NCAA MEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP: REGIONAL SEMIFINAL - ST. JOHN'S VS DUKE

March 27, 2026

Jon Scheyer

Cameron Boozer

Isaiah Evans

Caleb Foster

Capital One Arena

Duke Blue Devils

Sweet 16 Postgame Media Conference

Duke - 80, St. John's - 75

THE MODERATOR: We're joined now by Isaiah Evans, Cam Boozer, Caleb Foster, and Duke head coach Jon Scheyer.

JON SCHEYER: One, you just have to tip your cap to St. John's. Obviously, Coach Pitino, you guys don't need me to tell you guys about how good of a coach he is and the career he's had. You combine that with their team, how hot they've been, it's hard to look at many games where they got exposed. Besides their first few games of the year, they've been on a roll.

They gave us everything tonight. They were incredibly ready.

Man, I couldn't be -- still a little stunned with what happened, to be honest with you guys, because what this guy did, to be honest, he had no business playing tonight. 99 percent of guys do not come back to play under the circumstances of what's happened to him. It was incredible the way he willed us. There's no analytics. There's no stats that can measure how big this dude's heart is for what he did.

Then obviously, Isaiah and Cam -- you know, Isaiah, the shot-making. He's not afraid of any moment. Cam coming through in a big way. Then just collectively finding a way to get stops. Some of the 3s they were hitting, they haven't hit those all the time. You've got to weather the storm and figure it out.

But the story is about these guys next to me, the job that they did. It's an honor to go to the Elite Eight.

Q. Caleb, your coach says you have no business playing. Walk us through how you got here and why you're playing and kind of how you're feeling and how this whole thing came about, if you will.

CALEB FOSTER: Obviously first half of the Carolina game, I had a little injury. I was real stunned. I didn't know if I was going to be able to bounce back from that, but as soon as the doctor told me that it's a chance, I just took it and ran with it. That's where my mindset has been from here on out.

I wanted to come out and provide anything possible, experience, whatever the team needed. I didn't know what we needed or what to expect, but just providing a boost out there any way I can.

Q. If you could walk us through what have you been able to do, what haven't you been able to do? How functioning have you been recently?

CALEB FOSTER: I've been driving fast on a scooter for about two weeks every day, just trying to be present, and then just a lot of recovery, going early mornings, late nights with Jose and Nick. Credit to them for willing me back and giving me an opportunity to come back and play.

JON SCHEYER: That's the first time he's gone 5-on-5 with these guys. There hasn't been one second of 5-on-5 since he's come back. I just think that speaks to what he did tonight.

Q. Caleb, with all you've been through in your career, you missed March Madness two years ago, last year you got to play in the Final Four, but the team didn't go forward. How much does that factor into your desire and drive to be out there and help the way you did tonight?

CALEB FOSTER: Since I was a kid, I watched Duke winning National Championships, and I always dreamed of being a part of it. Like I said, whatever I could do to provide a boost to these guys to help us come out with a win.

Q. Cam, I wanted to ask you about what's the challenge facing a frontcourt like St. John's and how physical they are?

CAMERON BOOZER: They're one of the most physical teams we played all year. It's something we talked about every single day, just their physicality, their pressure. They turn guys over and dominate the boards. That was a big thing we talked about, being strong with the ball and rebounding. Those were the two main things we talked about in this game.

I thought we did a pretty good job overall. We had some stretches where we gave them a run with turnovers, but through the game overall we did a pretty good job weathering the storm.

Q. For Cam and Isaiah, how much of an emotional boost does having Caleb back give to you guys tonight and going forward Sunday and beyond just knowing he's back on the floor with you guys?

ISAIAH EVANS: Caleb has been a leader for us since day one. Just him coming back just gave us a tremendous boost, insurmountable confidence even though we had high confidence anyway.

And obviously he's another body that can give us time to rest. So Caleb coming back did a lot for us tonight.

CAMERON BOOZER: It was huge for sure. The biggest thing in games like this is finding a way to win. Just his voice, his competitive spirit really uplifted us. That was a huge part why we went on a run was him talking to us, getting us going, getting downhill and being himself, being confident.

I think the biggest thing is the competitiveness he brings to our team is a huge deal for us for sure.

Q. Caleb, was there a moment you obviously got in a little bit in the first half, but the second half, was there a moment where you're like, oh, yeah, I'm back, I can do this, I'm back in the flow of things? For Cam, was there a moment you realized this for Caleb?

CALEB FOSTER: I wouldn't say there was a moment. I was so locked in possession by possession, trying to win the possessions we talked about when I came into the game. I wouldn't say there was a moment.

CAMERON BOOZER: When he scored four times in a row, I was like, oh, yeah. Yes, sir. That was definitely the moment.

ISAIAH EVANS: Yeah, for me too. When he got those back-to-back buckets, I was like, yeah, like he's back.

Q. Caleb, when did you get the sense that you might be able to play in this game, and when did it really click that you might be able to do this?

CALEB FOSTER: I would say when I first got hurt. He said two weeks, and that's where my mind has been ever since. The first two weeks, I tried to be the voice, helping Coach in the huddles, letting my voice be heard and just staying engaged with the team. Like I said, he said two weeks --

JON SCHEYER: Nobody said "two weeks." You heard "two weeks."

CAMERON BOOZER: Hey, I heard "two weeks" too.

CALEB FOSTER: That's where my mindset was at.

THE MODERATOR: We want to congratulate Caleb, Cam, and Isaiah. Questions for Coach Scheyer.

Q. You kind of mentioned it, Coach, St. John's had some 3-pointers that really sometimes was uncharacteristic for them. How were you able to kind of counteract that tonight, and was it unexpected from your part?

JON SCHEYER: I'm not sure we did counteract that. The way they were shooting the first half, I think some of that we could have cleaned up and done a better job contesting. At the same time, guys that haven't necessarily done that -- not knocking them, but Prey hasn't hit four 3s, Mitchell that's his first 3 on the year, Ejiofor, you know is capable.

But you have to adjust. I'm not going to go the whole game without adjusting. I think in the second half, still you want to protect the rim, but we had to do a better job of getting hands up and contesting.

I thought our guys did that. We went to the matchup for a little bit, which helped us get back in the game, and that's kind of been a thing for us. But overall, I don't know if we did an amazing job. I've got to go back and look to see in the second half there.

Q. When you're down ten the whole time out there, it looked like it was getting away, but the team made the comeback there. What did you talk about there? What was the vibe in that huddle?

JON SCHEYER: All I've been talking about with our guys is what you control in the tournament. There's so many other factors or things that can go into your mind, and I just try to recenter them and refocus on what we control.

We talked before the game, man, if you get a lead, it's going to come back against these guys. You've got to be strong with the ball. If you get behind or they go on a run, which they're going to go on a run, you have to rebound.

So just keep trying to bring them back to what we control. Our best runs came from getting stops finally. Our defense was just not there, but again, I'll go back and watch how much of it was them hitting some shots they don't normally hit and how much was our defense. I have to analyze that.

For me, it's all about in those moments what you control. Then the last thing, you're not going to get a ten-point lead cut down all at once. So just each possession. What do you have to do each possession? Our guys came out, and they did that.

Q. Jon, at that point to you, Caleb came in and kind of went on his flurry. Did you think rationally any of that was possible? What were you thinking he could do? When he does that, are you thinking -- I mean, it's obviously what you needed in that moment. How relieved were you that he was able to do it?

JON SCHEYER: I was hoping we could get eight minutes from him tonight, eight to ten minutes, give Cayden a couple quick hits -- again, knowing what their pressure was going to be like. He completely surpassed my expectations of what I expected, what I was hoping for, and obviously you guys saw it, we needed every last shot, basket, poise.

He was also the guy -- he's our most experienced guy in these moments. So I thought his voice in the huddle, the look he had was completely determined to win, and I thought that really helped us, especially when we got down in the second half.

Q. There was a sequence in the second half where Isaiah popped for 3, and then on that same action, caught it, drove, and made a layup while he was falling down. How much has his offensive game matured in the last couple years? Then when he's in a zone like that, did you see it in his eyes? I know he gets to talking a little bit and you have to get him back to focusing on one play. That second half from him, what did you see?

JON SCHEYER: He's one of a kind, man. He's one of a kind. I've seen him score ever since high school, I've seen him shoot. I think one of the things he's done is used the weapon of the shooting, and that's opened up his ability to drive and ability to play-make at times.

He's got a weapon. For other guys, those may not be good shots. For him, he's been doing it all year. You give him the green light to shoot those shots and to be him.

Again, after you hit it, get back on defense, and let's get a stop. But just his confidence in those moments are special.

Q. All year you talked about winning in the margins, but the two staples that seem to be with every big game this year, points in the paint and winning the glass. I think you guys were plus 12 on both of those. Talk about how that raises the floor for any team really, but this team especially.

JON SCHEYER: What's important is something that St. John's does very well. They didn't have any second chance points in the first half, they ended up with only six. We made a big commitment this year to really crash and make it part of what we do.

Then overall, look, it's not ideal giving up 13 3s, that doesn't feel good, but you hate giving up layups and dunks. So our defense is built inside-out. That came back to hurt us a little bit tonight, but we've been at our best when we do both, and that's something we'll have to continue to improve.

Q. In the post-game interview with Tracy, you got kind of choked up talking about Caleb. What about his performance tonight made you kind of so emotional about it?

JON SCHEYER: You're going to make me do it again right now. You have that effect on people.

Caleb, we've been through a lot together, and you don't -- it's harder to go through stuff now for all the reasons you guys know, transfer portal, all the different reasons. I think every step of the way, going back to when he committed to us, he was 16 years old, to think about being in these moments and how we got here -- he's had two tournaments where he's been injured, and the pain you feel for that. Different moments he could have transferred. He could have decommitted.

His commitment to Duke, his commitment to me and this program has been unmatched. So I just -- and then for today, most guys wouldn't come back, just that's the reality. There's no blame. This decision had to come from him, and I want to support him in that decision.

And what he did, it was a surreal thing to coach. I really felt like he was going to will us to victory, and that's what he did.

Q. Just to follow up on that, when these two injuries first happened, how concerned were you that it would maybe interfere with a deep run in the tournament and rotations and stuff like that? Now that you have everyone healthy and you've got your full team back, how confident are you going forward?

JON SCHEYER: It's concerning because I think at that point when it happened, we were really hitting our stride as a team of figuring out our rotations, figuring out how we're playing. Any time an injury happens, you have to -- you can't take anything for granted.

At the same time, I believe we had enough to continue to win and keep this thing going as long as possible, knowing ultimately you're going to need Caleb and Pat to come back and join us.

Again, we'll see how quickly they can turn around. That's the next test. But they're so important to us, and it was great just getting a chance to coach our team whole. That was a blessing to be able to do that.

THE MODERATOR: We'd like to thank and congratulate Coach Scheyer for joining us here in the interview room.