Dec. 15, 2005
SAN DIEGO -
SDSU Men's Basketball
Weekly Press Conference
Dec. 15, 2005
Cox Arena at Aztec Bowl
Head Coach Steve Fisher
General Comments:
"I'm not unlike some of you, I'm wondering why we aren't playing better and when will we play better. You're only as good as your last game and we haven't been that good in our last few games. Our job as coaches and players is to deal with the moment and do what we can to grow and get better. I believe we're doing that. But the proof will be Saturday as to how much growth and how much better when we play (UC) Santa Barbara. So that's what we need to do. We need to play better. It's not rocket science. If you play well, you have a chance to win. And that means our best players, Brandon (Heath) and Marcus (Slaughter), both have to perform. Five of the 10 players who have played the last four games for us have been first-year players--three true freshmen and two redshirt freshmen--so that's a crutch, but that's also a fact."
On the return of forward Trimaine Davis:
"We miss Trimaine. He hasn't been with us since we played San Diego and he's no longer just a rah-rah guy, he's a player. He was our third-leading scorer, shooting 67 percent from the field. We've missed the performance as well as the high energy, so hopefully he'll be back. He got clearance Wednesday night. He's had no actual contact (in practice) and whether it happens today or tomorrow remains to be seen. It'll obviously have to happen if he has a chance to play on Saturday. But he's making great progress and that's good news."
On junior guard Brandon Heath:
"Brandon was 1-13 (from the field) against Washington State and I looked at every tape, every angle and every shot and they were all good shots. What Brandon has to do, and I have to help him, is find a way to get to the rim and take it to the basket. He's a 90 percent free-throw shooter. So sometimes just seeing one go in makes you feel better about yourself. We got to get him to the free-throw line; he's got to get himself to the free-throw line where he never misses. The shots he's been taking have not been bad shots, they've been good shots."
On the upcoming addition of transfer Mohamed Abukar:
"Mohamed Abukar will be eligible Dec. 22. His first game will be Dec. 27 at Providence. I wish that we had a couple of games before that, but we don't. I'm somewhat concerned as to how he's going to fit and blend in. We're just starting a little bit to work him in with guys that you know are going to be playing rather than have him on the scout squad. He will play, but I don't know how much. He probably won't start, but he will play in the first five minutes. How well he plays will dictate his playing time and you'll probably see some things that are atypical for him out of the gate. He'll be anxious and we need to help him with that. But he can play basketball and he can score. He should obviously be a wonderful addition for us in every regard. But he'll have some growing pains and we will too (as a team) with him. Hopefully, he will be able to filter in and get into the lineup with not a lot of strain for him in particular."
SDSU Men's Baskeball
Player Quotes
Dec. 15, 2005
Junior guard Brandon Heath
On his performance against Washington State last Saturday:
"I felt they were good shots. They just didn't fall. I had a bad night. Things happen, but I'll bounce back. I've been here before."
On whether the team is surprised with its 4-4 record:
"We're surprised. A little surprised. We've lost games that we should have won, but those games are over. We can't look at those anymore, we can't get those back. We have to focus on where we're at, who the next opponent is and take every game one-by-one."
On the comfort level the team will have when Mohamed Abukar becomes eligible:
"I think we'll be comfortable with Mohamed Abukar right away because he's not a selfish guy. He is a team player and he is all about winning just like everyone else is on this team. It won't be a big difference. We play with him everyday in practice. We have a feel for how he plays and how he is going to play and what shots he's going to take. So it won't be much of a difference. He will make a difference as far as our team because he is good, really good. He's a lot like Marcus (Slaughter), 6-10, versatile, a guy who can go inside-out, which will create a lot of mismatches on the offensive end for the other team."
On Trimaine Davis:
"Trimaine is our guy; he is our energy guy that gets us going. The one thing about Trimaine, defensively, is he does his work early as far as down there in the post. That's one thing coach (Mark) Hughes teaches, is to do your work early. If you do your work early, you don't have anything to worry about as far as fronting the post and even letting the ball come into the post. Our other guys have to take what Trimaine brings and learn from him, just learn from what Trimaine does and grow from there. But Trimaine will be back this weekend."
Senior guard John Sharper
On this week's practices:
"The mood's been pretty good. We want to make sure we go over UC Santa Barbara and make sure we get ourselves in tact first, but practice has been pretty good this week."
On the team's recent struggles:
"The last game, a lot of us were missing shots. Our shots are going to fall, that was one of the main things that hurt us in the last game. We're playing hard and playing tough. We're making sure we are in the game for the most part. We just have to make sure we come out with a win. That's been the main factor. We've been there with two minutes to go and we're down three or two up and we haven't come out with the win."
On Trimaine Davis' impact:
"(Trimaine), he is fifth-year senior, so he has experience for the most part. He knows where he needs to be on the floor defensively. Like in help (situations), when someone drives the baseline, he's there to help somebody out. He knows what's going on. He's been around the block a little bit. He's also athletic, so he has a defensive presence. He can block shots and he's tough (down on the block), so he helps us in all factors of defense."