Jan. 24, 2011
SAN DIEGO -
San Diego State head coach Steve Fisher
Opening Statement: "We are very excited as we prepare for, what all of us know, is a huge game at BYU on Wednesday. Legitimately two top-10 teams playing one another and both of us could easily be 20-0. Both teams will play very, very hard. It will be a game fitting of the buildup. They'll have 23,000 people there and it will be a madhouse. Our players are excited. Hopefully they won't play with the anxiousness of the buildup and try to do things too fast.
"It's a fun time for San Diego State basketball. We appreciate all the involvement and belief from our students. I got a call at 7 a.m. this morning saying that people were lined up around and past the Aztec Recreation Center looking to get tickets for Wyoming, which is fantastic. We are hopeful that we will go up and come back 21-0. I know that's what all Aztec fans hope for. We're looking forward to the challenge and it will be a big game not only for the Mountain West Conference, but nationally."
On facing BYU guard Jimmer Fredette: "Nobody nationally has been able to stop him and we've had trouble stopping him. We have to make sure that we make it hard for him and his sidekicks, who are pretty doggone good too. He's unflappable. People cannot appreciate how good he is. He's lightning-quick with the ball; he can create his own shots, he's got a tremendously high basketball IQ, and he never loses his focus or composure. They're the only team that beat us here last year. It starts with Fredette but it doesn't end with Fredette."
On how the team has dealt with national attention: "You can't help but swell a little bit when people tell you how good you are, but they've maintained an ability to come in and focus on practice. I tell them, `Embrace where you are in the moment. It doesn't happen to just anybody, you've earned it. Don't think about being 20-0, just focus on that we need to beat BYU.'"
On senior guard D.J. Gay: "He keeps a level of composure that permeates throughout our locker room. He sets the tone for of a lot of the things we do along that line."
On the 20-0 record: "We'd like to win every game we play. I'm not going to say we have to have a loss before we get into the tournament. I want to be undefeated when we go into Selection Sunday, but we probably won't."
On this week's game at BYU: "We've played more road games than four or five of the top nationally ranked teams put together. Winning on the road is difficult no matter who you play and where you play. It's a very difficult place to play. We're going to play to win the game. If we play well, we're going to have an opportunity to win the game. But we will have to play well."
San Diego State senior forward Malcolm Thomas
On if SDSU is respected nationally: "We have a lot more work to do still, but I feel like we are getting respect. We're still going to have to earn more people's respect and keep playing hard until we get it from everybody."
On if being a top ranked team is a burden: "I don't feel like there's any burden. If you would have asked anybody on the team today what we are ranked I don't think they could tell you. Nobody really pays attention to it; we just try to go out and play hard and get wins. That's really our main focus."
On if the game against BYU will have a tournament-like feel: "The game will definitely have a tournament feel. We're going to have to play hard for 40 minutes, like D.J. said, and we're really going to have to execute. We can't have one half where we just make a run. We're going to have to have two halves to beat a good team like BYU."
On Coach Fisher using D.J. Gay as an example for other players in practice: "What I get out of it is to compete every play. D.J. competes every play, he never complains, and he knows how to take criticism. He's our leader, and I think coach is telling everybody to be a leader on the court, but not play outside their roles. I think D.J. does that on the court."
On the high turnout at the student ticket release: "It's amazing that all of our hard work is paying off and people want to come watch us play."
San Diego State senior guard D.J. Gay
On the upcoming game against BYU: "It's definitely a hot topic. We are all excited for this big game. There is a lot of hype built up around it, but we're staying focused and every thought is on BYU and what we need to do to win. I think this game is either going to be an `I told you so' or a `Wow, they really are that good.' That's what this game is going to come down to."
On BYU guard Jimmer Fredette: "Everybody guards Jimmer Fredette on Wednesday night. There isn't any specific person that will be on him. We haven't come to a conclusion on what exactly we are going to do, but it's going to be everybody. His confidence, his knowing that he can get a shot off at will and his ability to knock down hard shots makes him a tough guard. When somebody has confidence like that and just knows or believes that every shot he takes is going in, and he has the freedom to do so, that makes somebody a dangerous guard."
On how many times he's been asked about Fredette: "I've been asked about him a lot. People try to compare us, but I don't think there's really any comparison because we are two different types of players. He's a very good player, a very good scorer, and he's someone that everybody likes to talk about. He's the heart and soul of the team, but it's not just him. They say he's Batman and (Jackson) Emery is Robin. He's put up big numbers, and he has ability on the defensive end to make plays and steal a lot of balls, but it's not just him. BYU is a very good and a well-coached team. Everybody knows their role, and they know that Jimmer is going to get his shots, and so is Emery, and they play well together."
On Coach Fisher using him as an example for other players in practice: "I think what he is trying to stress the most when he uses my name is sometimes some people might get over emotional and some people might not be emotional enough. The emotion part tends to affect some people's game. I think the way I have been able to maintain a stable emotion throughout the game whether I turn the ball over, miss a shot, or make a big shot and just be able to move on to the next play, I think that's what he's trying to say when he uses my name."
On the high turnout at the student ticket release: "It's amazing and really crazy to think about. It goes to show how many people we have behind us."
San Diego State sophomore forward Kawhi Leonard
On if he had to guard Fredette: "I'd play my hardest defense, as I play every game. I would try to contest his shots. He shoots a lot, so all I can do is contest his shot and hope that it doesn't go in."
On Coach Fisher using D.J. Gay as an example for other players in practice: "When Coach Fisher says that, I just think in my head that he's doing the right things, he's been here for four years, and he knows what the coaches want. Just think of the game, and stay focused. That's what I get out of it."