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[FONT="]HEAD COACH TERRY STOTTS[/FONT]
[FONT="]“It was a good one to end the year on. I was really pleased with the way we kept competing. For a long time, we weren’t shooting the ball well, low scoring game, but we kept competing more than anything else and put ourselves in a position to win. It would have been nice to win it in regulation, but again showing our character and winning in overtime is something to be proud of.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]On having short memory as shooter if shots don’t fall early:[/FONT]
[FONT="]“I don’t even know if it’s about short memory. I think you just have to have a belief in yourself, and I think all our guys do. Ultimately, those shots fell for us. Whether it was Wes or Nic or Dame, they all hit big shots. We ended up shooting 33 percent, but that’s who we are and I think everybody believes they can go in. Now as far as a short memory, I don’t know. I think it’s kind of a cliché, but I think you have to have a strong belief in yourself especially if it’s what you do.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]On Aldridge’s performance coming back from illness:[/FONT]
[FONT="]“It’s like against Oklahoma City – obviously he’s not 100 percent still, but he just showed a strong will, playing, going to him in the post, getting into the paint, rebounding, defending, switching onto Lowry. Coming back from an illness that kind of sapped him of some energy, he showed a lot of moxie.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]On Freeland’s effort, particularly in fourth quarter:[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Well, I don’t know if he ramped it up because I think he always plays hard. We got some very big stops and he got his hands on a lot of balls, rebounds. He was involved in a lot of pick and rolls and I think he contributed to them missing some shots at the rim. Lowry getting to the basket, he got a block late. That’s his job.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]On 26-7 record going into 2015:[/FONT]
[FONT="]“I mean, I’m pleased. I think anybody would have taken this record going into 2015. The most important thing is that we’ve still got 49 games to go. We’re not even halfway through. It’s good to be where we are, but we play a good team on Saturday and like I said, we’ve got a lot of games to go. I don’t think anybody is taking it for granted or being complacent about it. We’ve put a lot of expectation on ourselves.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]WESLEY MATTHEWS[/FONT]
[FONT="]On coming back from double digit deficit: [/FONT]
[FONT="]“We’re not going to go anywhere. We were down double digits, 10 points in a 1:30 on the road, so double digits at home? We’re not going to go anywhere. It’s just a credit to the guys in this locker room and the belief we have in each other and just continuing to play basketball.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]What was reason for struggles offensively through three quarters?[/FONT]
[FONT="]“The ball didn’t go in the basket. I don’t think that we took bad shots. We took shots that we would all love to shoot again and everybody thinks that it would fall. We were moving the ball, we got touches on the block, LA was able to play one on one. The ball was swinging when they were in rotations. I think we just missed shots.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]On late game execution:[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Hit and miss I think. I’ve got to look at it a little bit again. We made plays, but then we also almost gave it away, but we made enough winning plays to overcompensate. It’s tough to say right now. I don’t want a couple mistakes to overlook everything else we did.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]On defense playing at a high level:[/FONT]
[FONT="]“We believe. That confidence is what gives our offense confidence. When we’re not making shots, we know that we can rely on our defense. That’s different than years past. There were times we weren’t able to do that. I don’t know if we would have been able to do it last year. But we know that if we’re not making shots, if we continue to do what we do defensively, we’ll give ourselves the opportunity to get our offense back in the game.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]Was that biggest fourth quarter of the season?[/FONT]
[FONT="]“It probably was. It was a stand that we needed to make. It was a stand that we desperately needed to make. I mean, this was a big game. December 30th, this was a huge game between two good teams. They took it to us in the first half. They took it to us for three quarters really. They were the aggressors, and it’s hard to be the second aggressor and win the game, but we were able to do that and the offense was able to go.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]“It was a good one to end the year on. I was really pleased with the way we kept competing. For a long time, we weren’t shooting the ball well, low scoring game, but we kept competing more than anything else and put ourselves in a position to win. It would have been nice to win it in regulation, but again showing our character and winning in overtime is something to be proud of.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]On having short memory as shooter if shots don’t fall early:[/FONT]
[FONT="]“I don’t even know if it’s about short memory. I think you just have to have a belief in yourself, and I think all our guys do. Ultimately, those shots fell for us. Whether it was Wes or Nic or Dame, they all hit big shots. We ended up shooting 33 percent, but that’s who we are and I think everybody believes they can go in. Now as far as a short memory, I don’t know. I think it’s kind of a cliché, but I think you have to have a strong belief in yourself especially if it’s what you do.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]On Aldridge’s performance coming back from illness:[/FONT]
[FONT="]“It’s like against Oklahoma City – obviously he’s not 100 percent still, but he just showed a strong will, playing, going to him in the post, getting into the paint, rebounding, defending, switching onto Lowry. Coming back from an illness that kind of sapped him of some energy, he showed a lot of moxie.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]On Freeland’s effort, particularly in fourth quarter:[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Well, I don’t know if he ramped it up because I think he always plays hard. We got some very big stops and he got his hands on a lot of balls, rebounds. He was involved in a lot of pick and rolls and I think he contributed to them missing some shots at the rim. Lowry getting to the basket, he got a block late. That’s his job.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]On 26-7 record going into 2015:[/FONT]
[FONT="]“I mean, I’m pleased. I think anybody would have taken this record going into 2015. The most important thing is that we’ve still got 49 games to go. We’re not even halfway through. It’s good to be where we are, but we play a good team on Saturday and like I said, we’ve got a lot of games to go. I don’t think anybody is taking it for granted or being complacent about it. We’ve put a lot of expectation on ourselves.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]WESLEY MATTHEWS[/FONT]
[FONT="]On coming back from double digit deficit: [/FONT]
[FONT="]“We’re not going to go anywhere. We were down double digits, 10 points in a 1:30 on the road, so double digits at home? We’re not going to go anywhere. It’s just a credit to the guys in this locker room and the belief we have in each other and just continuing to play basketball.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]What was reason for struggles offensively through three quarters?[/FONT]
[FONT="]“The ball didn’t go in the basket. I don’t think that we took bad shots. We took shots that we would all love to shoot again and everybody thinks that it would fall. We were moving the ball, we got touches on the block, LA was able to play one on one. The ball was swinging when they were in rotations. I think we just missed shots.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]On late game execution:[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Hit and miss I think. I’ve got to look at it a little bit again. We made plays, but then we also almost gave it away, but we made enough winning plays to overcompensate. It’s tough to say right now. I don’t want a couple mistakes to overlook everything else we did.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]On defense playing at a high level:[/FONT]
[FONT="]“We believe. That confidence is what gives our offense confidence. When we’re not making shots, we know that we can rely on our defense. That’s different than years past. There were times we weren’t able to do that. I don’t know if we would have been able to do it last year. But we know that if we’re not making shots, if we continue to do what we do defensively, we’ll give ourselves the opportunity to get our offense back in the game.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]Was that biggest fourth quarter of the season?[/FONT]
[FONT="]“It probably was. It was a stand that we needed to make. It was a stand that we desperately needed to make. I mean, this was a big game. December 30th, this was a huge game between two good teams. They took it to us in the first half. They took it to us for three quarters really. They were the aggressors, and it’s hard to be the second aggressor and win the game, but we were able to do that and the offense was able to go.”[/FONT]
