March 7, 2009
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SAN DIEGO -
UNLV at San Diego State Postgame Quotes in PDF Format
San Diego State head coach Steve Fisher:
On Beth Burns and the women's basketball team:
"We just saw Beth Burns and her staff. The team is probably outside high-fiving the crowd right now. We offer them sincere congratulations on their phenomenal end to their regular season. To get the win, to have Utah lose, tie for the conference championship and to hang a banner is terrific. I know that they are not done yet. They are looking forward to going to Las Vegas, as we are, and playing three games. They will actually play two since they got the bye to the semis. Congrats to Beth Burns and the Aztecs, but now we both need to roll into Las Vegas and play some terrific basketball."
On the seniors:
"I told our seniors before the game how proud I was of the commitment they made to this program and how each of them elevated the perception of this program and the importance that they played on what people now think of SDSU basketball. We wrote one thing across the board: Leave a winning legacy. Leave with a winning legacy; and they did that. Kelvin (Davis) did not play a second but he was every bit as valuable as Lorrenzo (Wade) and Kyle (Spain) who played 35-36 minutes. Matt Thomas, a fifth year senior, made maybe the most important basket of the game for us when he hit the three-pointer on the left wing on our end of the floor. Ryan Amoroso was relentless defensively with his effort. Richie (Williams) was Richie; he never quits. He turned it over once and he got there so fast to get the interception at the other end that I thought it was his twin. It was a really nice way for the six seniors to finish our home season."
On the crowd:
"The crowd was sensational and we needed them. They were supportive when we struggled and they raised the roof when we got it going. I know they know this, but they helped us get this victory. We need them, we are going to see a big UNLV contingency (in Las Vegas) so we need some folks over there to neutralize to help us get, maybe for the first time ever, three wins in one season against UNLV."
On how big three pointers were in the win:
"Sometimes (three pointers) are worth more than three points. We had a couple of them tonight. Kyle right out of a time-out with the play that was a harder shot than it appeared to be and the second you would have been shocked if he had missed it. They were huge. Matt's was so important because it gave us a chance to say, `It will take them more than one possession to get back into the game.' They (three pointers) were very important tonight."
San Diego State senior Lorrenzo Wade
On what this win means for the MWC Tournament:
"We wanted to go out with a bang, especially with us being seniors and this being the last game of the season. We wanted to build as much momentum as possible going into the conference tournament. This win keeps us on the right track. The job isn't done though; we still have to go back to Vegas. We're going to be back in here on Monday, get refocused and try to make a run."
On the difficulty of trying to beat UNLV for a third time:
"It's hard to play them each and every time. We're going to have to stay together as a team, remain mentally tough and guard. They have a lot of guys on their team that on any given night can score a lot of points, so we have to limit that. Tonight Tre'Von Willis did an excellent job of getting to the free-throw line, so we're going to have to stay in front of the guy we're guarding and play defense."
San Diego State senior Kyle Spain
On being well-guarded throughout the game:
"I just had to keep shooting to get out of it. I had to try to fight the frustration. I had five turnovers in the first half, everything was slipping and shots weren't falling. In the second half I really got it going and it was a huge momentum change when I hit the back-to-back three pointers. I'm just glad we got a W."
UNLV Head Coach Lon Kruger
On the game:
"It was a lot of pressure on the defense, although we did fight really hard. Not getting it going on our offensive end, plus giving the second opportunites on their rebounding, really puts even more pressure on your defense. It was a tough game both ways, and they knocked down back-to-back three-pointers later in the second half and it was a margin we couldn't overcome.
"We got into the paint, not with the idea of finishing, but with the idea of drawong something or kicking it back to the perimeter. Joe (Darger) got back-to-back threes off the drive and kick out. We have to do that more frequently and finish some opportunities.
"We've been inconsistent shooting the ball all year. Sometimes you just can't afford to do that. This time of year you have to make plays. We just have to work and prepare for Thursday and have these guys ready to do."