Oklahoma State University Athletics
Men's Basketball Quotes
December 19, 2000 | Cowboy Basketball
Dec. 19, 2000
OSU Men's Basketball
vs. University of Arkansas Little Rock
Dec. 19, 2000
Postgame Quotes
OSU Coach Eddie Sutton
On Jason Keep
"That will be a memorable evening for the new arena. I had never seen Jason
(Keep) run through a pass in a year and a half. He really was a big spark
off the bench. Andre (Williams) was really struggling and hadn't played
very well."
On the game
"I thought our team played about like we practice. We play in spurts. We
did a lot of good things. Some of the things were not as good as we would
like. They're a nice ball club. I had told our squad that I think they are
the second best team that we have played, other than the University of
Arkansas. One thing I was really disappointed in was our rebounding. We've
been really dominating the boards, and they have not been a good rebounding
ball club. We just were really slow to the ball and didn't do a good job
blocking off the defensive boards. I'm happy with a victory."
On the new arena
"When they get everything finished it is really going to be a special place.
I was concerned about the noise, but I thought it probably was as loud as it
used to be."
Oklahoma State Players
Center Jason Keep
On his two dunks
"Coach was stressing on running through the passes all night long. I kept
telling myself 'I have to get through that pass.' I was trying to get some
more playing time.
On shattering the backboard
"I have never done anything like that before in a game. I did it last year,
but not in front of all these people in the new arena. Everytime I go up
I'm going to try to break it. I just want to go out and get better in
practice everyday. I'm not saying that it's boosting my confidence level,
or it's not boosting my confidence level. When the crowd gets going, I get
going. Whether I'm on the bench or on the floor, I still get going.
Forward Fredrik Jonzen
On Keep shattering the backboard
"Jason gets so pumped up. All he needs is a run through and a little dunk.
We can all see it on the court. He gets so fired up just getting things
like that. That's great for him. That's what he needs. That's something
that only happens once in your career, maybe twice, especially in a game
like this. I think it was a great beginning of the new Gallagher Iba too,
to come out there and break a backboard in the first game. It's going to
make history."
Victor Williams
On the team's first game in Gallagher-Iba Arena
"Tonight's game is what the Gallagher-Iba experience is all about. To me, it
is the best arena to play in in the country. I am so happy to get back in
here, I was just so excited to see all of those people out there, the
expansion, it was a great feeling."
On what UALR did to come back in the second half
"They are a very well-coached team, they have some great shooters and hit
some big shots against us in the second half. What we wanted to do down the
stretch is take their three pointers away from them and get up on them on
defense and deny the ball and that's what caused Jason's (Keep) dunks at the
end of the game."
On Keep's backboard shattering dunk
"It was by far the best dunk I have ever seen."
Maurice Baker
On tonight's game
"Tonight was a big game for us, Coach Sutton always talks about the old
players but tonight we showed that we are a new team in a new arena and we
are about to do our own thing."
UALR Coach Porter Moser
"There is no moral victory. I asked the guys to come in and fight, and they did. They never quit. There was a lot of fight in our team. They had 32 points off of our turnovers. When you have that many turnovers, it's going to be hard to win in an atmosphere like this. I told the guys in the locker room, when we get back from Christmas there is a conference race ahead of us. We are ready for a breakthrough. We're not there yet. We need to continue to fight and take care of the ball and execute under pressure. This team can be better than people expect."
On UALR's Challenges
"Bryan Crislip couldn't play. He didn't practice the last two days. I
thought Alex (Finger) was a warrior. He played so hard, and he had to take
the whole point guard load by himself and fatigue set in. Bryan tried to
play, but he had the flu. He was going to be a non factor because he was
really sick."
On his team's effort
"As a coach, when your team doesn't quit, that's one of the number one
things that you're proud of. They didn't quit. They came, and they battled.
This atmosphere right here is what college basketball is all about."
Guard Alan Barksdale
On the game
"The last two times were different. This time, we were prepared for the
things they do and vice versa. They were ready for the things we do. Their
defensive pressure took over and we had some turnovers. That is a credit to
them"
On getting his shot going
"Coach said, 'You are rushing it, take an extra half second.' Sometimes you
rush it more than you know. You get out there in front of a big crowd like
that and get the adrenaline going. He was a player himself and a shooter so
he understands it."
