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Louisville vs. Western Kentucky
December 20, 2014 | Men's Basketball
Recap | Box Score | USATSI Gallery 
WKU Head Coach Ray Harper
(On the way he felt his team played in an intense game) "I thought we competed. Physically, we competed hard. We didn't always play as smart as I would like. You can't fault the effort. We gave ourselves a chance right there with about four minutes to go, down five, with the basketball. Give them credit, they stepped up. 26-of-30 from the free throw line. That's the difference in the basketball game."
(On whether this was an optimistic game) "Anytime we lose, I feel like we missed an opportunity. I don't think it had anything to do with Montrezl (Harrell). It had to do with to do with us missing free throws. The front end of one-and-ones. Missing twos. You just can't beat good teams and shoot 60 percent from the free throw line. You just can't do it. You can beat teams that maybe aren't as good, but you're not beating good teams if you can't make them. And we didn't."
(On the scuffle in the first half and what he did to settle the team down) "You'd have to ask the officials. I don't know what happened. They said he threw a punch. So that's why he was tossed. I don't know. It was the smallest guy on our team that he threw the punch at in (Brandon Price). He probably could have just grabbed him and been fine. So, I don't know. I told our guys, `keep your composure and play basketball. Don't get caught up in anything silly.' I thought they did that."
(On Brandon Price and Avery Patterson playing well) "I thought they did a better job of any of our guards of sharing the ball, making the next pass, not rushing, being a little more patient. DJ (Clayton) was terrific. He gave you another glimpse of his future today. Avery is a guy who hasn't played a lot, but over the course of over the last week to 10 days, he's starting to get better. We felt like today, with his toughness and his ability to handle the basketball - I really didn't want to do it, I wanted to wait one more game before getting him deep in the mix - but how we were playing and the game itself dictated the game. I think he did well. I think it's due to how he has practiced."
(On the lessons he thinks the team takes from this game) "I think we can be a good basketball team. We have to compete like that every day. We have to prepare like that every day. You've got to get in the gym and if you're not shooting free throws like you need to, then get in there and shoot some more. That's what we've been doing. We're coming a couple games off of our game against Ole Miss where we went 15-for-15 in the second half. If you can figure it out, help me out, because it varies from game-to-game. Some games we make them and some games we don't. I think we're a team that has some different pieces. I think we need some guys that we can count on every night. If we can do that, we can be good. If it's a guessing game from game-to-game then we're going to have nights where we struggle. "
(On Terry Rozier) "He was good. I thought their guards did a tremendous job yo-yoing with the ball screen. Eventually, getting numbers by us. I thought our bigs did a pretty good job showing and taking away the initial drive, but I'm not sure - I'll have to go back and watch the tape - I'm not convinced our guards did a great job of getting back and getting their numbers in front. Because of it, (Chris) Jones and Rozier made us pay."
Louisville Assistant Coach Kenny Johnson
(On the ejection of Montrezl Harrell) "It was a heated basketball game. A lot of chippy things early. I saw Montrezl get tripped and fall to the ground. I think he was trying to get up. He felt kind of trapped, he was trying to stand up. As he extended his arms to get his balance, I guess whatever happened. He caught a flagrant two foul and he had to sit out the rest."
(On what the coaching staff said to Montrezl Harrell after his ejection) "Anytime you - you always talk about keeping a level head, no matter what the environment may be. Montrezl owned up to his part in the mistake. That's what happens in life as well as basketball, you make mistakes. In his mind, he was trying to protect himself so he could stand up properly. He owned up to it, and we had to fight without him. Basketball is a game of adverse situations and that was an adverse situation that we had to overcome. Hopefully it prepares us for a situation like foul trouble or God forbid someone turn an ankle or whatever else. We learned how to play without him in an adverse situation."
(On who stepped up) "It was a collective effort. Let me look at the stat line - Terry Rozier finished with 32 points and Anas (Mahmoud) played 23 big minutes with six points, five rebounds and three blocks. Anton Gill had a big shot for us down the stretch. The communication level picked up and that's what you are most proud of as a coach. You go through aggressively, if you hit a wall you're going to have to do something. Guys have to be picked up rather than guys falling apart."
(On why the game was so chippy) "They're a great basketball team. Anytime you have two great, competitive and talented basketball teams going after it. It was a sellout crowd, big-time atmosphere here. We prepared for the game as if we were playing an ACC opponent. This is what it's going to be like in the ACC on the road. So, we came in with a chip on our shoulder. They definitely came to win the basketball game."
(On if he was nervous that the game would get out-of-hand) "No. I don't think it was a dirty game that's why I used the word chippy. I think that the referees did a great job. We weren't concerned at all."
(On if this experience is valuable to Louisville) "Yes, we talked about dealing with adversity. This was an adversity not having Montrezl Harrell, who we believe is the best player in college basketball, on the court for an extended period of time. Having to deal with that and getting guys in positions for extended minutes who hadn't played with the team."
(On Terry Rozier's play) "Terry is the type of young man who works extremely hard. He's diligent in how he prepares for the game and does the scouting reports. Obviously, he did a great job. We shot 26-30 as a team from the foul line. I believe he was 11 of 13. He's been preparing himself for moments like this. This isn't the first time he has stepped up at the end of games situations when we needed one this year. You can see his maturity coming into his own."
