CHAPEL HILL – Kenny Williams met with the media Friday at the Smith Center ahead of North Carolina’s game at Miami on Saturday afternoon.

Williams was asked about Roy Williams’ success on the road against ACC teams, what UNC needs to do to be successful against Miami, how he thinks they’ve looked so far in conference play, and his thoughts on Nassir Little’s performance against Notre Dame.

Here are some highlights of what the senior guard had to say:

*Williams spoke about why his head coach has been so successful on the road against ACC opponents since returning to Chapel Hill in 2003.

“We just always believe we can win no matter where we’re at. And he’ll (Roy Williams) tell you that we can be in Chapel Hill, Alaska, no matter where we’re at we just believe we can win. And we follow that up with our play on the court. He just instills in us that, if we do what he asks us to do, we’ll have a chance and he’s done that pretty much his whole career.”

*The Midlothian, VA, native was asked what UNC needs to do to be successful against Miami on Saturday. Here’s what he thinks are the keys to beating the Hurricanes:

“We’ve got to hit the boards harder than we have all year. Coach always says that if we win the rebound battle, chances are we’ll come out on top of that game and I think it’s shown this season for the most part.

“But, if we hit the boards like we’re supposed to both ways then I think we’ll put ourselves in a great position to come out on top.”

*The Tar Heels are currently sitting at 13-4 overall and 3-1 in the ACC. While they’ve had some good wins on the road against Pittsburgh and N.C. State, they’ve also had a record-setting loss at home to Louisville.

So, how does Williams think UNC has played so far this season in conference play?

“I don’t think we are at where we want to be. We’ve got a lot of work to do but that’s all the season is about, building up your play to want to play your best in March. Of course, the loss to Louisville was disappointing with it being at home and losing by twenty.

“But sometimes you have to go through things like that to really wake your team up and get a reality check and I think that’s what that was. We’re going to do everything we can to keep that from happening again.”

*Freshman Nassir Little had his best performance in conference play against Notre Dame on Tuesday night. The Pensacola, FL native finished with 11 points, including eight straight in the second half during a key run for UNC.

Williams was asked about Little’s play against the Fighting Irish and how he can build on that going into the rest of the season:

“I think it showed him what kind of player he can be for the rest of the season. I mean, he had 11 points in one half. I told him in the middle of the game, I think he got an and-one when he drove and finished with his left hand and he was celebrating at the end, and I said ‘that’s the Nas we want.’ And I’ve been telling him that since (N.C.) State, I’ve just been like ‘go out there, you’re a big-time player so go be Nas, go be that big-time player.

“And, it took him a little while, but I think he’s starting to get it. I think he got it in that second half (against Notre Dame). From now on, he can just build on that. He can always use that as a reference point to see how well he can play and just use that as a confidence builder.”