Colorado University Athletics
Players Mentioned
CU-WSU Post Game Quotes
February 06, 2014 | Men's Basketball
Colorado Head Coach Tad Boyle
General
“A win's a win, especially in conference play and it wasn't pretty at the end. Obviously, we have to finish better and that kind of puts a bit of damper on this win; but I thought in the second half, we blew it open to like 17 or 19, but we didn't finish like we want to or need to. Our fans deserved us to finish tonight; to have 8,900 people come out on a night like this, 7:30 pm, unusual tip-time, and brave this cold weather, they deserved a better finish than they got tonight. We'll learn from this; we'll get better. There were some good things, and obviously there's still a lot of room for improvement, we just have to take it and move on.”
On G Askia Booker's Second Half Performance
“Askia [Booker] attacked the basket under control and got it to the rim. He was 9-for-12, and as you know, that's really good for Askia; when he's that efficient, our offense is pretty good. We shot 48 percent in the second half, which is a good number.”
On Finishing Games
“We didn't do a very good job of it. We like to be in that position, because that means you've got a big lead, but you have to make free throws, you have to clamp down on defense, and we didn't do either one very well down the stretch. I don't know what to say other than that we have got to get better.”
On Josh Scott's Quiet Performance
“Give Washington State credit, their game plan was double him every time he touched the ball, they did and they were on him quickly. I thought Josh did a really good job of passing out of the double-teams, but our guys have to make plays; we have to play better out of those double-teams. We have to get that ball moved and if I'm a perimeter player on this team, I have to love playing with Josh Scott because he demands so much attention down there and we didn't get him as many touches tonight; they were fronting the post and really had good help-side, but that's when he have to swing the ball quickly or skip it.”
On Where CU Has Improved Most in the Past Month
“I don't know if there is one because one of the things we're looking for is consistency. I do think the (physical) strength of this team has been good all year, tonight not as much, but we still out-rebounded them. We were plus four [in the rebound margin], which we want to be plus eight, but I think we're a good rebounding team; we just need to be a consistent rebounding team. Consistency is what we're looking for; on the defensive end and on the offensive end. We have lots of room for improvement in many different areas.”
University of Colorado Student-Athletes
Askia Booker, Jr., PG
On His Game After Halftime
“Coach just told me to be aggressive. I had to pick and choose my spots. I tried to get Josh [Scott] some touches but they were always on help's side and it was tough to get him the ball at the time, so I told him to come set the ball screen and they couldn't guard the ball screen to save their lives. So I got right down hill and got to the basket and got some easy buckets in transition.”
On How They Look At This Game Overall
“I mean, you look at it like [a win is a win] a little bit. We're happy we won, but we had a 19-point lead and we gave it up. We took it down to the last second, you know. [WSU G Davonte] Lacy came down and hit a three and we were only up by three. We can't let it get to that point. It seemed like we didn't have enough energy towards the end and we can't do that Sunday because that team (Washington) is a lot better than Washington State and they will come in here and finish us off if that's the case.”
On The Changes That Need To Be Made
“I mean we tried [in the final minutes] but then again, [Davonte] Lacy got open way too many times and I think that's something that the individuals that are guarding Lacy are going to have to come in and watch film and learn how to guard those screens because we have a great shooter coming in Sunday in [Washington's C.J.] Wilcox and he will makes those shots just as well as Lacy has. I think we did a pretty good job. We rebounded pretty well, but then again, they made a lot of shots at the end so it was rough to get those rebounds. I think [Xavier] Johnson made a big free throw but we both missed a couple free throws that we need to get in the gym and work on. But other than that, I think we did fine.”
On Washington State's Davonte Lacy's 34-Point Performance
“It doesn't matter, I don't care if everybody else had zero and he had 50. It came down to a three point game and whether it be one man or three people that's hot on their team, we have to find a way to win the game. And thank God we made those free throws at the end to hold them off, but at the same time you can't let an individual come in here, especially on the road, and let him take over and let him keep his team in the game. You have to take him out and you know, I probably should have stepped up and took on that role but coach didn't want me to at the time. But you know, different game, different circumstances, so it depends on who's going to be guarding who and I think we'll be fine down the road.”
Xavier Johnson, So., G
On His Role Tonight
“Josh [Scott's] back is hurting him right now, so coach preaches everybody rebounding, defending, so that's what I'm trying to do. And when Josh is out and not playing his usual game, someone has to step up. I have to make my free throws a lot, that's what I'm going to do tomorrow, shoot some free throws but we just have to close out opponents. We were up by 19 and we have to be able to lock down and know who's their best scorer and be able to shut him down, cut him off from scoring. And we didn't do that so they were able to come back, but in the end we did win the game.”
On The Teams' Rising Players
“I think [Xavier]Talton is stepping up big really big lately for us you know. Freshman year he would have been a lot [more] nervous coming out but this year you see a lot of confidence in his game and I feel like the same thing is happening with Jaron [Hopkins]. He was thrown into a tough situation and coach thought he was ready, I still think he's ready, but it's his choice and I mean, they are still learning how to play. I think Jaron is going to be a great player, I think he's fine and he's stepping up for us.”
Washington State Head Coach Ken Bone
On The Tempo Of The Game
“There wasn't a lot of flow to the game. That's partially the way we played. That's even what Colorado was doing in the first half. Tad [Boyle] did a good job of getting his guys playing that Colorado way – a little bit more up than down and a little more free flowing. They really took it to us early in the second half and I think that ended up being a pivotal point in the game.”
On Davonte Lacy's 34-Point Performance
“Davonte did a really nice job. He played 37 minutes and scored really well. We needed every point to stay in the game. He's a great shooter. What's impressive is that he was out for a month and this is only his second game back. He did a really nice job.”
On Playing Colorado Without Spencer Dinwiddie
“I think with Spencer's presence on the floor, they are simply a better basketball team. He's such a great player. They're still good. Coach Boyle is an outstanding coach. . . He does a super job and they are going to get better and better and they'll be good come playoff time.”
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