What Kenny Payne, Louisville Players Said After 79-67 Win vs. Georgia Tech

Read what the head coach of the Cardinals, Brandon Huntley-Hatfield, Tre White and Kaleb Glenn said after their win over the Yellow Jackets.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Trending towards suffering a double-digit home loss to Georgia Tech, the Louisville men's basketball program was able to mount a comeback, ending the game on a 28-7 run to pull out a 79-67 win.

Here's what head coach Kenny Payne, forward Brandon Huntley-Hatfield, guard Tre White and forward Kaleb Glenn had to say following the win:

Head Coach Kenny Payne

(Opening statement):

“To be honest, I was really nervous about this game coming in. The Georgia Tech team that I watched against Wake Forest; I knew we weren’t going to get that team. The team beat Duke, Carolina and that is a very good basketball team that we just beat. They fight and they fight. So, my hat goes off to our guys and this win is about them and their determination to fight through and win a game with their defense and finishing the last eight minutes 32-11. It goes to show that they are capable of being a pretty good defensive team. We made mistakes but I am proud of the way they fought. It is why with young players and young teams; you never give up. You keep pushing. You keep fighting them to get better. Kaleb Glenn was unbelievable with 15 and 13 rebounds. He willed us to win. Those rebounds were huge. Tre White was struggling to shoot the ball and knew the ball was going to come to him. Mike James made a great drive; his man sucks in and hits a great shot. Mike James hasn’t been shooting the ball well and has been really concerned about it in his mind. We ran a play for him and comes off and knocks down the three. That is what this is about -- giving them confidence and allowing them to trust themselves to be the players they want to be.”

(About having confidence during the late run after having a slow start)

“I don’t know how easy the buckets were for them (GT), but I do know that we kept with it. The team was sagging in initially and kept moving the ball to try to get them to loosen up. As the game went on, they did loosen up and we got to drive the ball down the lane and create fouls and shots for each other. Brandon (Huntley-Hatfield) got them in some foul trouble. KG (Kaleb Glenn) did a good job of posting hard of posting hard. That is what this is – to keep doing what you are doing until they submit to you.”

(About Kaleb Glenn embody the spirit of what the team culture is trying to build)

“I love the fact that I trust him and I need him to continue to grow as a basketball player and to be the player that he wants to be. And for him to know what his foundation is: toughness, rebounding, defending. He made plays that, at times, Brandon Huntley-Hatfield couldn’t or wouldn’t make. Balling up when someone is driving and jumping and making sure they miss. Getting rebounds above the rim with two hands are things that you look for players to do. He does it naturally. He just has to know and learn that he has to do it more consistently. I am proud of him after the way he played. I hope he builds on it. I told him in the locker room: ‘Kid, you are no longer a freshman, you have earned that right, same with Curtis (Williams) and Ty-Laur (Johnson). You have seen enough basketball now to know that you have graduated to sophomore status.”

(About coming off emotional loss to Syracuse and then tonight close out a game and see that the hard work is paying off)

“I think it is vital and think it is everything to be honest with you. We work hard. There are times they are questioning everything we are doing. We are conditioning every day. I won’t let go of it. They don’t like it. But when I watch us play the game and I see the other team get tired and we are still cruising and fighting, it shows the conditioning is working whether they like it or not. I am proud of them because with the game in the balance near the end, we went on a run and we got stops. We made them miss and we got rebounds which shows we are getting better. We still have a long way to go to perfect some things. I am happy and pleased that everyone that went into the game contributed.”

(About six players in double figures showing the team no one player has to do it by himself)

“I am hoping that they understand that. At times, they struggle with it. They struggle with not being the guy that takes five dribbles and sees what is there and then they take the shot. I think they are more comfortable learning that we have a good team of good players. If we win, we are going to win with a combination of guys playing well on the same night. To have six guys in double figures says a lot. We are trending in the right direction. We still have a lot of work to do but you can see the progress in this team.”

(About the loud crowd helping the team during the run)

“I think these kids live in a generation where they love affirmation. To see the crowd embrace them helps them get through a critical time and take a lead and do it decisively and to hear the crowd supported them and cheered for them and it was loud in there. I think they need to hear that. I met with a family this morning of one of the players and they said, ‘This negativity … how do you deal with it? How do I get my son to deal with all this negativity? From the media to social media from everywhere we turn there is all this negativity about this program.’ I tell them they have to be like me and come everyday and focus on one thing: How do I get this team better? If we win, the negativity will go away. If we don’t it is going to stay there. It is what it is.”

(About GT’s Miles Kelly only scoring one point in the final eight minutes and what the Cards did differently on defense)

“I though Skyy Clark was unbelievable coming down the stretch. I put Skyy on him and he denied him the ball and made it hard for him to catch it. That is what winning players do. It is not about scoring the basketball. It may be about denying the guy from getting the basketball that may change the course of the game. The kid was hot in the first half. We had problems with him but we wore him down. We put different people on him and he didn’t have as much success as he did in the first half.”

Forward Brandon Huntley-Hatfield, Guard Tre White and Forward Kaleb Glenn

(On wanting it more when the game was on the line.)

Brandon Huntley-Hatfield - Yeah, I feel like he hit it right on the head. We’re just out here trying to fight. Basically, trying to turn our season around. Like I keep saying whenever I'm in here, we're a good group, and my freshman group is really good as well, as you can see tonight. Kaleb had a great night, a career night, and that's what he's capable of, and how we all see him. But it was an all-around team effort. We just want to keep improving, staying together, and pulling out these wins towards the end of the season.

(Kaleb response to his coach’s positive comments on his career game.)

Kaleb Glenn - It means a lot, especially with all the hard work we put in during practice. It means a lot to like finally to see it come out on the court, and we're finally making it click.

(On what helped to lead to the huge run in the second half)

Tre White- I personally feel like after that loss it all got started within the next practice. I feel like we did everything that we did in the game starting in practice that day, and just keep building every day of the week, and then today, it kind of showed. One of the main messages was we played hard. We're playing better basketball right now, which is we got to lock up defensively. I feel like today we were all on a string together.

(Kaleb Glenn on his role on the team and whether there has been any plays drawn up for him this season.)

Kaleb Glenn- My role I say is just to be the energy guy. Get rebounds and be one of the best defenders on the court. Just bring energy, toughness, and aggressiveness, and as far as plays, I don’t think so.

(On the growth of the team, with six guys scoring in double-figures.)

Brandon Huntley-Hatfield- Of course, I don’t want to sound like a broken record, but we all got a lot of guys that can really go. We realized throughout the season that we can't do it by ourselves. We're just trying to figure out ways how-to pull-out W's, making sure that this guy's getting what he wants, and this guy making sure he's getting that, making sure that we're just playing together and playing unselfish basketball. If you don't have some right here, if coach calls your number, then this guy’s turn, if it come back around to you, just keep being confident. I feel like we're getting better with that and trusting each other. But we got some really good players.

(On setting the tone with energy)

Kaleb Glenn: It means a lot, especially when you see somebody else doing it. We’re going to feed off of it, and it’s going to make you want to do it, especially if you want to win.

(On a moment in the second half where things started to click)

Tre White: I can’t define a moment. I just remember after halftime, our main message as a team. We’re good whenever we get into the paint, and in the first half we were being a little passive and settling. So, in the second half, we made it our main point to play through bumps, play through fouls, and get into the paint. I think that helped.

(On being strong against his opponent)

Kaleb Glenn: I feel like I was just playing harder than them. That’s what I try to do every game, just be the hardest playing player on the court.

(On the crowd this evening)

Brandon Huntley-Hatfield: It felt amazing. Our fans don’t understand how much they help us. A lot. We’re out here trying to fight, but their energy is really helpful for us because sometimes there might not be as many people at our games. That small crowd that comes, they bring in energy and they see us and they feel us playing hard. They see KG getting offensive rebounds. They see Tre dominating his matchups. Seeing all of us out there playing hard, Ty-Laur doing what he does and everyone else pitching in. Their support and their energy are very, very crucial for our development and what we want to do.

Tre White: To build on that, being the home team, whenever our crowd is into the game like that, like they were today, it gives us moments in the game when we see the other team starting to break down and fumble because they couldn’t hear each other or something like that. I just want the fans to know that. Their support really does play a part in these games.

(On finishing strong on the road and at home)

Brandon Huntley-Hatfield: We’re ready.

(Photo of Ty-Laur Johnson, Kenny Payne: Jamie Rhodes - USA TODAY Sports)

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