Nov. 28, 2004
Opening Statement:
"Well, it just feels good to get a win. I think we won this game particularly you know the last 17 minutes of the game we were down 8 and I thought defensively we guarded and that's what it's going to be for this team you know with Spencer out, Jimmy having to play the point some again and gets pressure I thought we had a lot of opportunities to attack we got out to a good start and just really looked tentative and we had a hard time collectively making plays whether it was with charging or with turnovers were affected by those things a lot right now, but like I said it's great to get a win. To see Jason Conley put his foot down and say `You know what, I'm not letting this happen' that was the talk that our guys had in the huddle and they were saying the right things and I'm glad that we were rewarded for our perseverance through that game because I think at one point we were five of thirteen from the line, we weren't making free throws, we weren't making lay ups and when that shot got banked in, they thought "oh geez' our guys will was a lit stronger and I think it started wit Conley and permeated throughout the team."
On the play of Jimmy McKinney:
"The thing that he did, the one play that got him unlocked, that there's been times late in the shot clock where he's just settled for a jump shot, this play he drove the ball and he had a tough shot but it was a pull up and I thought he got in rhythm. Linas, I thought, made the play of the game, Coop's play was the highlight of the game but when Linas drove the ball, you could hear Jimmy in the corner right in front of our bench yelling `one more' and Linas passes it one more time and Jimmy knocks down the shot. That's who we've been as a group and that's one of the things that kinda got you excited about how these guys were playing. Sometimes when you're going through, when there's a lid on the basket and you're not guarding real well, guys want to step up and do it, we've gotten away from that a little bit, not that we've been selfish but I think that type of play really signifies how we need to play.
On the struggles in the last three games:
"I think the biggest thing we try to emphasis especially with Linas but with really our whole team is to defend. We had some guys with the some really good starts making shots, you can evaluate yourself by whether the ball goes in the basket but you can't always control whether the ball goes in the basket. I think that Linas guarded tonight and that's what we needed him to do because that will make us stronger. We've got a week right now, part of it for me is, seeing, we've talked about drive and kick and arm ball screen and I think that those are things we can do, but when people take those things away from you we need to be better offensively. I know what we what to do. Its part of the last five days is not having time to make a lot of serious adjustments because you're playing three games in five days and you know what some of the problems are but you're got to get on the court and fix them. The biggest thing for us to fix has been our resolve, that's what cost us Davidson, Creighton and some of those games and now we get a chance to work on our offense. We're going to get more screening and more movement and that's going to help Linas, that's going to help people from not being able to key in on him. Right now if we run the ball screens form and they're switching it and they're jamming it, and they're just deciding we're going to take him away so it's my job to help him and I think we know how to do that.
On the starting five
"That's the guys that have been playing the best defense, whether it's game to game or in practice. It's something I told our team we're going to hold them accountable for and they know it. That's just got to be there, everybody's got to be committed to that end and from that standpoint when we've set kids down, whether it be Jason Conley a couple of games ago, sometimes it takes that for kids to know how determined you are as a staff to get that type of performance and effort on that defensive end. I don't care how good you are everybody's got to do that."
Missouri Senior Jason Conley
On his second half performance:
"When I was out there on the court I wasn't really being an offensive threat. I was so focused on my defense that I wasn't helping out offensively. Finally I looked up and there were only seven minutes left and we were down by eight and that's when I realized I wasn't being an offensive threat. So I went out there and I tried to take over, but it wasn't just me, it was all the guys on the team. They gave me the confidence and we just went out there and won it."
On team motivation in the closing minutes:
"Usually when we come together in the huddle we'll say `Tigers' or `defense', but that time we just said `heart.' It was just a word that we all knew. We knew that in order to win this game we had to have heart and that's what we did."
Missouri Junior Jimmy McKinney
On his shooting during the game:
"You really don't think about it when you're playing. You don't think about how many shots you make or how many you miss. You're just out there playing and that's the most important thing. You always have to remember to have fun. Once you go out there and rebound and you see on the scoreboard that you're winning, that'll keep your mind off yourself."
On his free throw shooting:
"That's the one thing I don't ever think I get pressured on, when I go to the free throw line. There's probably more pressure at the three-point line or when I'm driving to the basket. When I'm at the free throw line I don't think I feel any pressure. That's one position I'm very comfortable with."
On his scoring this season:
"At this point it's still pretty early. I'm just starting off and I think I'll pick up the scoring a bit more down the road. We're just trying to make sure that we're starting off right and that we stay focused because we have some big games coming down the road. My scoring is going to come up, I just want to make sure that I'm focused on the little things and make sure that I continue to do those little things."