March 21, 2011
Press Conference: Fisher | Press Conference: White, Gay & Thomas
SAN DIEGO -
San Diego State Head Coach Steve Fisher
Opening Statement:
"We are, as a collective body, excited to have you here. We're pleased that somebody wants to talk to us and that we have games to play. That's what all of us are looking forward to, we're part of an elite group right now of 16 teams that are still in the hunt. We're a bus ride up the road, we like that also. It should be a great atmosphere, should be a pro-San Diego State crowd and we are anxious to see how we stack up against the premier players and teams in the country. As I said before, our guys are very happy that they came away from Tucson with two wins. That we're still playing, but to a man, to determine that we will continue to play. Hopefully we will play well, I know we will play very hard and try to get another victory on Thursday."
On how to keep the team satisfied with a spot in the Sweet 16:
"You can't be satisfied now. We're the two-seed, we're supposed to win. We're playing the three seed. We're in a game against an elite program, against a Hall of Fame coach, against a coach who's won two National Championships with a program that is expecting to make a deep run every year in the tournament. This is our first go-around and yet I do believe that we will have the same energy, excitement and confidence that we can come in and perform. We want to play (and) we want to win. We are not going to sit back and say we made it. We're still playing, but we got work to do. That's what everybody is saying now and after Thursday, Friday, they'll be eight of us that'll be saying it. And hopefully we will be one of those eight."
On using his experience in the NCAA Tournament to help the team:
"I said this before, the best part of our being in the tournament was that we were here last year in the tournament. We're missing Kelvin Davis and he called me yesterday, we had a long talk. He's from Connecticut. He gave me his thoughts on what we need to do to beat Connecticut. Everybody else played in the Tournament last year, that's helpful. We've won two games now, so I don't know that we're in uncharted territory. I know that Connecticut has got three or four freshman that play a lot, so they haven't been there, even though the program has. As a coach, you try to be consistent through the season and especially now in postseason. You don't want to get too hyper and yet, you can't be afraid to chew on them when you don't like what you see because we're in the tournament, because we just won two games. So we've been business as usual. I think our players would tell you practice was practice today. We got after them when we didn't like what we saw, we were intense, we were informative and we blended a little competitiveness with a whole lot of form and technique on what we wanted to do and what we needed to do to stop them."
On the Mountain West Conference proving itself in the NCAA Tournament: "Both BYU and ourselves were rated and rated in the top 10 a great portion of this season. I think many people thought that we were both good. I know and the people that have watched or played others in our league know that this is a really good basketball league. It's great that we have two of us now in the round of 16. We haven't done that in the past often so it speaks well for the league. I think it will help us as we move forward a year from now or two years from now. When you get in, saying they were pretty good as a league last year, even though you're supposed to deal with it independently. It's great that BYU is playing in this and I hope both of us win and advance."
On Kemba Walker:
"On film, he looks really quick and athletic. And usually those guys are even quicker than that in person. He's great with the ball, he's immensely confident. He has carte blanche to shoot it as quick and as often as he likes. He knows he's not going to come out for taking a bad shot or missing a shot. And he has that quickness with the ball, to even when you think you're in front of him, he gets by you and gets to the rim. He's like (Jimmer) Fredette. I believe in one game, maybe Cincinnati or one of them, he made 14-14 from the free-throw line. He gets to the line (and) he makes shots. He's good, he's really good."
On the difference between Walker and Jimmer Fredette "He's more athletic. He probably doesn't shoot it quite as pure, but he's capable of getting on a run and making five or six three's in a row. They're both big-time scorers and hopefully having played Fredette will help us a little bit, in terms of an initial thought process."
On if he's tired of facing players like Jimmer Fredette and Kemba Walker:
"I'm hoping I have to fret, scheme and gameplan for another two weeks."
On how SDSU matches up against Connecticut:
"I think we match up fairly well. They can be big. Everyone says they are bigger than their height. They've got Jeremy Lamb, who is really long. They talk about them being the third-best rebounding team in the country. I know that we have to do a good job of keeping them off the glass. We're a good offensive rebounding team, so we're going to have to make sure we match them and then some on the rebounding. They are a very physical team from what I've seen. We've got to make sure we don't react to what they do all game; we hit them first and attack and not always be on the reactive end of things. They run, they're athletic and they're long. This is a good team. There are two good teams playing, so I think it'll be a really good game."
On letting the players know how proud he is of them:
"Every day I tell them. When we won our first seven and beat Cal, I said, `I told you to wait until after December 4, and we're still rated.' Then I told them when we won 15 and then 20, then when we lost our first one. They've done a really good job of sticking together and not getting selfish and not trying too hard. It's difficult for young kids and it's difficult for parents. Especially for the seniors, who know this is their last go around, to not play quite as many minutes, not get quite as many shots, but to win. And when you win, it makes it all worthwhile for all of us. We talked about that. We talked about enjoying every step that we've taken and recognize the accomplishments, but then move on quickly to the next one. They know how I feel, and they know how this university and community feel about them."
On playing against a Connecticut team that likes to run:
"BYU is the best running team that we've played. They run like crazy. They probably don't rebound quite as well as a team like UConn, but we've got to make sure against any team that, number one, we take care of the ball. Most fast-break layups are created by turnovers. So we can't have any live-ball turnovers. We can't take quick, suspect, hurried shots; that also leads to run outs. And then when they run, we've got to get back and say, `Okay, let's not give them a layup. Let's not give them an unguarded three. Let's contest and help and stunt until we get other people back.' We've been a really, really good team with our transition defense. I'm counting on us being that same way, and we have to be, on Thursday. Then, we need to run some. We're not going to walk it up the floor. We want to do what we've done when we've gotten spurts: get out, create a turnover, bad shot, deflection and run."
On Billy White's emotions on the court:
"Billy has had, as we all know, the best three-game run of his career. He's had three straight double-doubles. He's so much more active, and that's what has led to all the numbers, all the success. He had seven rebounds offensively in back-to-back games, which has never happened before. He knows that, and when he gets a little out of whack he's got to reel himself in. He got those two fouls in the Temple game so we sat him for seven minutes and I know he was antsy. That was a big reason why when he got his third foul I said we're not going to take him out. You can't be afraid to play, you can't be afraid you're going to foul, but you can't do things that are foolish. He did a great job and played the rest of the game. I don't believe he picked up another foul."
On if the team stands out to him in some way:
"The thing that you like about this team is what I've said before: they have been willing to give a little bit more of themselves than maybe they thought they should have to for us to win. It's always easier when you win, but they've done that and I'm immensely appreciative. We have five seniors on this team."
San Diego State Senior Forward Malcolm Thomas
On living up to the team's No. 2 seed:
"I don't know if we've lived up to it, but we are trying hard to and compete with all these teams that have great traditions and try to get to the Final Four. That's everyone's dream. But we have to play a lot better if we want to get there."
On whether the team has nerves:
"I think after the first game, everybody was comfortable and we knew what type of pace we needed to play at to have the lead. We were just comfortable after the first game, no nervousness."
On the differences between Kemba Walker and Jimmer Fredette:
"Jimmer gets a couple steps past half court and he can shoot a three from anywhere. Kemba's more of a take-you-off-the-dribble-and-attack-the-basket-type player. He has a variety of moves. The main difference is penetration. Kemba penetrates more. They are both great players and we are going to do our best to contain him."
On how the younger players are handling themselves:
"I don't need to say anything. They are already ready for it. Billy, I and the rest of the seniors, we're ready also, but the younger guys were more amped to play and they are big fans of every team and they watch tons of basketball. So they are ready to play against anyone in the nation."
San Diego State Senior Guard D.J. Gay
On if tournament history factors into Thursday night's game:
"I think at this point, history doesn't really mean much. We have two very good teams that are going to go to battle on Thursday, I am not sure how many UConn players have played in the Sweet 16 or Elite 8 before, but we have a veteran team and we are just going to go in there and perform."
On if previous games on neutral courts this season will benefit the team:
"Absolutely, those neutral-court games will help prepare us for what's to come, but nothing's going to compare to the test we have on Thursday. We have never been to a Sweet 16 before, and we have worked all season to get to this point and we will see what happens on Thursday."
On how to stop Kemba Walker:
"I think it is going to take a group effort. He is a great scorer, very good player, (and) it's going to take more than one guy to slow him down. I don't know if we are going to be able to stop him, but, like (Jimmer) Fredette, try and contain him."
On if playing BYU will be similar to playing UConn:
"I think we will see. We are just going to have to wait until Thursday and make adjustments on the fly. We have never played them before, they have never played us before, so it's going to be a game of adjustments and we will see what happens."
On putting too much emphasis On Kemba Walker:
"If you over analyze and try to just stop one player, other players might step up and they might not. You know that's just the game of basketball, anybody can go off on any given day. They have other scorers on their team, they have other good players, whether or not there shots are falling, they can have an off game or they can have an on game. Like I said, we are just going to have to make adjustments on Thursday to what happens, and the key point of the game is slowing things down, and slowing down Kemba."
On what's running through their minds while laying down to go to sleep:
"Opportunity. This is something you have dreamed about since you were a young kid and to have the opportunity to get to do something that not everybody gets to do is special, so we have to sit back and embrace it and enjoy the opportunity we were given, but know that at the same time something bigger can come from it."
On how well the Mountain West Conference showing in the tournament:
"We have a very good conference. At one point we had three teams ranked in the top 25, and for two teams from the Mountain West to be standing, that's big for this program and this conference. Best of luck to BYU, but it shows that the Mountain West was a power this year."
On whether the team has nerves:
"They was a lot less nervousness during the game. I felt like we came out a lot stronger in the beginning when we got out to a 10-point lead, and we are just feeling more comfortable playing on a big stage. I think Thursday will be just as good and comfortable."
San Diego State Senior Forward Billy White
On the excitement at SDSU:
"This is the first day of class for us (since the second and third rounds). When we came back here teachers were congratulating us and people were saying good luck and it just felt good that people were watching and our classmates were watching." On challenges that UConn presents:
"We know that they are very big, they like to block shots, they are good at running the floor and they can make it baskets and rebound. We have to do the same thing we did against Temple, just rebound and just keep playing like we have been playing. The key focus for Malcolm and I is just try to keep the big men out of the paint."
On the game being in Anaheim:
"I think it's a good thing for us, that the students and our families can just come up and support us. I think we will be more comfortable playing not that far from San Diego, so we will play a little bit better having our fans back us up. My mom and dad will be here, and more friends will be able to come because it is so close."