ATLANTIC COAST CONFERENCE MEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP

March 10, 2026

Jeff Capel

Barry Dunning

Omari Witherspoon

Cameron Corhen

Spectrum Center

Pittsburgh Panthers

Postgame Press Conference

Pitt 64, Stanford 63

JEFF CAPEL: I'm really, really proud of our team. It was a heck of a win, heck of a fight by our guys for 40 minutes. I thought our defense in the first half was outstanding, especially on Okorie. I thought our defense for the game was outstanding on Okorie.

Our objective was to try to get the ball out of his hands, to make him play in a crowd, and I thought our guys did a heck of a job of executing that.

I can't say enough about these guys, man. They've continued to show up. They've continued to fight. They've continued to battle. I'm really, really proud of this win.

I thought we responded after every time-out. We didn't get off to a good start defensively, and we missed some open shots. We missed a lot of lay-ups early. We didn't finish. When we got down, we called time-out, and our guys responded.

In the second half, we didn't get off to a good start defensively. I think they scored on maybe the first four or five possessions, went up and took a lead, and we called time-out. Our guys responded.

It shows their character. We dominated the glass. That was a point of emphasis for us. To have 20 offensive rebounds and to win the game on an offensive rebound, just really proud of the effort, and grateful that we get to play another day.

Q. Omari, Okorie was unstoppable in the second half in that loss at Stanford. What did you take away from that game and how did you apply it this game?

OMARI WITHERSPOON: He's a really good player -- it's not just one player. The whole team got to guard him. We were heavy in the gaps and we wanted to blitz ball screens and get him off the ball as much as possible.

Q. Just to have a season like you've had to get to the point where you are right now and still have life, just what it means to you to live on another day and to fight through 10 lead changes in the second half.

BARRY DUNNING, JR.: Very grateful. Our season is a testament to who we are and how we play. We've just got to stay together. One thing I do say a lot is, man, I just want to get one more team win with these guys. There's still hope. There's still life, and there's still opportunity to fight.

As you go out there each and every day, we're fighting four our lives right now and that's what we're doing. That's what we did today. Tomorrow we've got to do it again.

Q. What did you guys see on the final possession there?

OMARI WITHERSPOON: Yeah, man. Mac came in clutch for us today. He played some real big minutes. What happened on the first shot? Did anybody take it or we lost the ball?

CAMERON CORHEN: No, he shot a float.

OMARI WITHERSPOON: Well, Mac got the first, he got a loose ball. We trust in Polo. Polo has made so many clutch moments throughout season and it's just another one right there. He put the floater up and nobody boxed him out. It was either going to be him or Barry because they were both right next to each other. That's what we saw, and we just executed.

BARRY DUNNING, JR.: Man, just fight. Like at the last second, I'm just like, man, I saw -- one thing Coach Capel said was to go rebound, go fly, go get in the air, so I've got to get this rebound. To be honest if I didn't go, I -- think I boxed out or blocked the guy out in some way, and polo got it. Just having that mentality of just going and crashing the glass. Polo probably wouldn't have got that ball. I'm glad I did what I did, went for the ball, gave polo an opportunity to get it and put it back in.

Q. You've outrebounded Stanford 41-28. What was clicking inside that y'all were able to consistently grab from the glass and put points on the board?

CAMERON CORHEN: I think it's just going every time. You're not going to get rebounds every time, but if you fight over the course of 40 minutes -- we just wore them down. I think we had 20 offensive rebounds to their seven. So we've just got to keep going.

Q. Barry, this is your third straight game playing more than 40 minutes. How does your body feel and how much does adrenaline take over in moments like this?

BARRY DUNNING, JR.: Just over the summer, Coach Capel and Vince, they put a good game plan in the summertime to prepare us to play 40 minutes. Anybody on this team can play 40 minutes. He played 40 minutes before, Cam played 40 minutes before. Anybody on our team played 40 minutes, no it's just not me. But we're conditioned to play those 40 minutes if we have to do what we do to win.

Shoot, I'm very even keeled. I think this season taught us how to take the highs and the lows, not be too high, not be too low. We've got to play at noon tomorrow and play a really good NC State team. I bet they was here watching. So I'm grateful we got the win but at the same time we've got another fight, we've got to go to war again tomorrow. So just staying even keeled all the way through.

Q. Jeff, this is two wins in a row. You've won four of your last six. Is it any more frustrating or satisfying that this team had this in them and didn't unlock it until this late in the season?

JEFF CAPEL: We had it in us at the end of the year. I try not to look in the rear view. I'm trying to be really, really present with this group. The thing that I'm proud of is that we've gotten better. We've continued to fight. We've got to get better. It would have been very easy to drop the rope, to point fingers, to blame. But this group has continued to show up every day. They've continued to fight. And as a coach and as a coaching staff, it's something we're really, really proud of. I think it's a testament to them. I think it's a testament to their character and who they are. I think it's maybe a small part to the culture that we've built here.

But I'm really proud -- because we've gotten better. Over these last three, four weeks, we've gotten better. We went through that gauntlet where we played all the top teams all in a row, and that could have killed our spirit. It didn't. It's a group that believes, and we're just happy to have a chance to play another day.

Q. Speak to the leadership of Damarco Minor and what he was able to do down the stretch, the points that mattered when they came through.

JEFF CAPEL: Well, his impact on our team goes well beyond making a shot, points or anything like that. One of the things that I love -- when we practiced yesterday, normally when we play them and last time we played them with Okorie, guard to guard, whoever we play, we switch. As we were going through walk-through yesterday, he said, I don't want to switch, I got him.

I love that. I thought he did a heck of a job defensively all game. We tried to get him out, get him little breaks when Okorie was out. I thought Macari gave us unbelievable minutes. Defensively made a great pass in transition for a lay-up, got the loose ball at the end of the game. So I'm really, really proud of him, because again, he hasn't played consistent minutes all year. He's had a lot of DNPs.

But man, he's had a great attitude in practice. He's worked. The guys believe in him, we believe in him, and he's continued to work every day, so when his number was called, he was ready for it and prepared for it.

Q. I know it's the nature of tournament basketball. You don't have a whole lot of time to dwell on this one. You get NC State next. What do you remember from the January 24 game? I know that State went to your place, won by nine. Just thoughts on facing them in the next round?

JEFF CAPEL: Yeah, they're obviously good. They've been one of the better teams in our league. I know they've struggled a little bit down the stretch just following scores. I haven't really watched them since we played them.

I'm a huge fan of Copeland, of his spirit, his competitive spirit. Obviously they can score the basketball. They can shoot it. I know Able is playing really, really well. Ven Lubin is playing really well. They provide some challenges with how well they can play off the bounce. They have really big guards. Then Copeland is a really unique player and playing at a really high level.

He can impact the game just by passing and his leadership, and he doesn't have to score. Williams can really score. So again, we'll start preparing for them when we get back. But really grateful for the opportunity to have a chance to play them again.

Q. You mentioned not switching on Okorie today. Were there any other things that you did differently against him? You blitzed him a few times --

JEFF CAPEL: We blitzed him all game. So when we played him last time, he had one field goal in the first game -- in the first half, I should say. He had six points, to one field goal, four free throws. To start the second half we were supposed to blitz. We didn't, and he got to the line and saw the basketball go through. Then the rest was history. He finished with 28 in the second half in that game.

I thought we did a much better job with our game plan defensively. We continued to blitz him. Our thing was to get the ball out of his hands. We didn't want him to beat us. He made a heck of a play at the end where he got the and-1 going to his right. Watching him play, look, he favors going left, but he's so good he can still go right, and that play showed that. He's an outstanding player. He's as good of a guard as I've seen, especially for a young guy, with his poise, his ability to finish, his ability to shoot. It doesn't look like he gets frustrated.

So it takes a lot. It takes everyone. You can't guard him with just with one guy. We tried to be in the gaps a little bit more and in the gaps early so he doesn't see space because of his speed. He's able to get by. But our guys did a heck of a job with the game plan.

Q. Jeff, this is your latest game winner at Pittsburgh in the ACC Tournament. You've spoken about how much this tournament means to you in the past. How satisfying is it for those guys to win a game in March like that?

JEFF CAPEL: Yeah, look, I'm really happy for my guys. It's been a tough year for us. It certainly has not been anywhere like we anticipated. It's been very frustrating for all of us.

Like I've said, the thing that I'm proud of is the fact that they've continued to show up. We've continued to fight. They've continued to believe in themselves and what's happened is because of that, we've gotten better. If you look at Nojus, how much better he's gotten. For us, we look at him like a freshman because he didn't really play last year. Prior to this game, I didn't like how he moved in the second half so we took him out and he didn't play. But I think prior to this game, Nojus was averaging about 15 points a game.

If you look at Barry the previous four games, Barry was averaging 19 and 8. Cam, the previous five or six games, he was averaging about 18 and 7.

So we've gotten better, and because those guys individually have gotten better, it's helped our team get better.

Omari made some big time plays today for us. This is a freshman that did that. Roman on the offensive glass made some big time plays, Macari made some big time plays. Our guys have never made an excuse. We've never pointed the finger.

There are a lot of excuses we could make, but they've never done that. They've just continued to show up.

I'm more proud of that and proud, obviously, that we won the game and that we get a chance to continue to be together at least for one more day.