Postgame Quotes
Feb. 18, 2012
Recap | Final Stats | Notes |
Kansas 83, Texas Tech 50
February 18, 2012
Postgame Quotes
Kansas head coach Bill Self
On the team’s play in the second half:
“We did some good things in the second half, but we’re not very mature at all. I knew we were in trouble in the first half whenever they put the Thomas (Robinson) video on the board and everybody watches it and they are laughing and giggling. We are so immature in some ways and when we get challenged we are terrific. Certainly the second half wasn’t anything to write home about, but we did have some great possessions on both ends in the second half.”
On sharing the ball:
“When we share it we are pretty good. They went triangle and two, and box and one and we didn’t share it. Guys went off on their own and I didn’t like it much at all. I took Ty (Taylor) and Thomas out for a while because I didn’t feel like we were sharing it the way we should and they should spearhead everything. When Ty and Thomas are the most unselfish kids, everyone is going to follow. Thomas made some great plays passing in the second half, great passes. Ty did some things there late a little better, but that was a good win, we were solid.”
On the importance of sharing the ball:
“Sometimes when you play against different defenses and some guys are denying some guys the ball, frustration sets in. It’s why we should throw the ball to Thomas every possession, because the more he touches it, the better passer he is. That goes for any big. Danny (Manning) will tell you this, when they never touch the ball and then they touch it, they feel like they have to score. That is something that is important. Ty in transition made some terrible plays that he hasn’t made in the last few weeks, a bad lob and a couple bad decisions, but when the ball moves we are a fun team to watch play. It has been that way ever since we have been here for the most part. Balance is the key. The better that Elijah (Johnson), Travis (Releford) and Conner (Teahan) shoot the ball and the better Jeff (Withey) plays it makes the game that much easier for Ty and Thomas.”
On the upcoming schedule:
“We’ve got a hard schedule. The game Saturday against Missouri is so important for the conference race, but winning at (Texas) A&M is just as important, winning at Oklahoma State is just as important. Look what Oklahoma State did today. Keiton Page went for 40 (points) today and they beat Texas handily. (Texas) A&M really guards, they had Missouri to a two-possession game in the last two minutes and Missouri pulled away, so we know it’s going to be hard. We have to play a little bit better than what we’re playing, but if you told us before the season that we would be 12-2 in the league with four games left, I probably would have sold out for that.”
Kansas senior guard Conner Teahan
On the team’s energy when facing a struggling team:
“I think that it’s definitely something that Coach (Self) worries about; especially today when there was an awkward introduction with no video or anything. We knew that they were a capable team – every team in the Big 12 is a capable team – and they were able to beat Oklahoma so we just had to come out ready to play. I think our team does a good job of that for the most part; we definitely have games where we haven’t come out ready to play, but I think today was good.”
On if he felt confident shooting the ball today:
“Definitely, I felt very confident and hopefully I’ll be able to keep that going in the next game.”
On how much he enjoyed watching Jordan Juenemann at the end of the game:
“It was a lot of fun and I think the whole team enjoyed it. He went 3-for-3 so I mean, seven points in four minutes is a pretty good night.”
Kansas junior guard Travis Releford
On the production from the bench:
“I think they stepped up and played really well. Coach Self gave them the challenge to step up and today I think they met that challenge.”
On the key to the front-line defense:
“Just don’t give up easy baskets because the closer they are to the basket, the easier it is to score, so we just worked on denying them, getting a hand around and not letting them think they could throw it inside.”
Texas Tech head coach Billy Gillispie
Opening statement:
“It was a good performance by Kansas. We had a few moments, but we just made too many mistakes offensively and defensively to be in the game with them.”
On Kansas shooting 7-for-7 to open the game:
“It is not the way you want it to happen, obviously. The first play of the game we misread a down-screen and the next one was a post-up; they are going to make those lay-ups. Those are mental errors that don’t have to be made. They are hard enough to guard.”
On feeding the ball into the post early in the first half:
“(Kansas) is long inside but we got the ball in there enough, we just didn’t get it to the basket or get to the foul line enough. We only got eight foul shots again. (Jordan Tolbert) posted really hard for the most part. We have to get him the ball a little bit better.”
On the Kansas defense forcing 20 turnovers:
“There is no question that they are a good team. Not too many of them were over-plays by them, they were mistakes by us. That is not taking anything away from them. We really made a lot of mistakes as far as turnovers. We threw it over where even the cheerleaders couldn’t catch it, way off the court. And then the next time we kick it off our foot. They play very good defense; that is why they have been good for a long time and why they will continue to be great. Tonight they didn’t really force us to make those plays, for the most part we kind of threw it away.”
On playing a team like Kansas with a young roster:
“You fight like crazy. That’s what you do against everybody you play no matter what your situation is. You fight from the start and you fight until the end. Our guys were fighting hard we just didn’t get many results tonight.”
On what the Red Raiders did well:
“We shot 6-of-12 from three-point and we made all of our free-throws. I think we got the ball inside when we wanted to, we just didn’t finish plays around the basket. We had some good defensive possessions. We just made too many mental errors.”
On giving up 13 offensive rebounds:
“We have played two physical teams now back-to-back. We have to do a better job. We have to get more offensive rebounds, too. At half time we only had two, one of them was Luke Adams and the other was (Deshon) Minnis. We have to do a better job of keeping them off the glass, and we have to do a better job of getting the rebounds when we miss.”
On keeping a young team engaged during a tough stretch of the schedule:
“To their credit, it has been great. They have tried as hard as any team can try. They will come out in our next practice and they will fight like crazy. The results haven’t been what any of us want, but they have never really gotten down or let the record dictate how they will go about their business. I have been here before, we have done this before and we will do it again. And it will be done in quick order but we are setting the foundation as far as work ethic and toughness. We have dramatically improved from the start of the season. It is hard to tell when you play a game like we did tonight, but when you see how much tougher they are and how much better they are defensively, it is hard to tell when the final score doesn’t indicate that. It is only a matter of time for us. To our guys’ credit I really do appreciate how they fight. We are not anywhere close to where we want to be but it will happen before you know it.”
On having a team that is willing to fight:
“I haven’t had one that wouldn’t; all my teams play that way. That is why we have been able to have a great deal of success. I have taken on challenges before. I love challenges. We have succeeded at a very high level before and we will succeed at the same level here, it’s only a matter of time. I don’t know what it is like to have a team not play hard for you.”
Texas Tech freshman Jordan Tolbert
On how much of a challenge it was to score inside the paint:
“It was very tough to score inside. Sometimes when I got the ball, they (Kansas) double-teamed (me), so I had to find my teammates and kick it out to them without turning it over.”
Texas Tech junior Ty Nurse
On KU’s defensive effort early on in the contest:
“It was a challenge because they (KU) have a lot of weapons, and a lot of good offensive players. We just weren’t tough enough on defense and we didn’t make it difficult enough for them to turn the ball over, or miss some shots. That’s definitely why we lost the game.”
On whether the Allen Fieldhouse atmosphere got to the team:
“Honestly, I don’t think it affected us. Warming up, you notice the crowd but once the game starts, you’re focused on trying to win the game.”
On Kansas outrebounding Texas Tech on the offensive glass:
“Well they’re a physical team and we just weren’t physical enough. We didn’t pursue the ball hard enough and the person who wants it more is going to get it. They just played harder.”
