Kevin Keatts: "We'll Get Help From This Game Down the Road"

NC State head coach Kevin Keatts met with the media following the Wolfpack's 79-70 loss to Tennessee Saturday night in San Antonio as part of the Hall of Fame Series.

NOTE: Click on the video in the player above to watch Keatts’ press conference.

Opening statement

It was a hard-fought game. You've got two teams that play hard, that kind of mirror each other. We'll pick you up and get after you a little bit. The game came down to possessions. I thought we did some really good things. They had fewer mistakes than we did, but I thought our guys fought to the end. It was a really good game. We can learn a lot from the game. Some guys did some really good things late in the game. We were able to get the ball inside to D.J. [Burns]. D.J. Horne had a really good first half. I thought everybody contributed. It was one of those games that kind of felt like a middle-of-January, early-February ACC game, and it was a good thing. We've got to go build on it. Give all credit to Tennessee; I thought they finished the game. They made some big shots towards the end of the game and did some things, but I liked the way our guys competed. Obviously, we're not going to take any moral victories, but we want to continue to get better. With all of the guys we’ve got, one of the things we're going to continue to work on is getting better with our chemistry.

On limiting Dalton Knecht…

We did a really good job. He was obviously at the top of scouting report. He’s a really good player. We knew coming in that he's a guy that can break the game open. He’s probably one of the toughest matchups that we’re going to play against: a guy who can score inside out. We wanted to make sure that we were there on the catch. We wanted to make sure that we didn't gamble and give him angles because obviously he can put the ball on the floor and get to the rim, and I thought we did a really good job on him.

On Kam Woods making his Wolfpack debut…

I went back and forth. Obviously, I've been reading everything about the two-time transfer. Kam has worked extremely hard over the last month or so in practice. The initial waiver was denied. The additional waiver was denied, and then we went to the appeal process and hadn't really heard anything back from that. When the opportunity came up, I was like, “This kid's worked really hard. He deserves to play." He's going to be really good for us. The tough thing about us right now: we're playing good basketball, but we've also added two pieces that probably most teams haven't added in the last week or two. It's going to take a little bit more time for us to gel, even with those newer guys in. For Kam’s first game out, I thought he did a good job.

On the offense slipping after chasing Tennessee…

Think about this: we were 60-60 when [Burns] made a great pass to [Horne], and he had a great look for three — I thought it was going in — and it just didn't go in. I tell you what; it was a hard-fought, physical game, back and forth. I learned a lot about my guys because there were times in the game — we got down as much as 11 — where we could have been a little bit broke, but we didn’t [break]. We just bent a little bit, and we fought back. [At] 60-60, we had a good shot; we had a chance to go up. I think we got a steal on the other end, and then we got a chance to go up, so we did some good things. We'll go back, and we'll really concentrate on the mistakes that we may have made and how we get over the hump with those.

On using this game and the Ole Miss game as measuring sticks for the Wolfpack’s progress…

I can use it as growth, but I think every team has one or two games where you just don't recognize your team. I don't know Ole Miss was that. Was it travel? I don't know. We just didn't play well. I didn't know if it was the West Coast trip. That being said, we have grown. We'd won three in a row, obviously getting a chance to go on the road after winning at Boston College, playing a really good team — No. 12 team in the country — toe-to-toe. We've got some good things going on, but we’ve just got to continue to build on it and get better.

On when he expects the new additions coalesce with the rest of the team…

I wish I had a magic wand and it could happen overnight. They're not that far off. They're practicing. It's just making sure everybody is completely on the same page. Those guys in the locker room, we fought. It was a good game. If you're sitting there watching the game, you're saying, “Man, what a great game that is." It's a lot to build on. Like I told you, we're never going to take a moral victory in this program, but boy, we saw some good things, and I thought our guys answered a lot of questions. Defensively, I thought we were stingy; it was a very good defensive game. We learned how to move the ball. If you want one thing from the Ole Miss game, I thought the ball stuck too much. Tonight, I thought we passed it. We had 11 assists on 22 made field goals which is 50 percent. We really took care of basketball.

On gauging assists based on the team’s offensive style…

If we get 11 assists, that means we probably could have had about 15 or 16 because of the fact that [Burns] does dribble in the post. He’s also becoming a guy who can really pass for us. He may lead us this year in assists.

On Zakai Zeigler…

Zeigler played well. He really drove the ball. We knew he could put the ball on the floor and really create for others. He's done a good job in that area. He wasn't supposed to be 4-for-8. He made shots. He shot well from the three-point line. I go both he and Josiah-Jordan James played well. You look at the two of those guys; they made nine threes between the two of those guys. They stepped up and made timely shots.

On the value of this event…

It’s a great event. I don't know that I could ask for a better game on a neutral court where you get a chance to grow. I'm sure Coach [Rick] Barnes is going to learn a lot about his team, and we get a chance to learn a lot. Playing these type of games only helps you when you get into ACC play. Playing Ole Miss, playing Vanderbilt, and playing BYU helped us win at BC. We'll get some help from this game somewhere down the road.