NC State Assistant Coach Williams and G Zoe Brooks met with the media to discuss the 88-80 overtime loss to Louisville.
NOTE: Click the video player above to watch the press conference!
Ashley, as far as, I guess, the scout, what did you do? Did Louisville do what you expected them to do?
COACH WILLIAMS: Yeah, I mean, I think largely what we talked about being the keys, they did. We knew the key to this game would be rebounding, boxing out and getting defensive boards and finishing possessions. And, unfortunately, I think they had some timely offensive rebounds that they were able to capitalize on.
I guess I wonder, players like Tilda and Khamil who have been great rebounders in the past, maybe why wasn't that an area of success for y'all today?
COACH WILLIAMS: Well, I mean, I think we knew coming into today, Louisville was different in how they attacked the offensive glass and that they sent all five players at times. And, a lot of teams will send three, maybe four, but all five is a little bit different.
And so, I think they were battling in there.I think we did battle. I think just ultimately not getting box outs every possession, bit us. And so just beat all five to understand that next time and hopefully get it done.
That first quarter was so strong. What adjustments did they make that kind of – or was it adjustments on their end that kind of changed the game after that first ten minutes?
COACH WILLIAMS: Yeah, I mean, I think they started out kind of being aggressive with ball screen defense. They were trapping some and putting two on the ball. And I think our guards did a very good job of beating it and being around their big or making them pay, so to speak.
And I think in the second half they made an adjustment to amp up the pressure a little bit. And that was, a little bit threw off our rhythm when we had that second run in the half to start the half.
So just a couple different things, you know.And even at the end I felt like we punched back both in the first half and the second half when they made runs. And unfortunately it just ended with their punch.
Yeah, Zoe, we've been in a couple similar games like this, but the team has come out on top. You've never really experienced a loss like that at home. What do you think you can take away from this going forward?
BROOKS: Just got to take care of the ball better, especially towards the end when it's really crucial and just continue to stick together and try to execute the plays that coach wanted.
What do you think went into some of those turnovers?
BROOKS: I think losing those ball pressure was pretty good today. And I think that overall we even handled pressure a little bit better, especially myself.
Zoe, Zam's kind of turned into a little spark plug on offense. She went down with an injury, came back, and, gets that big three. What kind of growth have you seen from her over the past year?
BROOKS: A lot of growth, especially in her confidence. Freshman year is always hard. And I feel like sophomore year, this is her year. She's been playing really well, scoring the ball, dishing the ball, defending. So this is definitely a good year for her.
Zoe, how challenging was it on the defensive end to defend kind of the way that they attack the glass and come after you?
BROOKS: I mean, they're very good attackers, obviously, as you can see. They also can shoot very well, and they have really good size. So it was a little challenging. But, I feel like we did a pretty good job.
Imari Berry scored her career-high 33 points. What was she doing in this region instead of everything else you were learning?
BROOKS: Everything. I feel like she was shooting the ball well for three, pull up, get into the basket. I think she had a very good all-around game today.
Zoe, y'all held them to five threes, and they were without one in the first half for the first half of the season, I believe. I think that kind of kept y'all in the game. Maybe what was working well in that defensive area?
BROOKS: We just tried to pressure the ball, make it hard for them to shoot threes. We know that they can shoot very well, so pressuring them and making them bounce, put it on the floor was key. Two more questions for you, coach, or Zoe.
Yeah, we had Tilda only getting three shots on tonight. What can you do to get that? I would guess the goal would be to get her a few more shots than that. What made it hard for her to get going offensively today?
COACH WILLIAMS: Well, I think, Tilda, I believe, has had three straight double-doubles, and she's doing, a really good job of scoring, and I think that's off to Louisville. I think they understood that, and so they tried to do things to take her away.
And I think their pressure at times prevented us from getting the ball where we wanted to get it. And so just some of it's them and how they guarded stuff, and the other part, too, is, Tilda, we asked her to go down to the post and demand the ball, and so I think it's a little bit of both.
Zoe, just your thoughts on, your team as a whole. You had a team coming up just that much of pulling off a win against Louisville. Just your overall thoughts on that?
BROOKS: Yeah, I still think that we're a very young team. We still haven't seen them, so I feel like in moments like that, that's when, seniors normally, take over, and we not just by example but locally, and I feel like we're going to continue to grow as a team, and we're going to get better.
