Feb. 4, 2017
Recap | Final Stats | Notes | USATSI Photo Gallery
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GEORGIA TECH HEAD COACH JOSH PASTNER
Opening Statement…
“First off, I want to give a lot of credit to Danny Manning and his staff. He’s done a great job here at Wake Forest. This is a great basketball history, tradition and program. He’s one of the great guys in the business. He’s an excellent human being. When I got the job, Georgia Tech told me it was going to be a major rebuild job in year one. We just have no margin for error. We’re really thin in a lot of areas and we’ve had a couple of injuries that make us even more thin. This is a major rebuild job. And when I was hired they told me it’s going to take four to five years to really compete and have an opportunity to put ourselves in the NCAA Tournament. We’ve got to continue to get better. I think we’ve had some good wins up to this point. We had a tough week this week with two road losses and we just have to get back home, clean some things up and get better. We are the most inexperienced team in college basketball. It’s just going to take us some time. Our margin of error is zero. Wake Forest deserves a lot of credit; they are really good. John Collins is very good. He’s a pro.”
On how the Georgia Tech players are handling the transition of the program…
“Our guys have been awesome. They’ve been terrific. They have bought in. They have worked and given me every ounce of energy. For us to get the wins that we’ve had, the only way that happens is by playing hard. We are strictly built as a team.”
On the defensive game plan for John Collins…
“Once Ben Lammers was out it was awfully hard. There’s not much of a game plan you can do. Wake Forest made some threes. They were 8-for-20 in the game. We’re first in the league in field goal percentage defense in the ACC and if teams are making threes on us, that opens up a lot for Collins. It’s a make or miss game.”
WAKE FOREST HEAD COACH DANNY MANNING
Opening Statement…
“I thought the game today for us had a really good balance. Defensively in the first half, we were locked in and did some pretty good things and I think they missed some shots that they normally make. I thought it was a key component of the game for John Collins and Doral Moore having a presence posting up early and making Georgia Tech guard us. I think Josh Pastner is doing a great job for that team. They started out with a bang, and he has them playing at a very high level.”
On Mitchell Wilbekin’s performance…
“I thought this was a great game by Mitch. 16 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists. We’re spoiled by Mitch as a staff because he comes in and he’s solid. He understands multiple positions and makes big shots.”
On Brandon Childress’ performance…
“Brandon did a really good job of pushing the ball in transition and getting us into offense. He’s continuing to take steps as a young freshman point guard.”
On free throw performance…
“They’re better shooters. There is no magic to it. You can shoot or you can’t shoot. We have guys that can shoot the ball pretty good right now.”
On upcoming game against Notre Dame…
“It’s our most important game because it’s our next game. Any win in our league is a quality win. For us, we have to continue to move in the direction we’re going. I think our guys are playing hard and doing a lot of good things. We have shown improvement. We’re at a point now when we want that improvement to equal wins. That’s the mindset.”
