Jihad made the foul too early. We were going to try to deny McNamara the ball. We let him get it. Then we were supposed to double-team him as he comes off the ball screen and he split us. He hit a tough shot. |
Let me think for a minute. I could go with option B ... Yeah, probably. |
Luckily we have three days, and I think he'll be fine. I don't want him to do anything (Wednesday) to get the swelling out. I'm hopeful he'll be able to go (today). When we travel down, he'll be able to practice Friday and go on Saturday. |
Maybe a less experienced team it would be a factor, but they have these seniors and I think they'll approach it like any other game, because that's the way they play. |
No one has asked for his (scholarship) release. I'm not naive enough to think they'll all return, but we've got a better feel for what we're working with, and they got a better feel for me. |
Obviously, it you have an opportunity to beat a team like West Virginia, which is a top-20 team in the country, that's another statement to solidify your chances. |
Obviously, that's a formula for disaster, if you turn it over that many times. If memory serves, it led to 36 points for Louisville. Certainly our margin for error is such that we can't give teams 36 points off our ineffectiveness. |
Once you get to this point in the season, regardless of the circumstances, it does become a bit of a grind. With our numbers this year, I do sense a little bit of frustration. I get disappointed that I can't help this group more. But we are who we are. We've got to stay together and continue to fight. |
Our back was firmly planted against the wall and we had to find a way. Since day one our motto has been 'adapt and overcome' and tonight you saw evidence of that. To make the postseason you have to protect home and to try and make up ground in this league is so hard, that's why tonight was so important. |
Our front line went 5-for-25 (shooting), yet somehow our guys found a way to win. This is a resilient group. |
Our intensity and effort kept us in the game. |
People realize that we're certainly faced with an abnormal amount of adversity. The Cincinnati faithful is still going through a healing process with what transpired with Coach Huggins in the fall. But over the 20 games they've seen this team, I think they appreciate the fact that this team continues to fight, even though they're not always happy with the result. |
People think I'm trying to be funny, but right now as I walk across campus I'm going to search out tall guys. We picked up a couple of football players yesterday, an offensive guy and a defensive guy, so we have our bases covered. I'm hoping we can get enough bodies to get through practice. |
Play fast, play athletic. You may not always have a 6-10 kid, but there's an abundance of kids, 6-4 to 6-7, that are interchangeable parts. |
Realistically, we're going to have to continue to circle the wagons. That's been the mantra this year. We've still got guys we feel like can contribute and help us reach our goals. |