Kansas Versus Iowa State Postgame Quotes
Jan. 23, 2008
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Kansas 83, Iowa State 59
Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2008 * Allen Fieldhouse * Lawrence, Kan.
Postgame Quotes
Kansas Head Coach Bill Self
On the game:
“I think this was a low-energy game for us. I didn’t feel like we had the same bounce that we did against Oklahoma. But that is not all bad sometimes. We were that way against Nebraska and we were very efficient. We were pretty good defensively. We rebounded the ball, took care of the ball, and shot our free throws decent. I thought we played pretty well for the most part.”
On the individual performances:
“I thought Brandon (Rush) played solid. He didn’t play unvelievable, but he is becoming a good guard. He just needs to take more shots. Tonight was a night where we looked for Darnell (Jackson) and Sasha (Kaun) and Darrell (Artuhr). Mario (Chalmers) was solid and I though Russell (Robinson) played one of his better offensive games. Sherron (Collins) was fine, but he just didn’t make shots. All in all it was pretty good. ”
On the play of the bigs:
“Darnell (Jackson) is playing well right now. Darrell (Arthur) didn’t play as many minutes today. He tweaked his calf yesterday and it was very sore today, so we didn’t play him as much. I thought Darnell (Jackson) was great. I also thought Sasha gave us some really good minutes on the offensive end.”
On the upcoming game against Nebraska:
“When we played them up there in Lincoln they just played us straight man-to-man for 40 minutes. They are a hard team to pressure because they play four guards all the time. We just need to focus on getting better and keeping our energy level high. When we play with a lot of energy, I think we hit another level athletically and we are hard to deal with.”
Kansas senior Darnell Jackson
On recording a double-double:
“I did (know I was getting close to a double-double). Everybody on the bench kept yelling `one more, one more.’ I wanted to make sure that if I had the chance to go get a rebound, I was going to get it.”
On defenses keying on him:
“I never really pay attention to that. I just try to go out there and play with a lot of energy and do the things I need to do on the court.”
On going from a sixth man to a possible first team all-conference player:
“It hasn’t really sunk in yet. I always talk to my mom and I ask her `Can you believe it?’ and she’ll always say, `No, I can’t believe it’. This is just out of the blue, I don’t know why it’s happening. I’m just trying to go out there and help my team.”
Kansas sophomore Darrell Arthur
On the lack of fast break points the last two games:
“Teams are sending one to the glass and four back. We’re just trying to make the best of it and get fast break points when we can, but it’s tough when they send four (players) back.”
On KU’s execution in the half-court game:
“I think it’s been pretty good. Most teams can just play one way or one speed. I think Coach (Self) does a good job with us, whether we play half-court or play fast. I think we do a good job at both of them.”
On the development of Darnell Jackson:
“I knew he was going be really special for us this year. This summer he was working out, and working out really hard. When I was hurt (this summer) and watching him work out, I knew he was going to have a big impact for us this year.”
Kansas senior Russell Robinson
On Darnell Jackson’s rebounding:
“Seems like every game he gets eight or nine, but tonight he got 11. We congratulate him (for getting a double-double) for that. That’s a key, getting him to rebound like that, because we play well when he does.”
On the backcourt’s execution:
“We didn’t get many chances to run (the last two games), so we’ve had to play a half-court offense. One of the keys is getting the ball inside and work from there. We’ve shown a lot of improvement in that area from last year.”
Iowa State Head Coach Greg McDermott
On the difference in rebounding and points in the paint:
“I was concerned rebounding-wise to start with. The rebounding numbers are going to look that way when one team shoots 31% and the other team shoots 50%. There are a lot more defensive rebounds to be had, so I am not sure that’s a totally telling statistic. We made the decision to play some of their post guys one-on-one to try to control some of their dribble penetration and to get to some of their three-point shooters. And to their credit, (Darrell) Arthur and (Darnell) Jackson really made us pay for it.”
On Wesley Johnson’s 3-for-10 performance beyond the three-point line:
“He had good looks at the basket. Those are shots that we will take every possession and if he knocks those down, it changes the game because they cannot defend the post the way that they were defending the post if we’re knocking down perimeter shots. So we rode his back hoping that he could get a few of those and get us back into the game, but it just didn’t work out.”
On what it will take to beat Kansas:
“You’re going to have to be a pretty complete basketball team. I was pleased with our turnover count tonight, we turned it over just 11 times against a team that puts on a lot of pressure. They challenge shots so well and they cover up for their mistakes defensively. I have a lot of respect for their offense, but I probably have even more respect for their defense.”
On Kansas:
“They have so many weapons. There is not really one person in their lineup that you can leave to provide some help on somebody else. And they are unselfish enough that if you choose to do that, they are going to find the hole in your defense and make you pay for it. That’s a credit to the guys for their unselfish play and a credit to Coach Self and his staff for getting that group of talented players to play in such an unselfish manner.”
Iowa State Sophomore Forward Wesley Johnson
On the difference in the second half:
“The momentum that they came out with in the second half, they just jumped right on us. They were knocking down shots. It’s really just us staying disciplined.”
On what it will take to beat Kansas:
“It’s really just going and playing solid defense and hoping they miss.”
Iowa State Freshman Forward Craig Brackins
On playing Kansas:
“They have so many weapons. If you take one player, you have to worry about another. We tried to go out there and guard, but then the big men killed us.”
On whether Kansas will lose soon:
“I don’t think so. They’re so calm and poised on the court. You look at them and even when something is going wrong or something is going right, they have the same look on their face. They’re just so comfortable out on the court.”
On how to beat Kansas:
“You have to execute your game plan. They’ll make you pay for your mistakes, so basically you just have to be on your game and just go out and play as tough as you can.”
