University of Pittsburgh Athletics
Post-Game Quotesheet
2/24/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Feb. 24, 2008
POST-GAME QUOTESHEET
Quoting Pitt Head Coach Jamie Dixon:
Opening Statement:
"I thought we played well today, but I thought they just played better. We did a lot of good things, but we just didn't do enough to secure the win. We made good passes and took good shots, and even took care of the ball very well. Levance Fields was unbelievable too, and Sam Young probably played as well as he ever had in his career here. We just ran into a good
On Pitt's mentality going forward:
"We've played three good teams in a row including two of them on the road. That's a very tough stretch. Regardless of opponents, we have to rebound and defend better. That's our calling card as a team and a program. We know what we are right now as a team, and we know we have to get better. Improvement is the key word now."
On Sam Young's play at the end of the game:
"He didn't get a shot in the last couple minutes, but that's in no way reflective of his play. I thought he made some great passes to get other guys looks and really contributed us getting some good shots. I also think we didn't have that many possessions since
On Pitt's offense:
"I thought our offense was very good. Four turnovers against a very good pressing team says a lot of what you need to know right there. I thought we also attacked the zone pretty well, and got some good looks. We'll just need to knock those down going forwards. Some more offensive boards will help too."
On looking ahead to the tournament:
"We don't think like that here. We always try just to look one game ahead, and we've been very successful doing that for a number of years now. I don't think there's a team in
On Pitt's struggles at the end of close games:
"You have to look at the whole game, not just the last couple minutes. We cut it close a couple times midway through the second half and couldn't get over the hump. Those possessions are important too. We just lost to a good team today."
Quoting Pitt's Sam Young:
On Pitt losing close games:
"If I knew why we kept dropping so many close games, I think we'd be winning. I guess really it's just a combination of things. The main thing though is that we have to get better as a team."
On
"Every time we made a run they had an answer. Give them some credit, because they're a good team who's very tough to defend. But some of that's on us too. We have to do a better job of getting a stop when we need one."
On having Levance Fields back:
"As a team we really feed off his energy. When the rest of us are quiet, he's the one that's being aggressive and yelling out instructions and trying to get us fired up. He tells us what we need to do to be successful."
Quoting Pitt's DeJuan Blair:
On Pitt's last offensive possession:
"It was a pick and roll and then a pop off. Levance made a great pass to me, I just missed the shot. It was very makeable, I just left it short. No excuses."
On facing David Padgett:
"Padgett was great. He's tough to play against. He's got a lot of moves and he's very physical. He did an excellent job today."
On playing with Levance Fields:
"Levance is one of a kind. In my opinion he's the best point guard in the country. He's out there giving it everything he has, pushing through the rust and the pain. The way he plays should be a lesson for all of us."
Quoting Pitt's Levance Fields:
On Pitt's last offensive possession:
"I thought we had enough time to get a layup. With them shooting free-throws in this environment, you never know. I didn't want to force a three until we absolutely needed it. I thought we made a good play, the shot just didn't go down."
On Pitt's mentality:
"We're ready for whatever. The past right now isn't an issue, and neither is the future. We need to get a win against
On the hardest part of coming back from injury:
"Right now, it's shooting bricks. The guys down low are doing what they need to do, but they're not falling from the perimeter. I have to come up bigger down the stretch to get us where we need to be."
Quoting Louisville Head Coach Rick Pitino:
Opening statement:
"We usually win with defense, but tonight we won with offense. We did a good job passing and attacking the ball inside to out. Passing is the key to our team. We're a good shooting team but not a great one. I think we had good execution, Padgett played some tough minutes tonight."
On Pitt being a NCAA Tournament team:
"Pitt is absolutely a tournament team, 100%. Sometimes it takes an injured player like Fields at least two weeks to get better. This is a tough conference, it beats everyone up. You really can't get used to one certain style of play."
On how the committee might deal with Pitt's injury situation:
"The committee will absolutely take into account the injuries Pitt has sustained. This team has nothing to worry about. They need to win some home games but I think with Fields coming back they are really in full force. For a team with 21 in RPI, this is really not the time to worry. They are in good shape, and they deserve to be in good shape."
On
"I think we have a lot of depth and we're executing really well. It really hurt us earlier in the season losing two of our seniors. But Padgett has been helping out both offensively and defensively. He is a terrific passer and a terrific leader for our team."
On facing a variety of teams:
"We've played a really tough schedule, so we've been conditioned to play a lot of different styles. We have a strong conference and a strong non-conference schedule this year."
On Pitt's play:
"Overall I think it was a really good game, it wasn't sloppy. I think we did a lot of good things; we had good passes and movement. I also think we attacked inside well."
