Postgame Quotes
Jan. 16, 2010
Postgame Quotes
Kansas 89, Texas Tech 63
Jan. 16, 2010 – Lawrence, Kan.
Kansas Head Coach Bill Self
On the game:
“We really played well the last 10 minutes of the second half. I thought Tyrel (Reed), Brady (Morningstar) and Marcus (Morris) really keyed that more than anybody. We really played well; we defended, rebounded and played like you’re supposed to play, but in the second half we traded baskets and that sickens me from a competitive standpoint. We forced 14 turnovers in the first half and only two in the second half. It was a bad defensive performance (in the second half), but still we played well enough to win. I just wish we would have played better defense in the second half.”
On Marcus Morris’ performance:
“I thought he rebounded the ball (well), I think he played very well, but I think he fell into the group that didn’t guard anybody in the second half. But he did some good things.”
On Cole Aldrich in the second half:
“We got the ball to him and he made some nice plays and some nice moves. Still, his man (Darko Cohadarebic) had some nice moves on him. It’s hard to say we played great offensively when I feel like we didn’t stop them at all in the second half.”
On the feeling going forward:
“It was a good win; you should never have to apologize for winning by 26. Everybody got to play, everybody contributed, but certainly I wish we would have played better in the second half.”
On facing Baylor next Wednesday:
“It’s a home game against the team that beat us by 10 in the Big 12 Tournament last year. They’re leading the country in rebounding margin this year. Obviously they’re playing a lot of zone, so we’re going to have to do a lot of work in practice the next few days.”
Sophomore Forward Marcus Morris
On if the team showed more toughness in the first half than they normally would:
“Definitely. I thought that was one of our better halves all year. I felt like we guarded really well – even though they got a few offensive rebounds. We have to learn how to keep a team down when we have a lead. In the second half, we needed to come out with the same intensity as we did in the first half.”
On if Kansas is the deepest team in the country:
“I would not say the deepest in the country. We do have a deep team. I feel like we can score – but we are one of the better teams in the country as far as depth.”
On if there are any situations that can bring a team together:
“I feel like we played harder after (the first four minutes of the first half). Our starters were not playing and we didn’t defend as well as we should (have). They had 45 points in the second half, as opposed to only 18 in the first half. We could have pressured the ball a lot better.”
Junior Guard Tyrel Reed
On what the team could have done better in defending Texas Tech guard John Roberson:
“We did not apply pressure to him in either halves. And we needed to work on that.”
On if Roberson played so well because of Texas Tech’s execution or something Kansas was doing wrong:
“I thought we kind of relaxed. We didn’t really put two halves together like we should have. We competed really hard in the first half, and in the second half we did not do that as much. You can’t play to the score; you have to play like there is no score the whole time.”
Junior Guard Brady Morningstar
On the team’s effort compared to Nebraska game:
“I think it was a better example the first half. Like I said you have to learn to put two halves together, especially in the Big 12 because on the road teams will come out tough and we think they should be beat (at home). We did force 14 turnovers in the first half and only two in the second. So that either says we’re not playing hard enough or not coming out ready to play in the second half.”
On early game struggles with turnovers:
“Like I said, I made some stupid passes. Turnovers are no good. You know every time down the floor you want to get a shot or a good look at a shot. So we have to play smart and play as hard as we can.”
On the defensive effort against (Mike) Singeltary:
“It was a team effort. We know that he can score because he put up 40 points in the Big 12 tournament last year so he is obviously a threat. With a team like Texas Tech where they just run around and set screens, there is not a lot of set plays (and) it can be tough to guard but you just keep two eyes on the man and ball and just play hard.”
Texas Tech Head Coach Pat Knight
On the game:
“They are at a different level than us as a basketball team. They are probably at a different level than most of the teams in this league. Every once in a while special teams come around loaded with NBA-caliber guys and this is one of them. They are a special team and I think Texas is as well. Unfortunately this year for us the Big 12 has two of them. Fortunately for us we don’t have to play Kansas again. The only thing I was disappointed with was that we didn’t compete better in the first half and make it a better game. We are 0-3, but there is lot of game left and a lot of spots are still wide open for the NCAA and NIT Tournaments in this league once you get past Kansas and Texas. We just have to get our minds right.”
On how they can become more competitive on the road:
“It is all about mindset. I have my best players not scoring very many buckets on the road. That one is on me though because I need to look at the film and figure out ways to get them better shots.”
On Overland Park, Kan., native Robert Lewandowski:
“He is playing well for us. Everybody was asking what is wrong with Lewandowski in the pre-season because he wasn’t getting many minutes. It had nothing to do with him. We were just playing a lot of teams that were small and I didn’t have a chance to play him the minutes he deserved. Now that we are into conference play and we play bigger guys he will get the minutes he deserves. I really think in the first three conference games he is playing like he did last year.”
