Tubby Smith Quotes
Pre-Louisville Game
On the rivalry between Kentucky and Louisville:
“Certainly we feel as if every game is a big rivalry. I know this one takeson an added emphasis because when you live nearby, it is kind of like theHatfields and the McCoys. You may be related but everybody wants to see youcome away with a win. We need to play well because we’re 4-4 and we reallyhaven’t put together a whole game this year. We need to play well but notnecessarily because of the rivalry. This is one of the most intenserivalries in college basketball.”
On asking the team for a big emotional lift:
“We have to ask them for that every game. Obviously, this is one that ourguys know we need to get up for. When you sit at 4-4, you don’t want to go4-5, so there is a lot of motivation there. There’s a lot of motivationbecause of all the other factors, we haven’t won against Louisville in twoyears.”
On too many emotional battles in the rigorous non-conference portion ofUK’s schedule:
“They like playing against the best competition and I think all our playersunderstand that we were in every game and had a chance to win, so it wasn’tlike we didn’t have the effort. Now is the time to start making the best ofour opportunities when they present themselves. It will be a good chancefor us to do that tomorrow against a team that I think is as good a team aswe have played so far. I think they are a top 20 team.”
On ignoring the negativity from the fans and media:
“I think it has more affect on the players than it does on me. I amforty-eight years old and it doesn’t bother me at all. When you look atplayers that are giving their all and doing their best, that’s all we canask of them. There’s a lot more written about sports and basketball thanthere ever has been before. It’s gotten bigger and bigger each year.”
On Saul’s ball-handling and play against Maryland:
“We certainly didn’t expect him to have six turnovers and that is one ofthe things a point guard is not supposed to do. We felt like he had to bemore creative and that’s one thing I’ve asked him to do. We haven’t beenputting a lot of points on the board and I want him to be more aggressiveoffensively. I think he was trying to be more aggressive in taking the ballinside rather than attacking the defense. I thought he did a good job otherthan the turnovers he got when he got too deep or tried to do too much.”
On UK playing six top 25 teams in the non-conference season compared to therest of the SEC playing six top 25 teams combined:
“Obviously, those teams we scheduled last year were teams under differentcircumstances. Things change, for instance the players we have returningand the loss of a particular player like John Stewart. I think it is goingto benefit us playing this tough schedule and that’s the only way I canlook at it now. If I had to do it over, I probably wouldn’t have scheduledso many top teams 25 teams.”
On working hard enough to get good shots:
“We got the ball inside early and we weren’t very productive. Consequently,we were shooting thirty-something percent inside and what happens is peoplewill see that you aren’t shooting well from outside. They will pack it inand make you shoot from the outside. I think that is probably what happenedto us to a great extent against Maryland. Our post-men are starting getbetter and scoring more inside. That is going to help us get more openshots. We’ve had open shots from the outside all year long. In fact, evenin games we won, I told the team I couldn’t believe the shots we missedoutside. I said I thought we’d be a better shooting team this year than wewere last year. I think eventually we will be.”
On limiting turnovers:
“We have been dribbling too much and too high. Even our post-men have atendency to put the ball on the floor too much. That goes back to trying todo too much, taking the ball in too deep and those things come with anexperienced player. One of the things we do is we have a lot of differentoffenses that help us defensively get ready for the season. Now it is amatter of simplifying the offenses that work best for us.”
On Louisville’s team speed:
“They are very fast. They really outlet the ball and get it up the court.Their guards, like Marques Maybin and Reece Gaines, can post you inside.They’ve got a deep bench too, when you look at Devon Harper who hasexperience. They are very athletic. They are really getting after peopledefensively. They are pressing more and trapping a lot which creates moreopportunities for them.”
On how UK matches up with Louisville:
“I think we match up with them pretty well. Maybin is an outstandingshooter and scorer and is very athletic. When you look at the experiencefactor, you have to look at the experience they have from their veteranplayers like Nate Johnson.”
On maybe changing the starting lineup:
“We have looked at a lot of different combinations on the court. We couldgo with a smaller lineup and might have Keith Bogans in there. We couldhave a smaller lineup in there for more quickness. One of the things thathas been hurting us is our ball handling and turnovers, so we would like tohave our best ball handling team on the floor.”
On playing an up-tempo style:
“We want to get the ball up and down the court. We had some bad turnoversagainst Maryland, on the road and in a hostile place. I thought we kept ourcomposure and got back in it. We want to get the ball up and down the courtand we are a more effective team when we are running.”
On what he likes about Saul at point guard:
“I think he runs the team extremely well and he’s very athletic. He’s ourbest defender. He is probably the quickest player on the team. He played alot of two-guard last year and I think the transition has been a learningexperience for him. He can stretch the defense and he is a good free throwshooter.”
Player Quotes
UK Men’s Basketball Press Conference
Dec. 17, 1999
#42 Jamaal Magloire
“We will be trying really hard to pull off this win. It?s going to be a tough game, but we are just going to play hard and try to make good things happen.”
“We have become a better team in the last week. We have been doing individual workouts on top of the team practices and I really think that we are a better team than we were against Maryland. If we continue to play hard we will be okay. We just need to have better execution than we did against Maryland.”
“I try not to listen too much to what people say on the talk shows. I rely on the coaching staff for support and instruction. Their opinions are the ones that really matter in situations like that.”
“This game is definitely important from the rivalry aspect. They have got the better of us the last two years and we don?t want to let it be three. We need to play well, so I am just going to do the little things that will help the team win.”
“The rivalry between us and Louisville speaks for itself and the emotions will be running high for everybody. This is a game we really hope to win.”
“(Nate) Johnson is a good player and I have had some tough battles with him. He is a tough player for them and we will need to shut him down.”
#10 Keith Bogans
“My game is going hard up and down the court. I can play any style, but a full-court type of game allows me to feature my speed and quickness. Coach Smith knows what I can do so he just tells me to play my game.”
“I haven?t been around to see the UK-Louisville rivalry, but I am starting to understand it with what all the coaches and players have been saying about how big it is. I know it has me working harder to be ready. It will be a lot of fun though.”
“I don?t really think about (the fans being disgusted). I?m just out there working hard to get better. People need to stick with us because we are working hard and when it all comes around we are going to be a good team.”
##11 Saul Smith
“We are concerned about the way we have played. We are prone to turnovers. We have to concentrate on that.”
“In every game, we have had the chance to get ahead, then the other team usually changes pace. We have to rebound and score first and get ahead. We can?t let them take control.”
“I can?t control what people say about me. I know I?ve never done anything hurtful to them. I think I?m a pretty nice guy and I think the people that know me and are around me would say the same thing.”
“I make it a point to go to the schools and hospitals to talk to the kids because I was like them at one point, too. I wanted to meet UK basketball players when I was that age too, so if I can make them happy it means a lot to me.”
“I knew that playing at UK would be tough. The criticism was expected? mainly because I have played with it all of my life. My whole career I have been told that I can?t do this and that I can?t do that and it just pushes me to be better. Like I said, I can?t control what people say so I will continue to just go out and play hard.”
“We are trying to turn over a new leaf against Louisville. This is a critical game in the season for us. We have lost two in a row to them and we don?t expect it to be three.”
“Adversity is not fun but it measures your character. We will just work harder to succeed and this will all help us be better in the end.”
“I need to do a better job of decision-making and penetrating to get the ball to the open man. As a team we need to do a better job rebounding and cut down on the turnovers. We do not have a lot of assists this season and we really need to improve that.”
#40 Jules Camara
“We have stayed positive and kept our focus on Louisville. If we stay positive, I know we will do well.”
“We definitely need this win. We all know what we need to do?go hard in practice.”
“We need to play physical all of the time. We need to play smart and stay positive. That is the big key. We also need to play good defense.”
#24 Marvin Stone
“I think we need to look to go inside more. We know we have a size advantage and we need to try and attract the fouls.”
“This game, I think both teams are pumped up. We will see who wants it more. The pre-season schedule doesn?t matter.”
“I know this is going to be a tough game going in. It is tougher than high school. I just need to improve from day-to-day and game-to-game.”
“We are a young team and we are still trying to figure out who plays best with who, who our scorers are and who our rebounders are.”
