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Louisville Men's Basketball Post-Game Quotes
February 07, 2004 | Men's Basketball
Feb. 7, 2004
Louisville Coach Rick Pitino
"That was a great win and a much needed one. We had to get a win. When you play against this team, it's not easy. You have to win it at the defensive end. We played great defense in the second half. They shot 44 percent in the first half and only 20 in the second. They are a hell of a basketball team. I knew they were legitimate when they lost at the buzzer to Mississippi State and beat Charlotte. We got back to playing the type of defense we need to play to win."
(on Larry O'Bannon) "If you make the second or third pass, you are going to get some good looks. Larry took 11 really good shots got eight rebounds and played more physical. His on court personality is changing which is good and he can keep his (usual) personality off the court."
(on injuries to Taquan Dean and Francisco Garcia) "I think we are over the hump with Taquan (Dean). Francisco (Garcia) sprained his other ankle. He could not have gone back out there. He's a tough kid. The key is that he is way out of shape. There is a silver lining in every cloud. The development of Larry (O'Bannon) and B.J. (Brandon Jenkins); I'm really excited about that. Luke (Whitehead) had two assists. I'm going to go out and celebrate that tonight. I know it killed him to do that."
(on Kendall Dartez) "Kendall is getting better also. He's doing some good things. I'm pleased with this win tonight. Sometimes with bad health, if guys don't step up, you are going to take four or five losses in a row. Larry (O'Bannon), Kendall and B.J. stepped up. This win was really important and the days are over for thinking there is any win on your schedule. You saw Cincinnati go the buzzer against Houston. We needed to get this "W" tonight. I've seen it go the other way."
UAB Coach Mike Anderson
"I want to congratulate coach Pitino and their basketball team. They played really good defensively. For once this year, our guys wore down. Another thing, our bench was very productive all year but tonight it wasn't. I knew coming in, we were going to face an angry Louisville team."
"We just couldn't score. On the road, you have to make shots. When we made a stop, we just couldn't score. They did a good job in attacking the glass in the second half. They did a good job of bringing in guys and defending."
"The pace was what I expected but what was uncharacteristic of our team was unforced turnovers. I thought our guys wanted to do some things so badly, they turned it over but that also can be attributed to their defense."
"When we lost in the conference tournament last year (at Freedom Hall), it had a lot to do with offensive rebounding. I have been preaching that leading up to this game. We were able to get back in it after their quick start but could not get second shots."
"They didn't quit. We may give out but never give up. Even though we lost the game, we are still in first place. I told our team they needed to remember that we are 6-2 in the conference. When you play a game of this magnitude, you have to move on."
"They were limiting us on shots and they were attacking the glass. They made shots early but we got them too. Luke (Whitehead) comes to the rescue again. He had a big game for them last year (in the C-USA Tournament) and he did tonight."
