Steve Forbes Shares His Thoughts Following the Morehead State Win

Coaches and Players Share Their Thoughts in the Post-Game Press Conference

Wake Forest guard Sebastian Akins grabs a rebound during the game against Morehead State on November 7, 2025. | Evan Harris, Wake Forest on SI

The Wake Forest Demon Deacons continue their start to the season with another win at home against the Morehead State Eagles. Following the game, coaches and players stuck around to share their two cents on the game.

Morehead State Coach Jonathan Mattox

Coach Jonathan Maddox began his brief of the game by giving kudos to the Demon Deacons. He gave credit to the physicality and quickness of the Deacs, and continued by saying he hopes to work on this for his team in the coming weeks. All in all, Coach Mattox was happy with the Eagles' performance and has great optimism for what this team can accomplish after playing a solid ACC team relatively tightly.

Wake Forest Players Interview

Following a 29-point career high, Juke Harris was asked about his electric performance. Throughout the entire process, Harris did not shy away from giving love and praise to his teammates. He attributed his strong performance to encouragement and optimism from the chemistry the Demon Deacons have built. He was also asked about whether he was looking at the stats sheet, falling just shy of a 30-point triple-double. Instead, Harris said his focus and intent were on controlling the game and playing as efficiently as he could.

Tre'Von Spillers finished the game with a double-double. His ability on both sides of the ball was quite noticeable. An emphasis from everyone who was interviewed was the focus on playing physically. Spillers, with his 3 offensive rebounds, was a living example of physicality. He was asked what the message was from Coach Forbes following the game, and Spillers responded that it was a continued emphasis on playing and encouraging each other as a unit. Such unity will win games down the road, and both Spillers and the team know this.

Wake Forest Head Coach SteveForbes

Coach Steve Forbes addressed the press by first telling the media the emphasis he and his team placed on Lawrence Joel. Besides being the name of the Demon Deacon arena, Lawrence Joel was a proud and true veteran of the United States Army. Since this was the last time the Deacs suited up in the Lawrence Joel Veteran Memorial Coliseum before Veterans' Day, there was an astounding emphasis placed by the players, coaches, and fans on the importance of our veterans.

Overall, Coach Forbes was happy with the aggressive defense of the Demon Deacons. This was in heavy contrast to the offensive side of the ball, where Coach Forbes was more disappointed in the decision-making of the offense. Entering a tough game against Michigan on Tuesday, Coach Forbes wants to see tighter handles and smoother transitions. The other emphasis, one that stuck out to everyone on the stats sheet, was the inability to shoot free throws. Coach Forbes finds no optimism in winning games when you don't perform well at the line, and wants this to be cleaned up before the next game.

With a game in Detroit on November 11, the Demon Deacons hope to continue their strong start against a big Michigan Wolverines team.