Wes Moore on Louisville: "They Put A Lot Of Pressure On You"

No. 4 NC State head coach Wes Moore discusses his team and much more heading into the huge matchup against No. 3 Louisville in Reynolds Coliseum.

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

On the excitement of hosting a top-5 matchup...
Our fans have been unbelievable. I think we’ve already sold out several games coming up down the stretch. It’s exciting; it’s great for our players. They love playing in front of a big crowd, playing in front of a packed house.

And obviously this is a marquee game, it’s one you circled way back when the schedule came out. You know Louisville is going to be there, and Jeff Walz does a good job. You knew it’s going to be a big game, and sure enough, here we are. It’s exciting for the players; this is why you do all that work in the offseason and in the summer, to put yourself in a position to play on the big stage in these big games. We’re all excited about the opportunity.

On his confidence in the team’s preparation level...
I think we’ve played a great nonconference schedule, and then we jumped into the league play and played some big games already. We’re ready. Obviously, Louisville is really hot now, they’ve won 15 straight, so they come in here with a lot of momentum and a lot of confidence. We were able to go there and beat them at their place last year, so I know they’re gonna come in here and try to quiet the crowd a little bit, and hopefully that doesn’t happen.

On the team’s energy levels this deep into the season...
This team’s been a little up and down in some ways. Probably with all these veterans, we’ve got some kids who have been here five years, we’ve got Raina [Perez] who has played five years, you’ve got Elissa [Cunane] who is a four-year senior.

They’ve all been battle tested, and probably there’s times they just want to say ‘Let’s move on, let’s get to March,’ but we’ve got to keep trying to use this time as dress rehearsal, so to speak, making sure that we’re cleaning stuff up and that we’re at our best in March.

I think it’s a combination of things. I do feel like in some of these big games we’ve come out with a lot of energy and a lot of urgency. I would like to see that every night, be consistent with it, but I thought we had it Sunday against Duke and hopefully that’s gonna carry over. I know you don’t have to say a lot about getting them up for this game, I think they’ll be excited and have a lot of energy hopefully.

I would like to see us be a little more consistent with that, but we’ve been able to survive and keep moving forward. Hopefully we’ll keep building and get the momentum we need as we head toward postseason.

On the team’s defensive performance the last few games...
It’s been better, it’s been better. Like I said, though, you want to see it consistently, and a lot of it has to do with making good decisions out there when we’re guarding the ball and when there’s a pick on the ball involved, making a quick decision or read, and go with it. Part of it is that. I still think that’s gonna be what makes or breaks us, our energy and our urgency on defensive and on the boards, because we want to be a team that competes for championships, and you’re gonna have a night or two where you don’t shoot well, and to survive and stay in the hunt you’re going to have to defend and rebound.

Hopefully that point is getting across. Going back and watching our games from a year ago against Louisville, both at their place and in the [ACC] Tournament, I just love the way we were moving, the way we were flying around defensively, so hopefully we’ll have that again Thursday night and for the rest of the season, for that matter.

On what Louisville does well defensively...
A big part of it is what we were just talking about. They just play hard now, they put a lot of pressure on you, they get in the passing lanes, they pressure the ball. Jeff does a good job of mixing things up, so they may switch, they may show big first pick on the ball, they may trap it. They’re gonna press; a lot of times it’s man to man and they’ll pick you up full court, but they’ll also do a full-court zone press where you have to make some decisions and read the defense.

So again, they just play hard, they get after you, and I think [Walz] has done a great job of selling them on the idea that this is what’s gonna determine [their] fate, is how well [they] defend. They’re doing a heck of a job of it; I think they’re fourth in the country. Georgia Tech is the other team in our conference that is doing a great job of it.

First of all, it puts a lot of pressure on you offensively, to handle the ball, make good reads, burn the help so to speak, because they do a great job of helping from all over the court; not just the weak side, but everywhere. But it also puts a lot of pressure on your defense, because you know they’re gonna try to keep the score low and they’re gonna try to make it difficult to run your stuff, so that puts a lot of pressure on your defense to keep up.

On adding Emily Engstler from Syracuse...
Well, Louisville has been good for a long time. Engstler is filling up a stat sheet. You look at her, first of all she can score the heck out of it whether it be inside, off the bounce, shooting the three. Defensively, she’s gonna make steals, she plows around all over the court, and you know she’s 6’1, 6’2 or whatever and she can move well and make plays. She’s also big time on the offensive boards, she’ll block shots, she does everything. And she’s a big concern on both ends of the floor, but especially trying to slow her down offensively and in transition, she’s really good.

On the team not having many COVID absences this year and on if they’ve put a big emphasis on being safe there...
Everybody is trying to be more conscious of it and avoid situations as much as possible. But we had a few early. When we went to Clemson we were missing a couple players and all three assistant coaches. We haven’t fully dodged it. But nowadays, thank goodness most of the time the symptoms have not been very strong. Hopefully that’s the case. But it’s day to day. It really is. And it’s not just you, but your opponents also. We were scheduled to play Notre Dame and prepared for them, and then Friday evening we find out ‘oh no, you’re going to Miami instead.’ We’ve got one day to prepare for them. My wife said something like ‘well, you’ve just got to be more flexible.’ And I said ‘yeah, that’s really a strength of mine, isn’t it?’ When she got up off the floor from laughing, it was OK. 

On the drop in Jakia Brown-Turner’s numbers and on if he’s seeing that on the court or if it’s maybe the box score not accurately reflecting the performance...
I think it’s a combination of things. A lot of times kids come in their freshman year or sophomore year and they put up numbers and everything is great. It’s kind of like tennis. You know how they match them up No. 1 vs. No. 1, No. 2 vs. No. 2. Well, your sophomore year the other team may have their third best perimeter defender on you. When you start building a reputation, now it’s going to be their No. 1 defender on you. I think that’s a factor some. I think she’s pressing a little bit. I also think we’ve got more scorers now. You can’t help but realize that Diamond Johnson is going to take some of the numbers.

That’s just a fact of life. We’ve got a lot of people. Kai [Crutchfield] is shooting the ball well. Raina [Perez] shoots it well. Obviously Elissa [Cunane] inside is scoring the ball. Kayla [Jones], Jada Boyd, we’ve got a lot of people who can score. If a team wants to concentrate on one player, then I think other people are going to benefit from it. We have talked, too, about people realizing that she’s a great shooter, so they’re really extended their D.

She’s going away, fading farther out when I think she’d be better served if she could go backdoor some, attack off the bounce some. When she goes off the bounce, she’s got a great jump shot. You don’t have to get all the way in to the help. You can pull up. She’s done a really good job here recently of kicking the ball to the open shooter because she draws a lot of attention. Our kids are pretty good; everyone has someone in their ear telling them ‘you need these numbers’ or whatever, but our kids have been pretty good about sharing the ball and being unselfish.

You’ve just got to take what the defense gives you. It’s like a defensive lineman in football. If they want to double team you, somebody else may get the sack. But hey, the whole idea is for the team to be successful. Jakia helps our team be successful.

On if he and Jeff Walz get excited for this game...
I don’t know, man. They’ve got great talent. They’re well coached. I don’t know if I’d call that excited. We’ll see. Some nights it feels like a root canal. But it is, though. You want to be in this position. Sometimes I like being the one that’s laying low in the weeds and grass, and everybody ignores us down here. But this is what you work for, to put yourself where you’re in this position in these marquee games. When you’re on ESPN, it’s a big game. When Louisville is ranked No. 3 in the country and we’re ranked No. 4, that’s a big game. You’d rather it be that than irrelevant. From that standpoint we’re excited and very blessed. 

On if Jada Boyd is now at the point where they expected her to be...
Yeah, I think she’s playing really well. I’m constantly on her about getting to the offensive boards because she’s really, really good at that. As her shots improve, sometimes she tends to hang out out there looking for that shot. She’s shooting the ball well. She’s getting to the rim, which I love seeing. I love to see her run the floor in transition because when she goes, there’s not many people that can keep up with her. 

She’s doing a lot of things well for us. I think that’s really important with [Jones] still working her way back to 100 percent from her surgery and all. Jada Boyd is very critical to what we’re doing and this team. With her and Diamond both, you could say we have seven starters for that purpose. We’ve got a lot of talented players. We’re excited about where Jada is at. 

On if he feels the team gets a different level of intensity with every opponent now compared to a few years ago...
I don’t think there’s any doubt. Just like we’re talking about our team, I wish we were more consistent sometimes with our effort, with our urgency. I keep using those words. But I think sometimes you go into a game thinking ‘we got this.’ Then I think there’s other games where you circle it on your schedule when it comes out. It’s ‘oh, that’s going to be a big game.  Who do we have before them? Who do we have after them? How is it sandwiched in there?’ There’s no doubt. You’re going to get everybody’s A game. The wind blows hardest at the top of the flagpole. It’s blowing hard. But like I said, that beats the alternative. We’re excited for that, and hopefully our players can handle that and realize that that’s going to make you stronger at the end of the day when you get ready for postseason.

On this weekend with Louisville and Virginia Tech resembling what NC State could see in the NCAA Tournament...
Sure. I mean, that’s a great comparison. I think Virginia Tech should be ranked in the top 25 right now. Obviously Louisville is one of the top teams in the country. So yeah, that’s a good point. You’re having a quick turnaround against two of the best teams in the country. That’s a good way of looking at it. Maybe I’ll tell my players that, and I’ll take full credit for thinking of that.