Missouri 93 Oklahoma State 92 (2OT)
2/24/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Feb. 24, 2004
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Missouri 93 Oklahoma State 92 (2OT) Missouri Head Coach Quin Snyder
On the game:
"I thought that it was a real high level game; Oklahoma State has been on that level all year. That was a terrific game. Obviously that was an important game for us, I was really proud not just of the way we won, but how we played. It is really deflating when you have an eight-point lead and the ball with three minutes to go in the game. For us to be able to come back ... I thought our team showed a lot of character and heart. I was excited for our guys about this game. We have a ways to go and this will help us get there.
On Rickey and A.J....
"I think they were spectacular, and played well together. I thought that we had other guys too. I thought that Thomas did well guarding (John) Lucas- when he gets free you can count on it. I also thought Jason (Conley) did well in a tough situation. I put him at the point in the second overtime and he was able to see over them and find A.J. I think our other guys really complemented them well."
On the last shot...
"Well, the second time I thought we did a good job. We wanted to switch, they wanted to get (Joey) Graham for a pick and pop. We got Travon on Lucas, and at that point people wanted to help and he had to make a tough shot over him. Those are shots that he made tonight."
On Conley getting the last rebound....
"I felt really good. It is good for Jason too; I have been on him to get to the boards.
On Kansas State...
" We are going on the road and the road is different. We had a little bit of experience with that after Baylor. We have to be ready for anything. K-State is really good, obviously we are not at the point, and I don't think there is a tendency to let down because of the emotion and the overtime. Fatigue is there, and that can't be how we are thinking. We are playing for too much. I think our guys want to play right now. When you are working hard and winning it is fun to get out on the court."
Missouri senior forward Travon Bryant:
On winning in overtime:
"We lost a nine point lead, and regardless, we knew we were going to overtime. We knew we had another five [minutes] to go, and we had to go out and play hard, and everything would take care of itself. To go into double overtime, and let go of a nine point lead really shows the character of this team."
On guarding [John] Lucas in the final 15 seconds:
"That was actually our game plan. Stephen Graham was setting the ball pick, and we were going to switch it and throw him off. I was doing it throughout the game, and it came up at a perfect time, and I knew I had to go out and be aggressive with my switch. I saw eight seconds left on the clock, and I knew I had to stay down in my stance and keep him in front of me for eight seconds. I knew I had to get out there and play hard defense for eight seconds."
Missouri senior center Arthur Johnson:
On stepping it up
: "We've been talking about it the whole year, and that's five in a row for us. Now it's starting to pay off a little bit, and we've just got to keep it going. This is a crucial time of year.
Missouri senior guard Rickey Paulding:
On Arthur Johnson:
"He's been working out. One day this week he came in early to practice to work on his conditioning. I'm really proud of AJ. He stepped up and hit some really big shots for us. He's definitely our emotional leader.
On momentum going into Kstate:
"I think we're really confident right now. I don't think we're at a place where we're satisfied and we're going to take them lightly. I think we're going to learn from this game and really enjoy it. But come practice Thursday, we're going to strap it on and get ready for Kstate.
On the team's progression:
"It was tough when we were going through everything in the beginning of the season. Maybe we didn't play the way we thought we were going to play. I think we're really coming along now, without Linas and without Randy. I think we're making the best of what we have, and it's turning out great."
Oklahoma State guard John Lucas:
On the last shots:
"I'm supposed to hit those shots. I'm more upset than anything about those last two shots. Coach depends on me, and I didn't come through for him today."
On the ending of the eleven game winning streak
: "We're very disappointed, and now we've just got to regroup. We've got to make sure we go home and practice hard for two days, and go down to Waco, and make sure we get that "W."
On taking the game into overtime:
"It shows that we have heart, and we're never going to give up. Everybody stuck together, there wasn't any arguing, and we made sure we just came together and executed our plays. We did everything right. The first half was a little bit rusty at times, but we bounced back."
Oklahoma State head coach Eddie Sutton:
On the game
: "This was a terrific college basketball game. I thought both teams played with great intensity, and the game could have gone either way. I thought our ball club played much better in the second half. When Paulding hit those two big treys to put them up eight, some teams could have folded, but our guys went in there and we were able to tie the game up in regulation."
On defense in the first half:
"I thought defensively in the first half, we didn't play as well as we did the last 30 minutes of the game. We did a nice job on Paulding in the second half. Those two big treys he had, those were tough shots."
On Johnson:
"We don't have enough size and bulk to get with Johnson. He's a great player, and we just allowed him to get the ball, and when he didn't score, we ended up fouling him a lot. We did a better job late in keeping it out of the low post area."
On the atmosphere at the Hearnes Center & the Missouri basketball team:
"That was a tough setting. I thought the crowd played the part of the sixth man. They were great. Missouri is an outstanding ball club. If they played like that, they wouldn't have lost the games that they had. They're a good basketball team... really talented.
