NC State head coach Justin Gainey met with the media to discuss the 130-66 exhibition win over Lenoir-Rhyne.
NOTE: Click the video above to watch the full press conference!
What was the goal today? What did you want to get out of this, and do you feel like you accomplished it?
The goal was to get better, grow from the ECU closed scrimmage, and grow from the Mississippi State exhibition game.
I felt like we took away a lot of different things from each game.
We did some good things, but you play those games to see where your warts are.
We had three different types of opponents, so we could really evaluate ourselves after those first two and try to get better today.
I always tell my guys, it’s about us.
It’s always about us.
How important was it to see Kingston Whitty, Zymicah Wilkins and Robert Jurkovic get the ball through the hoop and have some success? Also, have you noticed a tighter whistle between the Mississippi State exhibition and today?
Yeah, it’s a lot.
I think back to Mississippi State, we shot 39 free throws. Tonight, we shot 38.
I don’t know what to attribute that to. I’d have to go back and watch the film.
As for Zymicah, Robert, and Kingston, I point more to them on the defensive side.
My message to them is clear.
No matter how long you’re in the game, you’ve got to be able to guard your position. You’ve got to make an impact defensively.
I thought Kingston was really good at hawking the ball, fighting over ball screens, and doing a lot of physical work.
Same with Zymicah. He’s throwing his body around. He’s on the glass. He’s a load down there.
I think Robert is just settling in.
He’s that calming force. He’s in the right place. He’s in position.
He makes a lot of winning plays that don’t really show up on the stat sheet.
Our team recognizes it, but the stat sheet doesn’t. The common eye might not see it.
All three of those guys have been practicing well.
Zymicah was coming back from an injury, so his reps were limited until the last couple of weeks, maybe three.
He’s been getting back into form and shape.
Looking at the frontcourt, what was the difference between the Mississippi State game and today? How important was it to see guys like Kyle Evans and Zymicah Wilkins get going, along with Robert Jurkovic stretching the floor? Also, is there anything going on with Shah Hall since he didn’t play today?
As for the bigs, I’ve always said we have a great mix.
They all complement each other, and when they're all playing well, it’s really good to see. It’s fun to see.
Kyle brings that length, athleticism, and bounciness off the floor.
E.Y., Eemeli Yalaho, has the size. He can stretch the floor. He can shoot it.
Zymicah is nimble. He’s quick, but he also throws his body around.
Robert does everything. He can be physical, and he can also shoot it.
Those guys did a good job tonight.
We still have things to clean up and work on, but those guys did a good job.
Shah’s been battling a little sickness the last couple of days, so he hasn’t practiced.
If you don’t practice, you can’t play.
He’s recovering now, and it’ll be good for him to get back at it this week. Hopefully, he’ll be ready to go Monday.
Kingston said sharing the ball more was a big emphasis in practice this past week. Why was that such an emphasis? You also went 34-for-38 from the free-throw line. Do you emphasize getting to the line?
As for sharing the ball, our offense is built on pace and space.
When the ball sticks, it really slows down your pace.
We’ve been talking about moving the ball and sharing it.
The guys heard the message and listened.
I don’t think we were ever a selfish team or an over-dribbling team, but there were situations where we probably could’ve taken one fewer dribble and made the play.
I think it’s registering with the guys.
They all like each other.
I’ve said that for probably a month now, how connected this group is.
They love playing with each other. They love finding the open man.
They know we have some good perimeter shooting, and if we get good looks, we’ll make them.
We can make them in bunches.
As for free-throw shooting, we take our “daily vitamins” every day, and we’re shooting a lot of free throws within those vitamins.
It was good to see us go 34-for-38 from the free-throw line, close to 90%.
It’s working. It’s paying off.
Within our offense, we don’t necessarily want to be a jump-shooting team.
We want to put pressure on the rim.
Getting to the free-throw line 38 times shows we’re doing that.
Can you talk about your guards, Preston Edmead and Darius Adams? They both came in as guys who can score, but tonight they combined for 17 assists and didn’t take a high volume of shots. Was that an emphasis in practice?
They look a lot better than me.
The other thing I’m proud of is that they had only one turnover between them.
D.A. had nine assists and zero turnovers.
Preston had eight assists and one turnover.
It speaks more to those guys being willing to do whatever it takes to win.
They understand the spacing within our offense. They can break down the defense and get into the paint.
Now, it’s about making the right read.
For two guys who can turn it on and score when they need to and when they want to, it's about how unselfish they are and how much joy they get from playmaking and making their teammates better; that makes us more dangerous.
It makes them more dangerous, too.
It’ll open up more scoring opportunities for them.
I’m proud that neither one of them started pressing.
Neither one of them felt like, “Man, I’ve got to go get something.”
D.A. turned down a couple, shot-faked, got into the paint, and kicked it to Paul.
He knew Paul was going, and he found him.
For your point guards and primary ball handlers, that’s what you want.
You want them running the show, getting everybody else involved, and then they know when it’s time to go get theirs.
Tonight, both of those guys did a great job.
Looking back at the Mississippi State film, were there opportunities where Paul McNeil Jr. was open and you could have gotten him more shots? His volume was much higher tonight.
I think it was a combination of things.
The defensive coverage was a little different.
There were a couple of times we could’ve gotten Paul a look or a catch and didn’t get it to him.
On film, there were a couple of times we talked about, “Hey, we’ve got to make this play.”
But I didn’t think it was because we missed him.
I thought we didn’t play with enough pace to put the defense on its heels and create the passing angle to get it to him.
Tonight, I felt like our pace was really good.
We played fast.
When you play fast like that and move the ball, nights where you shoot 14-for-28 from three are when those things happen.
We want to keep playing fast and with pace.
Obviously, you’re probably hoping for a different atmosphere when the regular season starts, but how real did this feel tonight? How real does it feel knowing you’re this close to the season opener and playing inside Lenovo Center?
It felt real.
There were fans in there. The popcorn was popping.
We put on the uniforms, the real uniforms.
We want to take advantage of every opportunity, and we have to get better every day.
You only get about 32 of these games a year.
When you can have three exhibitions, work on things, grow, come together, and then make a first impression at home in front of our crowd, regardless of how many people are there, you’ve got to take advantage of that opportunity.
We treated it like a real game.
We prepared like a real game, hoping that when we stepped onto the floor, we’d treat it like one.
That’s what we did.
That’s how seriously we try to approach everything.
At the end of the game, you stood at half court and got a little emotional when you heard the alma mater. What did that moment feel like for you in Lenovo Center?
It was great.
It brought back some old memories.
Last week, I went over to thank the pep band and tell them, “Hey, we’re going to need you.”
They’re behind the opponent’s basket in the second half, so we need them to be loud and crazy down there.
I went over and spent some time with them, and their reception was amazing.
It brought back a lot of memories.
It was a surreal moment.
I was envisioning 30 years ago, back here, hearing that chant and that song.
It was great.
