Kevin Keatts: "We Had Some Uncharacteristic Turnovers"

NC State head coach Kevin Keatts met with the Wolfpack Sports Network radio crew following the Wolfpack's 87-62 road loss to Georgia Tech Saturday afternoon.

NOTE: Click on the player above to listen to Keatts’ interview.

“It was two different halves. I didn't think we did a really good job of blocking out in the first half. We gave up eight offensive rebounds. That kind of toughness right there really hurt us, giving up second-chance points. We talked about it at halftime. We did a much better job early on in the second half and not giving up as many [offensive boards] — even though they ended up with 14. We turned the ball over, and when you look at the difference in the score, we were right there. We worked, and then we turned it over, and the turnovers for a touchdown are very uncharacteristic of us. We haven't had a really, really good season, but we have taken care of the ball during those moments, and that's where we were at today. One of the biggest turning points of the game: Ben [Middlebrooks] pays 17 minutes; he's a toughness guy, and he gets in foul trouble, and we roll the dice, trying to get him back in, and all of a sudden, the score gets away from us. We did some good things, but with 13 assists and 12 turnovers, it’s probably one of the fewest games that you can take a stat sheet and see where the other team had a lot more attempts than us. We're usually in that position where we get more shots than the other team.”

“When Ben went out, we thought we’d put Ish [Diouf] in, and then Ish had some moments, and then Brandon [Huntley-Hatfield] had some moments. Bryce [Heard] and those guys had some moments, but we didn't have anybody who played great offensively but Ben. I thought [Dontrez Styles] had some good moments, and I thought it was one of those games we've been asking, ‘Hey, can we get something from our interior play?’ Ben did a really good job of providing that, and then certainly, when he got in foul trouble, it completely changed the game. He's our toughness. He's a guy that we need in need in the game, and he was on his way to having a really good game.”

“[Middlbrooks’ second foul] was a critical moment. It changed us because we were able to throw the ball in and play off of him, and he does so much for us in that moment. We never really got a rhythm going, but our defense was pretty, pretty solid until that situation, and like I said, the biggest thing for us is that we had some uncharacteristic turnovers. We're one of the best, if not the best, in the country at protecting and taking care of the ball. Tonight, it was 12, and 12 is not a bad number, but it is when it leads to touchdowns on the other end.”

“[Shots] didn't go down. I mean, what do you do? They got good looks, and they just didn't go down. We looked good at shootaround. We made shots. Sometimes, the ball doesn't go in, and obviously this was one of those few nights that didn't.”

“[Baye Ndongo’s] good. He’s talented. He's gotten better. He's long. He's athletic. He's a mismatch problem. He played some four and five. He's going to be a really good player. I don't know how long that Damon [Stoudamire] can keep him around before he's at the next level playing, but I thought he impacted the game in every way. He blocked shots. He rerouted the ball. His numbers were really good.”