Oklahoma State University Athletics
Oklahoma Postgame Quotes
January 13, 2016 | Cowboy Basketball
Oklahoma State Head Coach Travis Ford
Opening statement:
"I'm really proud of our effort, and I'm really proud of our mental approach. They had a fight to them until the end of the game, and they didn't care about the score. We played arguably the best team in the country, and they played well. I think we did a pretty good of taking them out of their offense in the second half and doing more of what we wanted to do on the defensive end. In the first half, they made some great shots, and that's hard to overcome. In the second half, we did something about it. We made some adjustments at halftime that really helped our guys make quick adjustments. The approach was right, and I'm proud of the pride and effort of our guys.Â
On Jawun Evans' performance:
"Obviously, Jawun Evans was unbelievable. He just kind of got into a zone, and then we ran four or five different plays to try and create holes for him. He did a great job with making decisions. I thought Jeffrey Carroll really showed some grit in the second half after not playing very well in the first half. I thought a lot of guys gave us good minutes."
On the final play of the game:
"Evans had been out, so they were draped all over him. We knew he wouldn't be able to get off a shot, and we actually used him as a decoy and had him act like he was going to set a screen. We had four different options, and we ended up making the right play. Leyton Hammonds did the right pass, and Jeffrey Carroll turned and put up the best shot he could. We missed the free throw on purpose, and we actually had the ball in our hands to lay it in, but the ball didn't bounce the right way. I'm still proud of the effort."
OSU Freshman Jawun Evans:
On their defense:Â
"We locked down on defense. Our defense is key for us. Coach has us working on it every practice, and talks to us about it before each game."
On his performance tonight versus previous games:Â
"I took what they gave me, my teammates told me to go, so I got open and things happened."
On him playing against a guy like Buddy Hield:Â
"Yes knowing I was going to play Hield, and it fired me up, but playing any team in the Big-12 fires me up. Playing against such a great player like that just makes me play even harder."
On who was defending Jawun and if it made a difference:Â
"It was kind of the same difficulty with every defender, none of them want to foul, so I took advantage of that and would take it to the hole."
On shooting after getting blocked:Â
"After being blocked I had to change up my shot a bit, and take a different angle than I did the first time."
On how he feels being with OSU for this short amount of time:Â
"I'm definitely getting into the environment of the game, it's getting better for me. The crowd was great, our fans are great and I thank them for coming out."
OSU Sophomore Jeffrey Carroll:
On the final shot:Â
"I thought I had a good hook, I should have made it. I thought it was going to go in, but instead it bounced and rolled off. I couldn't control it after that."
On how the crowd made a difference towards the end:Â
"They played a huge factor for us, it was fun to hear. It put chills through my whole body hearing them."
Oklahoma Head Coach Lon Kruger
On the game:
"It's no surprise it was a hard-fought game. Both teams really battled and the O-State guys did a great job especially late getting back in the ballgame. Watching tapes of them throughout the year, the thing that's stood out is how hard they've competed and how hard they've fought. It feels great to get out with a win. The last minute didn't go so well, but it certainly is better to win and learn than to not win and we've got to play a lot better."
On Jawun Evans:
"On tape he's a really good player. He's never done that before, that doesn't happen very often, but he pretty much had his way. We didn't do a good job of corralling him or containing him or keeping him from doing what he wanted to do."
OU Senior Buddy HieldÂ
On defending Jawun:
"He just had good pace and a good feel for the game. He made some great plays and some tough shots. He's a freshman and you don't expect him to make tough shots. He's a great player and he's done a great job so far. Next game we play him in, we just need to do a better job."
On adjusting for the next game:
"I just have to be more relaxed and I'll be fine. I've got good teammates and good coaches around me, so I'll be more relaxed. We've got a good West Virginia team coming up, so we have to be ready for that and I'm sure they'll come out attacking."
OU's Jordan Woodard
On the last play:
"They set a good screen for one of their players and he came off the screen, so I just tried to jump and contest it the best I could. They ran a good play.Â
To win in GIA:
"It was good for us to get a Big 12 road win. OSU plays hard, but to get a win over OSU and being from Oklahoma, it feels good."
