PC: Quadir Copeland, Matt Able, and Darrion Williams Discuss NC Central Win

NC State standouts Darrion Williams, Quadir Copeland, and Matt Able met with the media after the Wolfpack's 114-66 home win over NC Central.

NOTE: Click the video above to watch the press conference.

For all three of you, I mean, your first game in an NC State uniform, what did it mean to you to be able to not only play, but play in front of that crowd? 
Matt Able: It was super meaningful, I enjoyed it. My first college game it was so, I mean, it was really just fun. We got to win, and like, overall, it was just a lot of fun. Got to do it with my teammates, so yeah. 

Quadir Copeland: Me? I enjoyed it, I really did enjoy it to be out there with these guys, and to notice all the work that we put in this summer. It finally, like, paid off, like, to see that we weren't doing it for nothing. We were doing a lot of crazy things together, so just being able to build that all together, and put it on the floor in front of 20,000 people who could ask for better, so, amazing feeling. 

Darrion Williams: Yeah, well, he said, just being able to go out there, you can tell, we all genuinely care for each other and want each other to do good, so I think that was the biggest thing, being on this side of the fans cheering was kind of nice.

And Darrion, you caught a little bit of a heater there early on, I mean, what was that like when you were seeing shots go in that early, and how much did that kind of help to be able to form that distance between the teams early on? 
I think my teammates did a great job of finding me. Coach told us a few days ago that somebody has to set the thermostat, so we just want to come out there and get on them from the jump post. 

Quadir Copeland: Next question, please, please, please. 

For all three of you, before the game, what were the emotions like? Did it feel like Christmas morning? 
Quadir Copeland: No, it did not feel like, we still played with one wing, as you guys know, so, he doesn't take nothing lightly, especially, like, game days, there's no laughing, joking, it's all seriousness, it's straight to business, it don't matter who you're playing against, so, definitely not Christmas morning. 

I feel like you get more of that feeling when we all walk out together, playing our music, everybody's hyped, and then you see how loud the crowd getting, I feel like that's when we finally felt that moment, but, like, our preparation is, like, top tier, so, we are ready for the moment. I feel like, and just how we prepare and get ready for things like that, we never get too hyped or too low; we stay even-keeled, so we know we're ready for the moment. 

Darrion Williams: Yeah, I don't think we put our best foot forward last weekend, so we really just want to come out here and be focused, and like you said, our preparation this week was, a lot of us were a lot more focused to do, to the details and everything, so, coming out here was great. 

Matt Able: Yeah, they're used to this, so they're very, I was excited, I was preparing, obviously, all the just preparation we do, but as soon as I got out there, I was just having fun, playing with my teammates. 

Matt and Quadir, you guys saw, Darrion, obviously talked about kind of taking the charge at the beginning of the game, what was it like for you to kind of see him, really assert himself and get you guys rolling? 
Quadir Copeland: Oh, like I said, we know who D5 is, trust me, like, we know that POY, that wasn't for no reason, so, we know what kind of player he is, we know that we want to get him started early, it don't matter if he would have missed his first three shots, we would have still kept going back to him, so, we know what he can do for us, we know he can set the tone anytime, and when he having a moment like that, you got to give him the rock, he know that, just, you got to tell us where he wanted it, and we're going to find him, so, just being able to have that person, that player to set the tone for us, that makes everybody's game so much easier, because they're already focusing on D5, so now when he come out and start off 11 quick like that, they make everything easy for us, and it's not like he's not looking for us too, I think, yeah, what, 8 assists, 9 assists, like, he's a hell of a player, I think you guys understand that, so, we can feed off of him, he can feed off of our energy, it doesn't really matter, but we love to get him going early.

Matt Able: Yeah, he's one of the, I mean, one of the leaders on the team, he's been at the biggest games and the biggest moments, so, you know, just having a guy like that on your team, it gives me confidence, it gives the team confidence to just play their best, and it opens it up for everyone else, including me, just to get open shots, because they're so worried about him and what he can do. 

And then, for all three of you, you guys seen it in practice, but what was it like, seeing Coach Wade be as fiery as he was, no matter what the score was, he got a technical foul, caught 50, what was that like? 
Quadir Copeland: I’ll let ya’ll answer that, because I know him too well. 

Matt Able: Nah, it was just, he's just always that intense to bring the best out of us, so I wasn't really surprised when I saw him, I don't even know the call, but he was going off about something, and it just, I mean, I mean, it kind of brings everyone else's spirit up, because it's like, we up however many, and he's still going to fight for us every single time, win, lose, it don't matter. 

Darrion Williams: Yeah, I thought it was funny, but I think it's just him setting the tone, no matter what point in the game he wants us to play hard, and he's going to hold us to that standard.

Matt, you and Paul you were both cooking out there, you know, like prime stuff and clay out there. What gives you guys so much confidence when you're shooting? 
Matt Able: My teammates, and obviously me, I mean, I put the work in, but my teammates finding me open shots, it was just, I mean, it was just stuff I work on and stuff that, we focus on in practice and shoot around, so it was just great experience, and my teammates were finding me all the time. 

Perspective from all three of you, Darrion, I'll start with you. There's been a lot of hype around you guys this season. Do you guys feel a sense of pressure to live up to that hype? But is also that a good thing? 
Darrion Wililams: No, I don't think we feel any pressure. We just want to go out there and win. Obviously, Coach told us to a standard every day in practice that we just come out here and translate to the game. 

Matt Able: Yeah, no, there's not really any pressure, and I feel like we put in so much work. It's like we just trust and believe in ourselves and our teammates. It's just kind of no pressure. It's just we go out there and we hoop. 

Quadir Copeland: I feel like if you're feeling pressure, that means you didn't put in enough work. I feel like the work we put in this summer, nobody can match it. No program, no school, no anything. So I feel like the stuff that we did, it prepared us for this, like these moments. So when you prepare six, seven months earlier, you're ready for these moments. You're eager to get to these moments quicker.

So I definitely don't think there's any pressure, especially with the guys we got and our leader. Will Wade is our leader. So he gets the most hate, criticism by anybody, any coach I ever played for. So just to see how he controls and handles everything, always level-headed, it makes it easier. We just follow the leader. 

Darrion, I think earlier this summer, when talking about Matt Able on Twitter, you said my young bull is better than yours. Just your thoughts? 
Quadir Copeland: Somebody got that from me. 

So for both of you, just your thoughts on getting to see Matt perform in his first game, obviously most of it coming in the second half, but just your thoughts on his game today? 
Quadir Copeland: My youngin', yo, I shed some tears on that bench today, man. Just seeing his growth and seeing everything he's been through, he's been killing all summer. We knew these moments, we knew the kid was good. I think I said it even in the last game. We already knew the type of player and the type of kid he is, and it was amazing seeing him shine. I told him before the game, I said, this is your moment, kid, shine today. Shine. Smile in front of these people. Let them know who you is. Everybody want to know who the young kid, Matt Able, the five-star recruit, is. I said, bro, show them who you are.

Smile, be happy today. This is your moment to shine. So just seeing him actually shine in front of my eyes, it was amazing. I told you, I really shed some tears on that bench today. Hug him when he gets sucked out. It was an amazing moment.

Darrion Williams: I think it just so separates him. For the first day I met him, his confidence was just at an all-time high for a freshman. Sorry, I lost my voice. But, yeah, I've been around some talented freshmen the past couple years, but I think he's up there with anybody in the country. I mean, his confidence and the work he puts in, like he said, is unmatched.