Post-game press conference notes

[lou v]

Mark Turgeon

Pleased with the outcome. It's hard to play on the road. We decided to play in the second half. Our offense got our defense going. Told his team we are going to change our season at halftime.

Zone vs. man-to-man: We were really out of it, man-to-man, and they were playing really well. We went to zone, they scored two straight times, we went back to man. Kopp is a heckuva player. We didn't have a lot of rim presence, we didn't block a lot of shots. Challenged them in the second half. We started guarding really well.

Smith "Sticks": Couldn't get anything around the rim. Same vs. Illinois. We went with a small lineup and spread to the floor. Anthony got the ball inside. Play of the game was Smith diving for a lose ball. Hasn't done that all year.

24% in first half: They were locked in for us. We were walking on eggshells. We were so slow in our movement. Second half, we changed the way we were playing, changed our mental attitude. We played for the love of the game. Confidence in shooting at end of game, I haven't seen that all year.

Defense in second half: Paralysis by analysis. Worked so hard. Too much prep. Maybe we did too much instead of just playing. We really played hard in the second half without fouling.

Halftime speech: I went in there and gave a speech. I gave it before. Saw some smiles, I knew it would work. Good feeling the way they played in second half.

Getting in bonus with 12 minutes left: Big. Stopped the clock, lengthened the game. We were hard to guard. Guys stepped up and made them. The guys just played, man. They just played. They made great decisions.

Aaron Wiggins: Pat Spencer was killing us, we put Wigs on him.

 

[lou v]

Chris Collins: Some good stuff from coach tonight. He was down, but he was open and insightful.....

Another disappointing loss for us. Tale of two halves. Did a lot of good things to get the lead. They were able to get some energy and get into the paint. First half did good job of being in gaps. Second half, Cowan got into the paint, allowed Smith to get dunks and layups. It's a tough one to swallow because our guys were really ready to play. When teams make run on us, you gotta get tough and dig down and get momentum back. Haven't been able to get it back this year.

Post-game message change? Pick and choose what your team needs. Lot of frustration tonight. Saturday was different narrative, fight on the road. Message more stern tonight, about how tough you have to play to win in this league. There's going to be runs. When they do, you've gotta dig down and you gotta get stops and you gotta find baskets. Little plays, like Nance's block: Spencer missed layup, foul on Nance. Instead of -2, they were -6. I've seen this before. You see development, you see growth. The last step is being able to break through and learn how to win these conference games.

Worried about team's attitude? I've gotta be at my best. Losing takes its toll. The investment, hours they put in. I've got to make sure that doesn't happen. We've gotta keep pushing them and keep talking about that breakthrough. It's coming...we're a different team than we were a month ago. Boo was rusty. See Beran, Kopp, Young and Jones. Staff has to keep them going and fight through adversity. I was a player in 1995, only Duke team that didn't make the tournament in last 30 years. Grew the most as a player. Found toughness, found what it took to win. Learn biggest lessons through adversity. Is it okay losing, or are you going to work harder and find a way to win? Knew this was going to be a tough year. Disappointing because I feel we should have more wins than we have. We've played well enough to win some of these league games and it hasn't happened for us.

Young's injury: It hurts. Gonna hurt more tomorrow. He's a warrior. I admire him. Never seen big men as good as this conference this year. He's getting better. He's learning to score, he's making plays. Appreciate him fighting through injuries.

Buie's return: Big part is rest. You have to stay off it, and he did that. He was cleared to do things on court on Friday. Court work Saturday before Illinois game. Two days of practice at full speed. He was out a month. Knew there was going to be some rust. Just good to have him out there. I believe in him. He's a big shot taker and maker. He's gotta be in there.

 

[lou v]

AJ Turner and Pat Spencer

MLK Shirts: Spencer: Really cool. We were happy with how they turned out. Turner: Messages meant a lot.

Turner on Buie: Just gotta get back in rhythm. Still has his confidence, he's aggressive. It's just going to take a little time.

Another tough defeat down stretch: Turner: We're in these games. We're not going to quit. We're going to keep fighting.

Spencer on missing layup on key sequence in second half: Couple turnovers, couple bad shots here and there. Seem to give up a run like that every game. Momentum swing we have to avoid. It was a timely possession.

Spencer on playing Maryland, who he played in lax: More fuel to the fire playing them.

First-half offense: Turner: Getting downhill, going inside-out. Making extra pass, extra play.