Postgame Quotes
Jan. 8, 2008
Kansas 90, Loyola (Md.) College 60
Tuesday, Jan. 8, 2008
Postgame Quotes
Kansas Head Coach Bill Self
On the team’s slow start:
“We didn’t make shots early. We shot too many threes early. We had a size advantage and shot too many threes. I expected us to come out and play a little flat early. We made some mental mistakes. Not having Mario hurt us offensively and with our pressure because he is usually a great starter. We played better in the first 10 minutes of the second half. It was good to get the last (non-conference) win and now the real season begins.”
On the team’s play:
“I told our guys that I’d like to play (Sherron Collins) 32 minutes tonight because he hasn’t had the opportunity like all the others have had to play a lot of minutes. The game didn’t go as scripted. Russell (Robinson) only played eight minutes of the second half, but he did fine. He just didn’t make shots. Darnell (Jackson) didn’t have his best game, but he still had nine (points) and nine (rebounds). Shady played fine and I thought Sasha (Kaun) played pretty well. Still, it wasn’t a dominant performance. I didn’t think we played the way I think we are capable of playing.”
On Jeremy Case:
“Jeremy hasn’t had a chance to play. He made the most of his opportunity in the first half and made a shot. In the second half I thought he did well. I wish he was a little bit more aggressive and shot a couple becasue I thought this could be a game where he made three or four three’s and really get on a roll, but he did well. He hasn’t had many opportunities and tonight he made the most of it.”
On Nebraska:
“The staff has watched a lot of tape, but (Alexs) Maric is a really good player. He had 40, I think against Kansas State, in a game. It’s hard to get 40 points in a game. We actually have defended him pretty well, but we need to do a better job on our low post defense. I thought our defense tonight was bad. They missed shots. I didn’t think it had much to do with us. We have to do a better job defensively. They’ll change defenses and that will make us think a little bit and we need to be a team that doesn’t think, just plays. It will be a hostile arena in a hostile environment, but it should be because they have had a real good start.”
Senior Forward Sasha Kaun
On KU starting the game sluggishly:
“I think we just came out a little bit flat, not really into the game. We picked it up. We finally got a lead, but we didn’t play very well to start.”
On what Coach Self said at an early timeout to spark the team:
“He was just saying to build the lead up a little bit, take care of possessions and don’t let up on defense. That is his biggest emphasis, playing defense, especially in these games coming up with conference starting.”
Sophomore Guard Sherron Collins
On how he felt after playing 28 minutes:
“I still have a lot more conditioning to do. I missed a couple of weeks, so I was a little winded early. I felt better. I am moving better, everything is coming back.”
On whether or not he is all the way recovered from his injury:
“I think the old Sherron is back. I have a little bit more to do, but I am pretty much back. I feel like the strength is back. I have been working hard to get here. I am so happy that I am finally here. This (tonight’s game) is the best I have felt by far since I have been back. It took a little bit longer than I expected, but I am feeling good now.”
Senior Jeremy Case
On facing Nebraska in their next game:
“It is going to be a tough game. We are going to have to fight. It’s not going to be a walk in the park like last year when we went in there and won easily. I think it’s going to be a good game Saturday.”
On his spirited play against Loyola:
“I just got in there and had confidence. I wanted to help the team out the best I could. I was being aggressive and taking whatever the defense gave me.”
On playing a lot of minutes against Loyola:
“It felt really good. I was a little tired because I am not in great game shape, but it felt great being out there and helping the team.”
Loyola Head Coach Jimmy Patsos
On cutting the lead to two in the first half:
“We had a couple of good looks at the basket. You need to make shots, whether you’re Kansas or Texas or Loyola. You don’t get many open chances against a great defensive team. I thought we missed a couple of shots, and then they went inside and scored inside. They just scored inside and we didn’t. We needed to just keep putting the pressure on them.”
On his coaching style:
“I was proud of our players. Remember we have 17 games from here on out that we can win. Niagra won our league last year, and you saw what (KU) did to them (in the NCAA Tournament.) I’m trying to get our players to feel like if they can execute against Kansas, you can execute against anybody. I don’t mind the blocked shots, I mind the turnovers. I just wanted them to keep executing, because at our level in the 20th-ranked conference, if we play as hard as we did against Kansas, we’ll be in good shape.”
Senior Gerald Brown
On the game:
“We just got a little over-excited. Playing against the No. 3 team in the country, anybody would be excited. We just came out and made a few mistakes and they converted on them. That will happen anytime, even if its the No. 1 team playing the No. 2 team. Our hopes were high, and it brought us down a little bit. Kansas is a good basketball team. We just wanted to come out here and compete to get ready for our conference. We came out here and kept fighting until the end.”
On KU’s inside game:
“They were tough. We had a 6-foot-10 center that was out and we hope to have him back. We also had a guy that was back home taking care of something. We were a little shorthanded inside, but that was all the more reason for us to come up here and keep competing. I went inside and played some of the big guys, and it is a mental and physically tough battle.”
On his second-half struggles:
“I knew they would be keying on me. I don’t know what else to say other than that I missed some open looks that I should have hit in the second half. They pressured our guards a little more in the second half. It was tough for us to get the ball in scoring position.”
