Colorado University Athletics
Colorado, Texas Tech Quotes
March 06, 2010 | Men's Basketball
Colorado Head Coach Jeff Bzdelik
General- "I'd like to thank our fans, the student body, for their support throughout this year. They were just a major part of success we had this year at home. They made a difference and we appreciate them very much. Congratulations to Dwight [Thorne II] and Trent [Beckley] for their contribution in a great way to this basketball program and this university; for the way they have conducted themselves on and off the court. They're both going to be very successful in a lot of ways in whatever they choose to do. As far as the game is concerned, we got off the great start. We were able to score; we have to find a way to defend them better when we meet again on Wednesday."
On The Danger of Playing Teams Back-to-back- "I think it's a mental approach. We certainly have to have that edge, mentally because they're going to have it for sure. Their coaches can draw up on the fact that they lost here as a tangible motivating factor. Can we build that edge that we had coming into this game? We certainly need to improve defensively and on the boards."
On Turning Things Around After Loss to Missouri- "I think it's a credit to our players. I don't know if there is anybody in the country who can go to Missouri, Kansas and Kansas State, have those three road games in succession, and fare well. We have to keep things in perspective and not look back. When you look back all you get is a stiff neck. We just have to work hard to continue to get better. That's a credit to our players because that's what they did."
On the Season Freshman Alec Burks Has Had- "To me, he should be the freshman of the year in the Big 12, I think that just says it all. He's a very talented player. He coupled with Cory [Higgins], I've heard people call them one of the best wing tandems in the nation, and they certainly are."
On Finishing Eighth in a Conference With Seven Tournament Teams- "It's tangible evidence that we're taking steps forward. Next year we need to finish higher than that. If we do, than there is a good chance we'll be going to the dance, so we just need to keep showing improvement. When I first came here, I said that I couldn't just wave a magic wand and have this happen overnight. We had a vision to build a program, to build a culture the right way, and we knew that would take time. Fortunately, the majority of the fans and the administration have been very supportive. The majority of you [the media] have been very patient and honest and fair, and I appreciate that very much. We just need to keep going forward. How do we keep doing that? Tomorrow we go back to practice and try to improve upon what we didn't do well today, so that maybe on Wednesday we do it better."
On a Potential Post-Season Berth- "You never know. We play in the number one RPI conference in the country, in which seven teams are going into the NCAA Tournament, and we're eighth. All we can do is take care of what we can control and that is trying our very best to get a win on Wednesday, and keep going. That's what we can control. In football, with the BCS, if you finish .500 you're going to a bowl game. With us playing in the league we're playing in, you just never know. You just have to keep getting better and try to get as many wins as you can. Our strength of schedule is extremely high. When you factor in those things, you just never know. Right now our only focus is trying to get better and playing better on Wednesday."
On Wednesday's Game Plan- "It kind of reminds me of the NBA. Immediately after the game, I'll watch the Texas Tech game and I'll make an edit, and I'll ask, 'Can we do this differently? Maybe this will work better than it did today.' You make adjustments; sometimes you make adjustments for the better and sometimes for the worse. Just have to evaluate the film and see perhaps what you can do better schematically that might help you. Sometimes you don't do a thing."
Texas Tech Head Coach Pat Knight
On the Game-"We are in a bad way. It's been a bad three weeks. I take the blame. I have done a bad job because it falls on the head coach, so I have to do something to change this. We have lost seven in a row. It's my fault. I have to figure out some way to change it. We are not defending, which is the main thing. We gave up 101 points here tonight. It's not just them, that's just way too much. The first half we got down way too much and we couldn't come back. It was bad. The first half was brutal. They just killed us; buried us. We have to play them again on Wednesday. I don't know, we are just in a bad way right now, and I don't know how to get out of it."
On the Fear of Playing Colorado Again So Soon-"I mean, letting them score 100 again. We have to examine the tapes and see where they scored on us, and what worked for us offensively, and try to change it. So we will see. The one thing about losing is that I think it's easier to prepare if you have to play someone again if you lose because you are ticked off and you did something to lose so now you can try to correct that. It's going to be tough. They are going to be playing with confidence, they have won two in a row and we have lost seven in a row. From the confidence factor, they have got the edge."
On the Losing Streak-"We were sitting at 4-5. Again I take the blame. It's been a bad job for three weeks. I have got to figure out some way to turn it. These kids have played hard, but it falls on me. I have got to figure out something in the next three days to see if we can at least get one more win. The demeanor is awful. Losing seven games in a row, you are looking at a team that is just whooped right now."
On if Colorado's Play was Surprising-"No. We just didn't follow through very well. We had bad ball pressure. We didn't jump to the ball. It wasn't anything we didn't go over."
On if there is Anything You Would Have Done Differently-"No, but I know how this business runs. Put the blame on me, don't mess with the kids."
On G Nick Okorie-"It's brutal. Any time you are a senior, you want to win and try to get a win. I give him credit. He didn't quit, he is hanging in there. You have to give him credit; he has played well for three weeks."
On Use of the Last Timeout-"We want to trap and get a stop. You have to get a stop. Our problem is we had a chance to cut into stuff, and then we either make a bad play or a dumb play and instead of cutting it to six, they will make a three and they are up eight, we could have cut it to six, and now they are up 11. That has been the M.O. for three weeks."
Colorado Players
Cory Higgins, Junior, Guard
ON PLAYING TEXAS TECH AGAIN IN THE BIG 12 TOURNAMENT- "We don't have a choice. We knew that coming in, that we would probably play them again on Wednesday. We have a good feel for them now and we know what we have to do better."
ON CONFIDENCE AFTER THREE-GAME WIN STREAK- "This is probably the most confidence since I have been part of the Colorado program. I think this team has a little bit of cockiness and swagger, and I think that helped us a lot through this year."
ON BOUNCING BACK AFTER LOSS TO MISSOURI- "We just had a choice to either cave in or push through. Obviously, I don't think we're a bunch of people that would cave in. We've been through the worst of the worst, so I think everybody just decided that we have to push."
ON EXPECTATIONS FOR POST-SEASON PLAY- "We have to win that game [against Texas Tech] at least. We just have to win that first game."
ON WINNING ON SENIOR NIGHT- "We love Dwight and he has been a huge part of this program for the past four years. We definitely wanted to send him out on a high note."
ON ADJUSTMENTS FOR REMATCH WITH TEXAS TECH- "We have to stop somebody. We gave up 90 points. They were getting too many easy buckets, and it's the same old things; rebounds, we need to tighten up on the defensive end. We can't let them score 90 points again and expect we are going to score 100 because that doesn't happen."
Alec Burks, Freshman, Guard
ON BREAKING FRESHMAN SCORING RECORD- "It means a lot. It means a great freshman performance, so it means a great deal to me to break that record."
ON REALIZING POTENTIAL TO CONTRIBUTE- "I felt like in the Maui tournament I saw the way I was playing and it really helped everybody out; it helped the team out. I just felt like I could contribute on the team."
ON TEAM'S FIRST HALF PERFORMANCE- "It was a big start and a big confidence booster. We wanted to get that W for Dwight, so we had to come out strong and show we can finish a game off strong."
Casey Crawford, Junior, Forward
ON ADVANTAGE OF PLAYING TEXAS TECH AGAIN- "We know how they guard and their matchups, so we know how they are going to play us. They're probably going to change some things a little bit because we beat them tonight, but we have a good idea of how to stop them and how to beat them."
