University of Oklahoma Athletics
Oklahoma Postgame Quotes
February 07, 2009 | Men's Basketball
Feb. 7, 2009
Oklahoma Head Coach Jeff Capel On Tony Crocker's seven 3-pointers: On what it is like to coach Blake Griffin: On Wednesday's game at Baylor:
Opening comment:
“I feel very fortunate to get this win. If you look at this game, including the past six games, they (Colorado) have been right there. They have won one, but they have been right there in every game. It seems like when I watched tape, every game they got better and better. You can tell their guys are getting more comfortable in their system. In the first half, we did a good job offensively when we didn't turn it over. We had 10 turnovers in the first half. If we do a better job of valuing the ball, the lead is a little bit more because we shot 73 percent from the floor. In the second half, I thought their defense did a better job containing us. We missed some shots but we still had a hard time guarding their stuff. It's a difficult game to prepare for because it is a completely different style of what you are used to. As the season has gone on, they have gotten better. Again, fortunate to get the win and we look forward to moving ahead.”
“Crocker was in a good rhythm shooting the ball. I thought all but one of his 3's were all good looks and the one that maybe wasn't was a good shot because it was at the end of the shot clock. I thought he was in a good rhythm shooting the basketball and I thought he did a pretty solid job defensively, as well.”
“He is great to coach. Obviously he is incredibly talented and he can do things on the floor that not a lot of people can. He is a guy you have to game plan for and so it helps us on the offensive end to be able to do more things. It opens things up for everyone. He is one of the hardest working kids I have been around as far as working on his game and trying to improve and get better. He is very driven and, for us to have a guy like this in our program, hopefully he is a guy that other guys watch and look at and say, 'This is what it takes to have a chance to be an elite player.'”
“Baylor is a very explosive offensive team. They can really score. They have three or four, five guys that can go for 20 plus. We did a very good job on them here. We got up on them and kept extending the lead. We got up so much that even when I thought we maybe had a lapse we still didn't get caught because we had such a great lead. I have a lot of respect for their players and their offensive ability and the way they can put up points.”
OU PLAYERS
Sophomore Forward Blake Griffin:
On the game:
“We played well in the first, but we're not satisfied at all. We have to play a whole game in the way we're capable of.”
On what might have been the issue today:
“I feel like we had good energy for the most part. In the second half we turned it off for a little bit and just relaxed and let them back into it. They hit a lot of shots.”
On the energy junior Juan Pattillo brings to the team:
“He gives us a big lift, obviously, not just his athleticism, but a lift on offense. He has a knack for being in the right place at the right time. Defensively, he's solid. He can block shots when you least expect it. He's just always there for us and somebody we can rely on.”
Junior Guard Tony Crocker
On this week's performances:
“We won and that's what matters, but we didn't play the way we should have played. We didn't win how we should have won.”
On starting off making his first shot:
“Whenever you make your first shot, you get it going. It was just a team thing. They found me open in spots where I was wide open to make the shot.”
On what it's like playing with Blake:
“It's wonderful. You've got the best guy in college basketball on your team. It makes it a lot easier with everything. You can go to him whenever you want, whatever you need. He's not a selfish guy. He'll kick it back out. He probably got a lot of assists today; passing back out. So he does a lot for us.”
Colorado Quotes
Colorado Head Coach Jeff Bzdelik
On the play of Colorado:
“We played like we have been playing, so close yet so far. We're just not quite strong enough underneath the boards. A lot of times we had three freshmen and a sophomore out there and were just not quite strong enough to finish plays. We're just going to try and keep getting better. Their competitive spirit is there and their heart is in the right place, but we're just not quite there yet.”
On OU's Blake Griffin and Tony Crocker:
“We knew Blake would get his points. He is such a great talent. I spent 18 years in the NBA and he is a great talent. Crocker started the game off with the first 3-pointer in the corner and we were a little late getting to him. Oklahoma is a great basketball team, a team that could go all the way to the Final Four. They're very talented.”
On what stands out about Blake Griffin:
“He is so athletic and, from what I can tell, his head and heart are in the right place. I noticed he said 'thank you' to a ball boy after he cleaned the floor. He plays hard and is so strong around the basket. He needs to continue to get better with his skills, which I'm sure he will. He is a great player with a great future.”
Junior Guard Dwight Thorne III
On how Colorado competed:
“We competed hard and never gave up. We lost but I think we got some things out of this game. Some nights things don't go your way. Tonight some things did and some things didn't. We continued to play hard but we just lost the game.”
On OU's Tony Crocker:
“He had seven 3-pointers. Anyone who does that is going to be tough all night.” Senior Forward Jermyl Jackson-Wilson
On playing against Blake Griffin:
“We did as well as we could. He is an All-American and plays like a top draft pick. There is not much you can do when you get the ball down there. He is a heck of a player. We learned some things. We learned you have to work a little harder against him.”
On capitalizing on Oklahoma's turnovers:
“They turned the ball over that many times and they're shooting so little, but they scored 24 points off of our mistakes, so they capitalized on what we didn't do right. We have to grow and learn from that. We have to capitalize when we get turnovers, too. Those things don't take much skill, just the will and effort. Once we get better at those little things we will have a better outcome.”
