Kansas Postgame Quotes vs. Texas A&M

Feb. 3, 2007

Recap | Final Stats | Notes |

Head Coach Bill Self
On the game:
“The game went just as we thought it would– battling for points, ugly offense for both teams. They (Texas A&M) showed a lot of poise. Acie Law took over and we had no answer for him late. We had an 11-point lead with the ball, and we waste a possession and they come down and make a three. Then, we waste another possession and they score, and all of a sudden 11 is six, and now they think they can win the game. That was with 9:54 left. The outcome was very disappointing. We tried hard, we battled, and won the battle of the glass, but all-in-all we did not have an answer for Law late.”

On other positives from the game:
“I thought the crowd was great, and Sherron (Collins) was terrific. We did a good job on the glass, but had a lot of wasted possessions offensively. We showed a lot of impatience, and we certainly need to make our free throws down the stretch. We have a good team, and that is one of the better teams out there. They are tough, and we just have to get tougher. And it does not get any easier because Kansas State is an excellent basketball team and we are going to need to be fired up and ready to go on Wednesday.”

Junior Guard Russell Robinson
On the loss:
“We had an 11-point lead and we let it slip away. We had a chance to seal the game and we didn’t take advantage of it. I think they started switching the ball screens and that kind of disrupted us and we weren’t able to make plays. They made plays and that’s why they won the game. Coach Self said it’s a tough loss just because we had the lead and even at the end we had the chance to get one stop and a three-point play to change the momentum, but we didn’t do that. That lead was important to us, we let it go and it ended up costing us in the end.”

On Big 12 standings:
“We let this opportunity slip away. We’re no longer in the driver’s seat of the Big 12. We have to take it game by game and get ready for Kansas State because it doesn’t get any easier. We have to continue to play hard and not let this one loss become two. We need to grow from this and get better.”

Freshman Guard Sherron Collins
On Kansas’ execution:
“We got a little too eager. I think we did well as a team, but we have to do better. We could have been better at the end of the game. You have to give them (A&M) credit. They played tough both offensively and defensively. (Acie) Law is great, you have to give him his credit too. We could have done a better job controlling him. We just have to lock down and make plays at the end of the game and we didn’t.”

On playing Kansas State next:
“It’s another tough game. It’s a rivalry game. Everybody wants to play and get a shot at Kansas and we’re going to get their best shot. We’ve got to be ready.”

Sophomore Forward Brandon Rush
On A&M’s game:
“They’ve got some big guys. They’re really physical and they like to hit. I think we reacted pretty well, but at the end we needed that rebound and they out-hustled us. We expected a lot of fouls. They tend to foul a lot and we were trying to take advantage of that in the second half. We attacked the goal, we got to the free-throw line early, but we didn’t take it to the end of the game. We made some careless plays and turned the ball over a lot. We missed a lot of lay-ups. They started making some plays at the end and we were just worried about defense and trying to get some big stops and we didn’t do it.”

On the loss:
“They (A&M) answered us with some big three’s. (Josh) Carter hit a three and Joseph Jones hit a three and the lead was back down to five. Every time we made a run, they made a run right back. I’m a little frustrated. We should have won that game. We let this one slip away, but right now we are just going to focus on Kansas State.”

Texas A&M Quotes

Head Coach Billy Gillispie
On the game:
“I am just so happy. We could guard better than we did, but they really exposed us with their speed. Both teams played extremely hard. We just wouldn’t quit. No matter what the situation looked like, we just hung in there. We played play after play down the stretch and I guess that is how you win games on the road.”

On the win for the program:
“It is a great win for us because they are such a good team. We are fighting for our lives. I am not into monumental details or anything like that. We have to get ready for our next game because your next game is always your most important game. We have to bounce back really quickly against a team (Texas) that is fantastic.”

On Acie Law’s go-ahead three-pointer:
“It was his game at that point. He told me in the huddle before that play that he wanted the ball in his hands. I think he has really gotten healthy lately. He was banged up early and ever since the UCLA game he has been healthy. He is a great player and person. We ask him to do so much and he has really accepted that. I have tried to get him to shoot more for three years. We have several guys that can score and you have to guard all five people as opposed to years past and that has made it easier on him.”

Senior Guard Acie Law IV
On being the first Texas A&M team to beat Kansas:
“This team has a lot of fight in them and we can’t think about what has happened in the past. We just have to lay it out on the line and fight every time we get the chance. Kansas is a great team and we were able to get something big, that no previous Texas A&M team has been able to do.

On his game winning shot:
“Brandon (Rush) played off of me a little bit and I felt like he thought I was going to drive it. I felt like that was a great opportunity to go for the win. Being the kind of team that we are on the road, why not go for it all, just lay it out on line. My teammates have confidence in me to make that play. They put the ball in my hand and I was able to come through for them.”

On being the first Big 12 South team to win in Allen Fieldhouse:
“It is a great feeling. Whenever you beat a team like Kansas on their home floor in front of this great crowd, this is a great atmosphere, and for College Gameday, this is huge. This is one that I’ll remember for the rest of my life and I’m sure a lot of people will will feel that way also.

Freshman Center Elonu Chinemelu
On Acie Law’s game winning shot:
“When I saw the shot go in and I looked at the score and we were up by one. I had mixed feelings because we still had time left on the clock. I just wanted to make sure that we celebrated after the clock was zero.”