March 7, 2003
LEXINGTON, Ky. –
UK Coach Tubby Smith
On playing an up and down game against Florida…
“We try to run the ball. That’s our game. That’s when we score most of our points, most teams do also. If you can get out and get an easy transition basket I think most teams, unless you feel under-manned, are going to try to control the tempo. We think pushing the ball up the court is the tempo we like.”
<>
“I think we have a lot of respect for our opponents, that’s where it first starts. You have to respect them and the venue that they play in. They’re going to try to protect their home court, and they’re going to come with their best effort and their best team. So you better raise your level beyond that, and I think our guys have learned to do that. It’s senior night for Florida – they’re a very talented team. We beat them here pretty handily, and I think that’s going to be a big motivating factor for them. We look at this game like any other game. We’re going to try to execute the game plan, stay committed to what we have to do to win the game. We know they’re going to be sky high and ready, so we better be ready.”
On a possible 16-0 SEC finish…
“That would be wonderful. That would really be an unbelievable accomplishment for this group that was not really picked to do much this year. We were in the polls early in the year, but we’ve really come together and been very productive. The guys have fulfilled their roles, and taken care of their responsibilities. Whenever something is accomplished only a few times, it means it is very hard to do, and especially in this league this year. With the potential to have eight teams in the NCAA tournament, there’s a lot of balance and a lot of talented players, and for us to have a chance tomorrow to go through this season undefeated is just beyond my wildest dreams.”
On the caliber of this team…
“We have a lot of talent – Keith Bogans, Marquis Estill, Jules Camara, Chuck Hayes – I mean, we’ve got some pretty good talent. When that talent is converted to leaning on one another and sharing with one another, then that makes you a very tough team. When I think about some of the great teams in sports, a lot of them have been teams that may have had one or two great players, but they’ve been able to put it all together. That relationship you have to build, I think these guys have built that. They know what they can accomplish.”
On the strength of Chuck Hayes…
“Chuck is the glue to why we’ve been able to be successful. He’s the most consistent player in his effort and his energy level. He brings that toughness to our team, and we all have it, but he has something special. He’s been able to attack the basket, and he’s shooting free throws extremely well – leading the team in free throws. That was one of the things that we discussed, if you get to the line, that’s part of your game, attacking inside, mixing it up on the boards. Again, he’s a player that understands his role and believes that’s his job. He’s the first one to the floor – when he’s around a loose ball, he’s getting his hands on it some kind of way, and he never gives up on a play. He doesn’t shy away from contact at all.”
On Florida’s seniors…
“Matt [Bonner] is a very talented, very complete player. He can do a lot of different things for a guy that’s 6’9. I’m not sure of his status, but I’m sure he’ll be eager to play – it’s Senior Day. He creates a lot of problems for us. You can’t put a smaller guy, a quicker guy on him because he can post you up. If you put a bigger guy on him, he can go around them. He can shoot the range. He’s a guy that will play at the next level, but the guy I think that makes their team go is Justin Hamilton. He’s logging the most minutes, he’s got an unbelievable assist-to-turnover ratio, and he’s a great defender. They also have Nelson who is a very talented player as well, so all three of those seniors have been a big part of the great success that they’ve had.”
On this team pulling together…
“I never thought that we were anything but a pretty good team. I knew we had the right type of people. I think it was a matter of blending, getting the new players to come along with the veterans players to come together as one. I knew that would take some time. We avoided injuries for the most part, Antoine’s broken hand, Jules broken hand…We have overcome that. Sometimes when you have to overcome adversity it makes you stronger. It makes you pull together a little bit more, and I think that probably helped us.”
Cliff Hawkins, Guard
On the chance of finishing 16-0 in the SEC…
“It’s very possible. We have to go down to Florida and play a tough team in a hostile environment, but I think we’ll be up for it. We’re just going to concentrate on the game and do what we’ve got to do. We’ll worry about everything else later.”
On Florida’s attitude going into the game…
“They’re going to be ready. It’s Senior Day, and they’re thinking about that first loss to us. They’re going to be ready to rip us apart. It’s going to be a big challenge for us, and they’re going to have everything going for them with the crowd, but we have to stay focused and keep our composure.”
Erik Daniels, Forward
On playing in the atmosphere at Florida…
“We just can’t get caught up in all the hype. It’s going to be their Senior Day – they’re going to be playing with a lot of emotion. It’s going to be us against all those fans, and we just have to play as a team and play hard. We’re playing really good right now. We surprised a lot of people, and we’re just going to try to keep it going.”
On coming together as a team…
“It was once we started playing on the road, I don’t know exactly what game it was, but we just started rolling and everybody starting clicking together – playing as a team. It was hard for us to be stopped.”
Keith Bogans, Guard
On the Kentucky-Florida rivalry…
“I think this is one of the biggest. Every time we go play Florida, it’s special. I look forward to playing against them, especially down in Gainesville.”
On the first win against Florida…
“I think it was our intensity, our fans and our preparation (that made the difference). They want to beat us bad now, I know that. We just played a great ball game, and I know they want to do the same tomorrow.”
On a possible 16-0 finish in the SEC…
“We’re not going to worry about the history or anything like that tomorrow. We’re just going to play basketball.”
Chuck Hayes, Forward
On the possibility of going 16-0…
“Going 16-0 in SEC Conference play would definitely achieve one of our goals. We always wanted to say we went undefeated in the conference and we have that opportunity tomorrow.”
On if he thinks about the undefeated conference season…
“It pops in your head every now and then. But it probably won’t hit me until tomorrow’s game is over, if we happen to win the game.”
On Florida’s attitude going into this game…
“One thing they’re going to try to do is get the crowd involved and play with a lot of emotion. We have to take that out of them.”
