Their program has made such great strides. There's a lot of character in their program. They have high-quality kids. |
They did some of the stuff to us tonight that they did to us three months ago (a 77-57 Lockport victory in the WJOL Thanksgiving Classic), like blocking shots. They made the game more difficult. Whenever we got close enough to get over the hump, we seemed to be a step slow going to a loose ball. And then you have to give Lockport credit. They hit some big shots, did some good things. |
We changed things up a lot and I was very pleased with the way we handled that. Plus, no matter who was in, we handled their zone well, which was a key. We moved the ball well and when we hunted for the shot, we hunted well. When we balanced the outside with the inside, we looked good. |
We didn't handle their pressure that well tonight. Handling pressure, limiting turnovers and rebounding were the three keys. It isn't often that you lose a game and feel that you took a step forward, but the effort and teamwork were there tonight. |
We didn't play with heart and that is especially disappointing on our home floor. We have to question how badly we wanted it. Right now, we are not doing the little things that we need to do to be successful. |
We dug ourselves into a deep hole and then dug ourselves out of it, but we just couldn't quite get over the hump. There were a number of things that were costly. They had too many offensive put-backs, and we didn't react quickly enough after loose balls. Then there were the free throws. |
We gave up way too many uncontested basket. Early in the game they were getting down the court quicker than we were and that is uncharacteristic of this team. |
We got quality minutes from everybody. I'm really proud of the team effort, and what's even more important is that all the guys executed the way we asked them to. |
We got to the line 29 times, which is a real positive. But we only converted 17. |
We held them to one shot many times, and that was key. We handled the rebound situation pretty well, too. We needed the rebounding because we had the distinct size advantage. |
We put so much stock in the conference, now we had this to enjoy and the regional is next. There are some good things happening. |
We've lost some of our soldiers, and I think people here are fed up with the war. It's a war I'm afraid we can't win. |
What's especially noteworthy is that Brandon is not forcing shots. By all accounts he should be forcing more. Sometimes his bad shot is our best shot. He is going to make some college coach extremely happy. |