University of Pittsburgh Athletics
Post-Game Quotesheet
1/26/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 26, 2008
Recap |
Box Score |
Notes |
AP Photo Gallery 
POST-GAME QUOTESHEET
Pitt vs. Rutgers, January 26, 2008,
Quoting Pitt Head Coach Jamie Dixon:
Opening Statement:
"Give
On Pitt's shot selection:
"I haven't seen the tape yet, but I thought we had very good looks all night. Even in the first half when we were ahead I thought we were missing some shots that we usually make. Maybe we were a little bit impatient at the end, but I think that happens when you get down late."
On
"They're improving and getting better. They hit a lot of shots against
On DeJuan Blair's foul trouble:
"It hurts to have him out, but we had trouble scoring when he was in too. The problem was that we didn't defend and rebound well enough as a team. That's what we have to do to win, regardless of who's in the game or how we shoot."
Quoting Pitt's Keith Benjamin:
On
"Give them credit because they hit some tough shots, but I don't think we played defense the way we're capable of. We scouted them well, we were prepared for what they threw out at us, we just weren't able to execute. They knocked down some easy shots early and I think the tough ones go down easier after that also."
On Pitt's offense:
"Everyone was missing. It wasn't just one guy or one thing that was going wrong. Those games are going to happen, but usually when they do, we can pull it out with our defense and rebounding. We just didn't bring it in those areas tonight either."
On
"They have some good talent, a great coach and their finding a good mixture. When you shoot as well as they are right now, you're going to win a lot of games."
Opponent Quotes
Quoting
On magnitude of the game:
"It was a great follow to what we are building towards. The turning point for us, I believe, started from being hammered by
On the key factors of tonight's win:
"Our rebounds allowed us to outscore Pitt, and also by continuing to run and our transition game."
On how important it was to have five players in double figures:
"That's always nice, but it's more important to win a game by defense and rebounds."
On changes made to game strategy:
"We did pretty much the same things, but we focused on changing up the defense. We played zone, mixed up our man, and even threw in a jump defense. All of these were effective."
On the play of Sam Young:
"Sam is a tremendous athlete, definitely looking at a career in the NBA. We did a good job tonight of limiting his rebounds and points on the board."
On the play of Byron Joynes:
"Byron is a cerebral ball player. He was outstanding tonight in the 2-3 zone, he controlled the boards, made free throws, and really just played an outstanding 20 minutes."
On Pitt's team:
"Pitt is a rhythm and transition team. They took the lead in the first half by executing great rhythm and zone. Our goal was to take them out of their rhythm by switching our defense using zone, man, and jump."
Quoting
On what he thought of the environment at the
"It's tough to win here, the numbers prove it. The crowd was really into it, but I thought we fed off of them and in the second half we found away to execute and get things done."
On how the team turned things around in the second half:
"I think we just did it as a team. We didn't get down on ourselves at halftime and we just went out in the second half like we were starting at zero and that gave us momentum once we got off to a good start."
On what the win does for the team's confidence?
"Our confidence is so much higher. Everyone's playing hard and playing smart. We beat Villanova and then we come in here and beat
Quoting
On what he heard about playing at
"I heard it's a zoo! We came out and knew what we were in for during pre-game warm-ups. It was a crazy atmosphere out there and we knew it was going to be intense. We just came out and matched their intensity."
On the defensive play:
"We played great defense out there today especially in the second half. We knew we needed to rebound and I thought we did a good job of making adjustments and stopping Pitt. Everyone stepped up and I think we've learned from our mistakes in past games."
Quoting
On the game:
"It was incredible. This is a great win for our program. Going into our game against Villanova, no one gave us a chance. We come in here against Pitt, and the same thing...no one gave us a chance. But we won both games and you don't play games on paper. You win games on the court and that's what we've done the last two games."
On what it means to beat Pitt at the
"It means a lot. They were 91-8 going into this game so we really knew we had nothing to lose. If we lose here, no one is really surprised I guess? But our team believed we could win and that's all that really matters."
On what was it like to quiet the crowd:
"To win here, it feels great. If we keep playing this way, we're going to have a great second half. Our team stepped up to the challenge tonight and our confidence is really high right now. We think we can keep this up."
