University of Minnesota Athletics
Minnesota-NDSU postgame quotes
11/29/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
POSTGAME QUOTES
Minnesota (6-0) 90, North Dakota State (2-2) 76
Williams Arena Minneapolis, Minn.
Attendance: 13,611
November 29, 2008
Minnesota Coach Tubby Smith
On how North Dakota State matched up...
“Their coach Saul Phillips did a great job and always does with them. North Dakota State was With well coached and was pretty athletic too. The team has a strong bench and they can definitely shoot the three. They are never out of a game and they showed that tonight.”
On stepping up on defense...
“We were getting our hands on a lot of balls and causing deflections. We did a good job stopping them and forcing some turnovers. But we had 17 turnovers of our own so they did a better job of stopping us.”
On Damien Johnson’s play...
“With Damien back in the lineup, we have an athletic presence on the court. He is an intelligent player. When you combine that with his toughness and athleticism, he really adds a lot for us. He is dominant on defense and gets in the opponents face to shut them down.”
On chemistry between Iverson and Sampson...
“That is why we practice and why those two are here now. We expect big things from them. We want the freshmen to be confident and the other players to be confident in them. We eventually want to have a “twin tower” and we’re almost there. They both really add the quickness in the four and five spots.”
Minnesota G Lawrence Westbrook
On early play of Jamal Abu-Shamala...
“Jamal is one of our key players. He’s a senior and he’s played in a lot of games. When he came out and was hitting on all cylinders, it just pumped everybody up. It forces everyone on the team to raise their level of play.”
On his health...
“I’m feeling ok. I’ve got some bruises and I’m sore but that just comes with basketball. I’m not going to make any excuses, I’m just going to go out and play like everyone else.”
On team’s energy level...
“Ralph (Sampson) did a great job getting and-one’s. He did a good job of finishing when he got the ball. Our defense played well tonight. NDSU got some open looks at three pointers, but that’s what is going to happen with a team that shoots so many threes. For the most part, we buckled down defensively and got a lot of deflections.”
On upcoming Big Ten-ACC challenge...
“I’m excited for it. It’s a big game on ESPN. Virginia is a good team and I think we have a good chance to win. I know everyone is excited and we were talking about it in the locker room. I’m looking forward to playing on Tuesday.”
Minnesota F/G Jamal Abu-Shamala
On being a vocal leader...
“I’ve always been an emotional player I think that helps my game. It elevates me to another level. Whenever I think it’s a big game, I always get hyped up for it. It’s good because the other guys feed off that. I’ve been through a lot in the four years I’ve been here. I know it’s important to start off well in a game like this and to sustain that throughout the game.”
On NDSU’s performance...
“They scored a lot of points. They have some excellent shooters who can penetrate. They have good chemistry as well. As the season goes on, they’ll be a tough team to beat.”
On facing Virginia in the Big Ten-ACC Challenge on Tuesday...
“We haven’t had much success in the past in the Big Ten-ACC Challenge during my career. It’s a big opportunity for us to show our skills on national television. We’re playing a good team in Virginia and I think that’s something that everyone is going to be excited for. We have to prove that we can hang with teams like them.”
On Ralph Sampson III’s performance...
“I thought he did a great job today. If he keeps improving like he has, he’s going to be a very tough player. He keeps gaining confidence and it’s huge for him. He goes in with the attitude that he wants to get better every day. He can be a great player in his four years here.”
North Dakota State head coach Saul Phillips
Opening statement:
“I have to tip my hat to Coach Smith and the Gophers. They shot the heck out of the ball. We couldn’t get any traction defensively. The high-major games we’ve played it seems that we’ve had few shots that rattle in and out. If those shots would’ve gone down for us today, it could have been really interesting down the stretch. Minnesota made every play and we couldn’t get stops when we needed them most. [Ralph] Sampson put the nail in the coffin with his put-backs at the end.”
On Minnesota’s pressure...
“Minnesota can come at you with many different ways with their pressure. We didn’t start off very well. I thought after the half, we settled down and I thought our guys did a nice job adjusting to Minnesota’s pressure. I thought it was a tale of two halves; we were able to slow down their transitions much better in the second half with the baskets we made. [Made baskets] slowed Minnesota down. Once we settled in, we were able to adjust to Minnesota’s pressure.”
