Kevin Keatts: "We Got In Incredible Foul Trouble"
NC State head coach Kevin Keatts met with the media via Zoom following the Wolfpack’s 101-76 loss to Wake Forest Wednesday evening.
NOTE: Click on the video in the player above to watch Keatts’ press conference.
Opening Statement
You know, I thought we came out in the first half and did a good job. Obviously, they came out red hot and made five threes, but we closed the half and did a great job with it. In the second half, I thought we came out and started the half well. One of the things that bothered us was that we got in incredible foul trouble when you look at the two bigs, the only two centers we have on our team. I thought they really, really beat us in the paint. When you look at it, it was 50-22 in the paint for the game. I thought that was the difference. When our post guys went out, it made us become a little bit more perimeter, and we had to take some challenged shots. The ball didn’t move as much as it did in the first [half] because we didn’t have guys setting screens and guys running. Give Wake credit. I thought they did a good job. Alondes Williams may not have scored the most points, but I thought he was the most valuable player with 17 points and 11 assists. When our “Big Three” don’t play well, it doesn’t give us the best chance to win. When you look at Terquavion [Smith], I thought he had a good night, and Jericole [Hellems] had a solid night, but we didn’t get a lot from [Dereon Seabron] tonight which makes it tough.
On the stoppages in the second half affecting NC State’s rhythm…
I don’t know if it affected our rhythm, but we already don’t have a lot of guys in the front court, and I thought a lot of the whistles were against our bigs. Both of those guys ended up with four fouls quick, and then they fouled out. I thought we did a good job getting in position and walling up, but it just didn’t go our way. When you take the flow out of the game, I thought it takes us out of our game a little bit.
On if the players’ defense changed after some of the early whistles…
I’m not sure. I think, if anything, it affected how hard we drove the ball. Obviously, on the other end, I don’t think we got some of the same calls, or maybe they played great position defense. I didn’t think we drove the ball as effectively after we got a couple [fouls]. Maybe they met us at the rim, and maybe they weren’t fouls, but I didn’t think we got the same call on the other end. I’m not saying it’s the referees’ fault. It was just they were in a better position.
On the difficulties that come with any of the “Big Three" not performing at a high level…
It’s a major issue for us when we don’t have those three guys playing well. Both Jericole and Terquavion didn’t have great efficient nights, but they were very effective in making timely shots and stopping runs. Seabron never really got going in the game. I thought they did a good job on ball screens, and they stayed with him a couple of times. He missed some shots that he’d normally make around the rim, and when we don’t him playing, it puts us in a tough situation. We didn’t have a great first half, and we were able to stay in the game and put ourselves in a good situation, but we can’t win in a 40-minute game when he doesn’t play well.
On how much more he needs from Ebenezer Dowuona and Jaylon Gibson from a rebounding standpoint…
We’ve talked about those guys being better at rebounding the basketball. I don’t think they did a great job, to be honest with you. One guy only had two offensive rebounds, and one guy had three defensive rebounds. If we’re going to win, we understand that they’re not great scoring the basketball, but they do have to do a better job rebounding the basketball.
On how important it is to get momentum ahead of the ACC Tournament…
It’s really important. I watched Wake Forest play against Louisville the other day. They’re a team that scores in a lot of runs. They score in bunches. That being said, I thought we did a good job. I would love to figure out how to get on the road against Florida State, being able to get some momentum, and be playing good basketball when you go into Brooklyn. I think the tournament will be probably as wide open as it’s been. Certainly, we’d like to be one of those teams that comes in and figures out how to get some wins.
On what being a team that has nothing to lose looks like…
A lot of times, in a one-and-done situation, coaches don’t like to play against teams who are just loose and don’t really have anything to play against. In this situation this year, we’ll be one of those teams that’s loose. We have nothing to lose and everything to gain.
On the importance of the offseason and trying to flip the results from this year…
Our biggest issue, and it’s not a secret, is that we’re just very limited in our front court. We have some really good, young guards in the program that can be really good for us, but it’s so tough on our guards every night when you don’t have anybody that you can throw the ball into. One of the things that I want to do is recruit some guys that will help us win. We’re in an unfortunate situation this year because of injuries, but hopefully we can put some guys out there next year where we don’t have to worry about that situation anymore.