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#UNC players Ven-Allen Lubin, Ian Jackson and RJ Davis after rolling to win over N.C. State.
Feb 20, 2025
#UNC players Ven-Allen Lubin, Ian Jackson and RJ Davis after rolling to win over N.C. State.
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able to kind of establish a level of
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consistency and keep it throughout what
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do you think allowed you guys to kind of
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get to a certain level and then stay
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there for 40 minutes uh the preparation
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you know the past few days you know just
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really started to practice uh just the
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way that we emphasized and just knowing
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that preparation is really important and
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just know what the you know as she stay
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was going to come into you know just
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knowing that uh since we you know played
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them the last game and just know they're
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going to have a chip on their shoulders
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so it's really just the preparation for
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practice that really get going with the
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game with the game plan did you know
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that you get a lot of opportunities
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inside like that uh well it was really
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just you know try to share the ball as
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much as we can you know on offensive
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side so it could really be you know
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anybody can get touches and you know the
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opportunity to score and you know just
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kind of my my night in the second half
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just to you know get those opportunities
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so I just give credit to my my teammates
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let a lot of the students sit down there
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closer to the court what kind of
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atmosphere environment that made for you
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guys yeah it it was crazy yeah it was
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incredible you know I really you know we
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really appreciate there for coming out
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you know do the conditions outside you
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know just be able to support us you know
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I think it was very huge for us to get
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the momentum going and just filming the
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atmosphere you know it was really
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electric what was the day kind of like
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for you I mean obviously classes canell
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the sow coming down then they open up
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this place what was the whole day kind
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of wa uh it was kind of just you know
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being here you know just kind of just
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going through shoot around just going
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through the preparations kind of you
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know getting a meal in and just trying
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to rest our minds and our bodies to get
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prepared for this game so really just
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kind of just being here for the facility
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just get prepared you guys are running
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at a time a little bit to get that
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tournament resume but what does a game
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like this do to kind of inspire some
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confidence that maybe could put together
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something down the stretch do it just
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really get the ball rolling you know the
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wind up from Syracuse and tonight you
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know really gets us going uh really
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gives us a lot of momentum you know into
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the next game Saturday and Monday uh
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we're not just really taking it one game
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at a time one day at a time and just to
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you know get ourselves ready did you
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like the the starting lineup was similar
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to last game with you and Jaylen out
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there how's that kind of affect you guys
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on the court I think it's huge you know
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I think jaylen's capabilities of just
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you know be able to you know open the
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floor space the floor just knock down
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shots and you know his ability on
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defensive end you know just you know his
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high athleticism really helped us out on
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both ends of the floor so just me and
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him I think we're you know good doers
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out there just to be you know very
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impactful you guys had seven threes in
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the first half two by Jaylen two by Cade
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what does that do for you guys
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offensively when when you're knocking
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down shots gives us a lot of confidence
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you know it really gets us going gets us
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hype uh just knowing that you know we
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were able to knock down Shots tonight
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and just know it's going to be our night
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um just be able to you know see the ball
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go away just a really good feeling just
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to get us going on offens came from
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tonight and I think a lot of people been
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expecting you guys you could do more as
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a team and
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thenon um I think we do for it man we
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was do for for a good performance um and
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I'm glad we got to do it here at home
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against and feels great keep do you
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think uh I know it's not too late
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technically get the NCA tournament does
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this give you guys the confidence to
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kind of get to that get that resume
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together here down the stret um you had
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the confidence um losing games I say I
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think I feel that we stay confident uh
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we believed in each other um and we all
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have a sense that's it's not over till
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it's over so no matter what happen in
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beginning of the Season or the middle
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but we still in it we still will to
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compete and go out there and play what's
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made a difference for you the last
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couple of games I mean you kind of hit a
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stretch of tough games but the last
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couple you finally found the groove
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what's made the difference for
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you
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real I miss shot I had I miss and that's
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about it it happens I'm still me I'm
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still going to shoot I'm still confident
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in my game and yeah that's about it do
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you have any conversations with Coach
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Davis that maybe made a difference
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absolutely absolutely uh our preparation
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definitely changed you know coming in
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the games but like I said uh I'm super
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confident and I believe in my game a ton
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what about your preparation changed over
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the last few weeks uh just understand
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what the defense is looking out there is
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looking to do out there especially
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towards me how they looking to play me
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and how looking at certain things so
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that's it what do you feel like the last
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two games has really been clicking for
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you back to makeing shots yeah shots
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uh yeah just back back in that space
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back in my gr
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um St and in your work to kind of
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understanding more defensive coverages
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that you're getting what does that look
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like has that been a lot of film
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sessions practice what does that look
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sure definitely film sessions uh looking
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to see what the other team defense is
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doing um and how how they're going to
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play certain guys uh so just watching
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and understanding as I'm coming into the
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game what's what it's going to look like
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and going out there and knowing where
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where I can score where I can't score
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where I should be going where I
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shouldn't and things like that what was
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the difference with having the student
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so close all around the arena that make
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a better atere absolutely man absolutely
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I we should do that more uh get the
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students in here man I loved it I loved
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it that's probably the most fun game
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I've had in the center so
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far I loved it it was great I appreciate
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them and yeah we have fun what was the
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crowd that you were expecting like did
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you expect a lot of people did you
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expect abolutely absolutely especially
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when they said I was free yeah I knew it
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going be letting it came through the
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snow to support us and I appreciate it
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like a competitive bully every day he
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came in practice so um that was kind of
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just like the main message to the to the
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team was just go out there and compete
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and you're going to have joy in
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competing you see what happens
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everyone's getting shots everyone's
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flowing the game's flowing so um yeah
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you feel like he kind of reminded you
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guys of like the joy to that you should
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compete with
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yeah I mean cuz at the end of the day
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like basketball you should be played
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with a lot of emotion a lot of passion
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and I think some a lot of times uh
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throughout the year we were kind of
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missing that a little bit um we just
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weren't playing with emotion I think
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today we kind of did that and that
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allowed our joy to be shown late in 22
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you guys made a switch and put Brady
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Manning sort of Unleashed him a little
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bit does does Jaylen wither switch feel
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anything like that I mean you've
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obviously been here for both of those
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feels like you guys have unlocked a
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little something with Jay yeah I mean I
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feel like Jay wit um
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has been huge for especially the past
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two games I think just from his um
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offense and defense has been really good
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he's able to knock down shots and kind
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of just affect the defense um with his
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length and height so um kind of just
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moving that switch I think was kind of
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just seeing how different lineups are
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and see what works and so far it's
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working so at the same time I'm just
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happy for J wi I know it's been kind of
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just like a a roller coaster year and
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you know put him in starting lineups
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taking him out but I mean he's done
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everything we've asked um throughout the
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whole year so uh I'm just looking
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forward for him to keep hooping like how
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he is where do you think this
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performance came from tonight RJ I think
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a lot of people thinking you guys were
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capable of it we just hadn't seen it and
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then this looked like the full potential
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um I just
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think understanding where we are as a
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team and uh yes understand that like we
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have to find joy in competing I think
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sometimes we're like inconsistent with
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that like we'll compete sometimes and
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other times we'll take our full of the
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gas and I think tonight we just kind of
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just want to set the tone a little bit
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and uh we know like as team only
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guaranteed maybe like six regular season
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games left and then the H tournament so
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really just got that in the back of my
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mind really just tackle each game with
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the mindset just going out to compete
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but play with joy what is the most fun
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you've had this
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season yeah
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um 100% I just think this was a kind of
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a complete Game a little bit uh
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obviously kind of stacked off a little
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bit in the second half but just from the
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first half I think everyone had a smile
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on their face we was moving the ball
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around we had a lot of transition
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buckets and we were getting stops and I
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think that kind of led to our adrenaline
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flowing and just the overall Jo from you
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know start at five and even to the bench
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how much the environment RJ have to to
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play into the way you guys play today I
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think you answer a little bit before
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came yeah I just want to give a huge
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shout out to everyone that came in
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tonight uh the fans um given the the
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circumstances of the weather and the
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snowstorm they you know kind of just
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showed out tonight and uh we really do
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appreciate them just for you know
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obviously snow storm people had a hard
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time getting here and uh it was a bigger
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turnout than I expected so we left uh we
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um f off their energy and it was it was
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great um I think throughout the game
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they started to fill up a little the top
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and those bad a little bit so I mean
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that's Carolina fans for you right there
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I was about to say how much did you guys
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notice a difference in the lower bowl or
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yeah when I first walked in I'm like it
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looks like we have we about to play like
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blue and white game we kind of just had
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like the lower level out um hey
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man um kind of like the blue and white
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game where you have like the lower level
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um nobody in nose bleeds so I was like
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damn it's like a different type
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environment but it was like you it felt
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like it was 22,000 people in there I
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think that's just goes for like the
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students um just coming out and show
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support so yeah how fun is it to have
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students come down you know there's a
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lot of South Campus dorms really close
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to the dean
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doome that's just type of energy that
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young energy you feed off of that and I
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think um for them to come out and show
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support and be there for us I know
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during these times like during the
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snowstorm um it's fun I think it's was
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fun for them as well was there a
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particular inspiration or anything that
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led to this performance obviously it's a
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rival but anything that led to that you
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Chang um I I really like coach Davis's
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uh pregame speech a little bit um cuz
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Harrison had came in a couple days ago
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uh for Allstar break he had a couple
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days um spent like two days here um and
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then Coach Davis obviously just talked
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about him being a competitive bully um
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when he was here uh every single day in
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practice even in the gamees that he's
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going to let you know that he's going to
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compete harder than you and that was
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like basically like just kind of a small
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gist of the the message in the pregame
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but I think it resonated with us a
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little bit just go out there and compete
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but at the same time have for have fun
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in uh competing and Find the Joy because
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Harrison did that he had fun kicking
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people's butts and tell them I'm better
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than you so um I think that kind of got
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us going a little bit you had the Killer
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Instinct in the first half to just put
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them down and put them away too I mean
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yeah I just think overall like it was a
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full like complete game I mean full
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complete first half for us I think just
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everything was flown from offensively
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and defensively and I think like even in
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the Huddle like we just had so much
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emotion and energy and um that's what we
10:00
we've been missing all year but I'm glad
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that we got it roll today you like the
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full court press where you forcing
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turnovers you wish you did that more
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yeah I like it because I think it gets
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us going a little bit um gets our blood
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flowing but at the same time we're able
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to get stops a little bit and like we're
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such a athletic team but um they were
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able to get stops and steals so um I
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think we need to rely on that a little
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bit more just given how small we are so
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kind of just play like a little bit more
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grittier team chapping full court
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playing full court so I enjoyed it I
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like it cuz also gets back to like how I
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used to play play back in second grade
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why do you think you don't do the Press
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more why why do you think it hasn't been
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played as much this year I think
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sometimes we usually do it at the free
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throw makes I think we mixed up a little
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bit today and we basically did it like
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after every M basket um and also
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sometimes like I think just stamina Tire
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wise um just trying to utilize a lot of
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guys um but usually we use it like when
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we're down um but I think coach Davis
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had a different um attack today was kind
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of just utilized a little bit earlier
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and he saw that was working so he want
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to stay with it RJ what were you feeling
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in those moments where it felt like
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tremble said that he felt State
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crumbling when y'all went to that press
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what were you feeling in those moments
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actually um just just our energy and our
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uh I felt like the way we was trapping
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the balls the the ball handler in the
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screens um it kind of like it bothered
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them a little bit and they couldn't
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really deal with the pressure so uh we
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was able to capitalize off of that and
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uh I felt like that really got us going
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in the first half and we was able to
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expand off that he also said that it was
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state so you guys had to have a little
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bit of a different mindset and they were
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talking about be in the tournament last
11:35
[Music]
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year twice now he said that that he
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wants to shut everybody up about that
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yeah I mean
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just he was happing a little bit I
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thought it was interesting because that
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Seth Seth yeah funny because I could see
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where that would be fuel yeah 100% I
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mean you know we beat him twice last
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year and then obviously they got us an
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AC um tournament and you know they ran
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with it a little bit and they
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continually run with this so I mean
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every time every time they play us there
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just that kind of just another uh level
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of energy um from both sides um it's
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kind of like brag r a little bit so uh
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yeah I agree with st how do you guys
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bottle up that early energy that foot on
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throat the mission that you guys had
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early about sethy and said you wanted to
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put them away put them out early how do
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you bottle that up and take that
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movement forward uh just set the tone
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and but like at the same time like you
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see what's working you see the energy
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and you see what happens when you
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actually play with that type of motion
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when you play together um I think it's
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it's a good it's a good sign for us and
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we're able to kind of just utilize that
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and uh move forward with it I just think
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we have to do that for another 20
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minutes I think some second half he
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slacked off a little bit but I'm just
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proud of like the effort that we had um
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the ball movement and I just think
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everyone just everyone had a play where
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um it was kind of like a team chemistry
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game and that's something that we need
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uh more moving forward you think about
12:56
the season