Buzz Williams on fouls vs. Nebraska, rebounding, Maryland men's basketball's preparation

Ahmed Ghafir
16 hours ago
5 min read

Everything that head coach Buzz Williams said after Maryland men's basketball fell in a close game that ended in a double digit scoring loss against 12th-ranked Nebraska:

On fatigue, foul shooting in loss vs. Nebraska

“I do think that we played incredibly hard. I think we've had great growth in the month of February. So thankful for our staff and what an incredible job they've done preparing our guys. Very thankful for the character of our guys to listen, learn, try to apply. I thought it was a great game. I thought our plan was outstanding as much as their offense is mesmerizing. Their defense is ranked dramatically higher than their offense. I thought we had too many turnovers, even though it was a semi-low turnover rate for our team. It's just hard when you play a top-ten team on the road. If you don't shoot as many balls and you don't shoot as many free throws, it's just difficult math to overcome.

From a fouling standpoint, according to this, we fouled them twice as many times as they fouled us. So that was one of the buckets from a defensive standpoint. I thought our - 52% of their shots after 15 games had been shot from three. That was the third most in our league, and today they shot 29-of-53 so our defense is going to make you shoot more. I thought our contest were great. There were a couple that bit us in transition after a live ball turnover that we didn't contest.

But at one point in the second half during the timeout, I mentioned to the guys that it was 5-2. We had fouled them five, and they had fouled us twice. And I told them we got to go on a string of not fouling so that it doesn't become a free throw contest for a few reasons. One, so we can accumulate more possessions. Two, in hopes that we're playing in a broken floor more because their defense is top-12 in the country and it's even better when it's hat on hat and they're set. So I thought we ran low [on] gas a little bit from about six and a half to three and a half. I called the timeout, the first timeout, of the second half after back-to-back threes just to try to reset us a little bit emotionally. I thought we were playing with unbelievable passion, but I thought it was a little too much in regards to our maturity and handling that passion. I thought we were okay, other than the fouling. And then I thought we gave up a couple of extra offensive rebounds right there that were unclean that you have to get. We missed a couple of layups that you probably have to make.

Yeah, I'm talking too much. Just - we had a good month, in some ways relative to where we were last month. I know the results have to improve. We were 3-4 entering the night, the fourth one this month on the road, four at home. I just appreciate our staff and our guys, and we'll get home at four this morning and start studying and try to be ready for Sunday afternoon.”

On the rebounding

“See, it's a subliminal stat, and I've tried to - you can't overcome it, but I've tried to explain it to our guys. They're going to shoot a lot of threes. And they're first in the league in three point field goal percentage. They're last in the league in offensive rebounding because they want to get back in transition and get their defense set. But because of how they play defensively, you're going to shoot more threes than you typically shoot. But the threes that we shoot, they have to be on a one more. It has to be an assisted sort of three. And then on the rise of that buzz shot, if you think I would shoot it, you shoot it. On the rise of that buzz shot, we have to have presence on the offensive glass. The issue on both sides is from an offensive rebound percentage standpoint, over the last three games, we've averaged 42% which is why we've shot more balls. But when you shoot a lot of threes, long shot, long rebound, and now that ball is bouncing all over the place. From a rebounding standpoint, it was a push. It's hard for us to overcome a push. And so if it's a push on the offensive glass, then it's going to become a low turnover rate game, and it's going to become a free throw make game. And so we want to make more than the opponent attempts?

Well, tonight, they attempted 17 more than we made and we shot 88% from the line. And so I'm not saying I have all the answers, but the margins that we're fighting, we have pretty much identified. And we're rubbing up in that tension over and over, particularly against a team that is so unique offensively but they're also as unique defensively. And so there are a lot of lessons from the prep going into this game and there'll be a lot of lessons. What's today? Wednesday?...So when we get together for Early Bird on Friday, there will be good lessons for them to see. But a lot of it is our effort in a triangle of a great program, of a great business. In that triangle, you have to have great effort. And we were good, we were not great.

And then in the second third, you [have] got to have great preparation, and our preparation has continued to improve.

And then in the top of the triangle, the top third, you [have] got to have great execution, and you have to have all three at the highest level. And we're making strides. Our effort is dramatically better. Because our effort is better, it has allowed our preparation to be better because they understand the value of the rep in the film room, on the court and practice. And so our practices have improved. Getting George [Turkson Jr.] back, we've been able to practice five on five the last three days, that helps. But when you play eight games in 25 days, there's a limit to that when you get to February, as you know. So I'm sorry for the longest post game. I'm just trying to figure out what I’m going to tell the team.”

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