Feb. 4, 2000
Coach Tubby Smith
“We have been working to try and correct some of the mistakes when you come out of a game like Tennessee. It was a good win for us over a very talented team. You get concerned how your players will respond after a big win. I think we are really maturing. We have been able to bounce back and put together a string of good games. I expect our guys to do the same against a good South Carolina team.”
“Even though South Carolina has not been winning, they have been playing well. The loss of Aaron Lucas and having to move Chuck Eidson to point guard has created opportunities for other people to step up. Jamel Bradley has really stepped up and played well. David Ross has been playing well. We are going to have to be focused on continuing to build on the momentum we have had over the last few weeks.”
“Jamaal did not play a very good game against Tennessee because he stayed in foul trouble most of the night. I think he is ready to bounce back and have a good game. Marius Petravicius is a very solid post player and will give Jamaal a good test. We need to get the ball to Jamaal in position where he can score. Tayshaun stepped up once again and made some solid plays down the stretch. We are shooting the ball better from the outside, which I think has been instrumental to us playing better.”
On why the team’s shooting has been better:
“I think we’re getting a better feel for our offense. More people are showing a lot of attention to Jamaal inside and that has opened up outside shots for our perimeter people. It has helped that Tayshaun is getting the ball in bounds quicker. Jamaal is getting the ball out quicker on the fast break. We have been able to score in transition from the outside.”
On the challenge of motivating the team for USC after the big win over Tennessee:
“It is a challenge sometimes for our players. They don’t watch the games and probably didn’t see the South Carolina-Tennessee game and how good South Carolina played against them at Thompson-Boling Arena. They haven’t seen the Florida game where it was a four-point game, a game in which South Carolina led in the second half. That’s our job as coaches, to make sure they understand and that we prepare the same way for every team. When you do that consistently, I don’t really worry about guys taking a team lightly or for granted.”
On the savy of Keith Bogans and the transition of from high school to college:
“He has always had that competitiveness and aggressive offense. He is skilled enough, when he is not making outside shots, that he can get to the rim and force people to foul him with his dribble penetration. He did that at DeMatha, where he wanted to take the big shots and he did.”
On the way the team has handled adversity and are now playing well:
“Practices have become a lot smoother because they all understand the drills and why we are doing certain things. They understand the fundamentals and how they apply to game situations. That makes practice flow a lot smoother, plus this time of year were aren’t practicing as long. I thought in the Tennessee game, we paced ourselves, so we didn’t wear down. Our legs were really alive, and we had a lot of energy.”
On the UK big men dominating USC on the inside in the first game this season:
“If we can get the ball to Jamaal, Marvin, Tayshaun, and Jules inside, I feel we can score on most people. Tony Kitchings and Marius Petravicius are playing a lot better and have really matured a lot. Their interior people have really gotten better like Damien Kinloch.”
UK Players
#42 Jamaal Magloire
On the Tennessee game…
“I think we showed the world that we can play anyone, even Tennessee.It’s another game for the guys. We are getting close to March and we want to be a top seed. We did a good job (against Tennessee). We are a much better team now than a few weeks ago.”
On South Carolina…
“We know that no one likes to lose.(South Carolina) is trying their best to improve, like us.We improve with every game and every practice.”
“Against Tennessee, we shot very well.We continue to go to our strength, whatever it is for that game. We are getting more consistent and our shots are better.We always have the team defense. To become the team we want, we can’t become complacent. Just because we beat Tennessee doesn’t mean we have arrived.”
#10 Keith Bogans
On college ball…
“I wanted to run a little.I would have loved to have taken the front seat, but I had to learn the offensive and defensive strategies first.”
“I think getting into the starting line-up has gotten my confidence started. I have had the same attitude all year.My confidence is very high.I think after a big game, it definitely is.”
On South Carolina…
“The main thing is to play hard no matter what their record is.We are going to bring out our defensive intensity and play the same game we’ve played all year.”
#11 Saul Smith
On South Carolina…
“They have played in some really close games and been on the verge of a few upsets. The last time we played them we got by by playing good defense even though we didn’t shoot that well. Now we are shooting well so hopefully we can put together a complete game on both ends.”
On the team’s improved shooting…
“Everything seems to be coming together for us as a team. We’re not rushing our shots and we’re taking better shots overall. It seems like it is kind of contagious. When Keith (Bogans) hit all of those threes at the beginning of last game it gave us all some more confidence and things continued to go well for us.”
On paying attention to the rankings…
“We peek at the rankings a little bit this time of year just to seewhere we have a chance of being seeded in the tournament. We don’treally pay a lot of attention to that though because it doesn’t reallymatter where we get seeded with our great fans. We’re going to have agood fan-following wherever we go and that’s a luxury that some teamsjust don’t have.”
