Colorado-BYU Quotes

Colorado Head Coach Tad Boyle

General
"That was a really good win for Colorado basketball. I've got a lot of respect for BYU; I've got a lot of respect for (BYU coach) Dave Rose. We beat a good team tonight. It's going to be one of those wins as we look backwards. They're 6-3 right now, but they lost a tough road game at Long Beach State by a point and lost at Utah. They're going to win a lot of games as the season unfolds and be one of the top teams in their league. I've got a lot of respect for the team we just beat. For that, I'm thankful. We hit our numbers defensively: field goal percentage and rebounding margin. We always talk about when we hit those numbers, the score takes care of itself and I thought it did tonight. We've got room for improvement, but it was a good win."

On BYU's Run in the Second Half
"We knew they were going to make a run, there's no question. We helped it with our turnovers. We had six turnovers in eight possessions. It went from a 25-point game to a 10-point game pretty darn quickly. I was going to call a timeout, but there was a media timeout coming. I have confidence in our defense. We're up 13, then [Nick] Emery comes down and hits a three in transition and cuts it to 10. I called a timeout a possession too late. We knew they were going to make a run; it was just a matter of time. We can't let that to be a 15-0 run; it's got to be a six or seven point run. We've got to limit those. We helped them by not taking care of the basketball. Credit BYU. They're a good team."

On Playing a Complete Game
"That stretch – I don't know how long it took, it seemed like it took two minutes, but it might have been four or five – I thought we played 36 minutes of pretty darn good basketball. I thought we defended well, rebounded well, and we battled. They're a good team. They've got good inside players. Those guys are skilled and can score on the block. They double-teamed our posts, they went zone, and they tried to keep us off balance. We played a pretty good basketball game. We weren't great, we weren't perfect, but we played good enough to beat a very good team."

On Tonight's Attendance
"It's the best it's been all year. I always start with the fans that show up. We're so appreciative. I thought the students were great. The energy in the building was good. Any time there's an empty seat in the Coors Event Center, we've got room for improvement. Our organization – I'm talking about marketing to students to coaches to players, you name it – we've got work to do when we don't sellout a BYU team who's been to the NCAA Tournament eight of the last 9 years I believe. I don't know if my numbers are right, but that's a big-time team. We've got to sell those games out. The fans that are here: thank you, I appreciate you, I love you, but we've got to sell this game out. That's all I'll say."

On Team Responding to Adversity
"We had a chance for a letdown coming off the CSU game; it's an in-state rivalry, it's finals season, guys are spending a lot of time meeting with tutors and away from basketball and maybe some sleepless nights. Our guys, they've come to practice. We had two really good practices this week with one that was just okay, not great. The way they came out and answered the bell tonight, to me that's how you're judged is answering the bell on game night. Up until this point, we've taken care of business in our schedule outside of the Iowa State game obviously, which we'd all love to have back. I like this team. I like their composure; I like their intensity; they're taking care of business, which we've got to continue to do. We've got a lot of room for improvement."

On Xavier Talton's Role
"I told X he's going to have some games where he's going to be really, really critical to our success and there's going to be some games where he may not play as many minutes as he wants. All of our guys want to play more and I get that. I wouldn't say his role has diminished. He's an important part of our team. He can play. He's got great senior leadership; he's got experience; he can come off the bench; he can make shots; he takes care of the ball and defends. That's what we need him to do. X is important. Our bench was the difference in the game tonight, I really believe that. We wore them down and they got tired. Our bench in the first half played terrific. Not so much in the second half when they made their run. They made their run when we had maybe one or two starters in there. I'm pleased with where he is. I know he wants to play more; he's a senior. He's an important part of this team. He'll have his opportunities as this season unfolds."

On George King Playing Well on the Defensive End to go Along with His Offense
"It's a little early to say that, but he's certainly made a step forward tonight, much like I think Josh Fortune took a step forward against [Gian] Clavelle against CSU in the second half. George did a pretty darn good job against [Kyle] Collinsworth against a good player. He did take it on as a challenge. I think Fletch [Tre'Shaun Fletcher] did too when he came in the game, so kudos to them. Anybody who was at this game and saw BYU understands how good Collinsworth is. We wore him down. We wanted to pick him up full-court and try to have him expend some energy bringing the ball up the floor. I thought George was terrific defensively."

Colorado Players

Josh Scott, Sr., F

On BYU shooting threes in second half and cutting the lead
"They did against Utah; so we knew that they were capable of it. They went on a run in the second half when we were up 25 to bring it within 10. I think that made them believe that they could come back and win the game. We have to improve on that by not being let down when a certain group comes off the floor and another group comes in. It has to be constant."

On 20-point lead getting cut down in second half
"An issue with this team is turning the ball over too much in opportune times. They were hitting threes and we knew they get back in games shooting threes. If we can just play solid, not turn the ball over, and take away what the other team is good at for a full 40 minutes then I think we would have blown them out by 25. But credit that team because they are a good team and they came back. I am just really proud of all of our guys just because we fought and hit free throws. The game was over, we won, happy day."

On Coors Events Center Crowd
"It's about time. I think we have a really good team and I would be lying to say that I wasn't a little disappointed when we were on a roll right before CSU and not to have more people there. But it was really cool to see all those people show up, especially during finals and the snow. We are really appreciative and it helped make a difference."

On overcoming adversity.
"You spend two plus months in Boulder grinding, pain trains, and the hot sun. I think something has to give and I think it gave this summer. I think each one of us care about one another and we want each other to do well because we know that is the only way the team can succeed."

On almost playing a full 40 minute game for the first time this season
"It was the closest but not a full 40. I thought around the 12 minute mark in the second half was about the best basketball we have been playing against a good team. But like I said, it can't change when a group comes off the floor and another group comes in. It has to stay constant, obviously we are not perfect, but it is something we need to get better at and we will."

George King, So., G

On guarding Kyle Collinsworth the majority of the night
"That was my whole main focus because he is a great player. The team's he's played before and the guys that were guarding him didn't really do a great job at making him work. Coach Boyle really challenged me and asked me to make him work to catch and don't give him anything easy. If you do that then you will be happy with it and that's what I did."

On overcoming adversity
"I think it just our off the court comradery and chemistry. We hang out a lot off the court and it makes it a lot easier when we are on the court. We get through adversity and guys aren't afraid to call guys out or pick a guy up. We might not have had that as much last year."

Xavier Talton, Sr., G

On his role on the team
"I have been all over the place throughout my four years here. So I had a sense of what I would need to do this year. I don't think it is too much of an adjustment."

On gaining confidence with made shots
"Whenever you see a couple of shots go in it always gives you confidence. It's always nice to see the ball go in and I just have to keep being patient and let my time come."

On adding offensive spark this season
"It really just comes down to taking care of the ball and being able to knock down the shot when I am open."

BYU Head Coach Dave Rose

General
"First of all, Colorado is a really good team. They are very well coached, they spaced the floor really well. They had five really good offensive players out there at a time. They spread us out and got shots that they wanted early. We changed defenses, slowed the game down a little bit. We just are not consistent enough offensively and in being able to hit open shots, shots that we work for. Our ability to rebound in big key moments [is critical]. They beat us in big key moments. We did do some really good things compared to some other games that we have had issues with, especially when we aren't hitting shots. But overall, Colorado really impressed me with their team and how they play together."

On Their Second Half Comeback
"We had a lot of looks that we're used to making. We had a hard time when we started so we got behind. Going inside, their size and strength and length caused us issues. We finally got on a run when we started hitting shots and put a little pressure on them. But they were really consistent in answering every time we made a run. They answered pretty well."

On Freshmen Zac Seljaas and Nick Emery
"There are some real positive things. You take two freshmen, Zac [Seljaas] and Nick [Emery], and this was their best road game by far. 41 points, I think they had nine rebounds between the two of them. That's something that we really need, especially on the road. You look at our record on the road and our inability to execute the way that this team is capable of executing. That's a good sign for two young kids to come out and play in a tough spot, execute and play well."

On The Team's Ability to 'Chase and Check'
"Early in the game I thought they did good job of being two up on the catch and hurrying them a little bit. He'll tell you, he had a lot of clean looks, looks that he was really capable of making."

On Playing On the Road
"We have to play better. We played better tonight than when we played our first night out on the road so you build on that. We have to play with more confidence and consistency. We have to be little bit quicker defensively. We're a step slow at times tonight. Things that are really important to win on the radar you can't turn the ball over, you have to hit free throws and you have to be able to rebound. We did two of those things pretty well compared to the other night but we just got man handled on the boards."