University of Minnesota Athletics
Minnesota/Portland Postgame Quotes
11/28/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Minnesota -
Coach Tubby Smith (Overall Statement):
"I was most certainly impressed with Portland, and the way they executed and made shots. They did a good job defensively, so you have to give them credit where it's deserved. (T.J.) Campbell really controlled the game from start to finish. I thought T.J. is a very outstanding point guard, so we had our problems trying to contain him. We really couldn't get it going, so it was a tough loss, so I really commend Portland on how they played."
On the team's shot selection against Portland:
"We took some poor shots last night and we did that for a few games and got away with it and those things will catch up with you. We had some good looks and they just didn't drop. The shot selection wasn't a good night."
On what's coming next for the team:
"It's still early in the season and we got a lot to work on and a lot to learn. I think just from tonight we've got to work on our execution, shot selection, rebounding the ball and free throw shooting. It's just a lot of things we've got to get busy concentrating on."
Portland -
Coach Eric Reveno -
"My comments are pretty similar to last night. I'm so proud of these guys. We worked hard to get here and it kind of chokes me up. There's been so much blood, sweat and tears with this team. Their discipline, commitment and trust in our staff and selves is great to see. You can't really do anything in your practice plan to simulate the last couple of nights. I'm most proud of how good we were offensively. I try to appreciate to them how our offense is solid, but we need to improve on our defense. Tonight we guarded and disrupted them and that shows the improvement of our defense."
On quality wins:
"We thought playing a good team like Eastern Washington and defeating Oregon were pretty big wins for us. If we had played this tournament two weeks ago, I don't think we would have had the same results, and that just shows the improvement of this team."
On possibly appearing in the top-25:
"I turned the TV on a little and then quickly turned it off. It's tough to get your hands around what could happen. We are just going to continue to be grounded and level-headed. We have to focus on our goals which are beyond Sunday. It's tough not to get distracted, but we have to let the guys celebrate these big victories and accolades that come with them."
TJ Campbell
On shot selection:
"It seemed like we got open shots, but the stats show that we weren't shooting that well. It's great to see our defense step up and really help us tonight."
On not relinquishing the lead:
"It's tough for any team to come back when they are down. We just kept pushing and didn't let them get ahead of us."
On playing quality teams:
"It helps us a lot because it gives us more experience and we know where we are at and what we need to work on."
Robin Smeulders
On possibly moving into the top-25:
"I think we deserve it. My first three years we got rocked, sometimes by 40 points, and it's nice to see us finally battling and winning against some solid teams. It wouldn't surprise me one bit if we were ranked after this tournament."
