Post Game Quotes
1/3/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 3, 2004
3 January 2004 Missouri 76, Iowa 56
Missouri Head Coach Quin Snyder
On the game: "This is a start for us. The intensity that we played with- it's got to be there all the time. I think having depth and having your team utilize their depth by really playing to exhaustion is something we talked a lot about. I think we did that tonight. There are still a lot of things to work on, but the passion, that was good to see."
On preparing for upcoming games:
"I think they played pretty well tonight. Part of it is adding Linas, Randy, and Jason. The other thing is we lost three games by one, two, and then in overtime. We had a bad loss to Belmont. We just didn't play well, but it's a long year, and the things we need to do, we need to do everyday in practice."
On playing with passion:
"I can give you a list of 20 things we need to do everyday in practice, but none of those things matters unless we play with passion. It's the thing that's been frustrating, and it's gratifying to see those guys play for themselves and that hard for one another."
On focus:
"I think we've thought a lot about dream land. Final Four picked us first in the Big 12, not in a malicious way, but it's just there. Your mind needs to be focused on the task at hand. We've worked so much harder in practice than we've played in some of these games, because of our focus. Unfortunately, sometimes you learn your best lessons through experiences."
Missouri Senior Travon Bryant
On tonight's game:
"We had a completely different mentality. With the Big 12 Conference coming up we can't focus on the past, we have to go out and play better defense. If we play defense like we the way we played tonight, we put ourselves in a position to win a lot of games.
On practice this past week:
"The mood was very intense. We had a couple of two-a-days, and we had one real hard one. It's been high intensity, it's no holds bar, and it's been good for us."
Missouri Junior Brian Dailey:
On getting in the game:
"Throughout the whole game, I was thinking for us to keep battling, and keep playing. We fought so hard that when I got in, it was just 30 seconds, and I kept thinking 'I have to fight, I have to fight.' I wanted to be aggressive, and I didn't just want to hold the ball. I got an open shot, and I just let it go. I wasn't really thinking [about the shot]. I was just playing."
On the team's mindset:
"I think it's our starting point. We said 'last year is last year, and this year is this year.' So this is our first habit of the game. Hopefully every other game will follow the same habit, and that will become who we are."
Iowa Head Coach Steve Alford
On the game:
"I thought the three pointers were the difference. We came in and held them to 35% shooting. Our defense did at least that. You can't just come in, score in the 50's on the road, and expect to win.
Iowa sophomore guard Jeff Horner
On the second half:
"To open the half, they went out and just beat us. They had way more offensive rebounds, and it killed us."
On Missouri's athleticism:
"They could be more talented, but a lot can happen in college basketball. Today they were more athletic than us, and had more talent, and they played a better game."
Iowa Senior Forward Glen Worley
On the second half:
"We weren't ready to play at the start of the second half. They came out with urgency, the knew they had to get this game."
On playing with heart:
"We didn't really have much heart today. We let them do whatever they wanted on defense. We have to take care of home, and play better since Big 10 season is around the corner."
Iowa Senior Guard Brody Boyd
On Missouri:
"They're a great basketball team. They were hungry, they wanted to win more than us. This is a long season, so we're moving on and putting this game behind us, and looking ahead to Big 10 Season."
