Jeff Capel:
Opening Statements
“First of all, I want to congratulate North Carolina. They're a terrific basketball team, terrific program. They made plays today, and they beat us. I'm really, really proud of my team and for all that we've accomplished this year. I hate that we didn't shoot the ball well tonight or this afternoon. I thought the game would have been a lot more interesting if we could have
made some shots, and I thought we had some really good looks. But that's the way basketball goes sometimes. Unfortunately, it happened today. Again, I can't say enough about the effort that our guys gave today and throughout the season. How hard they played. And just how together we were. And I think it especially showed in this tournament.”
“We have a locker room full of guys that are hurt. And we fully believed that we were going to win this basketball game today. But this is how life is sometimes. It doesn't happen the way you want it, and every opportunity is a chance to learn. So that's the way it goes. I hate that our season had to end this way, especially for our seniors, especially for Taylor and Austin. I mean, those two kids, you know, they've endured so much during their time here at the University of Oklahoma.
And for them to stick with us, stick with the program, and to stick with me, and for them to have the kind of success they had in their last year really means a lot to me. I know it means a lot to them. And hopefully it means a lot to the people at the University of Oklahoma, fans, everyone involved. I do ask one favor of all of you. I know it's probably a topic that you want to ask, but please do not ask Blake anything about the NBA. We'll get to that when we – at the appropriate time. You know, he's hurting right now. I'm sure that's the furthest thing from his mind. So thanks.”
Have you ever been around a team where guard play was so inconsistent?
“Well, you know, it
has been at times. We've been really good at
times. And we didn't make shots today.
You know, we did -- we had the tempo
where we wanted it. To hold that team that's
averaging 90-72. We had all of that where we
wanted. The only thing we couldn't do was we
could not make shots early in the game.
I do think we were a little bit tight.
Sometimes you can want something so much that
it -- you know, you're trying so hard, and I think
that's what happened to us early in the game.
You know, Blake had a lay-up, and he
missed it on a great drive. We had a couple of
wide open shots that we just missed, and I think
that and then Carolina executing and jumping out
to a lead maybe knocked us back a little bit.
But I was proud of our guys for continuing
to fight. To start the second half, you know, we
ended the half well. To start the second half, we
just couldn't get stops. We got our offense going.
We were scoring. We just could not get stops.
And one of the things that Carolina's
known for is being even more efficient in the
second half, and they certainly were today.
So, again, I liked the tempo that we had. I
thought we did a good enough job defensively
although in the second half they did shoot 62%.
But it came down to our inability to make shots.
Carolina had something to do that, but we got
some good looks and just missed them.”
What do you feel was the key to the game?
“Transition
defense. Carolina is so good. They're the most
explosive offensive team in the country.
So we talked about transition defense.
We've got to get back. We've got to get the ball
under control, and we've got to fan out because
they love to hit ahead. I thought we actually did a
pretty good job with that.
The other thing was trying to control
tempo. We didn't want to get into a track meet with
North Carolina. We wanted to try to control tempo,
and I thought we did a good job of that. Again, we
just couldn't do enough offensively.
Defensively, we did enough to win. We
just couldn't get it done offensively against them.”
How do you get a stop against such a good offensive team?
“You know, that
was all throughout the game, but we were
especially trying to implore our guys to do that to
start the second half.
It felt like we finally got the ball to go into
the basket towards the end of that first half. And I
felt like, if we could come out and get a few stops
and then execute, that would put a little bit of game
pressure on North Carolina.
I think they scored maybe their first four or
five possessions. And each time out after that --
you know, when you're behind, it is tough to climb
out of it, especially against such a great team like
they are. And they're a great team. They're not a
good team. They're a great team. And they're a
great offensive team.
They have so many weapons. And, again,
it wasn't lack of effort. Our guys played. They
competed. I just think, if we could have made a
few more threes, some of those baskets maybe
would have put a little bit more pressure on them
and would have made things a little bit more
interesting.
But take nothing away from them. I don't
mean that as any sign of disrespect. I have the
ultimate respect for that program and wish them
luck the rest of the way. They were terrific.”
Can you sum up Blake Griffin’s performances in the NCAA tourney?
“Well, he's done
that all year. I mean, I think that he's solidified that
he's the best player in the country. This is not a
knock against anyone else. But I don't personally
think it's close.
And there's some terrific players this year.
But with what he's done the last two weeks and
throughout the season, you know, there's a
question asked of him about being double-teamed
as soon as he called it, and he's still 9 for 12, 23
points, and 16 rebounds against arguably the best
team in the country with post depth, bringing
McDonald's All-Americans in off the bench.
He's really, really good, and he's done it all
year long, and he's done it against really good
competition all year long.
It's been a joy to watch him develop this
year. You know, it's especially rewarding because
he put the time in last summer. And he's a great
example for guys in our program, and hopefully
that's something that they look at. Hopefully, that's
something that they see.
There will never be another Blake Griffin,
but if you want to have a chance to maximize your
potential as a player, then hopefully you watched
his work ethic and saw what he did.”
What was it like coaching a close knit OU team?
“Yeah, it's neat.
This was a tight group. And we've been through a
lot this year, just like every team does. Every year
is a journey.
And these guys have taken us on a
wonderful ride this year. I mean, I couldn't be any
prouder. You know, to my third year here at the
University of Oklahoma, to get to an Elite Eight, to
have an opportunity to play for a chance to go to
the Final Four. To watch these young men grow,
to watch Taylor and Austin from the time I got here
and to see them now. To watch the development
of Tony Crocker, you know, to watch the
development of Blake Griffin, Willie Warren
throughout the year.
I mean, it's been -- I mean, that's the
University of Oklahoma is a pretty special place.
All of us are very fortunate to be a part of it.”
What can Willie Warren learn from the experience in the NCAA tourney?
“You know, I
thought our experience last year helped us, our
experience last year in the tournament. We got
embarrassed our last game against Louisville. I
know that was a motivating factor.
And it made our guys understand how
hard we have to work. Hopefully, one of the things
is that we don't take it for granted, especially Willie
as a freshman. You don't take it for granted
getting to this point. And hopefully it makes him
want to work harder to improve his game.
Hopefully, he can make some strides like Blake
made from his freshman to sophomore year.
You know, if Willie decides to come back,
then we're going to look at him as being a leader
for us, for our basketball team next year.
So for all of our guys, this whole
experience can help. You know, if we use it the
right way and keep it in the proper perspective.”
Is talking Blake in to staying an insurmountable task?
“It probably is, but
we'll see. You know, that will be a decision that
Blake will make for him, and it will be the same
thing that happened last year. We'll sit down.
We'll talk. And I'll get whatever information.
I think it's easier this year to get that
information. And he'll do what's best for him and
his family. And we all will support him 1,000
percent.”
Was it an opportunity lost to not make it to the Final 4 with Blake Griffin?
“I won't look at it as
an opportunity lost. You know, we had a great
season. You know, I'm crushed just like our guys
are, that it's over, but we've won 30 games this
year. We won 13 games in the conference. We've
won the Preseason NIT championship. So it's not
a season lost.
This is foundation for what we're building.
And obviously, Blake's been a huge piece of it.
You know, hopefully we'll be able to continue to
reap benefits for what he's meant to this program.”
Can you really beat a team like UNC that shoots 63%?
“If you shoot 63 or
if you shoot 62 and you make maybe a few more
free throws. I mean, it's a challenge. It's a
challenge guarding those guys.
You know, they have pros at just about
every position. And they're incredibly efficient.
That's kind of been the trademark of North
Carolina's program if you look throughout the
history. From Coach Smith to Coach Guthridge,
and now Coach Williams, they've always been
incredibly efficient. And that's a testament to the
coaches. But also it helps when you have great
players, and they have great players, and they
have great depth. And they use that.
You know, if you look at their team, again,
they have a hall of fame coach, and they have
eight or nine McDonald's All-Americans. On their
team. And, again, they bring pros off the bench.
And they're a great offensive team, and
they're a good defensive team, but they're a great,
great offensive team. We did a good job
defensively. Again, it's crazy to say that because
they shot 62% in the second half, but to hold them
to 51 field goal attempts is good. 72 points when
they average 90 is good.
We just had to score more points today.
And we're a team that averages 80. And so, you
know, again, their defense did a good job on us,
and we missed some shots.”
Blake Griffin:
Was OU ever in ryhtm?
“I think North Carolina came out, I mean, they executed the whole game. I felt like we were in rhythm at times, it was just hard to stay in rhythm. You could see at the end when we didn't give up, and we came back from 19 down or however many down. We didn't give up. We were in a rhythm. We were playing defense… So yes.”
Was it hard to deal with the double team?
“I mean, they did a good
job defensively. You know, Coach Capel talked to
me at halftime about getting a piece of the paint
when I posted up. I tried to do that in the second
half, and it was a little bit easier.
I mean, they did a good job, but it was
something we've seen as a team all year.”
How did you improve this season?
“How have I improved as
a player? I mean, last year I made it a point to get
in the gym and really work and just try to outwork
everybody and work on my overall game.
I think the area where I improved the most
is just I hope it was trying to be a leader. You
know, kind of setting an example for the rest of our
guys. You know, I didn't do that as well at times as
I would have liked to.
But just the mental part of it. You know, I
think that's the part that I got better at.”
Were you pleased with the team’s defensive performance?
“I mean, I'm not really
sure. The thing that killed us was we couldn't get
stops. I mean, we did play pretty good defense at
times, but we just -- the thing that couldn't get us
out of the hole was we couldn't get stops.
I wouldn't say we're pleased defensively. I
wouldn't say we did a bad job though.”
Did the UNC 13-2 opening run make it too hard to claw back?
“It's hard. I mean,
obviously, it puts you in a hole. I guess, it knocks
you back on your heels a little bit so you kind of
have to scramble to keep up.
You know, I thought we did a good job of
not just breaking down at that point and kind of
keep fighting, so to speak. And get it within nine at
half and then get it down to 12 when they were up
big in the second half.”
Did you try to go quicker to beat the double team?
“After I caught it a few
times in the block and saw how they were
doubling, how they were rotating, I tried to make
my moves a little faster and pick my spots a little
bit better.”
Did UNC wear you down?
“No, I don't think so.
That's something we faced as a team all year.
Teams might not have as many guys like that, but
it was -- I wouldn't say I felt worn down. They did
do a good job defensively. I'm not saying they
didn't.”
Taylor Griffin:
Was it frustrating shots were not falling?
“You know, I think that
it just came down to just missing good shot
opportunities. The shot opportunities were there.
You know, we were just doing what we've been
doing all season.
We've been pounding it inside. I let Blake
do his thing. You know, get kick-outs from him
when they're available. And we were getting good
looks. It just wasn't falling.”
Did this game feel different?
“I mean, I think the
only thing different about it is that it was a game to
go to the Final Four. I mean, you know, that's a
pretty big game right there. I mean, that in and of
itself.
But, you know, if you want to call us not
hitting shots is us coming out tight, maybe that's
what it was. I feel good. I think I can speak for the rest
of the team. We felt good. We felt like going into
that game we were going to win that game. We
had a chance to win that game.
Just like coach said, shots weren't falling.”
Was UNC impressive in person?
“You know, it's not
hard to see how talented they are throughout the
year. You know, I've always been impressed with
them.
You know, they're as good as advertised, I
think. You know, I just wish that we would have
had -- you know, I think the effort was there on our
part. It was just a matter of shots falling.
Besides that, you know, I think we were
there. We were ready to compete with anyone at
this point in the season.”