University of Tennessee Athletics
PRE-GAME QUOTES FROM TENNESSEE AND WICHITA STATE
March 17, 2006 | Men's Basketball
March 17, 2006
Tennessee and Wichita State Coach and Player Quotes
TENNESSEE HEAD COACH Bruce Pearl
On Wichita State's Paul Miller
"He is a big lad. He does a terrific job of scoring down in the low post, he can score over either shoulder, and he's an excellent passer. I haven't seen many teams out in the Valley go out and double (team) him because he's such an effective passer, and he's poised. He's a real tough cover. They do a terrific job, both in their secondary offense, as well as (in) some of their sets, of getting him the ball, and with great spacing. He's going to be a challenge to cover one-on-one.
"They've got really good balance and I think that's the key. He does shoot a good percentage. He gets himself to the foul line a lot. In some of their bigger games, he's put up big numbers. A lot depends on what the defenses do, and you sort of scratch where it itches. If people show him a lot of attention, they've got talent off of the post that can also score."
On the team's confidence with a lack of postseason experience
"I think it is my job as a coach to try and put our players in position to be successful. If you have tremendous talent, then that talent is versed in many different faces of the game. Our guys are a group of dimensions, that when put together, can be very successful. What I've got to constantly do is remind the players of what their dimensions are. What they bring, and where they can contribute, and what areas to stay away from. I would say that, to some extent, our confidence was shaken down the stretch when we weren't playing as well (against Winthrop), but you have to admire the way they guarded in the second half, which has been something that we've been extremely challenged to do. I think that they had to have enough confidence and belief in themselves that we could get stops. Particularly, with C.J. Watson on the bench with foul trouble, that was the key to the game. That we were able to get stops and not let Winthrop get away from us."
On the difficulty of getting over national exposure and preparing for the next game
"It's very easy. When you've got such a short prep; the kids came back after the game, we offered them the chance to come back and see the evening session, nobody wanted to. They all wanted to stay back at the hotel, get their treatments, if they wanted to watch it on TV they would. The coaching staff went to work right away. We were up all last night, and we were up early this morning just going about our business. The thing that gets you is we don't want it to stop. We don't want it to end. I want to work and so do the kids. No problems shifting gears and getting focused."
On Wichita State's Sean Ogirri
"He's terrific. He's a great shooter. What a match-up with him and Chris Lofton tomorrow. I think he really enjoyed playing against an opponent that was outside the Missouri Valley Conference, from the stand point of that he got a few looks yesterday. And if he's looking at it, he's making it. How do they get him looks? You see who's setting the back screen on (Paul) Miller's man. He's (Sean) in there setting that screen a lot, and then he's popping out to the perimeter. They do a terrific job of putting his defender in a position where either you help off on the post, or you give up the three, and that's a good offense. Plus, in transition he's also pretty good. Tomorrow, chances are it could be a little bit more of an up tempo game, and we have to find him in transition because if he gets it down the floor he's going to make it."
On the match-up between Major Wingate and Paul Miller
"We've got a good center in Major Wingate. Major's a smart player, and Major's a very good defender. It's going to be a terrific match-up, but a lot of talk will be about how Major's going to stop Paul, and there's got to be some discussion about how Paul's going to stop Major."
On wearing the orange jacket
"Vanderbilt and Kentucky. Those are the two teams that we wear the jacket for in honor of coach Ray Mears."
TENNESSEE SENIOR Andre Patterson
On Wichita State's Post Players
"They are just big physical guys. They like to try to catch the ball in the post and it will be our job to try to front (them) and we'll have to try use our quickness against their size. One can shoot it at will and the other one is really great at turning over his right shoulder and going to the baseline. So, we'll have our work cut out for us."
On what the full court press accomplishes
"We try to get the tempo going with our press. It isn't just to cause turnovers. We want to get the game going up and down... try to get them running. That is pretty much our style."
TENESSEE SENIOR Stanley Asumnu
On whether yesterday's scare against Winthrop is a good thing or a bad thing
"I think it was a great opportunity because it was our first time here in the NCAA Tournament. I was really nervous. But it feels good to get the first one under our belts. Looking towards Saturday, I feel that we'll come out more relaxed and more comfortable and not feel as much pressure."
TENNESSEE SENIOR C.J. Watson
About the match-up with Wichita State and who they might be compared to:
"I don't think so (that they compare to anyone UT has seen this season). They probably have some comparisons at the big man spot. Their big men are very physical. The guards can pound the ball inside. Their guards are pretty good. They can drive and they can shoot. We have to be able to contain them and be physical down low."
WICHITA STATE HEAD COACH MARK TURGEON
On Tennessee's similarity to MVC rival Drake
"The system is a lot the same. Obviously the players are a little bit taller and a little bit faster at Tennessee than they are at Drake. We played them (Drake) eight times in the last three years, so I think that helps prepare us for Tennessee because Tennessee is a tough team to prepare for."
On the importance of WSU senior Paul Miller
"Paul's always a key for us. Every game, whether we are playing Tennessee or we're playing a team in our league, we start every game by trying to get the ball to Paul and then we see how they are going to guard us."
On the impact of the NCAA Tournament win on WSU's program
"It hasn't really hit me, to be honest with you. You're here; you're doing your job. My kids are so level-headed. There wasn't any jumping up and down and hugging in the locker room yesterday. We went and had a meal and got up and had a meeting this morning. I'm sure Wichita is handling it a little bit differently than we're handling it. I'm sure they're pretty excited. Right now we're just trying to figure out how to beat Tennessee and keep them focused on that."
On the overcoming a slow start to the season
"I was really concerned about this team when practice started. I kept telling my coaches, "This team doesn't have it. It's going to be a bad year." We've been in three straight postseasons and I was really concerned that we wouldn't be a part of a postseason again. It's their calmness and belief in each other that's carried us through. We've won a lot of close games and I think the guys will do the same tomorrow.
"I think when things changed for us, was when we lost to Illinois in a preseason tournament game. Everyone says we could've or should've won. We lost by one. I think it gave us a lot of confidence. We felt like we could play."
On Tennessee sophomore guard Chris Lofton
"The thing that really makes him tough is he just can make bad shots, and he's going to make a couple tomorrow. We're going to be draped all over him, and he's going to be fading back, and he's going to make a couple tough shots. Fortunately for us, that happens a lot, especially in our home building, and we've seen it a lot, so we won't get discouraged and we'll move on."
On whether mentors Roy Williams or Larry Brown called following WSU's first-round win
"I think coach Brown and coach Williams expected me to be here. They're probably wondering, 'What the heck took so darn long?''m sure they're proud of me, but they also expected it."
WICHITA STATE JUNIOR KARON BRADLEY
On Tennessee's full-court pressure
"We worked on it a little bit today in practice. They're similar to a team in our conference (Drake). We're going to do the same thing we did against Drake, so there are some similarities there."
On the Missouri Valley playing for respect
"You have to show everyone that you can play with the major conferences. I played in Conference USA myself and I see some similarities there in that conference.
"I think we do have to play with a chip on our shoulder a little bit to show everybody that we can play with the major conferences."
On Paul Miller
"He's one of the strongest players that I've ever played with.
"He got us going (against Seton Hall) and I knew then what kind of game it was going to be. It was a comforting feeling (when Miller stepped up early)."
On matching up with Tennessee's Chris Lofton
"We're just going to try and run off screens and stick with him as much as possible. He's going to take shots and he's going to make tough ones. As long as we can get a hand in his face and try to contest most of his shots, that's the best we can do."
On Wichita State's ability to get on transition against Seton Hall
"We can get on the break. It depends on how the flow of the game is going. If a team is taking quick shots and missing them, we can get out on the break. This team is quick enough to run. That's part of our game and that's what we want to do."
On the team's expectations
"We know what this team is capable of. We're not satisfied with just winning one. We want to go as far as we can go with it. The number one focus for this team has got to be at an all-time high and we understand that. The focus before every game is going to be a serious attitude."
WICHITA STATE JUNIOR RYAN MARTIN
On playing with a chip on their shoulders
"We have to prove a lot to everybody. At the beginning of the season we were picked fifth, so all season we have been (playing) with a chip on our shoulder trying to prove everyone wrong."
On what he expects against Tennessee
"I see it being a full-court game. They're athletic, we're athletic and I think it's going to be an intense game tomorrow."
On whether or not the Missouri Valley critics have motivated the team
"I think the motivation is for us to worry about us and take care of business. We haven't worried about what everybody else thinks about our conference or our program. All season long people have been talking about the Missouri Valley and how everybody else should be getting more picks in the tournament. Now we're just trying to prove everybody wrong."
