Duke – 78 Ecstatic, Proud, Feel Very Honored and Privileged to Baylor – 71 Be Going to the Final Four

March 28, 2010 Duke – 78 ecstatic, proud, feel very honored and privileged to Baylor – 71 be going to the Final Four. THE MODERATOR: Questions for the An interview with: student-athletes. Q. The last TV timeout you were down one, Nolan was getting ready to go to the free-throw line. Coach sent you out back to the court real early, 30 seconds or more before the buzzer went. What was that timeout like, and what was said amongst you guys when you went back out there at a time when the game was obviously on the line? JON SCHEYER: Yeah. Well, the one thing throughout the whole game, not only during that one sequence, but we kept telling each other: We need stops and we're going to win. Mentally you need to stay so tough in that type of game THE MODERATOR: Coach, your opening because they keep coming at you. comments. So when there is crunch time there in the COACH KRZYZEWSKI: Well, we won an end, we just said this is all we've been working for outstanding basketball game. I thought it was a the whole year. We want to be in situations like great college basketball game. It's a great this. And the five of us looked at each other and basketball game. said, Let's go. Both teams played really well, and really hard. I think our offensive rebounding kept us in it Q. Can you touch on that in a sense of and really was the key there to get some when you come to Duke you guys are expected separation in the last four minutes. When we got to go to Final Fours and contend for National those two offensive rebounds, one was kicked out Championships. Says a lot about the program to Nolan and he hit a three, and one was kicked that it's been so long, since '04. But is it a out to Jon and he hit a three. special win today to get back to where Duke At that point when you get six points, as a belongs? coach you think of two-point possessions. So NOLAN SMITH: It's definitely a very you're three two-point possessions up as a result special win. This team has worked so hard starting of two shots and two rebounds. in the summertime until now. Really working hard, I thought it just knocked them back for just and we have such great team chemistry. We're a second and it gave us a little wiggle room where having fun playing together. we just got that separation. These two kids played This team from the beginning of this great basketball games. Nolan and Jon were tournament has been living in the moment. Really fantastic in handling the zone, and then playing enjoying every single game, and you know, just defense. playing hard. And it just feels great right now. Carter is a really good basketball player. He didn't dominate, which he could in a ballgame. Q. Wondered if you could talk about Nolan did a very nice job on him. So we're Lance Thomas getting on the offensive board Duke - 03 28 10 1 visit our archives at asapsports.com and the charge that Zoubek drew when Acy we knew we just needed to focus on defense. drove and could have put him up four or five? That was the biggest key. He gets the charge in that situation, and those two plays and two players contribute. Q. Could you talk about your ability to JON SCHEYER: Yeah, those were two of get to the basket against their zone, especially the biggest plays of the game. Zoubek especially in the first half? And could both of you talk coming over with a guy like Acy, too, it takes a lot about Andre Dawkins? This is a kid that could of guts. And it was a big swing. Instead of ending, have been in high school this year and he had I think it was four, it's a two-point game, we're still two huge threes in the first half. in it. With Lance, he had a couple of plays where NOLAN SMITH: I guess the zone, we he kept the ball alive, which he doesn't necessarily were really aggressive against it. We used our get credit for, it's not a stat. And then the tip and bigs. We just really wanted to attack it. Not let it dunk was just a huge play. Really a huge play. If stand us up, and we were able to get into the paint not the biggest, one of the biggest of the game. against it. For Andre, he's not scared. When he Q. Can you talk about the offensive comes to the game he looks like a 25-year-old out rebound that you-all got? Did you-all do there on the court. He feels comfortable whenever anything different as far as just being able to he comes in. He's not afraid to shoot the ball. get so many of them? JON SCHEYER: Yeah, with Andre, he NOLAN SMITH: We didn't do anything gave us a big lift. Especially we were struggling a different. Our guys inside they just go after the ball little bit in that first half to get some points. We with two hands. They've been doing that all year. were a little out of rhythm. So his two threes were They didn't change their game plan for this game. huge, especially the second one when we were They attacked the ball and they gave us so many down six to cut to three. So that was a huge shot second shots. They just made big plays like that especially. all the time. Q. Can you talk about you shot Q. Here finally in your senior season considerably better today than you had you've reached a Final Four. What does it previously in the tournament. Did you make an mean to you now after the previous three years adjustment, were they just falling tonight or did to finally get there? you do something different? JON SCHEYER: It means a lot. We're JON SCHEYER: Just coming into the happy to get this win. We've worked really hard, game I wasn't going to worry about or think about this group, and I think we've come a long way my shot. I was just going to let it go if I was open. since our freshman year. And to be in a position in Just play my game, not worry about just being a the Final Four and contend for a National spot-up shooter or anything like that. I really want Championship, it means a lot. I don't know if it's to follow my instincts and not worry about it. Just fully hit me. I'm sure after the year I'll have a better throw myself into the team, and naturally it just appreciation. But right now I'm just ecstatic and goes in when you're doing that. just really happy to share with all my teammates. Q. The two teams you had to beat to Q. Talk about you mentioned earlier get to this place, how physical was it? You had about the tip-in dunk. Was that at the point to earn these wins, how physical was it? when you-all felt the separation was going to JON SCHEYER: Yeah, these two teams happen? that we played, Purdue and Baylor, Baylor's JON SCHEYER: A little bit. I think with bigger, but Purdue is such a physical team. And Baylor, especially with Dunn and Carter, you never then Baylor, oh, they're real physical and made us feel really comfortable even when you get a six- or work for everything. eight-point lead, because two possessions they They matched us with our size. They're could hit two threes. So we felt really comfortable bigger than us, probably. So we had to work for with about five seconds on the clock. every rebound. It was one of those games where it But when that happened though, it was a possession-by-possession game against a definitely gave us a little bit of comfort room. And Duke - 03 28 10 2 visit our archives at asapsports.com really tough team. played all year. He's just a terrific basketball player. Q. We asked you this in Jacksonville Although he scored 22 points, his threes when you went 1 for 11. But did you ever think didn't hurt us. He was 2 for 8. Some of that has to you'd win a regional championship game with do with Kyle running around. I mean, Dunn is Kyle going 0 for 10 from the floor? capable of a 35-40 point game. He's that good. JON SCHEYER: Yeah. Well, it's He is that good. happened with me before. With the three of us, we So everybody contributed. And to see just want to pick each other up. And Kyle was Andre contribute like he did was great. I thought chasing around Dunn the whole game, too. He did our bigs had some problems initially with the a great job on him. That can take a lot of energy athleticism. The kid, Acy, is a great athlete. And up. he played a lot more minutes than he normally But the job he did on Dunn, that's a big lift does because they hit on a great lineup.

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