UNC Asheville at Chattanooga
Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2020
Chattanooga, Tenn. - McKenzie Arena
Postgame Quotes

Lamont Paris, Head Coach
Opening thoughts after 69-66 win over UNC Asheville.
"You never know how it's going to shake out. We did some things I wasn't happy with at times and their pressure got to us a couple times. We kept hanging in there and got a couple stops when we needed to. We were able to get a bucket and call a timeout to set up our press. We were very disciplined today and that's something we always talk about. It was a good win. We had some guys not play well so to be able to add other guys to the rotation is big. It was fun, I had a good time."
 
On the play from KC Hankton in his debut.
"He played well. He did some things and especially grabbing rebounds in the middle of a crowd. We don't have much of that in our program right now so there's so much value to that. He made a play and blocked a shot. We found ourselves in a tough situation and he was able to make an athletic play, and in a game like this it's really important. I thought he was outstanding for a guy who hasn't been in a game in a while. I was really happy for him to go out there and see the ball go through the net."
 
On UNC Asheville jumping out in front early.
"I expected that could potentially happen in the first half because they present a challenge from a pressure standpoint where we haven't seen yet. It's hard to simulate it at practice so I thought maybe early in the game that could happen. Once we were able to settle in, we went into halftime with a lead. I thought we would be back on our grind in the second half, but they're a team where it doesn't matter. That's kind of the potency they have on offense. We settled into our groove a little bit, I didn't think we played great. We settled in and did just enough to have a chance when it counted and we capitalized."
 
Trey Doomes, Jr.-G
On what worked against UNCA's pressure.
"I felt like we kept our composure even though they came out with a lot of energy and had things thrown at us we haven't seen before. We just continued to keep going throughout the game. That's our juice, just staying ourselves and playing the same way. We just kept our composure and kept playing hard."
 
On how to handle that pressure.
"It's not too hard because we have good teammates where they make sure we're not doing to much. They are a great team and a team who feeds off the energy. We just kept playing and didn't worry about their energy and rowdiness."
 
On the play of KC Hankton.
"He brings a lot. He does great on and off the ball, he's a great player there. He's another guy who can pick and pop for us, hit some shots. Players like myself, Malachi and Jamaal who like to drive a little bit more it helps the lanes open up. He's great to have with us."
 
KC Hankton, Jr.-F
On learning of eligibilty today.
"I was just getting taped just in case. I didn't know yet. I went back to the locker room and I have been checking Jeff Goodman's Twitter because I know he was going to be the guy who tweeted it. Then I saw he tweeted it then everyone came and told me after."
 
On seeing that first shot go in.
"It felt great. Any time you see that first shot go in, it's what every basketball player wants. Once you see it go in, you're ready to hoop."
 
On what they key is to handle adversity.
"Just staying together and always encouraging each other. Staying positive is a big thing. You have to keep staying positive no matter what is happening, and you keep pushing on. Things will go your way. I feel like it's important to always communicate with one another and stay positive."