Dec. 5, 2008
Thoughts on the game:
"It was alright. It wasn't our best performance, especially on the defensive end. We shot well for the most part though, and did some good things on offense."
On his great play of late (went into the game vs. Jackson St. averaging 30 ppg over last four games):
"I'm starting to get back in a groove. I'm playing a lot better, shooting the ball well. Just being in attack mode, being more aggressive, and trying to get my teammates a lot more open shots. The more aggressive I am, the more open shots my teammates have, which opens up the offense a lot more. When I get an open look, I'm knocking it down now."
On their team defense (holding Jackson St. to 2-of-16 from the 3-point line):
"Better. Better than what we've been doing. There are a couple screws that we have to tighten up, as far as not letting up so many open threes, defensive driving lanes, rebounds are included. Once we tighten up on our things, then we're going to be a lot better as a team."
On the upcoming game against Nebraska:
"They beat us last year at their house; they played pretty well. We've got a little chip on our shoulder against them."
Coach Herb Sendek
Thoughts on the game:
"I thought Jackson State did a really good job on offense of attacking us. They're not a prolific shooting team; they're quick off the dribble. They kept us off balance most of the night. Once again, our basketball team has a tremendous amount of work to do. I would have liked to have seen us get back on more than 5 of our 32 misses."
On the way the team played without James for 10 minutes in the second half (James left the game with ASU up 13, and came back in up 21):
"That was a real silver lining tonight. We had to play without James during that stretch and we actually increased our lead. That was a real positive for us, not that we want to be in that position, where he is on the bench in foul trouble."
On a key aspect of the game:
"More than anything Rick made some big threes. He and James combined to make 9 of our 10 3-point shots. At a couple key junctures, Rick knocked down big shots for us."
Thoughts on the game:
"I think we're seeing the same pattern as years before. Up-and-down, starting out slow, waiting to get a feel for how the other team plays. We just need to take it to them and determine the pace of the game. I still think we played well, a lot of good bench play. Guys came in and did some very good things for us. James scored again, Derek and Jamelle did a good job of running the team, Jerren did a good job of doing his thing, Rick hit his open shots, Ty was doing his thing. It was a good day for guys playing their role. We still got room to get better."
On the teams play in the second half without James:
"That's when we're supposed to build on the lead. Especially in the second half, even if James is in the game, that's when we're supposed to turn it up. We can't let teams come out in the second half and get a run on us. We have to put it on them from the jump, even more so than in the first half. Not letting teams hang around, that's something we need to work on."
On putting more of an emphasis on shot-blocking (Jeff finished the game with four):
"Coach got on me a little bit about being more of a presence around the basket. Guys were getting to the basket easier and making all kinds of easy lay-ups. Taking charges, blocking shots; it helps our defense and our team."
On finishing the game with no fouls:
"That's a gold star for me. I played the whole game with no fouls. That's two gold stars! Like coach said, `the harder you play, the less you foul'. There was good ball pressure, which helped me post up easier."