Keatts: 'We Found A Way To Win'

Here's what the NC State coach had to say after the Wolfpack's 78-74 win at Syracuse on Tuesday

Rich Barnes/USAToday sports

Things didn't always go NC State's way on Tuesday at Syracuse. But showing the kind of resiliency needed to finish strong and get back to the NCAA tournament after missing last year, the Wolfpack got the win it needed, rallying late to beat the Orange 79-74.

Here's what coach Kevin Keatts had to say about his team's gritty effort and the key victory in a postgame interview with Gary Hahn and Tony Haynes on the Wolfpack Sports Network ...

"We found a way to win. My message to these guys in the last couple of weeks was to stay together no matter what adversity we have. You talk about family, there’s not a family in America that doesn't go through something and argue about something. But at the end of the day you're playing for the same team, which is NC State.

"We found a way. We had some adversity. Our post guys were in tremendous foul trouble, things weren't going our way. (Syracuse's Joe) Girard got a hot hand and was playing well. But I thought our guys stayed down and stayed composed, got a lot of rebounds at the end and made some plays at the end. I thought that was the difference in the game.:

Keatts was asked about the seven straight points scored by Devon Daniels that turned a six-point deficit into a Wolfpack lead. But the coach couldn't resist throwing praise at a lot of other players ...

"Certainly. I thought (Daniels) made some big plays. I thought he did a tremendous job. I thought he drove the ball, made a play (with) his defensive effort. Markell (Johnson) had a huge steal at the end, so did Devon. I thought C.J. (Bryce) stepped up and made a big three. I thought D.J. (Funderburk) got some great rebounds at the end. I thought we closed the game you want a team to close a game."

Keatts said State's 3-point shooting was a key in attacking Syracuse's zone defense ...

"We knew we had to make threes. I thought coming in eight or nine would do it, but certainly I'll take 11. I thought we did a good job of moving it around, finding gaps. They put you in a tough spot because they only give you certain shots and you have to make those certain shots.

"What we didn't do a good job of is we didn’t get enough offensive rebounds. We had five and we typically do a better job of rebounding the ball against the zone. But I’ll take it. I thought I got shared the basketball. For some reason, we've averaged 17 or 18 turnovers against these guys, but we found a way to win."

He said that another key was the Wolfpack's ability to force turnovers and get out in transition ...

"That’s what I'm looking for. I knew in order to have success you have to get out in transition against these guys. Give them credit. That’s a good team. I thought we did a really good job on (Buddy) Boeheim, good player who can get to his spot and make shots. But I thought our guys did a really effective job on him. We forced some of their key players to have some turnovers."

Keatts was asked if he realized that even though Syracuse's Joe Girard scored 30 points, he was only 1 of 10 from 3-point range ... 

"No. I'm looking at his stat line, he went 1-for-10 and 9-for-22 but he went to the free throw line 12 times. We'll take pride in the fact that we got him to miss one free throw because he typically doesn’t miss there."

Keatts was asked if State's 11 of 25 performance from 3-point range was even better than he'd hoped coming into the game ...

"Yes it is. We shot a great percentage. I’m going to look now, I don't even know who made our 3-pointers. C.J. Bryce was 4 for 6, Markell 2 for 6. The shots we made were timely shots. Pat (Andree) even came in and gave us a three, so we’ll count his three also. Jericole Hellems made a big three, Braxton Beverly made a big three. So I’m proud of these guys. It’s a great team win for us."

It was cold in Syracuse, but that didn't stop the Wolfpack from its traditional road win celebration ...

"Absolutely. We’re going to get ice cream."