University of North Carolina Athletics
Photo by: Maggie Hobson
UNC-Syracuse Postgame Quotes
February 28, 2022 | Men's Basketball
Men's Basketball vs Syracuse Post Game Press Conference
Chapel Hill, N.C.
Coach Hubert Davis, Armando Bacot, Caleb Love
Armando Bacot
Q: What does that double-double record mean to you, tying Brice Johnson, given the history of this place?
A: It's great. I'm just glad to even be able to be in the same class as Brice Johnson when it comes to that statistic. I think it's a testament to the work I've put in, and on Saturday I'm going to try to break it.
Caleb Love
Q: From the last shot at the end of the second half and then in overtime, how do you find the confidence in yourself to take and make those shots after you've had a game where you hadn't been shooting well?
A: Just trusted my work. I work too hard to get my shot right, cuntless reps in the gym. It had been an off night for me but I never lost my confidence, and never wavered. My coaches and teammates gave me the confidence to keep shooting and knock it down. So that's exactly what I did.
Head Coach Hubert Davis
Q: At a certain point with a guy like Swider having the night that he had, is there a point where you just kind of have to tip your cap to him even though you're doing the absolute best job you can on him.
A: Yes and no. You know, he was in a very good rhythm. He is 6'9 and he can really shoot the basketball. Against any type of shooter the number one defense is lift. The person that would be perfect to guard him and to probably show him down a little bit would have been Leaky. But I couldn't cut Leaky in half. I tried to, and tried to put half of him on Buddy and half on him on Cole but it just didn't work. They just have two goals in Cole and Buddy that not only can obviously make open shots, they can just make contested shots. Specifically for those guys, the only way that you have a chance at defending them is you have to put size on them. Just is what it is. There were a couple of times where we subbed Puff in and put him on there and we felt like that worked, but you know, we really love the play making and shooting of Caleb. He (Swider) was in a nice rhythm and we just didn't have enough guys with lift that could match up and be able to slow down Cole and Buddy at the same time.
Q: Syracuse jumped out to a 9-0 lead to start the game and they started the second half with a 10-1 run, but in overtime, you guys had the 8-0 run to start. What was the difference in the reset and the amount of energy that you guys were able to come out with in overtime and take over?
A: I don't know if it was energy or just in terms of our collective spirit to get after it defensively. One of the things that I've said to a couple of people yesterday and today is I feel like this is the healthiest our team has been all season. I'm not talking about physical health, I'm talking about in term of chemistry. It's been the best that it's been all season. There is a togetherness that we have right now that has manifested in something that's just really special. Our huddles are full of encouragement. We're lifting each other up. We are finding the joy in how it is to be successful out there as a team and individually. There's a collective togetherness that this group is forming more and more each day, and it's just a lot of fun to see and a joy to experience and it's unbelievable to be around.
Q: You put Leaky on Cole (Swider) at the six or five minute mark and put Caleb on Buddy. But then when they had that inbound play you put Leaky back on Buddy and forced that turnover which led to the shot you guys had. Why did you make that switch back? What is it about Leaky and his ability to defend, especially in this building, because he shut him down last year in the second half of that game and shut him down in the first 30 minutes or so today?
A: Well in that out of bounds situation underneath, I don't care where Buddy is, they are looking for him. He can be in Section 305, they're looking to throw him the ball. We know out of bounds underneath is high alert. Whatever situation they're looking for Buddy to get the shot. The reason why we switched Leaky on Cole (Swider) is because Cole (Swider) was in a rhythm. So we wanted to put Leaky on him just to kind of give them a different look, kind of slow them down a little bit. Then they started going at Caleb against Buddy, and I thought he did a pretty good job there. And then we switched them back. That was just my version of trying to cut Leaky in half and trying to get them to play two different players. There's some really fantastic defensive players in the ACC. Duke has a couple of outstanding defenders. I know that I'm his coach, but it's really hard for me to find anybody, especially on the wing, that has done a better job defensively in the conference than Leaky. His ability to defend, his versatility, we can move him around, he can guard little guards and power forwards. Whether he wins it or not, he has to be in the running, strong consideration. Obviously he should be first team all defensive team in the ACC but also defensive player of the year. He has been fantastic.
Leaky Black
Q: In overtime when you passed to RJ and he hit that three and Syracuse called that time out because you guys were on an 8-0 run, there seemed to be a lot of passion and emotion from y'all, screaming in each other's faces, chest bumping. Hubert talked about the chemistry that you guys have developed. Was there a sense that you knew what this game meant as far as your future with the tournament and things like that. Did seeing that 8-0 run kind of confirm that you guys have worked to get the win.
A: Yeah absolutely. Throughout the season we obviously had some games where we had some mental lapses. I feel like this team has some mental lapses, but I feel like this team has the ability to pull this one out. It just shows the maturity and the growth we've had this year. HD (Coach Davis) being his first year, I'm just so happy for him. This was a big game for us.
Chapel Hill, N.C.
Coach Hubert Davis, Armando Bacot, Caleb Love
Armando Bacot
Q: What does that double-double record mean to you, tying Brice Johnson, given the history of this place?
A: It's great. I'm just glad to even be able to be in the same class as Brice Johnson when it comes to that statistic. I think it's a testament to the work I've put in, and on Saturday I'm going to try to break it.
Caleb Love
Q: From the last shot at the end of the second half and then in overtime, how do you find the confidence in yourself to take and make those shots after you've had a game where you hadn't been shooting well?
A: Just trusted my work. I work too hard to get my shot right, cuntless reps in the gym. It had been an off night for me but I never lost my confidence, and never wavered. My coaches and teammates gave me the confidence to keep shooting and knock it down. So that's exactly what I did.
Head Coach Hubert Davis
Q: At a certain point with a guy like Swider having the night that he had, is there a point where you just kind of have to tip your cap to him even though you're doing the absolute best job you can on him.
A: Yes and no. You know, he was in a very good rhythm. He is 6'9 and he can really shoot the basketball. Against any type of shooter the number one defense is lift. The person that would be perfect to guard him and to probably show him down a little bit would have been Leaky. But I couldn't cut Leaky in half. I tried to, and tried to put half of him on Buddy and half on him on Cole but it just didn't work. They just have two goals in Cole and Buddy that not only can obviously make open shots, they can just make contested shots. Specifically for those guys, the only way that you have a chance at defending them is you have to put size on them. Just is what it is. There were a couple of times where we subbed Puff in and put him on there and we felt like that worked, but you know, we really love the play making and shooting of Caleb. He (Swider) was in a nice rhythm and we just didn't have enough guys with lift that could match up and be able to slow down Cole and Buddy at the same time.
Q: Syracuse jumped out to a 9-0 lead to start the game and they started the second half with a 10-1 run, but in overtime, you guys had the 8-0 run to start. What was the difference in the reset and the amount of energy that you guys were able to come out with in overtime and take over?
A: I don't know if it was energy or just in terms of our collective spirit to get after it defensively. One of the things that I've said to a couple of people yesterday and today is I feel like this is the healthiest our team has been all season. I'm not talking about physical health, I'm talking about in term of chemistry. It's been the best that it's been all season. There is a togetherness that we have right now that has manifested in something that's just really special. Our huddles are full of encouragement. We're lifting each other up. We are finding the joy in how it is to be successful out there as a team and individually. There's a collective togetherness that this group is forming more and more each day, and it's just a lot of fun to see and a joy to experience and it's unbelievable to be around.
Q: You put Leaky on Cole (Swider) at the six or five minute mark and put Caleb on Buddy. But then when they had that inbound play you put Leaky back on Buddy and forced that turnover which led to the shot you guys had. Why did you make that switch back? What is it about Leaky and his ability to defend, especially in this building, because he shut him down last year in the second half of that game and shut him down in the first 30 minutes or so today?
A: Well in that out of bounds situation underneath, I don't care where Buddy is, they are looking for him. He can be in Section 305, they're looking to throw him the ball. We know out of bounds underneath is high alert. Whatever situation they're looking for Buddy to get the shot. The reason why we switched Leaky on Cole (Swider) is because Cole (Swider) was in a rhythm. So we wanted to put Leaky on him just to kind of give them a different look, kind of slow them down a little bit. Then they started going at Caleb against Buddy, and I thought he did a pretty good job there. And then we switched them back. That was just my version of trying to cut Leaky in half and trying to get them to play two different players. There's some really fantastic defensive players in the ACC. Duke has a couple of outstanding defenders. I know that I'm his coach, but it's really hard for me to find anybody, especially on the wing, that has done a better job defensively in the conference than Leaky. His ability to defend, his versatility, we can move him around, he can guard little guards and power forwards. Whether he wins it or not, he has to be in the running, strong consideration. Obviously he should be first team all defensive team in the ACC but also defensive player of the year. He has been fantastic.
Leaky Black
Q: In overtime when you passed to RJ and he hit that three and Syracuse called that time out because you guys were on an 8-0 run, there seemed to be a lot of passion and emotion from y'all, screaming in each other's faces, chest bumping. Hubert talked about the chemistry that you guys have developed. Was there a sense that you knew what this game meant as far as your future with the tournament and things like that. Did seeing that 8-0 run kind of confirm that you guys have worked to get the win.
A: Yeah absolutely. Throughout the season we obviously had some games where we had some mental lapses. I feel like this team has some mental lapses, but I feel like this team has the ability to pull this one out. It just shows the maturity and the growth we've had this year. HD (Coach Davis) being his first year, I'm just so happy for him. This was a big game for us.
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