on perimeter jump shots. Their zone was very good. I think the story for us is that we did not defend or rebound to the level that you need to in order to win in March. Fortunately, we have a chance to regroup and play again."
On the play of the team late in the game...
"We win and we lose together. It falls on all of us whether it is the staff or the players; we win and we lose together. When things got tough and when Wake Forest got momentum we needed to come together and be tougher and we did not do that. As a result, Wake Forest capitalized and that is where I give their guys a lot of credit. I thought that they out-fought us. At this time of the year if you are not tough and you are not together for 40 minutes it can be some very hard lessons."
