Dec. 10, 2014
Final Stats | Notes | 
Photo Gallery 1 | Photo Gallery 2 | 
quotes
SAN DIEGO -
SDSU head coach Steve Fisher (Radio)
On the win:
"It was exciting, there's absolutely no question about that. I thought that the last seven to eight minutes our offensive flow was the best it's been in a long time. Smooth, controlled, confident, delivered the ball to the right person at the right time. We didn't make them all, but we did things offensively that should win. It was a win and we had to have a win against a good team. I said it before, (Mike) Caffey is a terrific player and he makes plays. One on the points on our bulletin board was five or under threes for that team and they couldn't beat us. They had eleven threes. They made some shots, we helped them out a little bit in the first half with turnovers. At the end of the half we turned the ball over three straight times and allowed them to come back into the game. We got a win and that's the most important thing."
On halftime adjustments to the offense:
"We wanted to try to have more low-post touches. The primary guy that we wanted to throw it to was J.J. (O'Brien) to make the good decision. JJ, Skyler (Spencer), and Angelo (Chol) could go in and make the smart play out of that, I thought we did a good job of attacking off of the dribble and we did more kicking the ball outside for shots than we have in a while. That looked good."
On players stepping up at the end for the finish:
"I thought that when Dakarai Allen came in and he started guarding Caffey that gave us a guy with more length and athleticism up top and made it a little more difficult for him to find his looks on the perimeter. I thought that we had a lot of contributions from different players. We only had one turnover in the last eight minutes which was huge."
On big rebound numbers despite the close game:
"We had some timely rebounds for scores down the stretch which really helped us. We got to the free-throw line 25 times, we have to make more. I want to tell you and the listeners before we go that at the end of the game when J.J. missed the first one, they had no timeouts left, so I couldn't get his attention but I wanted him to miss the second one on purpose. But JJ on his own missed the last free throw intentionally so they couldn't take it in and throw it the length of the floor and have a better look at the end. Again, another smart play by a smart basketball player."
On success with transfers:
"You may have mentioned (Dwayne) Polee, he made a huge long distance three for us to either put us ahead or tie it up in the last three or four minutes. You have to have players make plays. You have to get your look and when you get your look, shoot it and make a good percentage of them to win the basketball game. We did that tonight down the stretch to win the game."
On offensive fouls in the first half:
"They fake charges, I knew they would take and fake charges. I got the refs together before hand, I know they don't like that, and said that they fake charges, they fall down. I thought that Angelo (Chol) got a bad call the first time he went to the post he just turned and the guy flopped. Five out of the six were legitimate calls."
On playing Cincinnati on the road:
"They've gotten 25 out of the last 26 at home. So this will be a challenge for us. They have been like us a little bit, they've had low scoring games, they guard you like crazy and are very physical. We will play hard and they will know that they're at a basketball game. If we play like we did offensively the last eight minutes of the game we will win the game."
On the crowd:
"Our fans were sensational tonight. Especially down the stretch when we needed them. We salute them. We need to get all of them here there were a few empty seats tonight so if you can't come to the next game, give your tickets to someone who would love to come. Those that were here were absolutely sensational and we appreciate you helping us be successful."
Steve Fisher (postgame)
Opening Statement:
"We played a good basketball team tonight. When they take and make three-point shots, they're a better basketball team. They made enough of them tonight to make it very difficult on us. The first half was plagued with turnovers for us. We had at least six, maybe seven offensive charges and 12 first half turnovers. I told our team that they take and fake more charges than anybody you'll play. You have to be able to jump stop and make a play. We were much better on that during the second half. Down the stretch in the second half in the last eight minutes, we appeared to have a better offensive flow and feel to what we were doing. They looked more comfortable and at ease. We found a way to get the win and everyone contributed. We had good moments from everyone who played. This was an important win against a good team. They beat Kansas State and led Washington by nine with nine minutes to go in the second half. (Long Beach State) is capable of playing with anybody. We found a way for them to play with us and then some, and eventually a way to win the game. We have to get better and we will. I saw growth down the stretch. We made enough important plays to win the game."
On the controlled desperation of being down by eight points:
"Sometimes controlled desperation is good. That might have been part of it. I don't know who made the first basket when we were down eight. I thought Winston (Shepard) down the stretch played thoughtful and when he got inside, he got a little bank runner and made a couple plays for other people. Early on, he turned the ball over and turned the ball over two or three times to start the second half. But down the stretch, he didn't turn the ball over. He did a nice job. Maybe a little controlled desperation is what we saw. I saw them play with energy and toughness that said we're going to find a way to win. Some way somehow, we did. I think our kids are to be applauded. They know it was hard fight and we had enough not so good moments that it could have gone the other way too."
On Long Beach State making three-point shots:
"One of our bullet points was to keep Long Beach to five or fewer three-point baskets made. I think they were averaging nine coming in. We did not do that. We gave them some open looks and they made them. They also made some hard looks. They're a team that can get hot. They were down seven or eight in their game against Western Michigan and they went on a 16-0 run where they made every shot they took. They can do that. When they played UCLA and were down five or six, they went on a 13-0 run. They're a streaky team and can get hot. Particularly when (Mike) Caffey makes a shot, it seems to energize everyone else. It's almost like Jimmy Fredette - when he made a shot, everyone else shot better. That happened a little bit tonight."
On J.J. O'Brien's free throw attempt with three seconds left of the game:
"When J.J. got fouled and missed the first free throw, I was trying to get his attention, which I did not get, to tell him that they (Long Beach) had no timeouts left with a little over two seconds to go. We're better served to miss the second one and he did that on his own. He missed the second shot intentionally knowing they had no timeouts and it would be much harder for them to go 90 feet off the dribble than throw the ball to mid-court and give the chance to someone to try and throw one in. J.J. makes plays that are athletic and he makes plays with his brain."
On the advantage of not fouling:
"It's critical even down the stretch where we had four fouls with 16 seconds or so to go. We said to see how many seconds you could burn and don't let (Mike) Caffey get away from you but foul him when he cross midcourt. We were able to strategically use seven seconds by fouling twice without them being at the free throw line but then he dropped in a big three with just a couple seconds to go. It was entertaining if you came to watch. It was disappointing for the Long Beach fans and exhilarating for us. Our kids were excited as they had been in a while. Sometimes there is relief that you win but there was genuine enthusiasm, energy and excitement because we had won that game. It was good for all of us."
Senior forward Dwayne Polee II
On Long Beach State's Mike Caffey making 3-pointers:
"Caffey is a great player; he's going to be one of the greatest players in Long Beach State history, so it was only a matter of time before he (started making shots). But I think we showed great perseverance and we stuck with our game plan and we came out with the ultimate result."
On what sparked Polee's change with 10 minutes left in second half:
"Nothing really changed. I was just getting a lot of good shots. I was getting a lot of good shots in the first half as well, they just weren't falling. Our thing this week was be aggressive and look for the open man, and make the right play, so I was just taking what was coming to me."
On going 3-for-12 from the 3-point arc as a team:
"We've got a lot of great shooters on this team, we've got a lot of great players, and we're never going to not shoot the three. We're always going to take what the defense gives us. I'm not going to say that we're not a three-point shooting team, we just haven't been getting any lucky bounces. Further on in the season, they're going to start falling, and everyone's going to see how great of an offensive team we can be."
On how Polee felt about his game-tying 3-pointer:
"It was a great feeling, tying the game up, and we went on a great run. I just felt like it was time to close the game after that three and just keep riding the momentum all the way to the finish line."
Senior forward J.J. O'Brien
On taking the final free throws of the game:
"I knew they didn't have any timeouts, so if I made it they would have had an opportunity to set up a play. I missed the first one, but then I missed the second one on purpose."
On turning the ball over late in the game:
"I just didn't see the other guy. I was just trying to get it back to (Shepard) because they weren't fouling me, they were trapping me. I should have called a timeout, but I didn't see the guy."
On the inbounds play with three seconds left on the shot clock:
"It's the usual play we run, but we just switched spots. Since we only had three seconds, I just went as fast as I could and I knew I had an opportunity to get to the basket."
On the momentum change down eight points in the second half:
"It was a collective effort. We were going get stops and make good plays on the other end. Dakarai (Allen) came in and did a great job on Caffey, he lit a spark for us."
Junior guard Winston Shepard
On the second half:
"We just knew we had to pull it together. We were ok, they are just a tough team. These are the type of games that will help us down the stretch in March."
On offensive fouls:
"To be honest, we had a couple bum calls. We just kept playing; always staying aggressive. You never want to blame the refs, but maybe a different set, three or four of those calls would have gone the other way. It's just the way the whistle went."
On the late stretch and snapping out of their "funk":
"I don't think we have been in a funk. We continue to be aggressive. Some shots haven't fallen. I watch a ton of college basketball, and there are not many teams that are clicking on all cylinders right now. We want to peak in February heading into March. Nobody is panicking, and we don't pay attention to what everyone in the media says. We have great players, all-conference type players. We will continue to attack and be aggressive."
Long Beach State head coach Dan Monson
Opening Statement:
"We played well enough to win in stretches, but not good enough to win down the stretch. We got up nine and took a couple tough shots and started trading baskets and fell in love with our offense and this is a game you have to win with your defense. We gave up too many offensive rebounds and too many good looks in the last five or six minutes. I thought we controlled that end of the floor in the first 35 minutes pretty well, but once we started scoring, I thought our defensive intensity and attention to detail on rebounding really slipped, and you can't do that against a good team."
On why their defense slipped toward the end of the game:
"Once we start scoring and get comfortable, we think we're just going to outscore teams. We just lose a little bit of defensive focus and start trading baskets. You can't trade baskets when you're on the road. We had a chance when we were up by nine (points) to extend (the lead) up to 12 or 15, and didn't do it. We played from behind the last two minutes."
On their guard play:
"Mike (Caffey) had a good second half. He was a little tentative early and got a couple fouls. But he was trying to do what we ask, and that's try not to attack the paint for the other guys, but he has to look for his own shot a little bit. In the second half he was able to do that."
On his team's resolve following a blowout loss at Stephen F. Austin on Dec. 5:
"I feel a lot better about our team now than I did two hours ago because in the loss to Stephen F. Austin, we didn't compete. We got beat today, but we didn't lose. I think there's a difference there. We competed and just ended up getting beat. We can learn from this and get better. For us, this is a preseason. That's what we play these quality games for; to see where we stack up and try to get better."
On if he believes they're on track of building something similar to San Diego State:
"(SDSU) has done a tremendous job here. Emulating them is a great plan. That's why I appreciate playing this game. (SDSU) is coming back to our place next year and it's a great game for us. We don't have to travel all over the country to play highly ranked teams. (SDSU) is one of the best teams in the country right now and they're right down the road. We'll be back at 11 p.m. tonight and we know a lot more about our team. I appreciate coach (Steve) Fisher starting this series back up. We've got a lot more to gain in this game than they do, and we'd like to get our program that level. That's why we play them, to see how we stack up.'"
On how much their tough schedule helped them coming into this game:
"I'm a believer that kids need reality, they don't need confidence. Twenty-year-olds have plenty of confidence. I don't think these games hurt our confidence. The Stephen F. Austin game let us know we are not rebounding good enough. That's why we do it; we believe it helps us and makes us better."
Long Beach State guard Mike Caffey
On how they lost the lead in the second half:
"Little things; box outs, not guarding the boundary, defense, turning the ball over, shooting bad shots. Just little things like that."
On SDSU's run at the end:
"They are a top-10 team so we knew they were coming. We just have to finish games out."
On what it will take to finish games out:
"Just doing the little things; box out, free throws, guarding the ball, rebounds. All the little things."
On coming so close to pulling the upset:
"We just have to finish games out. We have a couple more top-20 games, and we just need to make sure we finish them out."
On the team's mentality after halftime:
"Be aggressive. To try and get in the paint for others, and (SDSU) was long, so maybe I should have tried to play more to others inside. Just to be aggressive on offense and defend.
On Dakarai Allen guarding him late in the game:
"It was very tough. He is long, forced a turnover on me one time, and just him on the ball was a problem."
On Travis Hammonds' shot at the buzzer:
"I honestly didn't know it was that close until it hit the rim. We all thought it was going to go in."
On stacking up to SDSU:
"I think we can beat them. Put us on a neutral court and maybe in a tournament and we can beat them. You never know."
On playing at Viejas Arena:
"I told my team before the game that I played (SDSU) my freshman, year and it's probably the loudest gym I've played in compared to all the big schools I've played. This and Kansas are probably in the top-five loudest stadiums. I knew the student section was going to be crazy so I warned the team before we came out."