Post-Game Quotes
11/16/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 16, 2008
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EAST LANSING, Mich. -
Michigan State Head Coach Tom Izzo
Opening comments...
This was a game where I didn't really know what to expect because of the newness of Don Verlin being there and so many different players. We had some very bright spots like Kalin Lucas getting 13 points and nine assists and no turnovers. I think it was decent that we didn't turn the ball over much as a team. In fact, I think three or four of ours were charges and you have to give credit to Idaho on that. (Raymar) Morgan, as well as he played, only gets one rebound. To get out-rebounded by that team was disappointing. Yet, there were some real bright spots in maybe the passing, and yet we were not real sharp when we had three bigs in there with (Delvon) Roe, Morgan and (Goran) Suton, I think because we didn't practice that very much because Roe can't really practice a lot in that situation. Some of our problems are still going to remain problems for a while. But that was a very athletic team and a very tough team. I loved Brandon Wiley and Luis Augusto, they played very hard and rebounded very well. I did not think we defended very well at the guard position, and that's scary because most of the time the opponents best players are their two and three men. But, all in all, we shot the ball well, shot it decent from the free-throw line, didn't turn it over much and had a lot of assists, which means there was a lot of sharing going on. Hopefully, we will continue to address the negatives and approve on the positives.
On the versatility of Chris Allen...
I thought the first half it was nonexistent, and then in the second half, he got so much more aggressive and so much better with the ball. He also goes in and gets a couple of offensive rebounds. He played with a sense of purpose in the second half, and I thought that was one of the best halves of basketball he has played. I was very pleased with his second half because I was not pleased with his first half. I told him about it and then he responded which I think is a big step.
On what he was able to take away from the game...
I really got a lot out of this. I mean, the team out-rebounded us, so I'm going to get a lot out of that. They also had very quick, athletic and strong guards. I thought Kashif Watson took us to the cleaners a few times, just dribble-driving us. I thought Mac Hopson did a very good job and he played in the Pac-10 with Washington State. This is not a bad basketball team. They are very well-coached and they run a lot of good stuff. We had to change because of Luciano de Souza becoming eligible on Friday. We had to make some adjustments this morning because he is so much more versatile. I thought we did a pretty good job sticking with him. I think we got a lot out of this game in a lot of ways, both positive and negative.
On the continued development of Chris Allen and Durrell Summers...
Well, I think Chris Allen and Durrell Summers are two of the better wing guys we've ever had. They aren't even close to being the best yet, but I think they are potentially two of the better wing guys that have played here. Those two guys have the chance to be special. That class, with those two guys and Kalin Lucas, has a chance to be a very special class. But consistency and aggressiveness are two words that would tip the scales with them.
On the play of Austin Thornton...
About a week ago, Austin Thornton and I spent some time together just talking about where he's going and what he's doing. Last week, he shot the ball very well. He is a competitive kid and he responds. I don't mean responding to getting chewed out, I mean responding to getting challenged. He has responded, and now he has to respond on the defensive end because somebody has to defend on that end. He shot it with confidence, and he does that in practice. It is a tribute to his toughness, his perseverance and his ability to take some criticism and build on it, which not all guys can do. I thought he got what he deserved and I think he'd probably have a few more minutes if he didn't get busted in the chops.
On the decision to not red-shirt Draymond Green...
He earned it when he lost the weight, got in better shape and because he's probably our toughest, most aggressive inside player. We'll see if he's going to be in good enough condition. I think we still need to get another big guy to play well, but I just know that Marquise Gray should have had double-digit rebounds even though I think he played pretty well. I'm very pleased with the way Delvon Roe played. I still think he's a long way from his best, but he's making so much progress. Everybody says he's farther along than we thought he would be. He's done an incredible job, and he and Green are tough guys that can get some stuff done.
On using Raymar Morgan and Delvon Roe on the court at the same time...
When we signed (Delvon) Roe, there was no question that that would probably be the line-up. I think that will be there, but I just don't know when. It's probably the hardest thing I have do to right now. I want to play Roe more, but I want to understand what the doctors want. Delvon will never tell me because he is too competitive and tough. So we're trying to do it the right way, but at the same time, we need to practice that line-up more. We can't afford to practice him all the time, though. I have to figure out a way to get Delvon in there.
Idaho Head Coach Don Verlin
Opening statement...
First if all, I would like to thank Michigan State for inviting us here and kicking our tails tonight. They dominated us in every phase of the game. What we saw tonight was obviously a top-five team, or maybe even better. I thought they played really hard and executed their game really well and, like I said, they dominated us in every phase of the game.
On collecting more rebounds than MSU...
I attribute that to us missing more shots. To be honest with you, we missed a ton of shots in the first half, and they shot 60 percent from the field and 52 percent from three point range. That's the reason we out-rebounded them. But I thought our guys competed pretty hard on the boards. As you can tell, I didn't think we competed very well tonight. Obviously, Michigan State is really good and Coach (Tom) Izzo has a great program, but our team needs to compete harder and execute better if we are going to get better and execute the way that we want.
On MSU's depth and pressure...
The one thing I thought is that their pressure was really good; as good as I've seen. They worked us fullcourt all night and really wore us out. They also ran the break better than any Michigan State team that I've ever seen. They were doing a great job. They are really deep, as deep as I've seen a Michigan State team. Their depth is unbelievable and they just keep coming at you.
On Kalin Lucas' play at the point...
I thought their sophomore point guard that they have had a great game. Nine assists, no turnovers, man that's good. He also really pressured our point guard all night and kept us out of our offense all night. I thought he was the key player of the game. A couple of other guys had big nights, but he's the one who gave us problems all night long.
