NCAA Tournament First Round Press Conference Quotes
3/18/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Alabama Coach Mark Gottfried
On Southern Illinois' Guards
"They're very good, they're very quick. When they substitute they don't miss a beat. I think when you consider their three starters: (Darren) Brooks, (Stetson) Harrison and (Bryan) Turner and then (Jamaal) Tatum and (Tony) Young and also (LaMar) Owen really as a perimeter kind of defender as well, they've got six guys that can really get after you. They press the ball as well as anybody we've seen. They don't ever let up, they just keep it on you the whole game. From our perspective watching them, that's one of their strengths."
On if Southern Illinois defensive perimeter players versus Alabama's offensive perimeter players is like great pitching versus great hitting
"I think there's some truth to that. But I think our perimeter guys defend well also. I do think that they guard you well. Again I think that we've been at our best when we've had good balance from the perimeter and from the inside. So I don't think we're a team that relies solely on our perimeter players making shots. We need to get production from around the basket as well. I think with studying them and watching them, there's no question their ability to guard people has helped them win games, and they've done a great job at that. "
On losing players to the NBA
"Well, it's made the jobs at the higher level a lot harder. We've had the problem at Alabama but other people have as well. I sat with Tom Izzo this summer at Michigan State and he was really frustrated. He's been in kind of a similar situation that I have. It's just the world we live in right now. It is different at Southern Illinois. When I was at Murray State it's a different situation. I think everywhere you coach you have your own set of obstacles you have to overcome. And obviously there's some in the Missouri Valley Conference that we don't deal with and there's some in the SEC that they don't deal with. I just think from our perspective that it is harder sometimes because it's hard to replace a guy that's a potential All-American and it does make it more difficult."
On growing up in Carbondale around the Saluki program as a teenager
"Well I was there for three years, my ninth, tenth and 11th grades of high school. I had a great experience living there. I lived in Carterville one year and then Carbondale two. Played for Doug Woolard who's now the athletic director at Saint Louis University. He and I are still very close. I had a great experience there. I went to a lot of the games obviously and went in there late at night at the SIU arena many times and practiced and played. But it was a long time ago too, you know that was 22 or 23 years ago so I'm sure it's changed a bit since I was there."
On getting early production inside
"I'd like it to be early but I think just throughout the course of the game we need to get something done around the basket. I think when you look back at the Arkansas game in the second half and the run we made to come back or at Auburn and through those struggles where Jermareo (Davidson) had 15 and 8. I think that's when our team has been very good. We just need to play our game, and what we mean by that is having a balanced attack. Kennedy (Winston) and Earnest (Shelton) obviously had a potential probably to score more points but they can't carry this team by themselves, it needs to be a good balanced attack."
On overlooking teams from smaller conferences
"I think sometimes from the average fan you hear it but my perspective is if we're fortunate enough to win, I'm hoping to upset them. This is an upset for Alabama plain and clearly. They're ranked 23rd in the country, we're not. They've been to the sweet-16 and then to the NCAA Tournament. I think their record is 77-15 over the last three years so they have accomplished a tremendous amount. They're the team that's ranked, we're not. We've just kind of been fighting our way into the tournament. I think they've been a team that's been pretty solid as far as being an invite to the NCAA Tournament for a good while here, 17-1 in their conference. I think we can upset them and in my opinion that's what it would be. That's my perspective."
On memories from the 1995 Final Four in Seattle
"Oh I've got a lot of memories from '95 but they're not real relevant to our team. But it was a great run for us, I watched on television when they blew up the Kingdome and about started to cry. That was a special time for us, and for my wife--she's here--Elizabeth, we were both here then. So it was a great run we had and it ended right here in '95 in Seattle."
Alabama Guard Earnest Shelton
On their team strengths
"I think that our team is long, we are tough, and we shoot the ball pretty well. We do a good job of passing and sharing the ball. We use our length and quickness on the court to our advantage."
Scouting SIU's defense
"Their defense is impressive; they work hard, they scramble, and they are always active on the floor. We are going to have to be strong with the ball and make smart passes, create leads and really get open. We really need to just protect the ball and rebound because they play really strong defense. They get all over you, put on a lot of pressure and just take you full court so we have to overcome that pressure."
On being the team's "go to" guys
"I have always had big guys to watch in my time here, so at the Tournament in the last two years I have been able to watch and learn from them. There are a lot of nerves at first when you come into the tournament so you have to come in and calm down and just go out there and play a game. When it is all said and done it is just a basketball game, but you know in the back of your head that if you lose you go home so you try to leave it all on the line. So we've just tried to tell the guys to just come out and leave it on the line. We tell them to not come out with a lot of nerves, we just tell them to come out and play basketball."
On changes in the team's identity from last year
"We have had to step our roles up. Our teammates and our coaches challenged us to step up this year and looked to us to do it all. More than just score or make plays we've had to talk to players on the court or put the ball in the hole we've just had to do whatever it takes to help the team.
On senior guards Demetrius Smith and Antoine Pettway
"Smith has done a great job helping us. Both seniors have both shown the team a lot of leadership. They may not be the biggest stars but when it comes to being a calm leader and coach on the floor that is how they have contributed."
Alabama Forward Kennedy Winston
On their team strengths
"We're not a very strong team so we have to find other ways to get it done on the court. Our guys are really quick and we have four really good shooters from the outside."
Scouting SIU's defense
"They have five guys that really hustle and their guys on the bench are really active on the court. We have to be really poised and maintain our composure."
On being the team's "go to" guys
"We have a whole lot of good guys that really didn't get a lot of chances to play last year, and Earnest [Shelton] and I both had a little more playing time so we have been able to just pass that on to the other guys on the team."
On changes in the team's identity from last year
"I really had to step up this year. Earnest [Shelton]and I carry most of the offensive load but the whole team pitches in to contribute. It is a whole team effort."
On senior guards Demetrius Smith and Antoine Pettway
"Demetrius [Smith] is just a flat out leader. He may not be the strongest player on the court but he just knows how to play basketball. There are a lot of extremely talented basketball players but not many who are leaders like he is."
On the status of his knee injury
"I have just been trying not to worry about it. There is no tomorrow after this game so I am just not thinking about it."
Southern Illinois Coach Matt Painter
Opening Statement
"We're very excited to be in the NCAA Tournament. We're actually very excited to be in Seattle. I think any time you get this opportunity you want to stay closer to home but to go to a different city and a different venue and experience another location is good."
On having previous tourney experience
"This is Darren Brooks' third tournament and third year and he's been to a lot of different places along with Stetson Harrison, Sylvester Willis, and Brad Corn. We have a lot of experienced guys when it comes to the tournament. We have four guys who will play in their fourth tournament game and six guys who have been in tournament games. So this isn't anything new to our guys, nor is winning in the NCAA Tournament new to our guys. I feel that, at our level, a lot of times when people get into the NCAA Tournament, the fans, the community, the league, they make a big deal about just making the tournament. We're not here just to make the tournament and have fun. We're here to hopefully win some basketball games."
On playing Alabama
"Our guys are focused -- they've been focused all year -- and we're looking forward to the challenge of playing Alabama out of the SEC. It's the one thing that we fight for, at our level, is to play somebody of the caliber of Alabama. Hopefully we can play hard and compete and we come out with a victory, but we know it will be very tough with the personnel they have with Kennedy Winston and Earnest Shelton and their athleticism on the front line. Its exciting to be here and hopefully we can play well."
What do you need to do against Alabama to win?
"We haven't played against any teams that are as long as Alabama. We're very simple in our approach. We're going to play man-to-man and we're going to get after you for 94 feet, we're going to play a lot of players and sub a lot of people in. Hopefully we're going to wear down our oppontent. That's not a secret to Alabama or a secret to anybody who plays us."
On first tourney game as head coach
"Obviously, I'm excited about coaching the first round of the NCAA Tournament. But I've also coached in the past, Bruce Weber gave me a lot of responsibilities and involved me in the decision making process, whether in practice or in games at crucial situations. I felt a part of it before and continue to do that with my coaching staff."
Southern Illinois Guard Darren Brooks
On NCAA experience
"I have been here before. My first NCAA tournament game against Georgia, we got down early by 19 points, but we fought back. We just need to try and be patient because anything can happen in the tournament. I am a little anxious myself. We have already talked about last year and trying to get out there on the court and try to avenge that loss. A lot of people just keep talking about that game and I am kind of tired of it because I just want to get out there and play."
On team's defensive play
"Our defense has been our backbone since I got here. We need to emphasize on defense and go out there and play hard to win games. It has worked so far. The new players bought into it and the old players already knew about it, so we know that is what is going to help us win."
On Alabama
"Their three-point shooting is what stood out to me. I saw Earnest Shelton hit a lot of threes against Florida and Winston has a lot of good one-on-one moves."
On coaching change this year
"The change was pretty easy because he has the same philosophies and the same rules, so everything pretty much just stayed the same. The guys on the team are pretty much used to everything so there isn't much of a difference, it was a pretty easy transition for everybody. This has been pretty much his team from the beginning."
Southern Illinois Guard Bryan Turner
On team's defensive play
"We are basically a goal-oriented team. Teams like Alabama in the SEC have long players. You just have to put an emphasis on defense and basically deny them from scoring in the key early on."
On Alabama
"We have seen a little film on them and basically they are just big and long. With teams like that you go into the game basically thinking that you have to play your hardest. When you play against big teams like that you know that they could potentially have a couple of pros on their team because they are just big and strong. We just have to go out there and just play hard."
On playing the first game
"I am really anxious because this is my first time playing in the NCAA tournament. Basically when you step out there you are a little star-struck because you grew up dreaming about games like this. I think this year I will be a little more poised and a little more laid-back because I have already experienced this."
