Jan. 17, 2007
SAN DIEGO -
SDSU-UNM Postgame Quotes in PDF Format
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San Diego State Head Coach Steve Fisher
General comments:
"That was a good, tough victory tonight. New Mexico is a good team and they play extremely hard. We talked about keys to the game and we said we have to play hard and smart and I think we did that tonight. This league is about winning close games and we were able to do that tonight."
On defending New Mexico's three-point attack:
"We did a great job in the first half of making it difficult for them to get good looks from the three-point line. In the second half we were not nearly as good guarding the three. But we fought awfully hard and that is what we are going to have to do to be successful. We rebounded the ball very well. Lorrenzo (Wade) and Kyle (Spain) were very good on the glass."
On Lorrenzo Wade guarding J.R. Giddens:
"Lorrenzo gives us a match-up that allows us to compete against the athletic players they have. He made it hard for J.R. Giddens too get good looks and was able to keep him from finishing at the rim. Lorrenzo did a good job of not allowing him to get on a run, which he is certainly capable of doing."
On Brandon Heath's two halves:
"Brandon wants it so bad he is too anxious at times. Some time all he needs is the pace of the game to wear off some that energy and he is fine. I think that is what happened tonight."
On playing Air Force next:
"It has been tough for every team going in to Clune Arena to win. We will play hard and hopefully guard the way we did tonight."
San Diego State sophomore forward Lorrenzo Wade
On his rebounding night:
"We have a lot of guys who can score, starting with guys like Brandon Heath, Mohamed Abukar and Kyle Spain. Coach put a big emphasis on us getting to the boards. That's the reason I am crashing the boards the way I am."
On how comfortable he is on the team:
"I am very comfortable. These guys welcomed me with open arms and I am willing to do anything to help this team get victories."
San Diego State senior guard Brandon Heath
On his shooting night:
"Shooting is shooting. I missed some shots in the first half. It's nothing to hang my head over. I just tried to play in the moment. I just tried to come out in the second half and play the game the way I know how. My teammates did a great job of penetrating and kicking to me and giving me the ball where I could get open shots. Missing shots is something that happens and you just try to move forward from that."
On the win vs. New Mexico with Air Force as SDSU's next opponent:
"It was huge. It got us back to .500. We're back in the race now. As a team, even though we were 0-2, we still felt we could win the conference. We just trying to take it one game at a time. We know our next opponent is Air Force, a team that is highly recognized around the country. Practice is going to be real key for us this week. It's going to take a lot of concentration from the neck up."
San Diego State sophomore guard Richie Wiliams
On penetrating the lane:
"That's what I am here to do. I can't make my size become a liability, trying to throw the ball over 6-5 people. Getting into the lane and creating for others is my job and I have to do what is required for this team to win."
On having five players in double figures:
"That's always good. Those seven assists come from them knocking down open shots, which is a result of shooting everyday in practice. With that in mind, the assists will take care of itself as long as guys knock down open shots and do what they need to do."
New Mexico Head Coach Ritchie McKay
On SDSU's passing:
"They are a great passing team. That is how they attack. They do a good job of using the baseline, too. They were patient and had a lot of good, open looks."
On turning the ball over so many times:
"We average only 12 or 13 a game, so it was very disappointing, especially in the first half. A lot of our turnovers led to easy points for (SDSU)."
On junior guard Tony Danridge:
"He is one of the best wings in the league. He is athletic and gets to the basket. He did a very nice job for us; he was tough."
On junior guard J.R. Giddens:
"He struggled tonight, but so did (SDSU's) Brandon Heath. They kind of offset each other. But (Heath) made a couple of big shots, some threes at the end of the game."