That's one of the things coach Ryan has been trying to get through to some of my teammates - when to attack...he always says when to hold 'em, when to fold 'em. I think that's what we're still learning and still recognizing as a team, as a group. |
That's what always gets me through the tournament. ... It gives me that extra energy that I need. |
That's why I have a lot of confidence still. It's not like we're just playing totally bad. We have to be able to close out games when it's getting tough, when it's getting down to the last couple of minutes and being able to knock shots down. Clutch situations lately we haven't handled very well. |
The main thing is we can't focus on what they're going through and hope we get a win out of taking advantage of that. |
The name of a team doesn't scare me. The name of a player doesn't scare me. It's an opportunity for us to win a ballgame. |
The NCAA is more one-on-one. Teams are defending me straight up in a man-to-man. That's where I tend to create more. |
The shots we took, as horrible as they were, that set it up for them to push it up faster instead of trying to make them work, get some fouls and get to the line or make some shots - and then they can't push it as fast. I think they forced us into some shots and that's their type of game...Early, that's what we did. We just played into their hands. |
They are accepting it. We know what we have and we just have to work from there. |
They did a great job; everyone saw it. Just closing out the game, for them to step up and rebound and make big plays defensively, that's what we need. If we're going to be a great team, you need that, and those two guys did a heck of a job. |
They never stopped. Every time it seemed like I made a cut or touched (the ball), I was seeing two or more guys coming. |
They were playing great defense and it kind of rattled us. We weren't staying focused. We weren't staying relaxed. |
They're two freshmen but they're out on the floor closing out a game. It just shows the confidence that he's got (in them). |
They're two freshmen, but they're out on the floor closing out the game. |
This is our last opportunity. We have to realize that. Everybody has to look in the mirror and realize we have to put it together. We don't get a second chance. We have to do it now. That's my mind frame I'm taking into the game. |
Those are crucial minutes. We wanted to get a good start because we didn't want this game to resemble the Milwaukee game. |