December 4, 1998
Player Quotes
#11 Saul Smith – Sophomore/Guard
On the departure of Myron Anthony:
“It surprised us and sort of caught us of guard. We all wish Myron the best in life and in all of his endeavors. He’s one of my good friends and I will miss him.”
“It’s great to be back in Lexington. I’m looking forward to facing a great Miami team at home tomorrow. They are going to come out and try to stifle us defensively. We just have to keep the game tempo up and concentrate like we did against Kansas.”
#34 Scott Padgett – Senior/Forward
On the departure of Myron Anthony:
“I think it was a shock to everyone. I know he was frustrated about his playing time. Nobody realized he was that upset. I wish him the best. I think it’s a matter of how much you’re willing to stick it out to stay at Kentucky. Wayne Turner and myself see, in the long run, what it means to play at UK. Being a Kentuckian, I was willing to wait it out. As a junior or a senior is when you get to play more at Kentucky. I was willing to stick it out. I think Myron may have been looking at the short-run, rather than what could’ve been in his future.”
On Miami:
“We can’t get excited over one win. We’ve got to face a tough team this weekend with Miami. We need to focus on one team at a time. We’re going to have to execute every time down the court. Miami gets their offense off of their defense. They’re one of the best defensive teams in the nation.”
On being back home:
“It’s good to be home. On the road, it’s hard to get practice in and work on our shooting because we’re stuck in hotel rooms. At home, we have more time to work on things.”
#5 Wayne Turner – Senior/Guard
On Anthony’s departure:“He wasn’t at practice this morning and I was wondering why he wasn’t there. I guess he wasn’t happy here and he decided to transfer. I haven’t talked to him about it, yet. His situation is similar to what mine was, but I stayed and stuck it out. I think he was disappointed with his playing time this year. I think he feels like he may be playing more somewhere else.”
On being back at Rupp:“I think it will give us a chance to rest, and stay away from jet lag. Most of the guys are excited to be back at Rupp.”
“Everyone comes to Rupp fired up. We are just going to play as well as we can and keep the same attitude we had against Kansas. We are going to try to make our free throws, get shots in the basket, and stay sharp on defense.”
