Capel on the loss to Nicholls State
Jeff Capel met the media after Pitt's loss to Nicholls State on Saturday, and here's a rundown of what he said.
Capel: Well, congratulations to Nicholls State. They were terrific. They had an opportunity to win their last game at Illinois in regulation and lost a heartbreaker in overtime, and I think they knew they were a good basketball team but that performance gave them even more confidence. Probably, it seemed like it united them a little bit more, and I thought their game plan was terrific, they came out with great energy, great togetherness early and really just took it to us right at the start of the game. And they had so many of their guys step up and make big plays, make big shots, offensive rebounds, taking a charge, just all the things that good teams do and this is two games now that I’ve seen them and I’ve seen them do it in both games. Their coach and coaching staff really have that program going in a very good direction. So you take your hat off to them and congratulate them.
I’m incredibly disappointed in us, and when I say us, that’s our staff - obviously it starts with me - and our team. We didn’t have the energy that was worthy of winning throughout the game. We didn’t have the toughness and togetherness. And some of that had to do with Nicholls State, because of how well they played and they’re a good basketball team. But we have to have a maturity that’s not there yet. This is a great opportunity for us to learn from this loss. And we got what we deserved.
When you talk about energy and maturity, does that come through as focus with the turnovers?
Capel: It’s everything. It’s turnovers; we gave up 19 rebounds; it’s not being able to execute - just all of those things, but mainly the energy, the energy to play, the energy to come out and compete, the energy to just be all-in for every possession right away. We didn’t have that.
Where do you think that lack of energy came from?
Capel: I don’t know. I don’t know. I don’t know if it’s a hangover from the last game. We have to grow up. We’re not as good as our guys maybe think we are or we think we are or as people have patted them on the back for a night and two days. They won’t be getting pats today. It’s a great lesson. It’s unfortunate that you have to learn it like this, but it’s a great lesson and you would have hoped we learned it last year because of all of them. But we’re still not there yet as a program and we have to continue to grow in that area. That’s what I mean about the maturity level.
What do you attribute some of the issues with turnovers and ball-handling, especially in the last six minutes?
Capel: I thought just decision-making, rushing, sometimes trying to do too much. That can be a big part of it. Just all of those things. Not being totally connected.
When you see guys like Xavier and Trey turn the ball over as much as they do, what do you tell them?
Capel: Don’t turn the ball over.
It’s only two games, but how have you noticed teams this season defending Xavier and Trey differently?
Capel: Definitely. The attention to them, you know, what teams are doing, ball screens - and until we change it, they’re going to continue to do it, teams are going to continue to try to do it because it’s been a recipe for forcing turnovers. So it’s something that we’re going to have to make some adjustments to.
Are they playing up on them?
Capel: They’re pressuring, but really, it’s like a heightened sense of awareness for those two guys when they have the ball of what teams are doing - ball screens against them, pressuring them a little bit more, trying to force them to be decision-makers.
So much of the offensive success has come from getting into the lane and getting fouled, but you only had six free throws in the second half but you had them in the bonus early in the first half; what changed there?
Capel: I thought they made some adjustments defensively. They didn’t pressure as much, they backed off a little bit. I thought they clogged the lane and really just kind of jammed in on Murph and tried to take everyone else away from driving so those lanes weren’t there. And they just did a better job of not fouling. It wasn’t like we didn’t attack; they just did a better job of not fouling.
How does Ryan Murphy change the dynamic of this offense?
Capel: I don’t know how much it’s changed. We lost today. So, just because he scored doesn’t mean that it would be - we have to be better offensively, and that’s across the board. One guy doesn’t make an offense. Certainly his ability to shoot the basketball, I thought he played with passion, I thought he tried to compete today, but we need everyone doing that.
The really good offenses are when you have five guys playing together, and we haven’t had that yet. That’s something we have to continue to work on and make that happen.
With some of the defensive struggles today, how much of that was maybe one bad day and how much of that is a larger concern for you?
Capel: I’m concerned. I was concerned coming into this game. I was concerned before Florida State. I’ll be really concerned Tuesday. I’m concerned. We have a long way to go and I know that. We won the first game and it’s almost like, ‘Hey, we’ve arrived, everything has changed’ - it hasn’t. I understand that. But it’s hard sometimes to get an 18-year-old or a 19-year-old or a 21, 22-year-old to understand that, especially in the world that they live in where everyone’s telling them how good they are because of a win. And as much as you say, ‘Don’t look at this stuff, don’t believe it, don’t whatever,’ it’s going to happen. Just like I’m going to tell them, ‘Everyone’s going to tell you you stink right now.’ That’s going to happen. I’m sure if they’re looking at stuff, that’s probably - you can’t believe that either. We try to talk about one voice, and that’s the voice in the locker room and that’s our voice, and we have to do that.
We have to grow up. That’s the main thing: we have to grow up. After we beat Florida State, the next day when we came back, one of the things that I talked to our team about is that we have to understand the seriousness of college basketball. And it’s every day. It’s not one game, it’s not sometime, it’s every day. And the investment mentally and physically that you have to put into it - we have to understand that. We have to learn that.
These are obviously different teams and different seasons, but after you lost - I guess this would be a somewhat similar game to Niagara last year - what change did you see in your team then?
Capel: Honestly, I don’t really remember much about last year. I remember losing that game, but I don’t remember much after that. I try not to live with the rearview mirror; I try to focus on where we are right now. So I can’t answer because I honestly have no idea.
Obviously the spirits are down right now, but how excited are you as a leader and a motivator to have this challenge?
Capel: It’s one of the really good things with coaching, that you have an opportunity to have an impact. Our profession is hard. It’s challenging. But it can be so rewarding. And it can break your heart. You go through these highs, you go through - I try to lean on now something my dad always taught me when I go into the business, that your highs aren’t too high and you can’t let your lows be too low. You have to kind of keep it in the middle. That’s our challenge right now, just like it was after Florida State.
We have to understand who we are. There’s a fine line. We aren’t one of these programs yet where you can just show up and you’re just going to out-talent everyone; that is not us. Like, we aren’t just going to out-talent anyone. I don’t care who it is we play; that’s now who we are. I understand that. We have to understand that. And then we have to understand the things that we have to do that have to become a habit. That’s when you have a very strong culture. We’re working to try to build that. It doesn’t just happen because we put a video about some bricks or we win a game or we do this. It’s not words. It’s living it every day, and that’s where we need to continue to grow.