GEICO PLAYERS ERA MEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP

November 24, 2025

Buzz Williams

MGM Grand Garden Arena

Maryland Terrapins

Postgame Press Conference

Maryland - 74, UNLV - 67

BUZZ WILLIAMS: Credit to Coach. We played against him before, and a lot of the things that he was doing in the full court and half court he had done in his past, and we had glanced at in preparation, but he had not done all of that through the first five games this year.

We were discombobulated, which is what they wanted. We made incredibly poor decisions, and we could never get in a rhythm. And so I don't know if those 15 turnovers, how many were live ball, but defensively, our numbers were pretty good at half considering we gave them the ball 15 times.

So I think the solution or somewhat of the solution was we just tried to simplify. No matter what they were doing, we were going to do the same thing, and we found some continuity in that. But very lucky considering how high our turnover rate was to have a chance to win.

Q. You guys actually outrebounded a pretty good rebounding team.

BUZZ WILLIAMS: Amazing, huh? And if we wouldn't have turned it over 20 times, I'm not saying we would have got it, but we would have had a chance to get it. So the things that we're relying on, we need free throw makes, can't turn the ball over 20 times and accumulate enough free throw makes.

And then secondarily, it was our best offensive rebound percentage, our best defensive rebound percentage, and we still gave them the ball 20 times. I think it's the first time this year that the opponent shot more balls and shot more free throws than we did.

So, again, there's a lot of things analytically that, if you look at the game, it shouldn't have been a game specifically in our favor.

So we did do a lot of things, but when you're giving the team the ball 22 percent of the time, you're playing against an avalanche. And so I did commend our guys -- our coaches are doing a really good job. We practice rebounding as much as we practice offense, as much as we practice defense, because that's been our Achilles' heel through the first three weeks of the season.

I didn't let you answer your question. I'm sorry.

Q. (On Aleks Alston's play)?

BUZZ WILLIAMS: I thought he was great. He has skill. He's tentative in regards to the physicality he has to play with. I do think, through extra film and through extra reps, he wants to learn, and he's making some progress.

And in the first half, he may have been the best player on the floor for us. I think he led our team in assists, or second. Let me see. He was second on our team in assists. And he played 17 minutes, and he was 100 percent from the field. And he had the same number of rebounds a lot of other people played that played more.

So he doesn't quite execute with the physicality that we need from him defensively, but offensively, he's the best high-low passer we have. And he may be the best catch-shoot player we have.

So his length allows him to be in the mix. And if he'll keep making strides like he has, we need him to have a role on our team.

Q. Last week, Friday, how you and the coaching staff would be at most of the night scouting for Gonzaga, and obviously with the quick turnaround. Take me through the hour-by-hour process. Obviously, still early, but what you expect to get done tonight as you prepare for tomorrow night?

BUZZ WILLIAMS: Sure. Thanks for asking. I don't know what time it is. The first thing I'll do is shower. And then I'll spend 20 minutes just studying this, not because it applies to tomorrow, but it does apply to tomorrow relative to the focus being on us.

We have to be really careful, in my opinion, in week four of year one that we give all of the attention to the opponent, particularly with a short turnaround. We have to make sure that we're applying the lessons that we're gathering information on and making sure that we're succinctly explaining that to our guys where they understand.

I think the first part, after this, is I'll meet with our personnel coach just so I can get a feel for their team, their talent, their experience, et cetera; and then I'll meet with our defensive coordinator to talk about their premise behind how they play; and then I'll meet with our offensive coordinator, how do they play defensively, how are they going to defend in the post, how are they going to defend ball screens, do they have any unique defensive principles that are secondary versions?

And when we get together with the team first thing in the morning, we will do what we call flow, which is where the coach that's in charge of the scout just kind of commentates six minutes of them playing.

It's kind of intermingled, maybe two minutes from tonight, maybe two minutes from earlier in the day or earlier in their season, and then we'll go over the first version of their starters.

And then we'll come back in the afternoon, when we have shoot-around. Shoot-around, I'm sure, will be at the hotel, and we'll kind of walk through what we call their gold actions, which are their top four things. And then we'll walk through what we anticipate our gold actions will be.

The rest of the time, it's just a lot of the stuff that I put on this that I can be prepared for the adjustments are needed.