Memphis/Lamar Post-Game Quotes
Jan 03, 2009 | Men's Basketball
Jan. 3, 2009
Recap | Final Stats
Memphis - January 3, 2009 Post Game Quotes
Lamar (9-4) 35-40 75
Memphis (10-3) 58-50 108
Antonio Anderson (12 points/10 boards/13 assists) becomes the second Memphis player to record a triple-double in Tiger basketball history. The last was recorded by Anfernee Hardaway against Vanderbilt on Jan. 6, 1993 (26/12/10). Hardaway also posted a triple-double in the game prior on Jan. 4, 1993 against Georgia State (21/15/14).
Memphis Head Coach John Calipari
Opening Statement
"We're getting better. It is pretty obvious that we are getting better. I'm asking each of these guys to be their best. I asked them yesterday if anybody is playing their best right now. If you go around the room if it is (Robert) Dozier, Tyreke (Evans), Doneal Mack, Willie Kemp, but at some point we have to get to the point where each individual is playing their best basketball."
"We're getting better chemistry. We're way more aggressive against the zone, but I just wish we have more guys like Preston (Laird) that aren't afraid. I yell at him too, but he's not afraid. He shoots the ball. We may have been up 30, but there are some other guys that even up 30...we have to get them all playing their best. When you are your best what does your game look like? That's where we have to get these guys."
How hard is it for Preston when he comes into the game and everybody is wanting him to shoot?
"I'm telling you, he's not afraid. He'll even turn it over and be fine. Like last game, he drove down the middle and threw it away, but he didn't care. I said to my team after, think about it; that is Preston. He's not afraid. Again, we have to get guys to be playing their best."
Are you happy with your shooting in today's game?
"It's better, but we went inside. The shots were wide open because we were getting it inside. I thought (Robert) Dozier and (Shawn) Taggart showed great toughness. They had a couple breakdowns, but I they had better toughness and that's what we have to have."
What if Tyreke had started at point guard at the beginning of the season?
"That's my fault. We're doing a lot of jump stopping in practice, and now there are less turnovers because now we're not leaving our feet. Whose fault is that...mine. Tyreke should have been our point guard from day one. Whose fault is that...mine. That's what I've been saying. Let me figure out the team. Don't blame these kids."
"Antonio Anderson had a triple double with 13 assists and no turnovers. Between him and my point guard they went 18 assists to one turnover. Wow...wow...Lamar is going to win their league and has a good chance to be in the NCAA Tournament. They hit us on a bad day. This is the way that we're capable of playing though. If we're coming together and everybody is doing their job, then we have a good team."
Lamar Head Coach Steve Roccaforte
Thoughts on the game
"We tried to stick to our game plan, and we tried to do the things we knew it would take to win the game. I think the first thing that they did was some guys that haven't really been shooting the ball well made some shots. And what we were trying to do was pack a zone in and try to make them beat us with jump shots, but they had some guys that really shot the ball well tonight. I don't think we did a particularly good job of boxing out on rebounds. I thought we did everything we possibly could have. It just wasn't meant to be tonight."
On Memphis
"Points in the paint were 58-30 in favor of Memphis; points off turnovers were 25-7 in favor of Memphis; second chance points were 17-10 in favor of Memphis. They just have a very good team. Just from watching tape and seeing them play, I think they're the best team we've played this season. That's my personal opinion. I think they're better than Kentucky. I think they're better than Louisville. I think they're better than Texas Tech. They present some hard problems because they're so long, and they're so athletic. And when they're pressing and pressuring at half court, it's hard to make passes. They're very long and very active, and they really defend, especially in the half court. I thought our guys played hard from start to finish, and that's what I wanted to see."
