LOCKER ROOM REPORT: Wolfpack Players

NC State’s D.J. Horne, Casey Morsell, Michael O’Connell, and Jayden Taylor met with the media following the Wolfpack's 74-68 win over Miami Tuesday evening.

Horne led the way with 24 points against the Hurricanes to go along with four rebounds, two assists, and one steal. Morsell added 17 points, two rebounds, one assist, and one block. O’Connell led the Pack in assists with five while scoring six points, pulling down five boards, and recording a team-high three steals. Taylor reeled in a team-best seven rebounds while adding 12 points, three blocks, two steals, and one assist.

NOTE: Click on each player’s respective thumbnail to watch each interview in the player above.

D.J. Horne

“We just had to be hungry for this one. We definitely came in with the mindset that we had to win this one, it wasn’t even up for discussion. We had to come out of this one with a win and we did that, so I’m very happy.”

“We started with a great start to our season, at least in the conference. I think one of the best seasons we’ve had since our last ACC Championship. Looking back on that and recognizing how good we’ve done, we couldn’t let that go to waste. We told ourselves we had to fix it and we had to fix it now.”

“That was an emphasis coming into the game, we knew that Miami was going to be an offensive, firepower team with their guards that they have. We knew that it would be key to get out to a good start in this one.

“That was a big key, but we were worried about getting back to our identity. I have always said that our identity is the defense and I think we definitely displayed that tonight.”

Casey Morsell

“We just had to have a sense of urgency with our approach. We lost to Virginia Tech, and two tough road games, two teams that have, that are tremendous at home. So we just had to keep our identity the same and just believe in ourselves. We had a tough road stretch and now we're ready to go on another win streak I believe.”

“I think we threw a different look at them. It was going small and  trying to match them in terms of our approach. And not many teams have seen us play with the lineup that we played with, and I think we still need to do a better job of finishing possessions. I think that's kind of what kept the game close but we’re heading in the right direction.”

“It's a good feeling to get a win. It's just tough to beat anyone in this league. But to come out here and get on the right track, it means a lot and we just need to learn from our mistakes and prepare for the next one.”

“It's important. We got to protect our home court. This game shows that we can play with a lot of different lineups. We had to show our versatility in terms of who we are and grant credit to the coaches, they found a way to put us in a position to be successful.” 

Michael O’Connell

“It's great, I get to go out there and play with those guys. They're all talented, I was just telling someone else before, when you play with a lot of scorers like that and high motor guys, it makes my life easy. I get the ball up the court, try to make plays, and kick it at them, and they're going to knock down shots and make plays. So it's definitely great being out there and constantly building that chemistry.”

“A win's a win. We need that, we just dropped three straight and if we want to make it to March Madness and win an ACC Championship, we’ve got to make sure we're winning games and doing things the right way. It’s great to get this win tonight, get the morale high, and see what we did right and try to keep that going for the rest of the season.”

“​​I think just staying confident in ourselves, it's easy to get down to yourself when you drop three games and not make shots, but just staying confident, getting in the gym and doing everything that we do every day. Just relying on that makes it so much easier.”

Jayden Taylor

“He’s a good player, I just wanted to throw off his rhythm. I think he still ended up with 20+, but I just tried to do the best I could. On the other end, it was good to see the ball go in, my teammates got me open and put me in the right spots. He got into a rhythm, that’s all that was. We messed up some coverages and got fatigued, mental mistakes.”

“We knew we weren’t losing this one, four in a row would have been crazy. The Syracuse game wasn’t even us, it wasn’t a competition. We knew we had to win this, it wasn’t even an option to lose, honestly. When we lose it’s a weird vibe. Everybody comes in and it’s strictly business. We’re probably not even going to smile the next day, it’s just straight work and it paid off.”

“It’s amazing, it’s great to come in here and celebrate with your brothers, that’s what it’s all about. We protected PNC, we won at home, there’s no better feeling.”

“That’s the new game, you’ve got to be able to make threes. We haven’t been shooting the ball well but we know we can all shoot. We’re not panicked, we just have to shoot it with confidence.”