Jan. 16, 2013
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SAN DIEGO -
UNLV-San Diego State Postgame Quotes
San Diego State Head Coach Steve Fisher
On the game:
"We got beat tonight by a really good basketball team. They have the ability to change shots when you think you're going to get one at the rim. You never like to lose, but we need to say the fight we had and the mental play we had in the second half is how you have to play. To be honest, as disappointing as I was in how we guarded in the first half, we're six points behind and I told our team that. We talked about what we had to do and what we had to do different and I thought we did in the second half. They (UNLV) made those plays down the stretch and we didn't. I'm proud of our fight and effort especially in the second half. We need to now clean up what we didn't do well, but leave it on the doorstep. I told our team, one of the fibers of this program has been our ability to be resilient and not lose back-to-back games. Before I could say anything, Jamaal Franklin made the comment, `No one is going to go undefeated in this league.' We will have that resolved. We will have a hard game on Saturday at Wyoming. Any game you lose is hard, but we got beat by a very good team."
On Skylar Spencer not being in at end of game:
"Skylar (Spencer) was OK. He got hurt and asked to come out and then we didn't put him back in. Obviously, a bigger body in there could have possibly gotten us a defensive rebound. I thought we made some good plays with the group we had in and we said let's just ride with what we got."
On DeShawn Stephens' injury:
"DeShawn (Stephens) got poked in the eye. He's got a knot under his eye, but he's OK. He's fine."
On the play of Winston Shepard:
"I thought Winston (Shepard) played very effectively. He played with no fear. He used his size to his advantage and got into gaps. He had opportunities to go to the rim and got to the rim and shot 12 free throws."
On staying in the Mountain West Conference:
"It's nice to know for all of us that now it appears that we've got some stability of where we will be next year. I'm the only guy that's been here since the beginning of the Mountain West. Coaches have come and gone. I'm the lone dog that has been here for 14 years as a coach. I value the quality of the league. It's getting great recognition. Now we know this is where we're going to be and we'll make it work. This is a great league and we're proud to be a part of it. We know we are going to continue to be a part of it. This is a really good basketball league now. This league could go to any league in America and be competitive."
San Diego State Junior Guard Jamaal Franklin
On being down by 10 points early in second half and going up by 3 points and then losing:
"It's always frustrating when you lose. We can't worry about being down by 10. We've been down way more and came back. It's basketball. Basketball is a game of runs, and they just got more runs than us and they outrebounded us towards the end of the game and they won the game. Shout out to what they did. They did a good job winning. They came out here ready to play."
On expectations about playing UNLV:
"No, I've been here for three years. UNLV never surprises me now. I've played against them too many times. Forget surprise. I knew they were going to play really good, play really fast. I knew they were going to have their adrenaline pumping just like us. They're basically a rival now. Nothing surprises me playing against UNLV or anybody in this conference, you know what they're going to bring."
On playing the same as UNLV or trying to control the tempo a little bit more:
"That's the same way we play, too. That's what makes this game such a rivalry because we play similar styles (and have) similar players. We just have different coaches and different players on each team. The jersey says UNLV on their side and the jersey on our side says San Diego State. I would say that's the only difference between us. They just (outplayed) us this time."
On giving up the last few possessions:
"We just gave them up. You can't really worry about that. We'll go back through film, scout, get ready for Wyoming, and just worry about the next game. We can't really live in the past. This game is over with when that horn went off and we lost. We have to remember that we did lose, but we have to forget what happened and just move on and just get ready for Wyoming."
On the competitive level of UNLV:
"Nobody is a tough match for us. I look around in our locker room and I do not feel that anyone feels it is a tough matchup. At the same time if you feel that it is a tough matchup, then they are big, but they still need to worry about guarding us. I don't feel like anyone can guard us in the country and I think they feel the same way. That is just two teams being competitive and they beat us this time. We can't worry about it being a tough matchup, we just have to move on for Wyoming."
On UNLV's Anthony Marshall:
"Anthony Marshall got to the rack and free throw line and did a good job. I would not say he was a problem. He did his job, but you can't stop everyone in one game. You can't worry about shutting down a total of 11 guys in one game. Somebody is going to do well and you can't worry about that. We just have to move on."
San Diego State Senior Guard Chase Tapley
On UNLV's inside presence:
"Khem Birch gave them a shot blocking presence. Birch had five blocks, and altered a couple of our shots. Our players were probably thinking about him while shooting a lay-up, but those are shots we have to finish. They are the easy points, Coach Fisher says. Little points like that can make you win or lose. The things we did towards the end of the game may be the reason why we lost. It may have been the easy points and not getting the defensive rebounds."
UNLV Postgame Quotes
UNLV Head Coach Dave Rice
Opening statement:
"We understand how difficult it is to come to Viejas Arena against San Diego State, which is so good, and well coached. "They're a good team everywhere and particularly good at home. We had a good feeling coming in here. We had confidence. We didn't play our best basketball but we were together. It's always been a difficult place to play. I know we've lost four in a row on their home floor, and yet we just had everyone step up and do a great job off our bench. Everyone we called upon just made huge plays for us. Again, compliments to what a great program Coach Fisher has. That game could have gone either way, we were fortunate to win. We made enough plays to find a way on the road to get it done."
On switching to a small lineup in the second half:
"We were having a hard time stopping San Diego State the whole game. They spread the floor and they drive. Winston Shepard, especially tonight, he played well. I knew it was a good night (for Shepard) when he was banking in shots from straight on. I chose to make a decision to match (SDSU) and our guys stepped up down the stretch."
How much did turnovers hurt you in the first half:
"San Diego State does a great job of getting back in transition and into the lane. A lot of our turnovers were when we tried to throw it down the middle of the floor."
Thoughts on SDSU staying in the Mountain West:
"I'm thrilled. I have so much respect for Coach Fisher, and Coach (Brian) Dutcher and I are great friends. I just think this is great for our league. This has been a wonderful rivalry between San Diego State and UNLV. There's a very strong mutual respect between the two staffs. I'm very happy for our league, it's great to have (SDSU) here. It's great to have Boise State and San Diego State back in our league. It's terrific for the Mountain West Conference."
On coming back (to face SDSU) next year:
"I'm just so happy for our seniors because we don't have a player on our roster that had ever won at Viejas Arena. After the game we dedicated it to our seniors, because certainly San Diego State has a couple of wins (at UNLV)."
On how satisfying the win is:
"I think it's satisfying because of a great coach Steve Fisher is. I was looking at their (press) release today; (Fisher) has been here 14 years. It's just remarkable. You come in the arena and look at the banners and all they've accomplished, it's just remarkable the job Coach Fisher, Coach Dutcher and their staff have done. It's just satisfying to beat a fantastic program, not just a team, on their home floor."
UNLV Senior Guard Anthony Marshall
On getting the win:
"It feels very good. (San Diego State) is a tough team over there. It's was a gutsy effort by everybody on our team and the coaching staff. I knew it was going to come down to the last couple possessions, so it was just a tough team effort to get a win."
On how special it is for the seniors to win at Viejas Arena:
"It's very special. I know the last couple games (at Viejas) it's come down to the wire. We just weren't mentally tough enough to get those wins. To get one here means a lot. But for me, I wanted to get this (win) for Coach (Justin) Hutson. Last year, he first came from (SDSU) to UNLV, and we didn't get that win for him. That hurt me a lot. I really wanted to dedicate this game to getting it for him."
If there would have been a hole in his career if he didn't win at Viejas Arena:
"Yes, definitely. I believe we've won everywhere in the Mountain West except here, so it was special getting this win. They've got some great players over here. There's a mutual respect. They're also our friends off the court, but on the court we hate one another. Any time you matchup against friends and get a win, it adds a little something to it."