Post-Game Quotes
1/17/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 17, 2009
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Michigan State Head Coach Tom Izzo
Opening comments...
We have gone five games in a row where we haven't finished very well. The battle cry of the week was focus and finish. But now that we've finished well, I'm not sure which I like better: playing well for 35 minutes and playing poorly down the stretch or playing poorly for 35 minutes and playing well down the stretch. I guess if you win, you have to live with either one, but that was not a very good basketball game from Michigan State today. I think we had 14 turnovers the first half and 18 for the game and to show you what that is like, they only had five steals so that meant we were just throwing the ball all over the place. I think you have to give Illinois credit, they played well. Raymar Morgan struggled and he had the flu last night and today. It just seems we can't catch a time when we don't have anybody sick or hurt. Our subs really hurt us early, but bounced back later on. Maybe the bright spot of the day, in order, were Morris Peterson, our fans and Marquise Gray. Gray did an unbelievable job compared to how he has been playing. I liked the way Kalin Lucas handled the end, despite not having a very good game. I told him I would put the ball in his hands and that he was going to grow up as a point guard today. I thought down the stretch he did some things very well. So we grew up a little bit, but I feel bad because the crowd was so good today, it was like old times.
On how his team found a way to win...
Between now and tomorrow's practice, I am going to figure out how it happened and then understand that we didn't play well and won, and that has to say something about your team, character and intestinal fortitude. Let's face it, though, that wouldn't have happened on the road; it happened because of the fans in the stands. We sometimes forget that back in the championship years, the fans in the stands won us a lot of games, too. Today, the home court deserved a lot of credit.
On the confusion over the shot clock call in the second half...
It was an inadvertent whistle, and so they got the ball back with one-second left. Because of that, we totally botched the in-bounds play and scored. It could have been a major play. But if he blew the whistle, it was the correct call.
On the play of Marquise Gray...
I told Marquise yesterday that his problems have probably been more effort-related or focus-related than skill-related. I told him that I had faith in him if he works and he said that was all he wanted to hear. He is going to hear it for the next six weeks, I can promise you that. He did a lot today and with a lot of players playing average, he found a way to get a lot done for us and helped us with that game.
On the emotion in the arena...
I think it's the most emotion we've had in five or six years. I don't say that against our people, but our team and our fans have to get back to being a number one. We haven't been there as a team and other programs have raised their levels a little bit and copied some of the things we've done and surpassed us in some ways. Morris Peterson is a special guy. With all these things that happen in sports, I always hear about professional athletes getting back and doing this and that, and as a coach you always want to make sure you have an impact on a player's life, but sometimes we forget players have a big impact on coaches and fans. Morris Peterson had a big impact on my life, and that's why he still calls my wife every Mother's Day and he comes back every Christmas and every summer. Morris Peterson is probably why I coach and that's why it was an emotional day for me, but it was also a day when we had to win a game and we found a way to do that under some bizarre circumstances.
Illinois Head Coach Bruce Weber
Opening Statement...
I think Tom (Izzo) has a good group. I'm sure he probably didn't feel he played exceptionally well, and I hope we had a little bit to do with it. We're disappointed and we need to put it into perspective. In two trips to Michigan, we've played in very similar games. I thought we played harder than we did tonight than we did in Ann Arbor a couple of weeks ago, but the same result. In the last five minutes, we just didn't execute and didn't have the toughness to win the game. We gave ourselves opportunities, and when you look at it, Trent (Meacham) had one field goal, Chester (Frazier) none and Demetri (McCamey) none, and we still had the opportunity to win the game, and we don't. Obviously Calvin (Brock) and Alex came off the bench and gave us a chance, but the telling story, and we talked about it at halftime, was keeping them out of the paint and limiting their layups either on their transition or on their rebounds. I think they had 10 layups in the second half and I don't know how many points they had on second chances, but that was the difference in the game. We have to be coachable and keep our head above water, because we have two teams, Ohio State and Wisconsin, who we have not done well with in the last couple years. We have to find a way if we're going to stay somewhere in this race and make sure we get our home wins.
On going with a smaller lineup in the second half...
They were small because they were in foul trouble. (Mike) Tisdale and (Goran) Suton were both in foul trouble. We went small and they kind of matched us - I'm actually not sure of who did it first. Calvin (Brock) gave us a nice boost. In the second half, you think that Tisdale is rested and we can come out with more energy but they just took it to us. They were much more physical inside and they are good at it and that was the difference in the game. We had a nine-point lead and had a 3-on-1 break and we threw the ball to the officials. Then there was another break that we got on an inbounds pass and they didn't want to get and over and back and Mike Davis tipped it ahead and we had a 3-on-1and we didn't get anything. I think they might have gotten a dunk out of it on the other end because we turned it over. Those are the kind of opportunities (we missed). We ran a little play where Calvin got a slip layup but they beat us down the floor and get an and-one. Alex hits an uncanny three with one second left on the shot clock and then they come down and Goran Suton, who has really made a lot of improvement, made a three. Down the stretch they took it over. It's disappointing again. It's not losing, it's kind of how we have lost. We have to make some strides.
On whether he agrees with Tom Izzo thinking MSU stole the win...
When you win, you probably don't have as good of a feeling when you're playing friends. When you lose - you lost. His teams compete, I love how he coaches, I love how he is as a human being and you like to play against people like that. It's a little bit like when I used to play Coach (Gene) Keady, you didn't have as good of a celebration after. It's just a good friendship.
When he said they stole it, I don't think they played really well. We didn't play really well but still had chances and they found a way to win it. We play them near the end of the season and the key will be how much progress we make before we play them the next time and can we find a way to beat them at home.
In the last five games we have been up or tied in four of them and have only won one of those games. When (Tom) gets his guys to raise their level, we have to be able to match that.
