That was a huge victory for us, but we couldn't sustain it. |
That was the only thing that was disappointing about the first half. |
The fact that we got 70 shots is amazing. Our shots, a great majority of them, were in and out, literally. That?s being a little bit tight maybe, and that happens when you play against a great team. I?m really proud of my team because I think we battled. |
The fact that we got 70 shots is amazing. That's being a little bit tight. That's what happens when you play a great team. Connecticut weathered the storm. They're a great team. |
The fact we are happy to be here is an understatement. We are not just happy to be here. We came to win. |
The problem was two of them. |
There were probably a lot of people who thought we might not have made it this far, but we did. I feel like, even though we aren't in the championship game, that we exceeded expectations. |
These are my leaders right here. And I wouldn't trade them, they're wonderful. But, at the same time, you have to be able to be in a situation, and then you have to learn. |
They made a commitment to the university to change the program. To really be difference-makers ... I think what it says is, if you do things the right way, you reap what you sow. |
They were better conditioned than us and are superior athletes. This game showed my players how hard you have to work to compete at this level. We are closing the gap, and I feel good about this team. |
This is a slap in the face to the Big East not to get more teams. |
This is a year of firsts for this Pittsburgh team. Our motto has been all year, 'Why not Pitt?' We came here to win. I talked to my team before the game and used reverse psychology by telling them Pitt had been to the Big East tournament before and Cincinnati, which is new to the conference this year, hadn't been here before. So they thought 'We' had been here before and they were right. 'We' as in 'Pitt' were before. |
This is hard for me. We thought tonight we were going to make history. |
This is the second-best defensive team in the nation. You can't prepare for that. We can't practice that kind of heat. |
This team is so young that, sometimes, I am not sure they even realize how big this game was. I tried to keep them loose and we just came in pretty relaxed. That is what you have to do with young kids. Kids are resilient. Sometimes, it is the grown-ups who put more pressure on themselves than the players. |