March 16, 2008

Head Coach Roy Williams
Opening Statement:
"It's a great feeling for our kids and we beat a really, really good Clemson team. They are one of the best teams in the country. We were lucky the first two times we beat them. Today, I think we played better than we did either one of the two times. It was a great experience for our kids. Wayne (Ellington), Marcus (Ginyard) and Tyler (Hansbrough) making the all-tournament team. For us, it was all about rebounding and playing defense. I think rebounding-wise, we did come to the challenge because they are a great rebounding team. We turned it over a bit more than we wanted to, but we also got some baskets by attacking their press (defense). We feel ecstatic about winning this. It was a great feeling and a very satisfying feeling for us."

On the possibility of playing NCAA games in North Carolina:
"I realized that every Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday when I met with the press this month, that's all we talked about. I don't think it's an advantage. I really don't. It's an advantage if you play well."

On the North Carolina fast break system:
"I like it. My foundation in coaching came from Coach (Dean) Smith, but I like it even faster, I like it even more aggressive. I like for us to attack even more. I do like that approach to basketball and we teach it everyday."

Wayne Ellington
On his strong play in the tournament:
"I got into a pretty good rhythm from the first day and I think I just went from there. I am feeling very confident right now."

Tyler Hansbrough
On the benefit of playing close games in the tournament:
"First of all, I think it really prepares us because we know in the tournament every team is going to be tough. When we came out here this week, these teams played really tough and really aggressive. We did well, and I think that's the type of atmosphere we'll face in the tournament."

Quentin Thomas
On winning the ACC Championship:
"It meant a lot. Just because in this league, it's not guaranteed you are going to win a tournament like this. There are so many talented teams that are well coached but we know that we have a lot of talent. It's a good feeling but we feel that it is not enough. We want to achieve one more goal, and that is a National Championship."

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Head Coach Oliver Purnell
Opening Statement:
"I'm very proud of the way our team played in this tournament. I'm very disappointed that we didn't get the job done. We missed some shots that we would normally make, both jump shots and some shots in the lane. We shot the ball poorly from the free throw line so it made it tough on us against the number one team in the country. I thought our guys fought hard and really battled throughout the course of the tournament. I'm very proud of the way they played during the tournament, and during the course of the year. I fully expect that our guys will bounce back and play hard when we find out who our opponent is in the NCAA Tournament, because that is what they have done all year long. My congratulations goes to North Carolina, they are playing extremely well, they've got a lot of weapons, and I'm sure that they will do extremely well in the NCAA Tournament."

On North Carolina's penetration in the second half:
"They've got good guards. Certainly, (Ty) Lawson is one of the best penetrators in the country. He breaks down defenses. We might have been a little bit tired. I'll give the credit to Lawson and their really good guards. Of course, (Wayne) Ellington was tough with his in-between game. Lawson's penetration along with a couple of other guys certainly was our undoing."

On the improvement of the Clemson basketball program:
"I'm proud of the way our kids have played all year long and certainly in this tournament. I'm pleased with the direction and growth of our program and I feel very optimistic about the future. We probably played well enough to win against most teams in the country but we played a great one today and we needed to play great. We didn't play great because we didn't shoot it well and that is part of playing great."

K.C. Rivers
On not being able to come back after falling behind:
"It was definitely frustrating. We got it close and then all of a sudden they made another stretch run and we had to keep fighting hard at it on defense. We just couldn't find that one that was going to make it click to get us going again. It's something you can't really help. Sometimes it goes your way and sometimes it doesn't."

On the effectiveness of their fast break:
"Once the opposing team scores they are coming right behind you. When you're jogging back and not paying attention, (Ty) Lawson and (Quentin) Thomas were coming right behind us. We weren't picking them up well in transition so it was hurting us down the stretch."

On Ellington's performance today:
"Wayne has a smooth game. I like his game. He is in between, he can shoot the three, and he can drive so it's pretty much pick your poison with him. If you take the three you still have to deal with the midrange and if you take both away you still have to deal with the drive. It was kind of hard to pick what we were going to take away from him because he just had it clicking on all aspects. He hurt us today. He's a big player and I respect him for that. Whatever he does in the off season is tremendous work because he puts it in every game."