What Ryan Odom said after Virginia vs. Tennessee

Head coach Ryan Odom said after Virginia took on Tennessee in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday in Philadelphia.

Here's what Ryan Odom had to say after Virginia's 79-72 loss to Tennessee in the NCAA Tournament

PHILADELPHIA — Here's what head coach Ryan Odom had to say after Virginia's 79-72 loss to Tennessee in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday at Xfinity Mobile Arena.

Ryan Odom: Yeah, I'm really proud of them overall.wonderful seasonThey have a lot to be proud of.Thank you to the five seniors who came to Virginia and tried to lead this team and get us back to the NCAA Tournament.

There were many tears.Many thanks.Of course, it rarely ends the way any of us want it to.You just have to try to keep things in perspective, which is not easy to do at times like this.It was a good game and our guys battled.They just fought and fought and fought.There was a chance at the end when we took the lead but it wasn't meant to be.

It's unfortunate, but it doesn't take away from the fact that I'm proud of these guys sitting here, but the whole team, the staff, just everybody in our locker room, the GAs, the managers, it's just a lot of people that have been affected in a really positive way.Carla Williams for giving me the chance to coach in Virginia.I will always be grateful to him.

These guys, I don't know if I've ever had so much fun coaching a team.I am very lucky in my life.We won a lot of games last year and it was a fun year.These guys took it to another level.The respect they have for everyone is palpable.I can't tell you how many times I get emails from people, in situations where they just randomly run into these people and send me an email, man, I'm so impressed with your guys in this conversation.I think that says a lot about them and their character and one of the reasons we brought them to Virginia.Their families, it's very special.I think it helped us win anything overall.These are good people.

We talked about it in the locker room.They will be connected for life.They are always a phone call away from each other when they are in different places.But in general there is something to be proud of.

We will take questions for coach Odom.

Question: Coach, you obviously have experience at Virginia in the past.Remember UMBC's upset? It's kind of a full-circle moment for you. Looking back on your first season at Virginia this year, what are the key takeaways you can take moving forward to improve your season and make deeper progress in the years to come?

Ryan Odom: Yeah, I think the biggest thing is that you can bring together a group of people who are of very high character and care about each other and can choose situations for all kinds of reasons and really develop a shared experience where special things can happen.

This company has really bought in from the beginning.They came with their eyes open and listened and listened to each other, and got closer and closer.When you have that kind of team, you have a better chance of winning.We have some good players.There is no question about it.The depth of this team is the strength of the team as a whole.talk to the team after the loss.He was angry at the time and just put things in perspective.

He said, "I'm here to do the NCAA tournament, and to do with you people is something important. I think everyone can relate to this. He said honestly, if you always need me, just call me. I'm on call. It's all these people. They invest in being the best they can be and know that it will come to an end. Every team has one life, and unfortunately more than we have finished."

Q. What did you do to build the program this first year?Obviously the season was great.Coaches talk about the sometimes basic first year of school.What did you do to intelligently build the program?

RYAN ODOM: Yeah, they understand the value of a Virginia degree and the fact that they're a part of Virginia basketball and the history of Virginia basketball.They added their own heritage.I don't know what the exact number is, but it is difficult to win 30 matches, the goal of all teams at our level.This particular group represented the school in a really positive way.They set the table and set the bar really high for future teams.I'm really proud of what these guys have done.

Q. You talk about setting the standard for the team moving forward. Would you say are there any players still expected to be on the roster next year that can truly capture the culture you've created?And do you hope to step into the role that your seniors will be leaving behind? Why?

RYAN ODOM: Yes, without a doubt.We have guys up and down our roster.The five seniors cannot return.We'd love to have some of those guys back, but it's not in the cards.Like other coaches, the process of retaining players and rebuilding the roster begins now, as it did last year.We're in a good place right now, these guys have had a great experience here and they love everything Virginia has to offer.Our work as coaches never stops.It continues.It will take some time for this issue to be resolved.But you always have to go back and evaluate and figure out where you can improve and all that stuff.I'm excited about where we are.

Q. Coach, I want to expand on a point that Dallin made.One of your goals at the beginning of this season is to make the team varsity.How special is it that a guy like Dahlin is so proud of Virginia in his first year?

Ryan Odom: Yeah, a lot.That's the goal, no doubt.I experienced it when I was young, and I want them to experience it.It was the first job I got to where I really knew and knew the place.I just want these people to listen.The first time the tailback is in the football game.What a time they had.Coach Elliot, saw the fans, cheering for their team and all the teams in the camp.We have many good teachers in our camp.Our youth team won the national championship.

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A wonderful dynasty.A lot of - these guys were in football games.They were in soccer games.They were running backwards.They went out there and made the most of their time there.I'm really proud of what they did.Did you have a question?

Q. Ryan, just looking at Tennessee, it seems like they had something that nobody else played this year, a lot of height.It seemed to throw your inner game off a lot.

Ryan Odom: Yeah, they're big up front.They played a strong five-man game for most of the game.We played some games, Texas was the same, with the same size.I think the guys did a good job from the point of view of, where does it end?too much rebound, we can't go to our side.And we played well.It is clear that they have guys who can change, and they started to change in the end he is 6'9 "and 6'10", and the first half hurt us because we had a lot of damage.It shouldn't be 36 based on some things we did defensively in the game or in the half.

I think we did a little better job of making the game going into the second half.Obviously, they made free throws down low, but you have to give them credit.They made the plays they had to make and they responded at the end when we went on a run, and that's how you win games.

Q. What did both of me bring there in the last six minutes?What did you click and were you able to click before or only in an emergency?

DALLIN HALL: Coach called a good set that allowed us to get into the paint and get some reads, and we made really good decisions, found shooters, guys stepped up and made some really big shots, so it worked going forward.Credit to them.They are very good defensively and they were able to take some things away from us.

THIJS THE KNIGHT: As he said.Of course, the whole game was a close game, so they went toe-to-toe and point-to-point and hit hard shots, and, yeah.

M. Dallin, Cal out of bounds and challenge, tough jack messtux?

DELLIN HALL: Yeah, it happened so fast.I knew he would hit me hard.Hopefully, unfortunately it works.It was a very fast game, but there were a lot of chances and it never happens in one game, so.

H.Cheers to both of you, Coach Odom's first year here.There are a lot of rookies on the team, but you've won 30 games.You won the NCAA tournament.It just doesn't happen everywhere.What happened to you growing up during a season like that? I know it wasn't the ending you wanted, but how did you come together to have the season you had?

THIJS DE RIDDER: As Coach said, right from the start it was amazing.Although I have been abroad for many years, I have never had such a close group.As Coach said, we will be brothers and sisters for life.It hurts to end like this.We know we have more game in us, but it's true and I'm so proud to call my teammates brothers for life.

Dallin Hall: Yeah, I echo what Thijs said.We had two goals earlier this year when a group of guys, myself included, took the opportunity to build a new staff and a new position, a new school, and our two goals were to build a team with UVA as an institution and really with each other.I think we did a pretty good job of that.The coaches created this wonderful family culture where everyone felt like family.That was a big reason why I decided to play for Coach Odom.Coming in because I knew what he was about, his values ​​and how he helped people grow as individuals and on the court.That's what we do all summer.We spent time bowling, playing games on the court, really competing on the court, we became very close and built a relationship that will last the rest of my life, for which I am very grateful.I see all those guys in the locker room as brothers.Tears they shed a lot of tears because this season was really something special and you hate to end it but you have to be thankful for what it was.