Postgame Quotes
Wisconsin vs. Syracuse 
Nov. 29, 2016
Kohl Center – Madison, Wis.

Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard 
Opening Statement:
"Extremely happy for our guys. Proud of how they handled not only tonight, but the whole trip back from the practice Saturday to Sunday and bouncing back on track and then have one day to prepare for Syracuse. I'm extremely proud of being their coach and how they responded tonight. They shared the ball extremely well, very unselfish, made good adjustments and listened in the timeouts. It's a group that's growing closer and closer together. As we get closer together, the chemistry gets better and as the chemistry gets better, obviously, we get better as a team. To be able to execute against a pretty good team really shows the steps we're taking forward, so I'm really happy for our guys."
 
On Nigel Hayes' ability to lead the offense:
"Being such a multi-dimensional player – meaning he can play well along the perimeter, he's got size against people inside, he's got strength and quickness – the one thing that probably gets overlooked a lot and doesn't get talked about enough is his ability to pass and his vision. He did a very good job, for the most part, of making good decisions. Obviously, when you have 10 assists for as much as he touched the ball in there with only three turnovers, he just made things go. He made a difference and that was the plan coming in, to try to touch in as much as possible and then facilitate and make plays from there. Obviously, the guys around him made shots, too. Ethan [Happ] did a pretty good job around the rim, but I'm just happy for him and that's the type of all-around player he can be and he's trending in the right direction."
 
On Ethan Happ's performance:
"He was able to get the ball in some pretty high-percentage areas and that was the result of teammates doing a good job around him and stretching the floor. If we hit one of our 3s, we had to get a little bit wider and go a little bit more extended, so it left him operating either one-on-one. Or, as Nigel was making plays in the middle, they had to account for him, too. That's kind of the chess match that goes on with what we can do inside and outside, so he was a recipient of teammates doing a good job for the most part. I'm sure a lot of Nigel's 10 assists are to Ethan and some perimeter shooters as well. Ethan was just effective, he was efficient and he sticks to what he does well. He's very good at it, especially around the rim."

Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim
Opening Statement:
"I thought Wisconsin really moved the ball. I thought we made a great recovery in the first half, down 14 (points). I thought we moved the ball, we got some good looks, but our defense was not good the whole game. Our offense slipped in the second half, but we just didn't cover the shooters. Our first four games we gave up some of those same shots, but teams couldn't make them. We're just not getting the coverages, yet, I think the five new guys trying to figure out where they are. All you need is one guy not to get in his position and there's going to be an open shot and Wisconsin took advantage of that. I thought, again, we did a really good job of coming back in the first half. This is a really good Wisconsin team. They beat us last year in Syracuse, so we knew how good they are. They got everybody back and I thought they did a great job moving the basketball. We didn't cover areas that we have to cover and they made pretty easy shots, pretty wide open shots, but again, I thought we had a good recovery. We got a lot of guys who are trying to figure out just exactly what they are doing and I think they will learn it but they haven't got it yet."
 
On the effectiveness of Ethan Happ tonight:
"He had 18 points, I think, against us last year. We're just not doing a great job covering him down there. Again, our interior defense is what really hurt us last year for the whole year and it was not good tonight."
 
On being able to stay with Wisconsin in the first half, but unable to do so in the second:
"I just thought they are a confident, veteran team playing at home and I think they turned it up a little bit (in the second half). They kept playing the way they were playing and our offense slipped and that was the difference. We didn't make shots in the second half."
 
On trying to scout Wisconsin:
"I thought the two games that they lost, North Carolina is really good and Creighton played really good. But, I just thought tonight, compared to our game last year, I thought they moved the ball better against us this year than they did last year. I think they had 58 points in regulation last year, I don't remember exactly, but not 75. I thought they moved the ball better this year and you expect that with veteran guys. They are going to get better, they were a play or two away from getting to the Final Four and you got the same guys back. They're a really good team and they are going to be a very good team. I think they are better against a zone than they are against man-to-man but we don't have that option."

Senior Forward Nigel Hayes
On Ethan Happ's game:
"He's our inside presence, aside from Vitto (Brown) and I whenever we get a chance to get down there. But with the way they (Syracuse) played that zone today, or any team that plays zone, it is imperative that he works like he does and he's ready at a moment's notice to catch the ball and finish strong and he did a great job of that. It showed. He had 24 (points) and 13 (rebounds) and those are the types of games that he can have all the time. He's a great rebounder and he finished extremely well."
 
On his chance for a triple-double:
"I was close to a triple-double. Something fishy happened when I got the last rebound and everybody screamed really loud. So I'm like, 'Why is everyone screaming?' Then when I came out, the guys were all running up to me like, 'You need one point,' so when I got back in, I was like, 'I don't really want this free throw.' Then when I got fouled, in my mind, I was thinking, 'Please don't be one-and-one.' I just didn't want that pressure right there. As you saw, I missed the free throw. It was just too much. If I just stayed in and not have known that I was this close to a triple-double, I would've made the two free throws. But the fact that I knew it, it was the hardest free throw of my life. I'm extremely distraught right now. I'm almost close to tears. I think Josh (Gasser) is happy though, because he's still the lone triple-doubler, if that's a phrase I can use. But you know, I will always just take the win. Stats are fine and dandy, but to know that it was literally one free throw away it just really hurt. That's pretty much just all I can take. I'm just down in the dumps. Just sad. But, I've got good teammates. Ethan (Happ) is here to pick me up and let me know it's okay. But, really I'm just sad. I'm just really hurt. I was really that close. I know that my sister is going to text me. She's going to give it to me, I know she is. She's not going to let me live this one down."
 
Sophomore Forward Ethan Happ
On playing well again against Syracuse:
"It's Nigel (Hayes), that's what it is really. If you watch the tape, it's him getting me the ball. The first time we played Syracuse I should've had more than I did, just because I didn't finish around the rim. There were some easy ones and I've made it a point to try and finish more frequently."
 
On the trip to Maui accelerating the growth process of the team:
"A lot of teams have non-conference games that are supposed to be wins and for us to take two on the chin like we did against Creighton and then especially against UNC, you can either revert back to what you were doing or you can grow from it. I think we've grown from it and it sucks that we have two losses, but obviously we've learned from that and we hope to keep doing it."