Mizzou Men’s Basketball
Postgame Quotes
Mizzou 77, Arkansas 67
Head coach Cuonzo Martin
Opening statement...
“I’m so happy for our guys. They’ve been through a lot. I’ve never understood the emotional fatigue or let down when you struggle in a program and you lose for so long. And just the make-up of young guys. So I had to change my approach as a coach, you know, have more compassion in areas where I should’ve drove a guy and just understand that. So I grew up a lot as a coach, because I’d never been around that. I appreciate the hard work those guys have been put, because it’s been a roller coaster ride.”
On positivity around a program and building a winning culture...
“You can’t allow a loss to define who you are as a young man. I don’t like guys walking around with their heads down after losing games. I don’t like guys quitting, and if that’s the case I’ve got to help you find a new school. I don’t want that around me. If you’re gonna lose, then you’ve got to move forward, because that’s life. These are just ball games, so just have the mental toughness to understand what we’re going through, and at the end of the day, it’s just a basketball game. That doesn’t define you as a human being. You have to be able to represent the right way and keep your head up high. Because life is too short to put your head down. No man should ever walk with his head down.”
Graduate senior guard Kassius Robertson
On the pep band playing the Canadian national anthem prior to the game...
“That was cool. I wasn’t expecting that. I wasn’t going to go as far as signing it. I haven’t heard that anthem since high school, so it’s been five years. There was so much love in that arena. It was amazing playing tonight.”
On growth of his younger teammates...
“I don’t think I can take any credit for that. I think they’ve grown on their own so much from the beginning of this year. And everybody can see that with the way Jontay and Jeremiah are playing right now is at a really high level. I can’t take credit for any of that. They’ve been patient and they’ve worked really hard.”
Senior forward Jordan Barnett
On the growth of the program...
“This is a team that went 8-24 last year, 10-21 the year before and 9-23, I think, the year before that. So this is a team and a group of fans that have seen the struggle. To come out this season and to get our 20th win means a lot, but obviously, we’re not done. We have a ton of work to do going into this SEC Tournament.”
On what Jontay Porter brings to the table...
“We knew he’d be an immediate asset for us. He's 6’11” and can shoot the ball, we knew that’d be really beneficial for us. But as for what he’s brought to this team this year, I won’t lie, I didn’t expect everything he’s brought. He’s brought an extremely good rebounder, extremely good shot blocker, really good interior defender, really good passer, extremely high basketball IQ player for somebody that’s supposed to be in high school right now. I think that’s huge. I honestly don’t think there’s a better all-around big man in the country than Jontay.”
Arkansas head coach Mike Anderson
Opening Statement…
“First of all, congratulations to Missouri. They wanted it a little more than we did in this particular game. Obviously, with the Senior Day, they came out with a lot of fight in them and true enough they did. They made some big plays after we cut the lead and tied it up. We had some opportunities to stay in there and then of course they made big play after big play, but the biggest difference in this game was the free throw line. If you look at the free throw line, I mean that can nullify a lot of things that you’re doing well. We played hard and competed. The Missouri kids played hard and competed. Jontay had some big shots for him. He did along with Barnett. I was really impressed with Jontay. I have known this guy since he was a youngster and to see him grow and come on that big stage and play at that high level. Coach Cuonzo has done a tremendous job. They did what they were supposed to do. Congratulations to them.”
On Jeremiah Tilmon…
“I thought he played very well. He played well for the area. He was very aggressive and we went to him. We want to keep a big guy guessing where we are coming from. We allowed him to have some space, but I thought he played hard. I thought he played really well.”
On how difficult it is to defend against Mizzou…
“They shot the ball well. I thought we defended well, at times, but they made some key shots. We kept our line, but they made those key shots. It was their free throws that were the biggest factor in this game here. You can’t be as aggressive defensively as you want to. That’s not to take anything away from Missouri. They made some big shots. Barnett hit some big, big shots and they got some of those loose balls. They played with that sense of urgency that you have to play with this time of year. It meant a whole lot more to them.”