Everything Ryan Odom Said After Virginia’s Disappointing Loss to UNC

The Virginia Cavaliers were hoping to defend John Paul Jones Arena this afternoon by clinching a victory over North Carolina, and while UVA maintained a lead throughout much of the game, UNC ultimately pulled ahead for a tight 85-80 win over the Cavaliers. Following the matchup, Virginia's head coach Ryan Odom sat down with the media for a press conference. Here's everything he had to say.

Opening Statement...

"Carolina played well. I think we got off to a decent start. They came right back pretty quickly in the first half. Key to the game for us certainly was every time that, you know, we missed a shot. I think they were 1.3 points per possession right after that. Throwing it over the top, kicking it ahead, fouls. Just our transition defense was not where it needed to be throughout the entire night. You know, some key plays. I mean, throughout the game, that certainly we'd love to have back. The defensive intensity was not where we needed it to be. The communication was lacking, and you know, just a really, in general, a poor defensive performance overall. And in retrospect, it kind of started out pretty well. Like our guys, you know, it was 40-some 20-some. Our guys were playing the game the way that it needed to be played at that particular time. The end of the half was a killer. I think seven to one. Beginning of the second half, another killer. We did not come out with enough fire on the defensive side of the ball to make things harder for them and, you know, once it's free and easy it's hard to get really good and talented teams, you know, out of that mode and our guys battled, you know, they did a nice job of trying to figure out a way to win the game there. Missed some key free throws, of course, but it was deeper than that. The defensive effort was just not where it needed to be."

On the turnovers...

"I mean, I think the first half we had a couple, you know, maybe four, we ended up with 11. I mean, the key is you're going to turn it over on occasion. Some of them were bad beats, some of them were not. They made good plays, you know, knocking it out of our hands. Loose balls, whatever it is, we've been generally pretty good at, you know, getting on those and coming up with those. The key is you can't have those turn into baskets, and tonight they turned into baskets."

On UNC's Jarin Stevenson in the second half...

"He was aggressive, and certainly he was open, you know, in some of these miscommunications. He's open for threes and knocking it down. We had two guys go to one, and he's open under the basket. I mean, there are quite a few things. I don't want to take anything away from him, but he was the recipient of some good plays on their part, but probably some, as we go back and look at it, some defensive mistakes."

On miscommunications and how it changed from the first half...

"I think it was the end of the half. You know, we didn't score a couple of times down the stretch. We didn't execute a play that we were trying to run there at the end of the half with a minute left basically, and it turned into a couple of quick baskets for them. We ended up in a switch where we weren't going to switch that one at the end of the half, and the kid made us pay with a three."

On what he saw from Thijs De Ridder...

"I think he came out aggressive. I think defensively, he was pretty good to start the game and did his best to try to keep Wilson from catching it in spots, and we need him to play that way. Certainly, there are some plays that he's going to want to have back, too. Some turnovers and, you know, but free throws, I mean, Thijs understands we need him to play big for us to win."

On if UVA lost its edge throughout the game...

"No, I mean, I didn't notice that when I walked in at halftime, but we did talk about it. We need to come out; this is what just happened. Seven to one, not typically what we do. Alright, so we need to fix it coming out of half. And I don't think there was any relax in our guys. We're playing a good basketball team. It's no different than I said prior to even playing the game. This is a good team that we're getting ready to play. A very talented team and a well-coached team. So I think Carolina just did a nice job."

On how he feels about the shot selection...

"Some of them were a little bit quick, but I think overall offensively we didn't get them to chase us enough. I thought we were playing pick-and-roll offense, and you know, we certainly had some good two-man plays between Dallin and Johann. Dallin gets to the basket, Dallin drops it off, and we missed a couple, so certain teams are going to lock out and play it that way. They did a nice job of getting out there. You know, when we would get into the paint, they did a nice job of getting out. We've got to move a little bit better to create more passing lines, but ultimately, we scored 80 points. We have to defend."

On this being Henri Veesaar's worst game of the season in terms of scoring and rebounding...

"I don't know. Players are going to have good games. They're going to have subpar games, but you know, ultimately, their team's walking out with a win, and so I'm sure he's happy. He's a really good player and tough to deal with. He's got legitimate size around the rim. He can shoot from behind the arc, and they certainly found a lineup that was working for them with two quick, athletic guys. We've got to be able to adjust to that. And so there'll be a learning process that we'll have going through these next few days."