University of Pittsburgh Athletics
Post-Game Quotesheet
10/31/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Oct. 31, 2007
PITT-PITT-JOHNSTOWN QUOTESHEET
Wednesday, October 31, 2007,
Quoting Pitt Head Coach Jamie Dixon:
Opening Statement:
"Everything went about as expected for an early exhibition game, especially one that came after only 16 days of practice. We did a really good job in some areas, but there are others that we really need to improve on, which we will. Pitt Johnstown's Chris Gilliam is an excellent player, an experienced player who gave our guys an early challenge. Their whole program is very well run, and it was a nice opportunity to play this game."
On Pitt's post defense against Chris Gilliam:
"I'm not all that surprised with the way we played. Chris Gilliam is a good, experienced player who averages 17 points a game, so it would make sense that they would look for him. They went to him a lot in the second half too, once the game had pretty much gotten out of reach, so I think his point totals might have gone up a little in that situation too. You want to be perfect, but there are always areas to improve on."
On Pitt's guard play:
"Early on we were taking some quick shots, but none of them were by Levance Fields. He did an excellent job of steadying the offense, and setting up guys with open looks. Ronald Ramon has been struggling lately with a sprained ankle, so the fact that he was able to start and play was excellent in and of itself. Brad Wanamaker is learning, but you could see tonight there were things he's doing now that you simply can't coach, and Keith Benjamin has been our best player in practice a lot of times this season."
On Pitt's front court:
"Today we got everyone involved, and that's the way we've been doing it in practice too. We strive to get into a rhythm with our rotations and guys coming in and off the bench. I was glad to see Tyrell Biggs play well, he's definitely going to get a lot of minutes for us. We have four young guys in our front court starting for the first time, I'm not sure there are a lot of other teams that are doing that."
On the play of DeJuan Blair:
"His rebounding tonight was exceptional, and I'm not surprised. He's got great hands and a knack for getting the ball in traffic. He also moved very well away from the ball, and I thought his post defense improved greatly as the game went on. He's the first guy at practice every day, and it's great to see that paying off. It's great to have a
Quoting Pitt's Levance Fields
On playing Pitt-Johnstown:
"We had fun, it was a good experience for us. We've had 16 practices already, and eventually you start to get tired of going against the same guys, and you need something new. It was really good to change it up, not just for the young players but also for the veterans too."
On the play of Pitt Johnstown:
"They played as hard as they could, which always a good test for us in a game like this. They were a little undermanned on defense, but they still battled and made us work for every shot that we had. They also got some good looks on offense and showed us some areas where we need to improve."
On Pitt's offense:
"We're going to do a lot of throwing the outlet pass when it's available. We have quick players, but also guys who are good at getting a good read when the shot hits the rim and we get the rebound. It's different for us, but it's going to be exciting."
Quoting Pitt's DeJuan Blair:
On playing his first game at Pitt:
"It was a lot of fun. It's exciting to come out in front of my friends and family. Growing up in
On the play of Pitt Johnstown's Chris Gilliam:
"Chris Gilliam did a lot of good things, but we need to play a lot better post defense on the whole. We weren't moving that well down low, we weren't giving weak side help. It's an area that we need to work if we're going to get where we want to go this season, starting right away."
Quoting Pitt-Johnstown Head Coach Bob Rukavina:
On the experience of playing Pitt at the
"Being a Pitt branch campus, playing Pitt was a great situation. It brought a lot of excitement for our community; we brought about 100 people to the game. I appreciate Jamie Dixon for letting us have this experience. Tonight was all Pitt."
"We were nervous but we had some good looks early on. The last five minutes of the first half was tough, but in the second half I think we played the whole twenty minutes and scored some points."
On how Pitt looks different this year:
"Pitt is looking a lot more athletic this year. Even without Aaron Gray they are still very athletic and strong. They are one of the top defensive teams in the country. They did a great job playing in gaps. They are big, strong and athletic and aren't taking any steps back, they are just getting better."
Quoting Pitt-Johnstown's Chris Gilliam:
On playing against Pitt's big guys:
"They have a lot of good guards that work really hard in the post. They played behind me so I was able to jump over them and score some points."
On the experience of playing Pitt at the
"It was really fun. It will make playing other D-II teams seem a whole lot easier. Tonight gave me a lot of confidence, scoring as much as I did against a Big East, a top-20 team."
