University of Tennessee Athletics
Postgame Quotes
January 11, 2003 | Men's Basketball
Jan. 11, 2003
Tennessee head coach Buzz Peterson:
"Looking at this conference, there is so much talent in this league. That is why it has the number one RPI rating in the country. Today, we stole one at Ole Miss. This is a tough place to win. They have won 15 straight conference games here."
"Our kids grew up today. Looking out there, we had four freshmen on the court. But our older guys, Ron Slay and those players, they were on the bench cheering our kids after they fouled out. Our kids stepped it up and pulled it out."
"Ole Miss is so aggressive on defense. Coach Rod Barnes really sends them after you. We had to win the battle of the hustle. We used our small size to get in there and play the speed game rather than the physical game."
Tennessee Guard Jon Higgins:
"When we got in the huddle after we where down with a minute left, we just told ourselves that we had to believe we could win. We were smaller than them, and we used the speed to our advantage. They really get after you on defense, so we just had to out hustle them."
Tennessee Forward Ron Slay
"After seeing their game at South Carolina where it was 15-13 at halftime, we expected a hard fought game today. This is huge to come here and win, especially with their 15 game conference homecourt win streak. We've got a lot of character and didn't hang our heads when they tied the score late. We didn't get the calls that we needed, but I expected that on the road."
(On the game plan)
"We came in and fought hard to get offensive rebounds and play tough defense."
Tennessee Guard C.J. Watson
"We played very good down the stretch. We knew we had to match their intensity and not let up, because they were very physical. We knew without Slay on the court at the end of the game, we had to play together as a team. We made the plays at the end that we had to make.
Ole Miss Head Coach Rod Barnes
"You have got to give Tennessee credit. Their guys stepped up and did the things they needed to do. We didn't help ourselves with the turnovers we had, but Tennessee had a lot to do with that. When we started this season we understood that it was a long race. It's a marathon. We started slow and there are few opportunities to get it corrected. Our guys played together and played hard, we just didn't execute enough to win the game."
(On UT making plays)
"Down the stretch they went to the glass hard. They had some guards who were able to get down there and get on the boards. We didn't make the plays we needed to. We had the ball with 20 seconds to go and didn't make the play. If we win this game we're not talking about that, but we didn't win, they did."
(On this game and the SEC race)
"There are things we would like to do and we did them at times. They just made the plays when they needed to. It hurts regardless when you give up plays that we did and the baskets that we did. We have things we have to fix, but we can't get down. We've been with our backs to the wall before. Don't count us out. We have got to grow from adversity."
Ole Miss Forward Justin Reed
(On Ron Slay fouling out)
"We felt good even with him in the game. We felt better about our chances when he fouled out. It does something to a team when you lose your key player. It was just that we didn't seem to do the small things."
(On correcting the small things)
"It was effort plays. Effort plays are easier to correct because it's just a matter of wanting to do it. We've got the guys who want to do it. We play with intensity so we will practice with intensity. We've got to get back to that."
Ole Miss Guard David Sanders
(On the final possession)
"We wanted to get a two on two game with Aaron Harper on the wing and Justin Reed down low. It didn't work and we had to change the play. I got the ball with four seconds left on the clock and tried to drive. Someone tipped the ball and it became a shot clock violation instead of a basket. I was looking to score and saw Justin Reed's man step up on me so I tried to dish it. A man got his hand in there and tipped the ball away. You have to credit Tennessee for their defense."
(on the game and the future)
"Tennessee made the big plays to win the game. They wanted it more than we did, and that's not something we're known for. We have got to fix that. We have 14 games left, and if we give up now then we'll go 0-14. We have got to get back in there and keep fighting and fix things."
