Oct. 15, 2008

Columbia, Mo. - Mizzou Basketball hosted its annual preseason media day on Wednesday. Head Coach Mike Anderson and the Tigers met with the media from 3-5 p.m. on the floor of Mizzou Arena, talking about the upcoming 2008-09 season, the return of four starters, including preseason All-Big 12 Honorable Mention selections DeMarre Carroll and Leo Lyons and the addition of seven newcomers to the roster.

Below are quotes from Coach Anderson:

Opening statement:
"We've got a lot of new faces. This is probably the first major recruiting class we've had since we've been here. Right now I am liking this basketball team; I might not be saying that in another month and a half. I think for the most part we have some more options. Depth is important when you play up-tempo basketball and I think we have some guys that hopefully fit the style of basketball that I enjoy playing. Even as I talk to these guys, one of the things I want to make sure they understand is that defense is going to be what we hang our hats on and that's what is going to be emphasized from day one, our defense. I want to have a defense that can be tenacious, one of the more tenacious, feared defenses around the country. And again, I'm excited about this group."

On the last season's returning, impact players:
"We have some guys, some holdovers from last year, Leo Lyons, DeMarre Carroll, Matt Lawrence, J.T. Tiller. Those four guys in particular, this is their third year of having an opportunity to play and hopefully understand better what we're trying to do in terms of our basketball team and our basketball program. Hopefully those guys can provide the leadership and then this team can take the ownership and put the Missouri basketball program where I think it should be."

On summer workouts:
"Well they did a tremendous job and I think this summer was probably one of the more enjoyable summers we've had. I always said to our guys, the first summer session, I always want our guys to be in attendance. To the credit of our players they made the decision, `Coach we're coming to both summer sessions.' And of course they were aware that the Canada trip was coming up, so they wanted to have that opportunity to bond and get to know one other and I felt those guys in particular even along with Justin Safford, Zaire Taylor, and Mike Anderson Jr., those guys who have been here, I felt they kind of helped foster that kind of atmosphere. Therefore when we had an opportunity to go to Canada, I think you could get a glimpse of what could potentially happen to our basketball team."

On Mizzou's trip to Canada:
"It was beneficial, there's no question about it. We got an opportunity to practice, we practiced five days and had nine practices. We had an opportunity to play three exhibition games. I think the key is for us to use it as our benefit and hopefully it can give us a jump start as we get ready for official practice starting on Friday. I thought this year in particular, because we've already actually started practicing, we've played games and so maybe it will give us an opportunity to really get in there and really go to work. We need to get our guys in the mind set, that's what our team is going to be about, hard work."

On how the newcomers will influence this season's team:
"I had an opportunity to rotate (players in Canada) and you could see the difference between the experienced guys versus some of the younger guys. We're more athletic and a lot deeper. There are more options now. We got a few more guys that can knock shots down. I think we've got some athletic guys that can make athletic plays in terms of blocking shots and rebounding. We've got more instinctive players. And if you've got more of those it can cut down on time that a guy like J.T. Tiller had to play last year. Maybe we can get a more effective guy who doesn't have to play the quantity of minutes but has the quality of minutes."

On the amount of players he would like to use on the floor:
"We can play anywhere from 8 to 11 guys. You're going to have a core group of maybe eight guys, but we'll play 10, 11. With this team here, with so many new faces, it will be interesting to see. I think they all bring something to the table, something different to the table."

Mizzou Player Quotes:
Freshman Shooting Guard Kimmie English
On practice starting:
"I'm excited for practice to start on Friday. We have been working hard conditioning and on individual things, so we're excited to get out there as a team. We got to do work!"

On goals for the season:
"We're working hard, we're a young team, but we're just trying to win a national championship

On team unity:
"We're going good together. We're friends off the court, which translates to the unselfishness on the court. We've been here since June, we've been living together and around each other, so its exciting to finally be on the court with one another and playing as a team."

On the team's preseason trip to Canada:
"We got to practice a little bit. It was a very nice experience. We won three games, saw the sights and came back home."

Freshman Center Steve Moore
Predictions for the season:
"I think it's going to be a fun season. We have people coming back, new people coming in, and a lot of special players that fit the system, so we should do better."

On workouts:
"They're really hard, but I'm getting better by repetition. It's definitely a different ballgame, that's for sure."

On working with teammates:
"I'm getting used to them. I'm getting used to the way they pass, shoot, and the way they play, but as time goes on I'm getting better and better at it."

Senior Forward Leo Lyons
On anticipating the season:
"I feel like this season is going to be good, we have a lot of young players, a lot of fast players, and a lot of seniority, we're headed in the right direction."

Strengths and weaknesses:
"I have been working on my weaknesses a lot, and especially being a senior - I have been trying to have as few weak areas as possible. I feel like one of my strengths is being a leader on the team, helping keep up the motivation, encouraging everyone to keep playing hard. Just leading by an example."

Freshman Forward Laurence Bowers
Experience so far:
"So far my experience has been great, it has been awesome - learning about this new system, fitting into how our coaches want me to play, and getting to know my team mates."

Contributing to the success:
"I am going to try to secure any areas my coaches guide me to do. I feel like I am athletic, so hopefully I'll get out on the court and get rebounds, score around the basket, and shoot the mid range."

Weaknesses and Improvement:
"Coming up here I wasn't the strongest guy in the world, so definitely my lack of strength was my weakness. Training and putting on weight - about 10 pounds so far - has helped me to improve."

Juinor Guard Zaire Taylor
His strengths on the court:
"I like to play defense, but I also I feel like I can score the ball and shoot. I have a little athleticism to me, so I will contribute offensively and defensively. I feel like we have lot of great players out there and good leaders like Matt and DeMarre, so the chemistry on the court is good, we all work well together."

Junior Forward Keith Ramsey
Team and Personal Goals:
"Personally, I just want to continue working hard. As a team, we're trying to make it to the conference championship - that's our main goal."