Bill Self Quotes Heading into Missouri

Jan. 30, 2005

Bill Self quotes heading into Missouri

On Missouri

“We’ll see a good Missouri team tomorrow night. They have had their share of struggles but so has everyone. When two teams like Kansas and Missouri have a history like they have, usually you can throw that stuff out the window.”

“They have proven they can play against top caliber competition. They obviously have the personnel to go and do it. They have been a lot like us. They haven’t been as consistent as what they would like and there have been times where we haven’t been consistent. The thing about our guys that is so positive is we’ve won a lot of close games. Our season wouldn’t look near as good if we weren’t 8-0 in games that were decided in the last five minutes. They are more than capable.”

“They played great at Oklahoma State. They played great against Illinois and had a chance. They played great against Gonzaga. They have proven they can play against quality opponents, there is no doubt about that.”

On Comparing the Border Showdown to Bedlam (his alma mater Oklahoma State vs. Oklahoma)

“I think there is a lot of comparison. There is more hatred in this series. OU and OSU don’t like each other, but I do think that deep down, at the core, there’s a mutual respect primarily because you have two teams from the same state. Here it goes way back before college athletics. It’s always going to be this way. Our players and coaches have absolutely no ill feelings toward Missouri. None, except we know that’s a rival game and we’d like to play our best against rivals. In the fan’s minds it’s so much more. It goes back to parents and grandparents and great grandparents. It’s always been that hatred or whatever between the two.”