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Quotes: Duke 79, Pitt 65
1/19/2015 10:20:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Duke Head Coach Mike Krzyzewski
Opening Statement:
“We're obviously really pleased. We beat a good team tonight. That was a good game. They're a tough team. I told my team the last day and a half, I said, 'You're going to see a really good Pitt team on tape and when we talk about it. What you won't realize is that they're not a team, they're a program.' In our league, we have a number of great programs and Pitt is one of them. What [head coach Jamie Dixon] has done, I think he's been there for a dozen years now. Just check their record. They're winners. And so we beat a team that are winners. They know how to win, they play every play. I'm proud of our guys because we were able to win against that level. When you can win against somebody who's really good, who's playing their butts off too, then it's even a better win. I'm proud of how they've responded in the last six days after two losses, and even how they responded after Louisville because it was such a big win for us. You don't know. The teams that have been in the ACC are not accustomed to Saturday/Monday, Saturday/Sunday/Tuesday. It's just different. In fact I mentioned to Jay Bilas before the game, I said, 'I wonder at the end, if we look back at February and January and ask how many kids on all the teams, how many Sundays did they have off?' And then you take a look at your lives, and in a normal life, how many Sundays do you have off? But really, for a kid – and that's everybody, it's not just us – it takes some time to adjust to that. And there's some wear and tear on every team that is in that position. It's part of expansion, it's part of having a big TV contract, but it's still an adjustment for teams. I thought Tyus [Jones] and our backcourt was terrific. Quinn [Cook] gets a double-double, he had 10 rebounds. Who would have thought? And then Tyus really these last two games has really run our team. He's taken on a much more commanding personality. And Sheed [Sulaimon] came in and gave us a big lift. And we saw the ball go in, we saw it go in today. It's the first game in the ACC where we shot well. I'm proud and we've got to get some rest. Justise [Winslow] is banged up, his shoulder, ribs. He's taken some blows. I don't think anything real serious but if we get a couple days off for him we'll be really good and get him proper medical attention.”
On Tyus Jones' adjustment to ACC play:
“It's just getting accustomed to the level of competition and intensity that you're going to see game in and game out in our conference. Really, I think I think it's that simple. They had never been through it, now you're going through it and you hope that they can adjust quickly and they did from last week. These are two big wins for our guys. Tyus, his play was outstanding.”
On Jim Boeheim and the zone defense:
“It was never named after him. We never had the 'Boeheim zone.' Orange [zone] is with USA Basketball – that was just to make him feel included. He did text me Saturday night and said, 'Where's my royalty check?' And I said, 'After the season. We'll see if it's a one-night wonder.' It's not exactly like theirs because they have all these long guys – he recruits to it. But it helps that I've been exposed to that.”
On whether the zone prevents defensive breakdowns:
“There were no breakdowns defensively against Wisconsin, against Michigan State, against Stanford, against Connecticut. We were playing great defense. Our defense started to go bad when we couldn't hit a shot. I'm not saying we can't defend better either – we should have defended better. But I think the missed shooting, it hurt us the other way. And then what I think what happened is you're out there alone instead of being together. And so the zone, or we played man too today, it's back, so you're not exposed. You feel like more people have your back. A little bit psychologically, we tried to do that. And it helped. We talked better. It's interesting, today, in the first half, because they're right in front of us on defense, and because we're learning it, we can talk to them and help them. And then we go to the other end and they got 14 points in the first four minutes because they didn't talk it out. And they're tough because [Jamel] Artis is one of their best three-point shooters, he's a four. And [Michael] Young can shoot, he's a good shooter. So you can have five shooters. That puts a lot of pressure on.”
On Pitt's physicality and tenacity:
“I say that in an all-clean way. Sometimes people say, 'They were physical, that they're dirty.' Pitt's just good. And they're strong kids, mind and body. I thought we met up to that challenge today. And they were ready to play. It's a big game, we're both 3-2 in the conference. As we move along, each of these conference games are huge.”
Duke Junior Rasheed Sulaimon
“When you're making shots, especially in front of Cameron, it's just like another adrenaline boost. We haven't been shooting the ball to our capabilities lately, but that's fine. It's a long season and you're going to have some ups and downs. Our leaders did a great job of getting us all back in the gym, getting us some extra shots and stuff like that. It's just contagious – when one person hits a shot off a good pass and we have guys out there like Tyus [Jones] or Jahlil [Okafor] that are drawing two players off of you, all you have to do is just take your time and take the shot. I was just fortunate that my teammates found me out there today, and we all shot it really well. It was contagious.”
“It's a long season and [losing back-to-back games against NC State and Miami] was a learning process. You learn from those two games, and we knew Louisville, of course, was going to be a big game. Also, we knew Pitt could be a trap game, [with them] coming off a high from beating a big team at their place. We just stayed focus, tried not to get too high, and just focus on getting better each and every day. We did that – we had a great practice yesterday – and I'm proud of the way the guys executed today.”
On the transition to playing zone defense:
“Coach [Mike Krzyzewski] again is just showing his greatness. He's not a big zone guy, but the last two teams that we've played he thought zone would be the best chance for us to win. With our athleticism and size, we just had to communicate and just be all over the court. The zone can be really effective with the size and athleticism that we have. All we had to do was communicate, and we did that and it's been working well for us.”
Duke Freshman Tyus Jones
“It was important for us just to make sure we bounced back. Two losses in a row and then we got a good, hard-fought win against Louisville, so we had to make sure we sustained the level of play and the level of focus. It was a good win for us.”
“I was just taking shots with confidence. My teammates believed in me and told me to keep shooting, even if shots weren't falling like they weren't the previous game. They told me just to keep shooting, so that's what I did. I credit them a lot.”
On Duke playing zone defense:
“Zone makes us communicate more. You have to be in sync and in rhythm. You have to in man-to-man as well, but it's just working for us right now. It's a different look that teams don't really expect from us. But, at the same time, we're clicking right now on the offensive end and shots fell tonight, which they haven't really the past few games. That helps a lot. [We were] more comfortable [in the zone defense] tonight because we've practiced it a little bit more now and had a game playing zone. It was a little bit more comfortable. [Pittsburgh] ran some different things than Louisville ran, so we had to adjust, but we did a good job of that.”
Duke Freshman Jahlil Okafor
When asked about Pittsburgh's strategy for defending him and how he got more shots in the second half:
“They pretty much double-teamed [me] throughout the whole game, and my teammates knocked down shots so it was fine with me. [In the second half], I think for a couple possessions they actually played me man-to-man, and a couple of possessions before that Coach K [Mike Krzyzewski] was telling me they were playing me man-to-man. I was kind of being too passive because I was expecting the double-team. It was just about being patient and reading the defense.”
“The zone [defense] has been very effective for us, protecting our paint against these really good ACC teams.
On the opportunity to be a part of Coach Mike Krzyzewski's pursuit of win number 1,000:
“It's very cool. When I was trying to decide what university I wanted to attend, being a part of Coach K's legacy had a big part in me coming here, so I'm excited for it.”
Pitt Head Coach Jamie Dixon
Opening Statement:
“Congratulations to Duke and their win. I thought we battled, played and competed as the game went on. I think early we missed good and open shots that put us on our heels and took away some confidence against the zone. We kept battling and hit some shots in the second half. We did some good things to get it down, but they made their free throws, making 25 free throws and 11 threes. We tried to limit [Jahlil] Okafor's touches and points. We did that to some degree at the expense of giving up some threes. I thought he passed very well out of it. He was obviously a big factor in their offensive success. They are a good team that plays well, and they know their roles.”
On playing against Jahlil Okafor:
“We tried to get some deflections and steals. We have done that in the past and have gotten some steals and deflections but we didn't get anything today. Eventually that just hurt us. We had to make those shots early in the game, I think that is what hurt us and got us in a hole. I don't think we could have had better shots against the zone, but we just couldn't knock them down. That became an issue. They are good; they made 11-of-23 from the three, and made all their free throws. We have to get more free throws than our opponents.”
On Duke's initial lead:
“It was just a pure matter of numbers. We kept going and kept battling. I think we had open shots and we had good looks. We had exactly what we wanted, and at times I feel we haven't executed well, and that affected us defensively and the next possession offensively. That's the thing we have to improve on. I think we did a better job in the second half with that.”
On Jamel Artis:
“He becomes one of our better shooters without Durand [Johnson]. He puts himself up there as one of the best three-point shooters of the guys left. Obviously he has success against zones and finds the right spots. He was good against it, but he had a few fouls in the first half. It obviously hurts when you get those fouls early.”
Opening Statement:
“We're obviously really pleased. We beat a good team tonight. That was a good game. They're a tough team. I told my team the last day and a half, I said, 'You're going to see a really good Pitt team on tape and when we talk about it. What you won't realize is that they're not a team, they're a program.' In our league, we have a number of great programs and Pitt is one of them. What [head coach Jamie Dixon] has done, I think he's been there for a dozen years now. Just check their record. They're winners. And so we beat a team that are winners. They know how to win, they play every play. I'm proud of our guys because we were able to win against that level. When you can win against somebody who's really good, who's playing their butts off too, then it's even a better win. I'm proud of how they've responded in the last six days after two losses, and even how they responded after Louisville because it was such a big win for us. You don't know. The teams that have been in the ACC are not accustomed to Saturday/Monday, Saturday/Sunday/Tuesday. It's just different. In fact I mentioned to Jay Bilas before the game, I said, 'I wonder at the end, if we look back at February and January and ask how many kids on all the teams, how many Sundays did they have off?' And then you take a look at your lives, and in a normal life, how many Sundays do you have off? But really, for a kid – and that's everybody, it's not just us – it takes some time to adjust to that. And there's some wear and tear on every team that is in that position. It's part of expansion, it's part of having a big TV contract, but it's still an adjustment for teams. I thought Tyus [Jones] and our backcourt was terrific. Quinn [Cook] gets a double-double, he had 10 rebounds. Who would have thought? And then Tyus really these last two games has really run our team. He's taken on a much more commanding personality. And Sheed [Sulaimon] came in and gave us a big lift. And we saw the ball go in, we saw it go in today. It's the first game in the ACC where we shot well. I'm proud and we've got to get some rest. Justise [Winslow] is banged up, his shoulder, ribs. He's taken some blows. I don't think anything real serious but if we get a couple days off for him we'll be really good and get him proper medical attention.”
On Tyus Jones' adjustment to ACC play:
“It's just getting accustomed to the level of competition and intensity that you're going to see game in and game out in our conference. Really, I think I think it's that simple. They had never been through it, now you're going through it and you hope that they can adjust quickly and they did from last week. These are two big wins for our guys. Tyus, his play was outstanding.”
On Jim Boeheim and the zone defense:
“It was never named after him. We never had the 'Boeheim zone.' Orange [zone] is with USA Basketball – that was just to make him feel included. He did text me Saturday night and said, 'Where's my royalty check?' And I said, 'After the season. We'll see if it's a one-night wonder.' It's not exactly like theirs because they have all these long guys – he recruits to it. But it helps that I've been exposed to that.”
On whether the zone prevents defensive breakdowns:
“There were no breakdowns defensively against Wisconsin, against Michigan State, against Stanford, against Connecticut. We were playing great defense. Our defense started to go bad when we couldn't hit a shot. I'm not saying we can't defend better either – we should have defended better. But I think the missed shooting, it hurt us the other way. And then what I think what happened is you're out there alone instead of being together. And so the zone, or we played man too today, it's back, so you're not exposed. You feel like more people have your back. A little bit psychologically, we tried to do that. And it helped. We talked better. It's interesting, today, in the first half, because they're right in front of us on defense, and because we're learning it, we can talk to them and help them. And then we go to the other end and they got 14 points in the first four minutes because they didn't talk it out. And they're tough because [Jamel] Artis is one of their best three-point shooters, he's a four. And [Michael] Young can shoot, he's a good shooter. So you can have five shooters. That puts a lot of pressure on.”
On Pitt's physicality and tenacity:
“I say that in an all-clean way. Sometimes people say, 'They were physical, that they're dirty.' Pitt's just good. And they're strong kids, mind and body. I thought we met up to that challenge today. And they were ready to play. It's a big game, we're both 3-2 in the conference. As we move along, each of these conference games are huge.”
Duke Junior Rasheed Sulaimon
“When you're making shots, especially in front of Cameron, it's just like another adrenaline boost. We haven't been shooting the ball to our capabilities lately, but that's fine. It's a long season and you're going to have some ups and downs. Our leaders did a great job of getting us all back in the gym, getting us some extra shots and stuff like that. It's just contagious – when one person hits a shot off a good pass and we have guys out there like Tyus [Jones] or Jahlil [Okafor] that are drawing two players off of you, all you have to do is just take your time and take the shot. I was just fortunate that my teammates found me out there today, and we all shot it really well. It was contagious.”
“It's a long season and [losing back-to-back games against NC State and Miami] was a learning process. You learn from those two games, and we knew Louisville, of course, was going to be a big game. Also, we knew Pitt could be a trap game, [with them] coming off a high from beating a big team at their place. We just stayed focus, tried not to get too high, and just focus on getting better each and every day. We did that – we had a great practice yesterday – and I'm proud of the way the guys executed today.”
On the transition to playing zone defense:
“Coach [Mike Krzyzewski] again is just showing his greatness. He's not a big zone guy, but the last two teams that we've played he thought zone would be the best chance for us to win. With our athleticism and size, we just had to communicate and just be all over the court. The zone can be really effective with the size and athleticism that we have. All we had to do was communicate, and we did that and it's been working well for us.”
Duke Freshman Tyus Jones
“It was important for us just to make sure we bounced back. Two losses in a row and then we got a good, hard-fought win against Louisville, so we had to make sure we sustained the level of play and the level of focus. It was a good win for us.”
“I was just taking shots with confidence. My teammates believed in me and told me to keep shooting, even if shots weren't falling like they weren't the previous game. They told me just to keep shooting, so that's what I did. I credit them a lot.”
On Duke playing zone defense:
“Zone makes us communicate more. You have to be in sync and in rhythm. You have to in man-to-man as well, but it's just working for us right now. It's a different look that teams don't really expect from us. But, at the same time, we're clicking right now on the offensive end and shots fell tonight, which they haven't really the past few games. That helps a lot. [We were] more comfortable [in the zone defense] tonight because we've practiced it a little bit more now and had a game playing zone. It was a little bit more comfortable. [Pittsburgh] ran some different things than Louisville ran, so we had to adjust, but we did a good job of that.”
Duke Freshman Jahlil Okafor
When asked about Pittsburgh's strategy for defending him and how he got more shots in the second half:
“They pretty much double-teamed [me] throughout the whole game, and my teammates knocked down shots so it was fine with me. [In the second half], I think for a couple possessions they actually played me man-to-man, and a couple of possessions before that Coach K [Mike Krzyzewski] was telling me they were playing me man-to-man. I was kind of being too passive because I was expecting the double-team. It was just about being patient and reading the defense.”
“The zone [defense] has been very effective for us, protecting our paint against these really good ACC teams.
On the opportunity to be a part of Coach Mike Krzyzewski's pursuit of win number 1,000:
“It's very cool. When I was trying to decide what university I wanted to attend, being a part of Coach K's legacy had a big part in me coming here, so I'm excited for it.”
Pitt Head Coach Jamie Dixon
Opening Statement:
“Congratulations to Duke and their win. I thought we battled, played and competed as the game went on. I think early we missed good and open shots that put us on our heels and took away some confidence against the zone. We kept battling and hit some shots in the second half. We did some good things to get it down, but they made their free throws, making 25 free throws and 11 threes. We tried to limit [Jahlil] Okafor's touches and points. We did that to some degree at the expense of giving up some threes. I thought he passed very well out of it. He was obviously a big factor in their offensive success. They are a good team that plays well, and they know their roles.”
On playing against Jahlil Okafor:
“We tried to get some deflections and steals. We have done that in the past and have gotten some steals and deflections but we didn't get anything today. Eventually that just hurt us. We had to make those shots early in the game, I think that is what hurt us and got us in a hole. I don't think we could have had better shots against the zone, but we just couldn't knock them down. That became an issue. They are good; they made 11-of-23 from the three, and made all their free throws. We have to get more free throws than our opponents.”
On Duke's initial lead:
“It was just a pure matter of numbers. We kept going and kept battling. I think we had open shots and we had good looks. We had exactly what we wanted, and at times I feel we haven't executed well, and that affected us defensively and the next possession offensively. That's the thing we have to improve on. I think we did a better job in the second half with that.”
On Jamel Artis:
“He becomes one of our better shooters without Durand [Johnson]. He puts himself up there as one of the best three-point shooters of the guys left. Obviously he has success against zones and finds the right spots. He was good against it, but he had a few fouls in the first half. It obviously hurts when you get those fouls early.”
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