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UNC coach Hubert Davis, Henri Veesaar and Caleb Wilson press conference after win over Ohio State
Dec 20, 2025
UNC coach Hubert Davis, Henri Veesaar and Caleb Wilson press conference after win over Ohio State
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0:00
Uh Kel just the last 48 hours of
0:03
perspectives just coming back home
0:05
getting the win in front of the family
0:07
friends
0:09
of high vibes afterward. Just how you
0:10
feeling right now?
0:11
Oh, you know I feel great. Um it was
0:13
definitely a huge win and I'm glad it
0:14
was a I mean of course we all like
0:16
blowouts but like having a fun close
0:17
game like that is is definitely fun
0:18
especially for the crowd. So uh like I
0:20
said I'm just glad we got to win and I'm
0:22
glad we got Seth back. You know I feel
0:23
like we're a much better team. Andrew
0:25
Henry, that last play there, look how
0:28
you block attempted to put back. Is that
0:30
what happened?
0:30
Uh, yeah. I got my fingers on it. So,
0:33
it's like they tried to kind of get it
0:34
up and I got my fingers on it and then
0:36
that was it.
0:37
Okay. Real quickly for both of you all
0:38
said you guys were up 11, couldn't kind
0:41
of couldn't extend the lead and they end
0:42
up taking the lead. Was there any stress
0:45
there for you guys kind of late in that
0:46
last minute or and how did you pull it
0:48
out? How did you guys do that?
0:49
I feel like I feel like as a team on a
0:51
whole, we have done those situations so
0:52
many times in practice. Like we down
0:54
eight, but this time we had to lead. So
0:56
like them just walking us down, we
0:57
needed like for a game game to win, we
0:59
just need to win by one. And that's what
1:00
exactly what we did. Just get stop by
1:02
stop, try to make the game as short as
1:05
possible, get the position a little
1:06
longer, and then just win the game play
1:08
by play.
1:09
Caleb, same question. Any stress in
1:11
falling behind?
1:11
No, it was no stress. I was really mad
1:13
when I let the N13 happen, but uh like
1:16
Henry said, you know, we work on that
1:18
thing. We work on those things in
1:19
practice. So, you know, it's just about
1:20
trusting our process and know we can get
1:22
it done.
1:23
Noah with NRL.
1:24
I'm sorry, Jeremiah. Jeremiah didn't
1:25
know.
1:26
Yeah, Henry, uh Caleb just touched on
1:28
it, but obviously having set back in
1:29
that lineup, how much does that kind of
1:31
open things up for you guys? Obviously,
1:33
you did have those first couple games
1:34
with him, but now that he's back, how
1:36
does that kind of, you know, help you
1:37
guys and open things up for you? I mean,
1:39
I feel like just defensively having him
1:41
there is such a big presence. Like on
1:43
the guards, like we we barely have to do
1:45
anything as big on the ball screens
1:46
because he just fights through it. He
1:47
push. He's so handsy. He kind of makes
1:50
those plays. And on offense, he run like
1:52
we get so many more transition points
1:53
just because of him running and like
1:54
fast break points cuz layups. I think he
1:56
had like four points of those today and
1:58
like those are huge for us because
1:59
they're easy momentum plays.
2:01
Noah, for both of you guys, Jared came
2:03
off the bench but still played 27
2:04
minutes. How much versatility does he
2:06
give you, especially his back up five,
2:07
which we haven't seen a ton of before
2:09
tonight?
2:10
He gives us tremendous versatility. Uh
2:13
he's a great player and like he came up
2:14
with that last steel to kind of give us
2:16
the ball back later in the game. So, you
2:17
know, he's just going to do everything
2:18
it takes to win and that's why you love
2:20
to have a guy like Jiren on your team.
2:22
For both of you, why is the transition
2:24
game so much better with Seth out there?
2:26
What does he do to make that thing
2:28
better?
2:29
Oh, I think he's just he plays with
2:31
effort, but the other part is that he's
2:33
a freak athlete. He can. He's the
2:35
fastest guy on the team. He's probably
2:36
the biggest Bert on the team. So, just
2:38
the way he runs the floor. There's not
2:39
many guys that can keep up with him.
2:41
In the second round,
2:43
when
2:45
first seconds, what were you guys
2:47
watching for? What did you talk about?
2:49
What did you try to take away?
2:53
We kind of knew it was going to be We
2:54
either thought it was going to Bruce or
2:56
it was just going to be a tougher shot.
2:58
You know, we we really knew that we were
2:59
going to get a good hand, a good contest
3:00
on the shot. It was all about boxing and
3:01
making sure we finished the play. You
3:03
know, there's no worse than like we do
3:04
in practice all the time. It's no worse
3:05
than getting the tip up, tip in, live to
3:07
win a game when you play defense and
3:09
then you got to get a second chance
3:10
opportunity. So, you know, we just
3:11
focused on making sure we boxed out and
3:13
communicated throughout the play.
3:14
Andrew then Shelby
3:16
for today when you
3:19
Henry was out, you were the five, Jar
3:21
was the four. What is the difference of
3:23
him flipping to the five? What does he
3:24
give you as a five that you guys need
3:27
behind?
3:28
Uh, you know, he just gives us
3:29
rebounding. you know, with the lineup
3:30
with me and Jiren, uh, we're just we're
3:33
gunners. Like, we're just running as
3:34
hard as we can. We're trying to create
3:35
advantages just knowing we're quicker
3:37
than most five men that we'll play
3:38
against. And,
3:39
uh, he just gives us added, well, both
3:41
of us give us a added sense of
3:42
versatility, especially in transition.
3:45
I feel like I can add one thing to I
3:46
feel like just him being able to switch
3:48
as well as he can at his size and being
3:50
able to like still rebound and block
3:51
shots makes a huge difference for us
3:53
because I think the floor spacing is
3:54
great with him when he gets in and
3:56
they're both together because they're
3:57
both really good athletes but like fast
3:59
like you said but other parties are on
4:01
defense we can switch and it's a
4:02
different look for the opponents
4:05
question oh sorry question for Henry um
4:08
I know that you said that AC took off
4:10
just how much you have worked with Seth
4:12
specifically obvious coach shooting back
4:14
off ball screens again leading the team
4:16
in, you know, points from behind the
4:18
arc. How cool is that to, you know, see
4:22
just all the work that?
4:24
No, for sure. And seeing Seth make those
4:26
shots means a lot. like just being able
4:27
to know cuz over the summer like we all
4:30
the time worked in the gym together on
4:31
shooting and like just I feel like I
4:33
always told him every time anybody goes
4:35
under or wherever he has like he got to
4:36
shoot it like it can't be any like
4:38
confidence issues or anything like just
4:40
every time like everybody believes in
4:41
him to make it and today he showed he
4:43
want us a game where like he's shooting
4:45
those threes were huge momentum boosts
4:47
for us any time he made those.
4:50
Last two for the players Rod then RL
4:52
Henry
4:53
we'll have Seth too. How do you describe
4:54
what you guys have been able to do
4:56
defensively? Still haven't allowed more
4:58
than I think what 75 points in the game
5:00
and then it comes down to that final
5:02
stop. How do you describe the defense as
5:04
a whole and then did it feel fitting
5:05
that it came down to to one final stop
5:07
there?
5:08
Yeah, I feel like we're a very
5:09
connective team on defensive end. Like
5:11
we talk, we communicate, we get like
5:13
everybody does does their job, but I
5:15
feel like the best part of it is like we
5:16
have still a whole bunch to improve. I
5:18
feel like we don't feel like we're yet
5:20
as good as a defensive team as maybe the
5:21
numbers show cuz I feel like we make
5:23
still a lot of mistakes and every game I
5:25
feel like we can go back and watch and
5:26
there's like 16 or 18 20 points that we
5:29
can quick easily take away but just not
5:31
making our mistakes.
5:32
Last one for the players Bill the first
5:35
half you were making a difference with
5:36
rebounding in many different areas. You
5:38
never had a half with only two points.
5:40
What was the dynamic of what was going
5:42
on there? I have four and uh I uh I mean
5:46
I I was just trying to let the game come
5:48
to me. I knew playing against Ohio
5:49
State, especially at home, that they
5:51
were going to really focus on me. So,
5:52
I'm not going to try to force shots and
5:54
not trust my teammates. I'm just going
5:55
to get my teammates open and try to get
5:57
assists, try to affect the game,
5:58
whatever it needs to be done to take
5:59
whatever it takes to win. Honestly, I
6:01
mean, the second half I was able to do
6:02
more offensively with scoring and stuff
6:04
like that. But it's not I'm not on the
6:06
team where it's just me and I know that.
6:08
So, got Henry, got Seth, got a bunch of
6:10
great players, so I'm not going to try
6:11
to force it. For sure.
6:13
Thank you guys. All right, you can go
6:14
back to the locker room and shower.
6:15
There's your phone.
6:16
Take me through that that last time out
6:18
and and what's the one thing around your
6:20
team as Ohio State is mounting that come
6:23
back? What do you refer to?
6:25
Which possession are you referencing?
6:27
The one where got put back.
6:30
Yeah. I mean, we were down by one and um
6:32
you know, we picked up full court and um
6:35
they were told to uh aggressively try to
6:38
get a steal in the back court. if we
6:40
don't get it and they get it to the
6:41
front court, then we're going to have to
6:42
foul. And they they knew um which guys
6:46
to try to foul. Um the hard thing, one
6:49
of the many hard things with Ohio State
6:51
is they're a great free throw shooting
6:52
team, so it wasn't a great choice, but
6:54
we were able to get the steal. We had a
6:56
um a timeout left. And in that
6:58
situation, Seth's ability um to be able
7:02
to create a shot for himself and for
7:04
others um is the best on the team from
7:06
the perimeter, put the ball in his hands
7:08
and kind of cleared out that side. They
7:10
did a good job defensively, but he was
7:12
able to find Henry around the basket, be
7:14
able to score, and then, you know, we
7:16
talked about it in the huddle just, you
7:18
know, you know, two two and a half hours
7:20
ago. If we say all we need to do is for
7:23
4 seconds play great defense and get a
7:25
stop to get a win, would you take that?
7:27
and they all said yes and I said well
7:28
that's the reality that's all we have to
7:30
do and we were fortunate enough to come
7:32
away with the win
7:33
no other than Jeremiah
7:34
you were how important is Jiren's
7:35
versatility for you guys we saw him play
7:37
some backup five tonight how important
7:38
is he his ability to I guess switch and
7:41
do everything that he can
7:42
um absolutely um just huge um I've
7:47
talked about his versatility I I'd be
7:49
honest with you um you know Devin Royal
7:53
is real I mean it's just his ability to
7:55
be able to score he's under control.
7:57
He's not rushed. He's strong. Plays off
8:00
two feet. And the only person that could
8:04
really make him work to get a good shot
8:07
was Jiren. And so to have that guy
8:10
who's, you know, 69, 610 versatility,
8:13
being able to play on in the post and on
8:16
the outside offensively, but from a
8:18
defensive standpoint to be able to
8:19
switch and play multiple positions, um,
8:22
a huge factor for us.
8:24
Cubert. Um, I actually go off that a
8:26
little bit with Seth being back in
8:28
there. How much does that kind of open
8:30
up, you know, just not only the onc
8:32
court play, but just the different
8:33
options of lineups that you do have, you
8:35
know, kind of being able to utilize guys
8:36
in different spots. How much does that
8:38
kind of open things up for you guys?
8:40
Yeah, it does. I mean, it opens up, it
8:41
gives us versatility to be able, you
8:43
know, to do some different things that
8:45
are specific for each game. you know,
8:48
it, you know, this game it was, you
8:50
know, I talked about, you know, Devin
8:53
Royal, but I mean, there's really only
8:55
one guy on our team that had any chance
8:58
of getting a stop on Bruce Thornton, and
9:00
that was that was Seth. And so, um, you
9:04
know, having him in the lineup was huge.
9:06
Obviously, he's gifted being able to I
9:08
felt like in transition, it's the first
9:10
time that we've gotten pitch ahead dunks
9:12
and layups in a while. And so we got to
9:15
get back to that because that's a huge
9:16
part of our offense is being able to
9:18
sprint to the offensive end.
9:19
Andrew, you have another Seth question
9:21
here for you, but you put uh Jonathan in
9:24
for Derek Lake when you guys got that
9:26
forced that turnover. Is stepping back
9:28
kind of allows you a little bit more
9:29
flexibility to be able to do things like
9:31
that situationally and he was on the 14.
9:33
So you had your terminals out to 83
9:36
100%. you know, um, Jonathan is a big
9:39
guard, 6667, and so, um, you know, his
9:43
ability to defend is huge for us. Um,
9:47
but having Seth back and having him, you
9:50
know, um, be able to quote unquote run
9:52
the point and even have a bigger lineup
9:55
is something that we haven't had um,
9:57
since he's been gone. And so, it's
9:58
something that we could look at. And to
10:00
your point, just the versatility of
10:02
lineups that we can do in in just
10:05
different situations to put ourselves in
10:07
a position to possibly win.
10:08
Ohio State's races here, here, and here.
10:11
Make them quick, please.
10:12
You were dead last
10:17
because
10:19
what were you trying to take away from
10:20
that position? What concern you?
10:23
Well, first of all, you know, with with
10:25
Bruce uh taking the ball out, you know,
10:28
a lot of times the most dangerous person
10:29
is the person that's taking the ball
10:31
out. So, just being alert and aware of
10:33
his ability uh to be able to score.
10:36
Also, in 4 seconds, that's a lot of
10:38
time. Uh and so, you know, their
10:42
strength not only to score, but to be
10:45
get fouled and get to the free throw
10:46
line was of concern. We switched
10:49
everything. We had a lineup in there
10:50
that we could switch everything and feel
10:52
good about the one-on-one matchup and uh
10:54
we're able to get it done and get a
10:56
stop.
10:56
Shelby Darl, last two.
10:59
Just another question, but um his
11:01
three-point shooting, you've been
11:03
talking about that a lot this offseason.
11:05
Just what's it going to open up for your
11:06
offense and can you continue to come,
11:09
you know, be out like that? Yeah, I mean
11:11
I I just not just Seth, I I really
11:14
believe that we can be a really good
11:17
three-point shooting team. You know,
11:18
thus far, we haven't been that good. And
11:21
that's something that I'm I'm waiting
11:23
for because I I just feel like we have a
11:25
number of guys that
11:29
can consistently make shots uh from the
11:32
outside. And that's going to be huge for
11:33
us. Um, it's going to be huge for us
11:36
because of, you know, having Henry and
11:38
Caleb down low in the post. They're
11:40
going to get even more attention. You
11:42
know, they were double team pretty much
11:43
every time we threw the ball into the
11:45
post. And so, the only way you can
11:46
loosen that up is be able to shoot from
11:48
the perimeter.
11:49
Last question. RL,
11:51
what is it that Seth does to make the
11:54
transition game so much better? He
11:55
looked
11:56
He runs He runs and he runs faster.
12:00
He does. He's just, you know, the way
12:02
that he gets out on the break. Um, he
12:05
can get a defensive stop, he can get a
12:07
rebound, and within three or four steps,
12:09
he's across half court and he's he's
12:11
gone. And just having one person pulls
12:14
everybody along. And then when they see
12:17
Seth getting those pitch ahead layups,
12:20
everybody wants to score. So then they
12:22
start running. It's contagious. And it
12:24
was nice to see that back in our offense
12:26
uh today,
12:27
coach. Thank you. Thank you.
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