Colorado University Athletics
Players Mentioned
CU-USC Postgame Quotes
January 18, 2014 | Men's Basketball
University of Colorado Head Coach Tad Boyle
General
“This was just what the doctor ordered for this team, in terms of timing, this was the kind of game we needed. I'm really proud of our guys, from the end of the bench to the guys on the floor for the way they responded. We talked about it at halftime, the frustrating thing about the UCLA game was second chance points and points off turnovers, and we had four turnovers at halftime and they had two offensive rebounds. Our team took what they had not done against UCLA and did a much better job. Obviously it's one game, we have to move on. I said this after the UCLA game and I'll say it again, don't count this team out, these guys have toughness, they have grit, and we can win some games in this league. All you can ask for in life is an opportunity and we have a great one in front of us.”
On The Pace Of The Game
“I loved the pace of the game, we knew with USC playing at altitude that the pace was just what we wanted from the get-go. Getting off to a 20-2 start was a confidence builder for our guys.”
On The Team's Confidence Level
“Our guys believe, they believe in each other, they believe in themselves. We've been practicing well. The thing I like about our guys is that they took what we were working on in practice and they did it in the game. Even the unit that was in there at the end of the game, they had a great possession. That's the way we want to play, we used the shot clock, we played inside-out and we got an easy basket, when we play unselfishly this team can be really good.”
On Askia Booker
“He has never had a game like this. He played within himself and was efficient. When he's efficient we're pretty darn good, I thought he was terrific.”
On The Shot-Distribution
“We had great performances from everybody, whether it showed up in the stats or not. The shot-distribution, when you have it that even across the board and you have a lot of weapons, you're a lot harder to guard.”
On Xavier Johnson's Defense
“Xavier Johnson, we really challenged him. With the lineup we play, he's going to have to guard a good perimeter player. With Spencer [Dinwiddie] out, a lot of that is going to fall on XJ's lap and he responded well, I thought all of our guys did, I thought our perimeter defense was really good. When we defend and we rebound, the results take care of themselves.”
On The Team's Identity
“Our identity is not going to shift, our identity is going to be we're going to guard you, we're going to take care of the ball, and we're going to rebound the ball. Our identity is not going to change, I was planning on playing next year without Spencer Dinwiddie anyway, it just came a little bit earlier. You're getting a pretty good peak into next year's team. It's imperative that we understand that we have to get better every day. That's the identity of our team, to get better every day.”
“Jaron's been really coachable. I asked him to be really aggressive in transition, he did that tonight. He got to the rim – no turnovers – that's terrific. Jaron was great, and we're going to need him to be. We've thrown him into the pool, and he's a swimmer.”
University of Colorado Student-Athletes
Askia Booker Jr., PG
On Importance Of Getting A Quick Start Today
“It was very important. Coach [Tad Boyle] was talking about bouncing back the past few days and he told us in the locker room that he told you guys not to count us out. I think he was correct about that. Although this team wasn't the best team in our league or in the top three but we still came out with a twenty-point win and we still have room for improvement.”
On This Win Being Crucial And Improved Cohesiveness
“We needed it a lot. When the whole team gets in and everybody gets a little piece of the victory it's great. We can only feed off of this. The last press conference we had I talked about the other guys stepping up. I think other guys stepped up tonight. Xavier Johnson, Wesley Gordon, and Jaron Hopkins played well and I only shot five times. When they're aggressive I don't have to do as much and it takes a lot off of me. That's what we need.”
On Getting First Win Without Spencer Dinwiddie
“Spencer's a key aspect of this team. It was rough the first game but I think tonight it showed that we came together and played as a team. We were all aggressive and tonight's just a sign of letting our team know that we can win without him.”
On Team Developing Without Spencer Dinwiddie
“Everyone is growing up. The young guys are growing up. Jaron [Hopkins] is in the starting line-up and he's a freshman. He has to grow up and tonight's a good sign of him. He's pushing the ball and doing what coach [Tad Boyle] asks him to do. He's trying to defend and that's what we're going to need him to do. Spencer [Dinwiddie] was guarding a lot of the big guards and he's going to have to do that for us. It's just a sign of maturity. Everybody has to grow up.”
On Playing More Like Spencer Dinwiddie
“I mean the ball is going to be in my hands a little bit more; especially on the (fast) break. The big guys look for me right away because I come to the ball and I demand it. Once I'm getting the flow of pushing in and slicing it down the floor my first thought is attack the basket, but if somebody cuts me off, find a teammate. I think I did a decent job of that tonight, especially coming off of ball screens. I found Josh [Scott], Wesley [Gordon], and Xavier [Johnson]; when they make the shot it's great for the team. It's not that bad [not shooting much]. I always want to shoot, but at the same time if I shoot 3-for-5 and we win by twenty I'm not complaining, but if we lose by twenty and I only shoot five shots that tells you I'm not being aggressive. It depends on the night.”
On Blocking USC's 7'0” D.J. Haley
“It's happened in practice, but not in a college basketball game. I guess it was a pretty nice block and I'll probably go watch that again. It's not that high, it's just a good defensive play and we need stops like that, whether it is from me or Jaron [Hopkins] or Josh [Scott]. Whoever it may be, there's a lot of times where we front the post and they throw it over the top and the weak side guy has to be there. Tonight I was there. It's good that we were locked in and getting stops.”
Jaron Hopkins Fr., G
On Defending USC G Bryon Wesley
“It was very important. We started in practice yesterday just going through scouting report. I just wanted to get out and defend as best I could. That's what I did and I gave it my all.”
On Gaining Confidence In Conference Play
“I think I'm playing with pretty good confidence. I think it could be better, I just have to keep going out there and practicing and working on my game in my off time. I can compete at the point guard spot, so I have to keep working on my game. I thought [UCLA] was a winnable game for us; UCLA is a really good team but we just made small errors and the game went the other way. If we pick those errors up and don't make those kinds of mistakes against better teams in the Pac-12 we can win those games. It gives us a lot of confidence, especially me. But we're not going to let that override the challenge that we have. We know that Arizona is a really good team. They're number one in the nation. We're just going to have to go dial in, listen to the coaches, and play by the game plan.”
USC Head Coach Andy Enfield
On Starting Game With A 20-2 Point Differential
“We had great energy to start the game and we missed five point-blank shots in the first three or four minutes of the game and we turned the ball over and we had a lay-up and we put the ball on the floor. We basically missed 12 points to start the game where we should've finished and we didn't finish a single one; they were just lay-ups and three or four foot shots. That enabled them to jump out on us and Colorado is an excellent team. I was proud of our effort and our guys. We had a great practice yesterday and they came in here ready to play. It was discouraging to miss so many opportunities to the start the game, but after that hot start by Colorado we played tremendous basketball and made a lot of shots. I was proud of our effort because we basically played them even the rest of the game. We need to try to put this all together now. We kept our turnovers down, we only had three in the second half, we shot 16-of-17 from the foul line, but we just didn't make our easy baskets the entire night and it was frustrating.”
On Trying To Overcome Shots Not Going In
“Give our team credit, because they kept playing hard and our starting three guards were 0-for-11 from the field at half time but they were trying and playing hard and [USC G]Byron Wesley who averages 17 points a game missed a lot of drives to the basket he normally misses and [USC G] Pe'shon Howard and [USC G] Julian Jacobs missed some open shots and some drives. As a coaching staff we're not upset with our players and I know it's frustrating for our players when they miss and they don't score. We have to do a better job with keeping the other team out of transitions when we do miss shots. We felt very confident coming in here but give Colorado credit they made a lot of shots tonight, a lot of jump shots and they got some layups from their big players and they're excellent players.”
On What The Team Can Take Away From A Game Like This
“We played basically an even game after they got up 20-2 on us, but it was basically an even game after that and when you keep your turnovers down and you make your free throws, even if you shoot a low percentage from the field like we did, you can still be in most games. We have some work to do defensively. Colorado did a great job making shots, they shot 50 percent from the field so what we take out of it are some positives. We also have to work on some of our defensive concepts and prevent other teams from shooting such a high percent.”
On The Strength Of The Pac-12 Conference
“This conference is really tough this year and it's a credit to the Pac-12 and a credit to the players, the programs, and there's a lot of great players in this league and some excellent coaches which I think is great for our league. When you go on the road you have your hands full every night, and so give Colorado credit they played a great game tonight.”
On Goals For The Remainder Of The Season
“We would like to win as many games as we can; we need to work on our strengths and work on our weaknesses, and we just need to continue to do that. I was very proud of our mentality today, our guys were great teammates and they were encouraging each other. We're just going to keep showing up every day and working.”
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