Jan. 21, 2008
SAN DIEGO -
SDSU Men's Basketball
Weekly News Conference Quotes
Cox Arena at Aztec Bowl
Head Coach Steve Fisher
On junior forward Lorrenzo Wade being named MWC Player of the Week:
"When you have success everyone benefits from it. (Lorrenzo's award) is a by-product of winning. If we want to continue to win, we have to continue to do what we've done Monday through Friday, 10 a.m.-12 p.m., 1 p.m.-3 p.m. and that's practice smart and practice hard."
On Wednesday's opponent Brigham Young:
"Obviously we will have a huge challenge heading up to Provo to play BYU, which I believe has won 40 in a row a home. Yet pretty soon somebody is going to beat that streak, and why can't it be the Aztecs? It would take great effort from everybody who goes if we're going to be able to do that. They're good. But we're excited to be going up and playing them at 4-0 (in the MWC)."
On his team having a 4-0 record in the MWC despite missing junior point guard Richie Williams:
"What it says is that we have depth. We have some quality people that we can move in and out and not lose anything when we go to the bench, but get a lift. We would have preferred to have done that at our choosing as opposed to injury, but injury has created that (situation) and we've been able to play on. To be quite candid, we've gotten good fortune, too. Rarely to you go down 14 on the road (at New Mexico) and win. We've been able to make plays when we've had to (in order) to win, make free throws when we've had to, and that's what really good teams are able to do. So our goal is to be able to push and sustain that. I do like the way our guys have responded. Matt (Thomas), who was buried on the bench not getting time and didn't play in a couple of games, has been invaluable in Richie's absence."
On watching the tape of UNLV defeating BYU last Tuesday:
"What I learned from (that game) was UNLV played great defense, better than anybody in this league. They had five guards on the floor. They do it somewhat out of necessity because they're at their best with those five guards out there. We can't put five guards out there and have the same results at both ends of the floor. I think what you saw was that (UNLV) climbed into (BYU) and made it hard for them even when (BYU) had a size advantage. That's been Vegas' M.O. the last couple of years and they've been really good at it."
On the keys to success at BYU:
"Our key is to continue what we've been doing; we do have to guard smart and hard. That's the key for everybody. Then we have to be able to rebound the ball. Even though (BYU lost), they still had 16 offensive rebounds at Wake Forest. They're a very good offensive rebounding team. They run like crazy and they run even better at home. We have to be able to control tempo to some measure and not let them have any big runs in the first half, so we can put ourselves in position to win the game with two minutes to go."
On junior forward Ryan Amoroso's performance against Wyoming last Saturday:
"Most kids think that when they score points they play well whether they do or not. He had 16 points in that game. But I think Ryan played well not only in the Wyoming game, but against Utah. He did a quality job defending in the post, being a good help defender, not giving them easy angles and using his strength. Then in the Wyoming game, he made shots. And that always feels good, because he's struggled to make some shots of late. Right now, he probably is feeling good about himself. I think that's legitimate. I think he did a good job at both ends of the court, not just scoring the points."
On whether it's taken Ryan Amoroso a while to adapt to all the new faces on the team:
"I don't think so to be quite honest. He's had stretches where he's played very well early. I think that's just the ups and downs of a basketball season... Ryan is a little more emotional than some. I think that can be an asset or a detriment. I think when he's going good, it helps him. When he's struggling, it hurts him. He needs to make sure he's able to let loose when he has some things happen, whether it be a bad call, a missed shot or a missed assignment, and play in the next play and not get too hyper one way or the other."
Junior forward Lorrenzo Wade
On last year's loss at BYU:
"We went up to (BYU) last year and lost by 20-some odd points. That was actually my first Mountain West Conference road game. Experiencing the altitude and elevation over there was a shocker to me. But, it was a learning experience and it welcomed me to the MWC."
On San Diego State's 4-0 start in the Mountain West Conference:
"I'm not surprised that we are 4-0 in conference. We knew what we had coming into the season. Not getting ahead of ourselves, we still come into practice and work hard everyday. We try to do exactly what Coach (Steve Fisher) tells us to do because we trust him and know that he will lead us in the right direction."
On being the only undefeated team in conference play:
"As far as us being the only undefeated team in the conference, that is a bit of a shocker to me. I thought that BYU would still be undefeated at this point, but they have had a little bit harder road (schedule) than we have so far, especially going to UNLV."
On the Aztecs coming together as a team:
"We are family around here. We pick up each other's slack. If someone is needed to do a task that they are not accustomed to, they will try their best to get the job done. I am not surprised at all that we are jelling and meshing the way that we have."
On San Diego State's point guard play:
"A lot of people are surprised that D.J. (Gay) and Matt (Thomas) have been playing as well as they have. If you recall, Matt Thomas was an all-conference honorable mention selection his freshman year, so it is not a shocker that he is playing that way. D.J. Gay, as many of you know, was highly touted coming out of high school. We knew he could score the basketball, but people had a couple concerns about him running the point. But, he has watched Richie (Williams) in practice and he has been learning. He is a good basketball player with a great IQ. So, the play of D.J. and Matt is not a surprise to me."
Junior forward Kyle Spain
On the difficulties of playing at BYU:
"(BYU) has one of the nation's longest home winning streaks, so just having that, they think they have the advantage. Everyone's main focus is to not lose at home and BYU has done a great job of that over the years. It will definitely be a difficult game to play."
On last year's loss at BYU:
"It is always hard to win on the road in the Mountain West Conference. It may be a little bit harder at BYU because they have one of the nation's longest home winning streaks. Last year at BYU we didn't mesh very well. We did more fighting with each other than we did with our opponent and that definitely affected our play."
Junior forward Ryan Amoroso
On the difficulties of playing at BYU:
"I have played in a few hostile environments back in the day. I don't know too much about Utah and playing in Provo in general, but I watched the game on TV last year and (BYU) has a huge following. It is a really tough place to play. We just have to stay focused on the task at hand, which means we need to execute on every possession and do what we have to do to win."
On BYU's junior forward/center Trent Plaisted:
"I have heard that (Trent Plaisted) has been pretty highly touted (by the NBA). He is 6-foot-11, long, athletic and strong. He runs and jumps pretty well, so he is going to be a tough match-up for anybody in the country. I just have to do my work early and try to make him go over his left shoulder."