UK Coach Tubby Smith
On the game…
“I thought the guys rose to the occasion with two players missing for the second game in a row. We had good balance with five guys in double figures. We were able to isolate one-on-one and get some baskets inside. Rashaad (Carruth) gave us a big lift with three threes. Tayshaun (Prince) showed a lot of poise. Through adversity, some time you play better and that’s what we did today.”
On the eight-player rotation…
“It makes the guys more comfortable with each other, and knowing that they will have to produce, makes them play better.”
On Rashaad Carruth…
“He was making shots. He was being aggressive. That’s why he stayed in the game.”
On the team’s shooting…
“We made a conscious effort to not take a three unless the ball goes inside first. Jules (Camara) and Marquis (Estill) are our best shooters inside, so we have to get them touches.”
On Keith Bogans…
“Keith played pretty well. He had a couple of shots go in and out, and he did pass up a shot. But he played well overall.”
On playing a zone…
“It’s good because with the lineup we have in there, it’s keeping us out of foul trouble. A team like Arkansas can create mismatches, so we played the zone to overcome that.”
On Cliff Hawkins…
“When he concentrates on running the team and making passes, we are a much better team.”
On Arkansas…
“I know they have been playing a lot of different people trying to find that combination. When you struggle shooting the ball, that makes it hard to get in your press. Believe me, I know.”
On what he thinks of the team at this point of the season…
“Despite the off-court distractions, we’ve been pretty solid all year. We are getting to the point where the guys are trusting and believing in the system. I’m pleased with where we are right now.”
UK PLAYERS
Keith Bogans
“I feel a lot better after this game. I just went out today and didn’t worry about anything.”
On the Fitch/Daniels situation…
“The incident hurts the team, but it is how the team recovers that matters and I think we recovered well today.”
“This is a good win for us. We still have a lot of work to do, but every game counts.”
Marquis Estill
“We talked as a team and decided we could not let the incident get the team down. We have to come out and play together. We are still a family.”
On Kentucky’s size advantage…
“We were a lot bigger than the Arkansas guys. We got some easy baskets on the inside. We definitely had a size advantage today inside.”
Tayshaun Prince
“When things happen, you’ve just got to deal with it and move on. Those two guys understand what they’ve got to do and how they have to respond.”
“I thought overall the defense was there today. Everybody got in there and contributed. It’s a matter of playing consistently on both ends of the court. We’ve just got to focus and be supportive of each other. Despite all the things we’ve been through, we’re still there.”
Rashaad Carruth
“I wanted to be ready when the time came for me to go in. I think I made the best of it. I’m starting to feel comfortable out there. My shot seems to be back.”
“We’ve been up and down lately, but I think we’re coming around.”
Chuck Hayes
“The more you play with people the more chemistry you have. The biggest difference today was that with fewer substitutions we were able to bond toward the end.”
On getting ready for the upcoming SEC Tournament…
“We’ve really been stressing pushing the ball. We feel like our offense will come if we’ll just be patient. I’m truly excited, but I’ve just got to be calm and ready to play.”
Arkansas Head Coach Nolan Richardson
On pre-game handshake with Coach Smith…
“I know what he is going through up here because of the tradition here and he knows what I am going through down there as well. With our programs, you have to just do the best that you can and we just told each other that before the game.”
On Coach Smith…
“I think he has done a great job with everything and with the players on his team. They came and played today with an energy level as high as it could be. I think that with an Arkansas and Kentucky game, you can expect a different energy level than any other game. We came into this league and made it a better basketball league. Let’s face it, this used to be a conference all about football, but now we are one of the top basketball conferences in the country. I think Coach Smith has done a great job in adding to that with this Kentucky program and having the players to compete in such a top program.”
“Our plan for this game was no different than our plan for our game against Alabama except this time we got beat. We knew coming in that they had guys like (Jules) Camara with a 7’3″ reach and (Marquis) Estill at about 7’2″, so I thought we played well with their inside game and that was the story for both of us I think. We had numerous offensive rebounds but we just couldn’t convert them. We just were not shooting the ball well so we had to focus on other aspects, but the worse thing throughout the whole game was when we had three turnovers in a row. You can’t do that against a top team and especially on the road and expect to win. So you really have to give this Kentucky team credit.”
On Rashaad Carruth…
“We were really worried about him before this game because let’s face it, that boy can shoot the ball. He can come off the bench and make the shot but I thought we tried to hold him off as best as we could. He played well to boost his confidence and when the confidence of a good shooter rises its hard to hold him back. He definitely brought the crowd into the game.”
On Kentucky…
“You really have to look at how good Kentucky played. They made some good shots and they were shots that they haven’t been making. They were struggling like we have been lately but I thought they played very good today. I was impressed with their jump and range of defense. They were blocking shots not even near the basket. They played at a great intensity level and their defense was as good as they can play it. They beat us to death on the boards today.”
ARKANSAS PLAYERS
#13 Brandon Dean
On Kentucky…
“They came out and started with a lot of energy today. You gotta do what you can with the time you get out there and we just didn’t do that today.”
On today’s game…
“There were a lot of turnovers today and we just didn’t capitalize on them. With a team like Kentucky you have to take all you can get. They are a good team. They had a couple of good runs and so did we. That’s just basketball.”
# 12 Jannero Pargo
On today’s game…
“It was my first time playing here and I was excited because of Kentucky’s tradition and how loud the fans are. It definitely lived up to my expectations. I wish I could come back but unfortunately it’s my last year. You have to give credit to their sixth man (UK students) for staying behind them the whole game.”
On Kentucky’s crowd…
“It gets a little rowdy. You don’t want to make a mistake when the crowd is on their side because it gives them more momentum. You have to keep your composure especially here at Rupp Arena.”
On Arkansas’ play…
“I give their (Kentucky’s) defense a lot of credit. I’m not sure what kind of zone it was, but their zone matched up with our shooters. It made it hard for us to make the extra passes and score.”
“We hung around most of the game but we couldn’t get over the hill. Their defense put a lot of pressure on us. We also had some shot clock violations because of their press.”
