Post-Game Quotes
1/2/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 2, 2008
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POST-GAME QUOTESHEET
Pitt vs.
Quoting Pitt's Head Coach Jamie Dixon:
Opening Statement:
"Tonight was everything that I could have hoped for. We are a new team, and I thought we really played well tonight, and got better as the game progressed. It started in practice where we brought the kind of focus and determination all week that I knew we would need to be successful. It's a tough blow to lose Mike Cook and Levance Fields, but it also is an opportunity to get some of our guys some playing time so that hopefully when Levance does comes back we're even more ready and battle tested."
On the team's mentality:
"We're ready to take this head on. I thought the best thing that could happen for us was to go out and play a game. It's easy to over think things when you have a lot of time off. To get out there though and start playing lets us get back to what we do best."
On the play of Ronald Ramon:
"I can't say enough about what Ronald Ramon did tonight. His shoulder was so sore in the last game that he couldn't lift it over his head. I made a mistake by leaving him in the game because there's no way he should have been playing on it. To come out tonight and have the kind of game he did shows you how tough and talented he is. It's no different than what he's done for four years here, though."
On the play of Keith Benjamin:
"I was really impressed and pleased with the way Keith played. I think the reason he got so many points was that he was much more patient within the offense. He has a tendency sometimes to settle for jump shots, but tonight he scored a lot on drives which is something we've been stressing to him for a while."
On the play of Tyrell Biggs:
"Tyrell is a great player who's going to have games where he scores. He's got a great stroke and he makes shots. What we need him to do is defend well, and get defensive rebounds. He's been great getting offensive rebounds the last couple games, which is an area where we need help too."
On Pitt's conditioning with a shorter bench:
"That's definitely something we're working on. At practice this past Monday, we did a lot more conditioning drills than we've done the whole rest of the season. We know that's the kind of thing that might become an issue, given our shortage of personnel, so we're going to be prepared for it."
Quoting Pitt's Keith Benjamin:
On his play:
"This is definitely what I envisioned coming in. Not so much in terms of point, but I really wanted to work on getting assists, and to be able to do that makes me really happy. My other goal was to get five rebounds, and even though I hit the glass hard, I came up a little short of that number. It will give me something to work on for the next game though."
On how
"Ronald Ramon and I know that with Levance out of the lineup, teams are going to attack us. I'm sure that we'll see defenses designed to pressure us and test our ability to control the ball. We both like that kind of responsibility though, and I think we can thrive with it."
On any adjustments the team made at halftime:
"We didn't really make any adjustments at the half. We felt that we were playing well and that they couldn't keep shooting like they were for 40 minutes. Your legs start to get tired, your hands get heavy, so we knew if we kept playing as hard as we were that things would start to go our way."
Quoting Pitt's Tyrell Biggs:
On his play:
"My teammates did a great job of getting the ball to me when I was open, and after that it was just a matter of knocking the shots down. I also made it a priority to get some rebounds on the offensive end, and that led to points as well."
Quoting Pitt's Ronald Ramon:
On defending
"I don't think the defense in the first half had as much to do with our new line-up as it did playing against a team that shot the ball as well as they did. They're the kind of team that puts five players on the floor that are all looking to shoot from long range. Once we got accustomed to that, everything started to come together."
On playing point guard successfully:
"It all starts in practice. I know my teammates have confidence in me that I'm going to make plays and do what I can to get them the ball in good positions. It makes me look a lot better too when they're shooting as well as they did tonight."
On playing with injuries to Mike Cook and Levance Fields:
"It's a tough break, the injuries for sure, but we're here to play basketball. Above all else we've got to remember that. I want to continue leading this team and making sure that we play hard every time we go on the floor. If we do that I know we can be successful."
Quoting
Opening Statement:
"We shot the ball really well in the first half. Unfortunately we didn't do the same in the second. I think we just wore ourselves out a little bit and Pitt made some great shots down the stretch."
On the loss of Levance Fields for Pitt:
"I really haven't seen a whole lot of him, but what we've watched in film, he's a tremendous guard. He's probably one of the best in the league. It's certainly a tough loss for Pitt."
On the second half:
"I think Pitt came out and executed right out of the gate in the second half. They ran some good plays and shot the ball well and we simply became overwhelmed. Instead of looking for open shots we were trying to score with one player against five. If you are able to stay close, then those shots for the other team become harder. We lost our poise and the bottom line is that you can't do that against a team like Pitt on their home court."
On the play of Ronald Ramon:
"I thought (Ronald) Ramon did a great job for Pitt today running the point. I'm sure he's in a bit of a different position now but he was patient with the ball and made some real nice passes as well as shooting really well. Overall he did a good job for them."
