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#UNC coach Hubert Davis at the weekly ACC coaches Zoom press conference ahead of Miami game
Feb 9, 2026
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0:01
Okay.
0:02
Hey, Hubert. Good morning.
0:03
Good morning. How are you?
0:07
Good morning. Hello.
0:10
Sorry. You would think I'd know how to
0:11
unmute myself by now, but yeah, good
0:14
morning. Yeah, it's good to see you.
0:15
Okay, good to see you.
0:16
All right, we'll get rolling first. Um,
0:18
Spencer Haskell, go ahead, sir.
0:20
Morning, Hubert. Um, I had a another
0:22
quick question about the last sequence
0:24
on uh Saturday. It looked like a a
0:26
similar set you guys drew up to the to
0:28
the end of the first half. Um, I was
0:30
just wondering, did you guys see
0:31
anything that that Duke showed at the
0:33
end of the first half that maybe set up
0:35
your play call for the late game
0:37
scenario there?
0:38
No, it was it was a totally different
0:40
set um than the one at the end of the
0:42
first half. And
0:44
um it's a play that, you know, we can
0:46
run side out of bounds half court set
0:49
and um just gives us um a number of
0:52
different options.
0:56
Uh, Michael Co., go ahead, sir.
0:58
Good morning, Hubert. Um, obviously it
1:01
was an incredible win for you guys on
1:03
Saturday, but at the same time, it was
1:05
only one game, right? So, how what's the
1:08
challenge in helping the guys move past
1:10
that and getting ready for Miami
1:12
tomorrow night?
1:13
Yeah, I mean, I just, you know, um,
1:16
Saturday was Saturday. Uh, we had
1:18
practice yesterday. Um, our focus was on
1:22
our preparation for Miami and
1:25
we understand the challenge uh tomorrow
1:28
night against a really good Miami team
1:30
and how important our practices are and
1:33
our preparation and you know just how
1:35
well we're going to have to play on the
1:37
road and against a really good team. And
1:39
so, um,
1:42
I'm happy that we were, you know, able
1:45
to find a way to win on Saturday, but
1:48
after Saturday, our our 100% of our
1:51
focus is been on Miami and rightfully
1:54
so.
1:56
Thank you, Shelby Swanson.
2:00
Hi, good morning.
2:02
Give me a sec.
2:07
Sorry. Hopefully that's a less echo,
2:09
y'all. Uh, well, good morning, Hubert.
2:11
Yeah, good morning.
2:11
Um, just wanted to ask um obviously I
2:14
mean you were there right after um you
2:17
um left your postgame press conference.
2:18
Um Bubba came up and just spoke to us
2:21
about the courts incident and um you
2:24
know, Shleged,
2:26
you know, member of his staff
2:28
potentially was hurt and I know he and
2:30
Bubba communicate. just wanted to see if
2:31
you had had any communication with him,
2:33
the Duke staff um over there, just given
2:36
kind of the a bit of a chaotic end there
2:38
to the game.
2:38
Yeah, I have. I've had communication uh
2:41
with John.
2:47
I appreciate I think.
2:49
Yeah,
2:49
that's all.
2:50
We'll go next to Brett Freedellander.
2:52
Morning, Hubert. Um, I'm wondering if
2:54
you can quantify the value of a guy with
2:57
the experience and the poise of Henry
2:58
Vasar who bounced back from a really
3:01
tough first half to be such a difference
3:03
maker in the second half.
3:04
Well, I mean, he was huge for us in the
3:06
second half. Um,
3:09
uh, on both ends of the floor, but, you
3:11
know, from an offensive standpoint, um,
3:14
you know, his ability to to post and to
3:17
score around the basket was huge for us.
3:21
um
3:23
you know, he he he was dominant down low
3:25
in the post and um not only was he um
3:29
really good offensively for us uh
3:32
rebounding the basketball, he had zero
3:34
uh defensive rebounds in the first half
3:37
and ended up with a double double. So, I
3:39
mean, you know, obviously Caleb um kept
3:42
us in there uh in the first half from an
3:45
offensive standpoint and then Henry in
3:47
the second half. Um he was huge and you
3:51
know that the last three that tied the
3:54
game that wasn't even for him. I mean
3:56
that play was for to get you know Derek
3:58
just hit a three. I called a play to get
4:01
him another three and um Henry you know
4:05
got the ball and felt like he had enough
4:06
space to shoot and it was just a you
4:09
know game time decision and uh he was
4:11
able to make that three to to tie the
4:13
score. How
4:14
how important is it to have a guy like
4:15
that who can just you know move on to
4:17
the next play like that and be such a
4:19
leader?
4:20
Well, I mean I you know in order to be
4:22
successful at this level you you have to
4:23
have that type of mentality. It's just,
4:26
you know, there going to be mistakes.
4:27
There going to be ups and downs. And
4:29
having the ability to always think next
4:32
next play, next possession
4:35
is not only huge, it's it's, you know,
4:37
it's required, it's necessary. And Henry
4:40
um um definitely is an example of that.
4:44
Uh being able to um come in the second
4:47
half and have the impact that he had um
4:52
to help us win the basketball game.
4:54
Thanks a lot, Hubert. Good luck this
4:55
week.
4:55
Thanks,
4:56
Michelle Kaufman. Go ahead.
5:01
Hi, Hubert. Michelle Kaufman from the
5:02
Miami Herald here.
5:04
We've got some pretty nice weather
5:06
waiting for you, Miami.
5:07
Um, I wanted to ask you, um, what stands
5:12
out to you about this Miami team? And
5:14
also, if you could just talk about the
5:16
job that Jay is doing as a firstear head
5:20
coach. the turnaround of this team is
5:22
pretty amazing to go from last place to
5:24
where they are now. Uh what can you just
5:27
speak to the job that he's doing and
5:28
also what in particular which players or
5:31
what stands out to you about this team?
5:33
Thank you.
5:34
Well, I mean they're they're a good
5:36
basketball team. It's not, you know, one
5:37
or two guys. Um I mean first of all, I
5:40
think they're really good defensively.
5:41
They do a number of different things.
5:43
they can impact in regards to getting
5:47
stops whether it's, you know, man and ma
5:49
man or or zone. Um
5:53
um they can you know they can block,
5:55
they can alter shots uh on the offensive
5:58
end, you're you're really good when you
6:00
can, you know, you're a three-level
6:02
scorer. I know they don't make or take a
6:05
ton of threes, but they have the ability
6:07
to get hot and then make a number and
6:10
and consistently from three, but their
6:13
persistence and, you know, ability to be
6:16
able to dominate points in the paint
6:17
through post, penetration, offensive
6:20
rebounds, um their ability to get to the
6:22
free throw line is huge and get teams in
6:25
foul trouble. And they just got a number
6:28
of guys to be able to do it. And so
6:30
obviously Jay's done, you know, a
6:32
terrific job uh in his first year with
6:35
this team and um has put together a
6:37
really talented bunch.
6:42
We'll go next to Brian Murphy.
6:44
Hi Hubert. How are you?
6:46
Good, good. Uh two quick ones. one. I
6:48
know you talked that that's a pass that
6:49
Dennis Dixon often throws off of that
6:51
play, but when you watch the replay to
6:53
have three guys kind of running at him,
6:55
how the the degree of difficulty on that
6:57
pass to get it through all those arms?
6:59
And then secondly, on the court
7:01
storming, um certainly Duke has to deal
7:03
with it a lot. You guys deal with it
7:04
some as well. Is there something that
7:06
can be done to to protect the players to
7:08
make sure the scene doesn't get out of
7:10
hand as some say that maybe maybe it did
7:12
on Saturday? Well, I you know, um you
7:16
know, Derek's pass, as I said before,
7:19
it's something with all of our, you
7:21
know, wing players that, you know,
7:23
something that we practice every day.
7:24
It's always an option. Um to be able to
7:29
know that a teammate is going to be
7:31
there in a corner. And so, yeah, you're
7:33
right. It was a an unbelievable pass by
7:36
Derek, but it was also
7:39
um you know just his ability to break
7:42
the defense down
7:44
uh penetrate and draw those you know
7:47
three defenders. I even think Caleb was
7:49
open as well. And then I felt like Henry
7:52
spacing out at the top of the key was an
7:54
option. And um but Derek knew that that
7:59
um um that Seth was going to be there
8:03
because that's something that we have
8:05
practiced every day. So, you know,
8:06
irregardless that there were three guys
8:08
and you know, it was a terrific pass,
8:11
that's something that has been practiced
8:12
and talked about uh pretty much every
8:14
day.
8:18
And then and and then on the court
8:19
storm, is there something that can be
8:21
done to protect players? I mean, I'm
8:23
sure you've you've been in that
8:24
situation. uh where visiting team is
8:26
coming, your visiting fans are coming
8:28
after your team as well.
8:29
Yeah, I feel I feel comfortable with the
8:32
comments that Bubba um made after the
8:34
game after I was at the press conference
8:36
and I'd like to, you know, stand stand
8:39
by his comments.
8:42
Squeeze one last question in from Shelby
8:44
Swanson.
8:46
Yeah, Hubert, really quick. You talked
8:47
so much about Caleb wanting to be a
8:49
bigger leader on this team. just I mean
8:51
you said he kind of put the team on his
8:53
back the first half but there was also a
8:55
timeout I saw where he got up and he was
8:57
really like getting at guys getting on
9:00
guys in the huddle and you know I mean
9:01
that you know in a good way trying to
9:02
inject some emotion. What did you see
9:04
from him maybe that you liked in in that
9:06
moment? Well, I mean, you know, he you
9:09
know, he his uh personality comes out on
9:12
the basketball court and um it was an
9:15
emotional game and you know, a number of
9:18
emotions, not just in that timeout,
9:20
throughout the game from a number of
9:22
different players. And you know, I've
9:24
said this, you know, to you guys before,
9:26
I um not only do I like it, I encourage
9:30
it and it's it's it it is something that
9:32
is required. And so, um, having, you
9:36
know, Caleb and a number of players, you
9:38
know, the conversations, uh, in the
9:40
huddle were really good. Um, and, um,
9:44
when I see a player react in that way,
9:46
that I think that's a, I think that's a
9:48
good thing. And, um, um, we fed off of
9:52
that and we fed off of Caleb and we fed
9:54
off of a number of players uh,
9:56
throughout the game.
9:59
Hubert, thank you. Appreciate it.
10:01
Okay. Thanks a lot, guys. The CIA soon.
10:03
Yeah.
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