Oklahoma State University Athletics
Postgame Quotes vs. Texas Tech
January 12, 2008 | Cowboy Basketball
Oklahoma State Cowboy Basketball
Postgame Notes vs. Texas Tech
Saturday, Jan. 12, 2008
OSU Head Coach Sean Sutton
On the game
“That was a big win for our basketball team. It was as consistent as we've played all season. I thought our biggest key was we never let down our defensive intensity. We had great awareness at the defensive end. I thought our post players did a really good job of helping and individually I thought they rose up to the challenge. I thought Marcus (Dove) and Tyler (Hatch) did a good job on (Martin) Zeno and Terrel (Harris) did a good job on (Alan) Voskuil. I thought Byron (Eaton) really frustrated (John) Roberson with his strength and his quickness. It was a good win and I'm proud of our guys and happy for them. All the hard work they've put in is starting to pay off.
On the offensive stretch in the second half
“We ran our offense better and we got better looks. Our ball movement was a lot better second half. Obi (Muonelo) had an unbelievable game and hit some shots during that stretch and James Anderson hit a shot. I thought early we came out with a lot of intensity and a lot of fire and that settled into an offensive rhythm. It got our defense turned back around and more aggressive. I think that was a big thing going into half time.”
On the bigger crowd
“It made a huge difference with our guys. I think they've been somewhat down that the crowds haven't been better. When the crowd comes out the team responds. Our crowd through the years has helped us win a lot of games. The overall intensity level of our team was a lot better today. Part of it is that this was a conference game and a big part of it was the crowd. They play a huge role and they can play a huge role the rest of the season if they come out like that for the next seven conference games.”
On Bobby Knight
“I got the chance to meet him when I was five or six years old. He's always treated me really well through the years and helped me a lot as a player when I was in Kentucky. During the transition between Kentucky and Oklahoma State, he called three of four times that year I was out. He would check on me from time to time. I've never forgot that. He's not only one of the great coaches of basketball, he is one of the great coaches of any sport. I pull for him to win every night out except for the two times they play us.”
OSU Sophomore Guard Obi Muonelo
On the game
“I felt good. I felt like every shot I shot was going to go in. My teammates were giving me great passes, I was wide open, it felt good. ”
On the past two games
“I have not been on a roll like this here. These are the first two games here that I’ve played healthy again and I’m having a lot of fun.”
On his performance
“It was nice to finally play like that again. The crowd was with me the whole time even when i wasn’t playing the best I could play. I heard people in the crowd saying ‘Obi, you can do it’ or ‘Obi, we’re behind you’. That’s what Oklahoma State is about, we’ve got great fans. They pushed me through my injury, they pushed me through all of this. They had me come here today and play the way I play and I finally did it. I knew I could do it the whole time, and it finally came out.”
OSU Freshman Center Ibrahima Thomas
On working hard
“Over the break, Coach (Sean Sutton) had us working really hard. We were working all day long, sometimes from eleven to five. We needed to take it easy this last week so everybody could get their legs back. I think that this game was a result of the hard work that we did.”
OSU Freshman Guard James Anderson
On the role that the crowd played in the game
“It means a lot to us. It was a great atmosphere and it is a great experience getting to play in front of all (the fans). That is what it is all about. It was good to come out here and get a win for them. That is great way to start off the Big 12 season.”
On the play of Obi Muonelo
“He just came out really confident, shooting the ball. He got his legs underneath him and his shot felt good. Everything he threw up went in.“
OSU Junior Forward Marcus Dove
On the game
“That was fun. It was good to have our shooters back. It was good to have the atmosphere in Gallagher-Iba that we are used to in Big 12 play. I think the crowd really willed us to this win tonight. It was good to have the crowd back. We have been working hard over Christmas break and we understand that during the break everybody goes home, so we aren’t going to have big crowds. We just wanted to come back and show everybody how hard we’ve been working and how much we have improved since (the Maui Invitational) and some of the other non-conference games.”
On the play of Ibrahima Thomas
“He got in there and he was physical. I think that one of the knocks on him is that he is not physical enough. I think that kind of gets him mad. Today, he played with a lot of physicality. He finished a lot of easy shots down low, made his free throws, and that is what we need is somebody who will get in there to rebound and be physical.”
On the play of Obi Muonelo
“That is what we have been looking for from Obi. We need some kind of fire power off the bench and he can provide that at anytime. I think he was feeling it today. He had one (three-pointer) when Coach Sean (Sutton) was trying to set up the offense and, before he shot it, I turned to Martavius and told him, ‘Obi is going to shoot it’. He was definitely feeling it.”
On beginning the conference schedule with a win
“It means a lot. This is a whole new season. The non-conference schedule doesn’t matter now. This is conference play. The atmosphere goes up five notches and we understand that everywhere we play will be a hostile environment. For us to win the Big 12 and get into the NCAA Tournament, we are going to have to buckle down and play tough every game in the Big 12.”
Texas Tech Head Coach Bob Knight
On the game
“Where Oklahoma State made maybe its best move of the game was when we got ahead by eight, and they came back and scored nine-straight points. We were just hanging in there the rest of the half. In the second half, their shooting was good and their play was good. They just took the game away from us pretty quickly in the second half.”
On Martin Zeno
“Zeno can’t shoot like those guys (former Texas Tech players Andre Emmett and Jarrius Jackson). Zeno made a lot of mistakes for a four-year player today. A lot of mistakes. He had one stretch there where he turned the ball over three straight times. He just does not have a real good feel for what he is doing. He has been a real disappointment.”
On the season
“Here, the game just got away from us. You can’t let that happen. Last year we played with them the whole way, and there were a couple things that happened at the end of the game that would have befuddled God if he would have been on the bench. We never let the game get away from us, so we had a chance to win right down to the wire. But this one today got away from us. We just got to keep fiddling around. I think the thing that I most overrated in my mind was that we have not had improvement from the players coming back – that we would expect to have.”
