Oklahoma State University Athletics
Postgame Quotes
November 12, 2013 | Cowboy Basketball
Nov. 12, 2013
Recap | Final Stats | Notes
Postgame Quotes
Oklahoma State vs Utah Valley
Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2013
OSU head coach Travis Ford
Opening statement
"I'm very happy with the start we had. I don't think we could have gotten off to a better start than we did. Utah Valley is a team that runs a lot of different plays and sets, and we took them pretty much out of all of their action. I was very pleased with how the guys tuned (in) to the scouting report. That was very good. We rebounded the ball at a high level and we were making shots. I thought the first 15 minutes of the first half set the tone. We got off to a big lead. We didn't finish the half the way that I wanted. The last five minutes weren't great defensively. Everybody got an opportunity to play. Everybody came out of the gates and played very hard and aggressive."
On Marcus Smart's nine steals
"We had talked a lot over the last couple of days about being aggressive. A team that likes to run their plays and be comfortable, we wanted to get after them pretty good. We didn't talk about going out there and stealing the ball, but we talked about being aggressive. What I liked, was that a lot of the steals came out of, not us gambling, which we've had the tendency to do in these first few games, but letting our defense and aggressiveness create the steal. Marcus is a guy that, defensively, is the best I've seen at reading plays and being able to anticipate where the next pass is going to be. I think that out of his nine, three or four of them came out of understanding the scouting report and knowing where the next pass was going to go."
On point guard Stevie Clark
"I like that he's thinking pass before shot. He's really trying to get other guys involved. He was trying to get Michael Cobbins shots late in the game. I love that. His 16 points, that comes easy for him. Even the passing comes easy. He went out and scored 16 points and didn't even try to score. He passed up several shots. I love his mindset. We don't want that to change. We want him to continue to be very humble and appreciative of the playing time, continue to learn from these older guys, and continue with the attitude he's had and good things will continue to happen for our basketball team."
OSU sophomore guard Phil Forte
On coming out after the defensive effort and three-pointer late in the game
"He (Coach Ford) was just trying to get other guys in. That's just how I'm going to play. Coach Ford knows that and demands that of me every day. He knows that and he was just letting other guys get in. No matter what the score is, you need to play 100 percent every time."
On the success shooting tonight
"This was just one of those nights. We had been shooting a lot in practice. This is a talented team. We were hitting on all cylinders tonight and we're really hard to stop. We're moving the ball really well, getting in the lane, pitching out to different guys who can knock down shots. When we're doing that it makes the game a lot easier."
On Stevie Clark's performance tonight
"That's really big. Stevie has been playing really well in practice and in the games. We all know Stevie can shoot, that's obviously one of his biggest strengths. What I've been more impressed with is his attitude and the way he comes to practice and games every day. He's really unselfish and he looks to get his teammates involved first before he scores and that speaks about his character and what he brings to the team. He doesn't really care about what happens for him individually but he just wants to do what's best for the team."
On if they are looking ahead to Memphis
"Every time you walk on campus that's what you hear students talking about. But that's kind of a trap game, we have a game in front of us that we have to take care of business first and once we get past (Arkansas) Pine Bluff, we'll look at Memphis. We just take it one game a time and slowly build our way up to the Memphis game."
OSU sophomore guard Marcus Smart
On setting a school record for steals in a game
"The coaches just told me. I was trying to go for my 10th steal. I had nine, but unfortunately, I didn't get it."
On the success shooting tonight
"It's just one of those nights. We had been shooting the ball well in practice. We've been having guys dedicated coming in and out at countless hours of the night, coming back in the morning doing some things and in practice continuing to work. So we knew it would pay off and it was just one of those nights."
On the defensive performance tonight
"That's one of those things we pride ourselves on. We have a lot of guys with quick hands, quick feet and with good anticipation. So, we just want to get out there and make every time we play a team, make it so hard on them that it's frustrating for them, and that's what we did tonight."
On the team's effort
"No matter what the score, how much time is left, we play until the horn sounds in the second half when the game is over."
On if he has learned more about the team over the last week
"I do (think so). We have a lot of guys that struggled a week ago that have come along very well. A lot of guys, that weren't sure of their role on this team are coming in and understanding this is what they need to do as individuals. What we've been doing in practice every day has been very competitive and that's how we want it to play and we trust it'll be that way in the game."
Utah Valley head coach Dick Hunsaker
On what the team can learn from tonight's game
"I don't know what they will learn. These games where we play such an athletic and energetic team can help. Time will tell if we have the discipline and recall to remember what things we need to improve on from tonight. Hopefully it will help us later on down the road when we play another team of their capabilities."
On the turnaround from playing in Utah last night
"These games are all what they are. We knew what was on the schedule, and I just wish we could have given the Cowboys more competition tonight and a little more fight."
