NC State head coach Herb Sendek
I certainly continue to be very proud of our men. Even in defeat today I thought their effort was tremendous, playing our third game in three days. I just couldn't be prouder of a group of guys than I am of our team right now. Certainly you have to give Duke credit for an outstanding game. Obviously two factors stand out. One, a sensational performance by J.J. Redick and two, our inability to come up with key rebounds, which put us in the position where after we had a stop we had to try to stop them again and sometimes again. These guys have given their heart, they've given everything they've had and that's what this whole thing is about. They've had a great home stretch to the regular season and I'm just proud to be coaching them.
(On defending Redick)
We were working really hard. None of those shots came with us having our legs crossed and our arms behind our head. We were giving great effort and to his credit he always gives great effort as well. He's always moving and they set a lot of screens for him. He needs almost no time or space to get a shot off. The one thing that can be a little deceiving when talking about him is how big he is. He's a big guard and he's able to get his shot off with little time or space. He has a lightning quick release and that is really aided by his size.
(On being nervous during the NCAA Tournament Selection Show)
I think our play will speak for itself. We've had a very strong finish and an excellent season. We feel very good about where we stand going into tomorrow.
(On Duke's offensive rebounds)
I don't think it had anything to do with running out of gas, our guys have tremendous fortitude. I know they were giving everything they had. DeMarcus Nelson just did a great job. He came down with six of those. To our mens' credit we had 14 offensive rebounds. It just seemed like when Duke got a second shot they made us pay dearly with a couple of big threes.
(On the availability of injured Jordan Collins and Tony Bethel next week)
Jordan will definitely be back. We are very optimistic about his recovery. We tried him a couple minutes last night and we think he is right around the corner. Tony is day-to-day. We'll see what a couple days of rest do for him and hopefully we'll go into the NCAA Tournament in better health than we did coming into the ACC Tournament.
NC State junior forward Ilian Evtimov
I was very frustrating to lose, especially when you're up eight to start the second half. They kicked our butts on the rebounds and we couldn't find a way to stop J.J. Redick and consequently we lost. It's very frustrating, but we've got a quick turnaround and we're looking forward to next week.
NC State senior guard Julius Hodge
It was definitely a hard fought game and for the seniors on the team it was a missed opportunity to win an ACC Championship on the last go around, but our guys have no reason to hang their heads. Coming into this season there was a lot said about this and that. No matter what anyone said, we made sure we came out on the court and played. When we were 3-7 in the league we could have folded like any teams in the past have, but we continued playing and continued working. We're definitely not going to hold our heads down because we're winners. I'm not talking about moral victories. We're winners. We're going to see who were playing tomorrow and we'll go from there.
(On guarding Redick)
(On guarding Redick)
Guarding a player with J.J.'s talent, you have to just have to do it with one player, it has to be a team effort because they set great screens. You then have to really box out because there are a lot of long rebounds when he does miss and if they get offensive rebounds then it just opens him up for an open look which he never misses.
NC State freshman forward Andrew Brackman
(On the absence of forward Jordan Collins and guard Tony Bethel)
They're obviously a big part of our team. Jordan is a big body who could have helped us rebound. Tony runs our team and we'll have him back for the NCAA Tournament and we'll go from there.