As a team going into this game we were shooting 52 percent at the line and we still missed some foul shots that we've got to knock in. I told the guys this week we've got to shoot better than we've been shooting or else it's going to come back and get us. I think they started to see that a little bit and panicked a little bit. |
At the end Randy knocked down eight in a row and that was huge. He was very calm, stepped to the line with confidence and it was nothing but net every single time. There was no babying the basketball. It was' I'm going to knock it down, I'm positive and that's what happened. |
Brownie stepped up and did hit some big shots when we needed them, because it was a very tight ball game. He got open and knocked them down like he's capable of doing. Randy did a very good job of creating, making plays off the dribble and finishing. It was a nice run for us. We needed it. |
Guys just focused a little more, we executed a little bit better and we got the ball inside where we needed to. We didn't do anything special to have those runs other than we turned up our defense a little bit and tried to get stops. We were a little more focused offensively and made sure we got good scores. |
He (Reed) had a great night. He kept his composure throughout the game and stayed focused. Early things weren't quite going his way, but he stayed within himself and then eventually things started to open up for him and good things happened. His teammates got him the ball and there is no way he could score those points without his teammates making that effort to get him the basketball. |
He carried us and we just got done telling him that in the locker room. We were not playing very good and a lot of that was because of Bath's defense, but Brandon kept us in it. Without him it would have been a bigger deficit that we would have had to overcome had he not been playing. |
He's (Miller) very athletic and I think as the game went on we got better at defending him and picking up his characteristics and what he likes to do with the basketball and we did a better job as the game went on. Hopefully we can carry that knowledge into this game and do a better job of defending him. |
I told our kids we've got to relax, calm down and play. I could tell with tournament time it was a different time and we were pretty tight. I reiterated to them that you've got to relax and go play the game. They made me look smart. |
I told the guys if you look at our losses its either the turnover battle or the rebounding battle that we haven't won. Those are the two major battles you've got to win in a ball game if you're going to have a chance to win. It (Rebounding advantage) was a big margin and that wins you ball games. |
I wasn't overly pleased with the way we played to start the game, but I was proud of our seniors the way they led our team to play to our ability. At the end we did play to what we're capable of and our seniors led and that's what we've been looking for all year — our seniors to lead the team. I was proud of the way they did that tonight. |
It feels great. A lot of hard work — scouting, preparing and watching film, but more importantly there is a lot of good coaches out there that don't have a group like I have. If you don't have kids like I have this year, there is no way we could be doing the things we're doing now. |
It was a chance to redeem ourselves from the loss that hurt the most. |
My biggest concern was that we achieved our goal of winning sectional. |
That's what a good team does, they make their free throws down the stretch and they did that. That's a strategy you use when your down at the end and you hope and pray they miss their foul shots and they didn't. That's what good teams do, they make them. |
They were playing aggressive. I don't know if they were intentionally fouling us, but if I was playing us I would put us at the line, too, with the way we've been shooting. I think they were trying to get steals and trying to be aggressive. |