Everything Jai Lucas said ahead of the NC State Road Matchup

CORAL GABLES, Fla. — It's true what they say: Winning cures all, and now the Miami Hurricanes (19-5, 8-3 ACC) have won four of their last five games.

The Canes look to continue their winning ways heading into the middle of February while also battling their own issues.

After defeating No. 11 North Carolina, the Canes head back on the road to face NC State. Head coach Jai Lucas prepares his team as he speaks with the media before taking the trip to Raleigh.

On the Court Storming...

You know, the one thing I was really impressed with was just the efficiency with which the security, and it was, I've been in a lot of court storms.  I felt it was a one done the right way to be honest with you. I felt that everybody was protected. It was a gradual kind of court storming that took place, but, you know, no one got to put in any danger or anything. I felt our security and our people did an amazing job.

On the Bench Production...

It's been my message to the team, who we can be every day since the game began. We didn't do anything special. We played to who we are.  You know, I thought the guys off the bench really did a good job of impacting the game and didn't necessarily have to be scoring, but some of Timo's lobs and some of the deflections and defensive plays he made, Sali's little physicality plays we base are. Noam a huge known four-point play.

It was huge, so that little impact that they had, it may not show up necessarily in a statue, but in the Florida game, has been big, and then just the guys who are playing every minute, just there ability to, I think it was our first time put together a 40-minute game. And that's what was very impressive, is that, you know, Tre and Malik and Shelton and Ernest and those guys, and Dante, they just continued to play and compete, and I thought we did a good job with it.

On NC State...

I mean, we're gonna get their best punch, and we're gonna get the best pun, and we got right away because their team that if they jump on you, they smell a little blood in the water, they're attacking.  So we have to do our job initially, just playing with boys. You know, they're really good, they're really explosive. On both ends, defensively, they kind of pressure you, they can turn you over, and offensively, they get out, and Copeland does a great job with finding shooters. And you know, they lead the country, not the country, but the conference.  They're high in the country and makes and percentage from behind the arc. So we have to do a good job of not helping them get into those situations.

On Keeping the Game the Same...

It's been the messaging the whole season.  You know, my hope is that the coach is now that we have a big win or, you know, a rank win that it just resonates a little more with them. When you look at the stat sheet, you look at the box score, it looks like it really can't. You know, the one difference here, we had eight turns instead of 14. And if we take care of the ball, and we can have 11 or fewer turnovers, we'll be able to win any game.  We give away possessions and giveaways, you know, police all turnovers, the largins for us. It's so slim that, you know, that kind of takes away from what we do best, when we're able to just give away free bucks.

Balance on NC State's offense...

You know, Coach Wade has always done a great job of giving his players freedom, and that freedom gives them confidence. And so you have a lot of people who have completely changed.  Like Trey Holloman wasn't necessarily as big of a shooter as Michigan State, and now he's shooting, you know, a lot of three, same thing with Darrion Williams and. Well, Paul McNeill didn't play it all last year. And now he's a guy who is playing a lot.  He's got a 40-point game, so, you know, I think that's what Will Wade's superpower is as a coach, his ability to get this guy's confidence and belief in getting to go there and play that way, and I think it all starts with COA, to be honest with you. He's the engine, he's the head of the snake. He gets those guys some shots.  He gives him that confidence, that confidence, and so he's a big part of what they do.

On the Environment at NC State...

It is to me; it is the hardest place to play in a conference.  And I say that with all respect to the dude in Carolina and everybody, but North Carolina State is a different animal. Just their environment, the fans are, like, right behind the bench. They're right on top of you. Their fan base has a tradition of winning a National Championship, but they also have this kind of edge and a chip on their shoulder, being in the middle of Carolina and Duke, where they feel like they're not as respected, so it adds to the building. It's one of the hardest places to play.

On Tru Washington...

You know, you come back to throw somebody out there, not practicing, not being around for a week. You know, it's just impossible to throw someone in against Carolina; you go out there and run around.  So, you know, slowly working yourself with back, we'll see what happens on a Saturday, just kind of what, weed kind of practice with having. You know what I mean? We just have a short turnaround.  But he's been getting his extra work. He's been doing everything to kind of get back into where he was, so we'll see what happened. But he's back, and you know, he's pulled up.

On Ernest Being the Best Fit for the Team...

Character. Makeup.  Him as a person. Ernest Udeh is one of the best people. You want to be around me.  As one of those people that you always want to be around. Those guys always figured out, they find a way, sometimes it's just giving them a little bit of confidence, giving them a little bit more belief for that, like, switch the clip. And so I was getting going h as a person.  Of course, he's 6'11, and a log thread, shop blocker, defensively one of the best bes, but I felt he could make a jump because of who he is as a person.

On HIs Coaching Journey so Far...

Man's been so fast that I haven't even thought about it. It's probably be something process. Hopefully as the season ends in the moment I'm on what we do every day to get better?  And part of that is also me as well, making sure I'm communicating everything clearly, making sure everything is concise and condensed. You know, as a echo, sometimes you can overthink stuff and have so many thoughts on your head, you don't want to give it all to the players and give it all to the staff, because then it can be too confusing. So just making sure that we are , you know, very efficient in what we're doing. It's kind of where I am at this part of the season.

On Will Wade...

As I said earlier, I think one of the greatest things he does is that he is still confident and believes in his team and in his players.  You know, they're always going to be really good at defending. They're gonna pressure, they're gonna give you a bunch of different looks, and then offensively, he kind of gives them that freedom to kind of play, but also it's like controlled chaos. You know, it may look like there's just playing, but there's a method behind this play.  I think that's one of the best things he does, which is kind of make them feel like they're getting coached without getting coached. And you can tell he holds them to a high standard. He's one everywhere he's been, and it's not going to be any different at NC State.

On Marcus Allen Update...

Marcus is an amazing young man, as you can imagine, just everything that he's going through, for him to show up and be around and want to be around and want to travel, like, he texts me today, like Coach, I'm late for practice. I'm sorry, I gotta get, you know, I gotta get my scans done.  So it's going to take two hours. And just for him to even think like, I'm gonna be mad at him.

We're missing because he's, you know, taking care of his scans and stuff like that.  But his strength is just wanting to keep everything normal, practicing, as he gets in practice. It's not long, when he gets out there and he practices and will give him a sub, but, you know, part of this environment for him also is this kind of part of his airban's way. Heating everything is possible.  Treating him like Marcus when he's here. And that he's a friend and his just resilience and his character. I mean, for what he's going through his amazing.