Capel: 'That was a big-time game'

Capel: First and foremost, congrats to Clemson. This was a big-time game and we were very fortunate to be a part of it. I’m really proud of my team. I thought we fought and put ourself in a position to win. We didn’t get off to a great start but we fought throughout, had the lead at halftime. I thought some of the guys that came in off the bench were magnificent and really gave us a boost and played some really good minutes.

We had an eight-point lead with five-and-a-half minutes, and we weren’t able to make some shots down the stretch. I thought we got good looks. And they made some tough ones. They banked in a shot over tough defense. We played good defense, they get an offensive rebound and a guy that hadn’t scored in conference play makes a shot. And that’s the difference in the game. In these games like this, when you have two good teams and it’s a tight battle, it just comes down to, who can make a few more plays? And unfortunately, they did.

So you give them credit. You tip your hat. Really proud of my team. Really proud of our group. This will help us as we move forward and we look forward to the next one.

Can you talk about the atmosphere in this one? It looked like a lot of the fans and students came out?
Burton: Yeah definitely, the atmosphere was amazing. Big shout-out to the Oakland Zoo again for showing up and showing out and definitely helping us throughout the duration of the game. It was big for us to have that support.

It seemed like they did a lot of good defense in the paint to make it hard for you guys, but you still put up 74 points. What adjustments did you guys make to get your offense going?
Burton: For us, we just wanted to execute with a little bit more pace and get into our sets. Coach had a big emphasis of being strong with the basketball, so that was another key thing: being strong with the basketball, not turning it over, especially when you get down in the paint. They like to collapse and they’re sending guys, they’re physical, so that was a couple of key adjustments that we made.

You had quite a few players get in foul trouble. How much does that throw things off in terms of rhythm and flow and getting into your own sets?
Burton: It definitely affects us with our rhythm and flow. But when those instances happen when guys are in foul trouble, it’s next man up. Like Coach said, we had some good contributions off the bench that helped us.

You guys made just two field goals in the final four minutes. What happened in those closing minutes?
Burton: We got good looks; we just couldn’t capitalize on our opportunities. Big shout-out to Clemson; they were able to capitalize down the stretch and that was really the difference in the ball game.

Nate missed a shot in the first half and I saw you and Greg go over to him and tell him to keep his chin up, kind of emphasize for him to keep shooting. What was that like? What was his performance like today?
Burton: It was big, the minutes that we got from Nate. He’s out there battling for us. And with him, regardless if he makes or misses, it’s me and the other guys’ job to continue to give him confidence. That’s all you saw right there with us continuing to put the battery in his back and tell him the next shot was going in, and we did that.

The last two losses have been by one-point margins and came down to the last possession. What does that say about the fight level and the grit of this team?
Burton: It just shows that we’re going to fight until the very end. The last two instances where we lost, we just didn’t make enough winning plays to pull it out. So that’s really the difference.

What does Guillermo do when he comes on the floor for you guys that seems to generate a spark?
Burton: For him, he’s fighting out there. He’s giving us all he’s got. And for us, we feed off that energy. You see another guy battling - you know, he’s kind of undersized when it comes to his position as far as strength and size-wise, so for us, when we see him battling and giving it his all, it definitely gives us a boost of energy to do the same.

Coach Brownell talked about how - he said they couldn’t guard you either half. It seemed like whenever you drive to the basket, you’re finding a way to score. What goes into the work to make so many different midrange shots?
Burton: Just my preparation and just my teammates, the type of weapons that we have on the floor gives me an opportunity to have space out there and get to my spot. So if it wasn’t for my teammates, I wouldn’t be able to get to my spots.

Everything going on with Damar Hamlin this week - you guys wore the shirts, they had the banner - how much do you feel like, one, a guy your age, to see him go through something like that, and then the way he rallied this week maybe contributed to the atmosphere overall, just in terms of everybody feeling the vibe today?
Burton: It’s great to see that he’s breathing on his own and that he’s doing well. For us, as the Pitt community, we just want to give him support during this time. So if it played a role in the crowd numbers, then it is what it is. But we just wanted to show our support with the shirts and everything else.

What made them so difficult in the paint and hard for you guys to try to take advantage of opportunities?
Capel: Well, the very first thing is that they’re a good team. That’s the very first thing. They’re very, very physical. Very physical. And it was a really physical game throughout. Again, I thought we were able to get to the paint and get some baskets, but for us, defensively, at the end, they were able to get to some spots And look, they made some tough shots. I mean, we were right there contesting the shots and you give them credit. You tip your hat.

Like I said, when it’s two good teams and it’s a battle like this, sometimes it comes down to players just stepping up and making plays. I was proud that we weren’t afraid of the moment. We just didn’t make some shots.

I think their last five shots were all jumpers. Did you feel your team was competing defensively to force those tough shots?
Capel: We were definitely competing. Absolutely. We were definitely competing. We play good defense on Chase Hunter, he banks a shot in. We play good defense on PJ Hall where we blocked a shot, we don’t come up with it, he comes up with it, we have him buried underneath and he hits Wiggins, who hasn’t scored in conference play and he makes a shot. So those right there, you play good defense - sometimes a guy just makes some shots. And they did that.

The pass that Nelly threw to Fede at the end, were you okay with that decision-making?
Capel: Yeah. We just didn’t execute it.

Just getting a score from everyone that saw the floor from your group today, that’s got to be something that you’re encouraged by. Obviously you want to see certain guys do certain things better, but does it feel like your team is playing more of a complete game of basketball right now?
Capel: Well, I think we’ve played complete basketball and guys have contributed. Sometimes just because they don’t score - you know, they still contribute. They do some really good things. And I think our guys have done that. Everyone that’s touched the floor for us in every game has done some good things. They’re all talented, they’re all really good guys, they work really hard, and it was great to see some of those guys be able to finish some plays. Nate at the end of the half, Guillermo hitting a three, Jorge stepping up and making some big free throws. So that was good for us.

It seemed like it was really important with the foul trouble that your forwards got into - it seems like it’s important for those guys to be ready despite not playing many minutes.
Capel: Yeah, everyone has to stay ready. It’s a long season. It’s a long season. I think we have 16 guaranteed games left. So everyone has to be ready. You never know what’s going to happen. You don’t know what’s going to happen in the game, you don’t know what’s going to happen in practice, and the thing I like about our guys is that they work. They try to stay prepared and when an opportunity comes, you have to be ready to step up. And I thought they did.

They went up by 10 in the first half and their coach just told us, you guys are a different team than after that 1-3 start and it jumps out to him on tape. Do you think that 1-3 team could have fought the way that your team did today?
Capel: I don’t know. I don’t know. I try not to think back to that time. I try to stay present and stay in the moment with my group right now, with our team right now, and try to help us get better each day. The obvious answer is probably no, because we didn’t. But we’ve learned from it and we’ve gotten better with it and we’ll use this to help us continue to get better, just like we used Virginia to get better, just liked we used North Carolina, Syracuse, all of those situations.

You guys had - I think this was your second-lowest shooting percentage from the field in a game this year, but you still put up 74 points. What goes into finding different ways to score?
Capel: I think we have different weapons. We were able to get to the foul line; we have to capitalize a little bit more when we get there. We’ve been a good free throw shooting team all year. We missed some key ones - front end of one-and-ones, things like that. We have to do a better job there. But we have guys that can put the ball in the basket. We were able to get midrange, we were able to get to the foul line, we were able to make some plays there.

You guys haven’t lost a game in awhile. What do you expect to see out of these guys as they bounce back from this one?
Capel: Look, man. We talk when we win: just move on to the next play. So that’s the thing. We just have to get better. We’ll learn from it. We’re not down. We don’t feel great; obviously, we want to win. But it’s really cool to be in a battle like this, to be in a position where you’re playing - where it’s a meaningful game. And that’s what this was. It certainly hurts, but we have to move on. Just like the great feeling that we had after Virginia, we have to move on. So that’s what we’ll do.

Speaking of meaningful games, I know it’s early and you still have a lot of games to play in conference play, but this one was for first place; how much did you see your team respond to that, knowing that that was out there?
Capel: It was out there, but we never talked about it. We just talked about playing this game and competing against a really good team and the opportunity that we had. And I thought our guys were prepared. I thought we played our butts off. I thought we were tough. We were competitive. We fought. We just came up a little bit short. But it’s really cool to be in a moment like this, and hopefully we can continue to play well where we have more moments like this.

To follow up on that moment, you’ve coached in a lot of games where the crowds weren’t half as big as they were today. How cool is that to see, as you continue to build something here, that people outside the program are really starting to invest and show up?
Capel: Yeah, it’s awesome. We’re grateful, especially for the Zoo and everyone that was here, their energy, their passion, we’re grateful for it. Hopefully we were able to make them proud.

You know, it’s interesting. You know, you win, everyone wants to be a part; now you see who’s really with you right now. I didn’t have as many text messages when I grabbed my phone as I did after Virginia and North Carolina. And that’s cool. You understand what it is. But hopefully the people feel a kinship and a connection with this team when they come out and support this team.

You guys have been the best rebounding team in the ACC coming into today and the rebounds were pretty much dead even. Is that something that you guys had to do better at, or was that just the pace of the game and really good play from Clemson?
Capel: It was just the pace of the game. Look, they’re good. They’re really good. They’ve won a lot in a row. They went and beat a good Virginia Tech team on the road. Brad has done an amazing job with his team. Their guys have. They’re good. So it just - you know, it was close, they beat us by one on the boards, they beat us by one in the game. I don’t know if there’s any correlation with that. But they’re good. So it just happened.

JB talked about the spark that Guillermo brought into the game. He was going against PJ Hall and it seemed like he was improving as the game went on. How has he adjusted to the physicality of the ACC recently?
Capel: Yeah, I mean, look, he’s not going to be physical, so he has to understand what his strengths are. He’s got to use some quickness, he’s got to use some intelligence and he’s got to use his length. I thought he did an amazing job defending him. He contested shots, he had four offensive rebounds, he hit a three, he got fouled, he made a great shot fake in the first half and drove and a really good pass to Nate. He’s getting better, but I’m not surprised by that because he works. Usually when you work and you have talent, good things kind of happen for you.