Nov. 22, 2002

Recap?|? Final Stats?|? Notes

Missouri 72, American 57

22 November 2002

Columbia, Mo.

Missouri head coach Quin Snyder On the game: "American is going to be a really good team this year. They have good guards that are experienced, and they have three guards out there. They put a lot of pressure on you defensively, and they pull your big guys away from the basket and set ball screens and really make you work. I thought it was a big game for us. We got a really honest assessment of where we are defensively. Sometimes we did a real good job covering, and other times there was a defensive breakdown. It's something we need to learn from. I was disappointed with our urgency at given points, and there were exchanges that were weak and floppy and shows us where we're at mentally."

On the play of junior forward Rickey Paulding: "American went zone, and part of that is Rickey growing as a player. It says a lot about Rickey's character that he's not going to press if it's not there. Rickey was really concerned about getting the big guys involved, and that's something we've emphasized a lot and didn't do as good a job of in the first half. I want him to get the big guys involved, but I also want him to stay aggressive. He did a great job of taking what was there, but you want him to remain aggressive."

On the play of American University: "We knew they were good. I know Jeff (Jones) and really respect him as a coach. I have for a long time. We knew we were in for a tough game. We tried to tell our kids that. I think our kids showed their immaturity that I don't know that they were as urgent about this game as I would have hoped they would be, and I thought that showed in some situations. There were a few loose balls, there were some muffed handoffs, there were some blank looks. We started the game not talking as well defensively. Those are things you have to change no matter who you're playing."

On Missouri's defense: "We wanted to play well, and I think at times we did play well. We held them to 34 percent shooting and less than 30 in the first half. We forced 18 turnovers. It's a little bit of an unconventional game; they played four small guys at times, and they pull you out from the basket. There were some things we didn't do that I know we can do, like we didn't guard screen-and-rolls, for example, and that's something we've practiced for 50 hours in the last two weeks."

Missouri junior point guard Ricky Clemons On game play: "We had some times on defense where we broke down a little bit, but we stayed with it and we got a victory. That's one thing that coach has been talking about. He's been trying to get us to maintain our defensive efforts." Missouri junior guard Josh Kronke On the play if Ricky Clemons: "Ricky did a great job of that(creating points) tonight. He was coming of screens ready to shoot...it's nice to have Ricky Clemons knocking down the shots like that."

Missouri junior guard Rickey Paulding On playing time: "I expect it(30-35 min. a game). Kareem had to play the same minutes and so did Clarence. It's fun playing a lot of minutes."

Missouri junior forward Travon Bryant On coach and team disappointment: "Coach was just disappointed in the way we were playing. We all were disappointed. We're not as energetic as we are after a good win because we all know we could have played a little better."

-------

American University Quotes November 22, 2002

American University senior guard Steve Miles On Eagle Effort: "We came in to win, we didn't just come in to compete. We gave it our best effort. We hung in there and fought for forty minutes, and we just came up a little short tonight."

On effect of game on season: "It gets us ready for our league because that's what is most important for us. That's what gets us to the tournament."

"These games, they let us see where we're at right now."

American University head coach Jeff Jones On Missouri point guard Ricky Clemons: "He was the only one playing with a lot of confidence against that zone in the second half, but yet it's his responsibility to set his teammates up too. So for a scoring point guard, that's a tough chore."

On idea of moral victory: "I'm happy because we took a step forward this week. We had a scrimmage last week where I wasn't real pleased. Our frontcourt players played very, very soft. So to come in and play against a team as big as Missouri, I thought our kids played really, really hard."

On getting something out of the game: "For us, we can get any number of positive things. We know Missouri's going to be a good team and play well into March, and that can be good for our confidence knowing that we at least competed."