Related pages Box score Season summary advertisement [an error occurred while processing this directive]

Roy Williams - "I think (our focus) was there tonight. I think it was a hard game to play when the other team is going to control the tempo like they did and do it with good players. But we really had great focus, great attention. We talked in the locker room about effort, enthusiasm, and concentration, and being alert. And I think we were that. And then tying to get the shot we all wanted on the offensive end, and I think we did that for the whole game, too. "I told Herb, and I wasn't trying to con him or trying to make him feel good, that could have been as good as we've played all year long. "They've been very good in two ways. They guard you, and they do a good job of that. Teams have been shooting 37% against them. And then they control tempo at the other end. So both of those will keep scores down. But it was both of them, not just the fact they were holding the ball or that they were guarding people. But again, I think we were sharp offensively, and we had our concentration. And again I think that was about as good as we've played. "(T.J. Pugh) takes good shots. If you go 4-4, I hope he does that every game all year long. And B.J., I'll go back to even when those guys were struggling a little bit on the offensive end, they were still doing what we wanted on the defensive end. Paul and Raef did some good things that got us off to a good start. Jerod in the second half was really something--made a couple of great drives, got it to the basket for us. He made a prayer right before the half, but I'll take them any way. "Second half (Rayn) was much better. First half I don't know if he was trying too hard or had gotten tired of everybody asking when Jacque's coming back or what he was doing. But he didn't handle the ball in the first half the way he's done in the other nine games. But in the second half I thought he was really good, and has done extremely well with more attention focused on him than I think any college player around, and maybe more pressure on him than any college player around. He ought to go home at Christmas feeling very good about what he's accomplished. "I always try to promise they'll get three or four days off at Christmas, and this year they'll get five or six, depending on exactly when they get home. Jacque and Paul are both trying to get to a late night flight that will get them in in the middle of the morning. But I think the majority of the team will be able to get home by noon tomorrow. Hopefully everybody will travel safely and enjoy their time with their families and be healthy, and then get back and get after it again." NC State coach Herb Sendek - "They've got a great basketball team. They apply tremendous pressure to the ball. They have great size around the basket. You break down that first line, and you come up against the second line, and that's very formidable. "Certainly you have to start by giving Kansas credit. That's a phenomenal ball club. They did a good job of keeping us from doing what we wanted to do. "It's impossible to quantify, but it certainly hurt us to have two of our best players in foul trouble early. We're not a team with a whole lot of depth at this point. "It's not my position to rate teams, but they (KU and Wake Forest) should both be in contention to compete for the national championship."