Feb. 4, 2008
SAN DIEGO -
SDSU Men's Basketball
Weekly News Conference Quotes
Cox Arena at Aztec Bowl
San Diego State Head Coach Steve Fisher
Opening Statement:
"We are going to complete the first round of the Mountain West Conference season on Wednesday with a very good Air Force team paying a visit (to Cox Arena). For those of you who have not watched Air Force, the names have changed, but the process has not. They are a very good team. And, if you had to say who has been the surprise team in this league to date, it might be Air Force because of the number of quality players who had started for several years that they lost, and the limited people they had coming back with experience. This is the only team to beat UNLV and they are a threat against anybody. They are led by Tim Anderson, who is a terrific player and now he is getting the opportunity to shine offensively. So, we will have our hands full. We are going to need to play smart, play hard, and we will need to guard without fouling, because this is a good basketball team.
"With that being said, we are also a good team. I like our ball club. We are capable of beating anyone, and we need to take care of business at home on Wednesday. Hopefully, we will have a big crowd that will help generate a lot of excitement and enthusiasm, and hopefully our players will help get the fans out of their seats to cheer. We are excited about our season and have great expectations as we are preparing to end the first half and begin the second half (of conference play)."
On SDSU's bye week:
"Everybody has a bye and you have to make the most of it when you get it. It was good for us. We were coming off an exciting, hard-fought victory at Colorado State and we had gone many straight days (without a break). So, we needed a little time off. We took Wednesday and Saturday off in preparation for Air Force. It gives us a longer time to get ready for a very difficult team to prepare for, so that in itself is good. I think (the bye) came at a good time for us."
On the Aztecs' injury status:
"We are fairly healthy. Richie Williams' wrist appears to be getting better, although it is still a little tender. Everybody else is dealing with bumps and bruises. But, we are in pretty good shape physically."
On allowing a high three-point field goal percentage over the last two games:
"We need to guard a little bit better. I do feel for the most part that we have contested the vast majority of threes that have been attempted, but still the last two games we have had people shoot the lights out from three-point range against us. If you look at our three-point percentage defensively prior to (those two games), it was very good and actually one of the better ones in the league. But the last two games, guys have made their shots. I believe (UNLV) was 10-for-21 and Colorado State was 14-for-25. That is pretty good shooting. Those are two teams that have not lit it up with three-point shooting, but they did it in those games. We have to do a better job of how we guard the three and we have to push them a little further out. We also have to try to not let them get it on their terms."
On the importance of guarding the perimeter against Air Force:
"I think it is critical against everyone. If you look statistically against Air Force, the one thing that is a little different (than the past), is their opponents have attempted 32 more threes in seven league games than they have. Also something that is different is they have made almost as many free throws as their opponents have attempted. That was not the case in previous years. They are a little bit different in terms of how they are getting their points. They are not shooting quite as many threes, although they take almost 20 a game, but their opponents are taking almost four more a game than they are."
On the leadership of junior forward Lorrenzo Wade:
"Lorrenzo is a natural leader. He has that personality where he can say things that everybody listens to. He leads by example and I think he has had more opportunities, just like Tim Anderson for Air Force, where now he is going to get double-digit shots every game. And he has delivered. Good players find ways to make plays. Lorrenzo is not a guy statistically you would say you want taking a three-point shot to win a game, but he took it and made it against Colorado State. We need Lorrenzo to provide that kind of leadership both with his play and with his ability to lead on the practice floor and in the locker room. He has done a really good job of that."
On junior guard Richie Williams getting more minutes:
"Richie was a two-year starter for us coming in (to the season), and the initial plan was to have him be the starting point guard. Certain circumstances have caused him to miss a number of games, but Richie is our starting point guard. We have not lost confidence at all in D.J. (Gay). He has been invaluable to us and has had a great freshman year. We expect him to continue to get better. Richie, provided he stays okay physically, should be the starter for us, but D.J. will play and he will play quite a bit."
On freshman forward Billy White:
"The other freshman who is starting for us is Billy White. Billy has grown in his confidence to try and do a little bit more offensively. He has done a good job of doing what we would like him to do, which is rebound, guard and make the easy plays. He has become more assertive in the half court when he gets the ball inside 12 feet, and he has been very productive coming off a couple dribbles and making a good athletic move. He is also one of our best runners. For a guy 6-7, he really gets out and runs the floor. He had several fast-break baskets at Colorado State. He has done a marvelous job for us."
On White's defensive play:
"Billy White has really good instincts. He has an innate feel for how to play. He is obviously long and athletic, so when he plays hard he gets his hands on a lot of basketballs. He has been at the front end when we press, so he has had chances for steals and easy baskets. One thing that Billy has done is play consistently hard. He really runs the floor and for a young guy to have to play 94 feet as often as he does, is not always easy. Billy has done a good job of playing every possession as hard as he can. And right now he is playing with a lot of confidence. He is feeling really good about himself, especially with his offensive play."
On Air Force's style of play:
"In spite of the fact that they have had four coaches in five years, they still run the same system and they have recruited to that system. Their offensive play is hard to guard. Everybody on their team is capable of stretching the defense and taking and making threes. So, if they make shots they can compete with anybody. Defensively, they run a type of hybrid zone that can turn you into a three-point shooting team."
Junior forward Lorrenzo Wade
On whether it was beneficial to have a bye week heading into the Air Force game:
"The best thing about having this week off was sitting at home and watching the other teams sweat and play and see who won and lost. We've had the opportunity to put in a couple of new things, especially on the defensive end. We've been really focusing this week on picking up our defensive intensity. When you watch a team like UNLV, they make it so tough on other teams in the conference. And we want to be a team just like that. We're capable; we have really good athletes. We can run up and down the court. We just really need to be focused on the defensive end. I don't think it's a coincidence that people have been shooting the ball well against us, maybe Colorado State, but we definitely have to pick it up."
On whether that lack of defensive intensity has hurt on the perimeter:
"I think we've done a solid job of guarding our man. But we really need to get back to the `help principle' this week and just be able to be aggressive and bother someone for the entire game. We've put a really big emphasis on that; we've practiced very hard. It felt like preseason practices again, but I think it'll be good for us in the long run."
On playing with patience against Air Force:
"With them running that switching-man (defense), you definitely can't settle for three-point shots because we ran that against the scout team and we noticed the three-point shot was open a lot. If you're knocking that down, it's great for you. But if you miss the first couple of shots, you're definitely going to have to attack the basket and hope to get to the free-throw line or at least get mid-range jumpers. So patience is definitely the virtue."
On his assessment of the team at this point in the season:
"I think we're in a good position. We would've loved to still be in first place in the conference. But heading into the second half (of league play), the top three teams have distanced themselves from the pack, and we want to stay up there and compete for the title. BYU and UNLV are playing really good basketball. Lee Cummard and Wink Adams are doing a good job of leading their (respective) teams. But like I said, we just want to stay in the race, try to win every game and see what we can do against (BYU and UNLV) the second time around."
On having to play more road games during the second half of their MWC schedule:
"We've said it many times before; the team that wins the conference is a team that protects their home court. We had a slip up against UNLV, but we were able to capitalize on some situations on the road. We're going into a lot of hostile environments. We're going to have to prepare ourselves mentally and also physically for elevation and things like that. I feel that we have no choice but to become road warriors in the second half of conference and fight. That's all you can do at the end of the day. If you fight as hard you possibly can, I believe good things are going to happen."
Junior guard Kyle Spain
On reacting to Air Force's style of play:
"They are a one-of-a-kind defense. We have to adjust, because no one else in this conference plays like that. It's like a switching-man (defense) and so we have to make adjustments in our plays on offense as well as our defense in order to be successful against Air Force."
On whether he is surprised Air Force is doing as well as they are this season:
"They have a great coach (in Jeff Reynolds) and (senior guard) Tim Anderson is doing a great job of leading their team, so I'm definitely not surprised. Their program has been great the past couple of years."
On the team having a bye week heading into the Air Force game:
"(It's been) a great thing. Ever since the season started, we've been going hard every day with few breaks. So with the offense and defense that Air Force runs, it gives us more time to prepare for them."
On how much he has been following Lorrenzo Wade's leadership:
"Lorrenzo took me under his wing when we were both living in the dorms. He was a little bit more experienced than I was, so he has helped me through a lot in my career here at San Diego State. He's a smart guy."
Freshman forward Billy White
On his increased playing time:
"I think I'm getting a little more confidence in the post by playing more and more and just being able to play my game."