Texas Tech University Athletics
Post Game Quotes
January 11, 2011 | Men's Basketball
Jan. 11, 2011
Recap | Complete Results | Notes
Post Game Quotes
Texas Tech Red Raiders vs. Texas Longhorns
Jan. 11, 2011
Game 17
Texas Player Quotes
Dogus Balbay
On the win vs. Texas Tech - "This is the first conference game and we really worked on it. We focused on Tech, prepared for them very well, came to Lubbock, and executed. We played really hard and I think we played together today. We did a great job for 40 minutes."
On playing assertive early in the game - "I just tried to set the tone for the game early. I always try to play really hard and be tough and just set the tone for the game."
On whether he thought about his injury during the game - "To be honest - yes. During the shoot around I thought about it. But you just have to leave it behind and keep going. It didn't really bother me at all but I thought about it for a second but in the game it never entered my mind."
Tristan Thompson
On the win vs. Texas Tech - "Today was a hard game. Texas Tech's big guys are really talented but because we set the tone early of creating space and everyone getting to the open spots it just gave me the opportunity to do what I did tonight."
On playing the post position - "I'm getting more comfortable each game. My teammates are helping me get more comfortable in terms of getting on the block and knowing what moves to go to and seeing the open guy and if there is a double-team, kicking it out to the open man. It's a process, every game is a process, every game I'm just trying to get better."
Texas head coach Rick Barnes
On the recent loss to Connecticut - "We know what we did wrong. We wanted to rebound better tonight, which we did. We got our guards back down there involved early and that led to some transition baskets for us."
On Balbay setting the tone for the game early - "Well we've really tried to work hard defensively, and I think that's where he set the tone more than anything. In terms of coming out as a team, we've tried to come out and go after the other team and score. Offensively, we are fast and he's fast. Tristan and our post guys did a good job of sealing inside to open up some driving lanes and Balbay did good job at pushing the ball and getting us into a rhythm, and playing inside out, and we played well. Our guys have so much respect for Texas Tech and how they run their offense that they would tell you when Tech's moving and cutting like they do they are very hard to guard. Tonight they didn't make a three and they had a tough night shooting but we played well and I thought at times we played really well maybe as well as we've played all year, in terms of moving the ball."
On Texas Tech Head Coach Pat Knight - "Pat is an excellent coach and I'm talking about when you look at the technical part of the game and how hard they do things. I also know how hard they work and how hard he works. I think they are going to get better. His teams always have. But there is so much that goes into having a good team and a good program and I know there isn't another program that does it right more that they do. He's not ever going to violate an NCAA rule and he's going to represent Texas Tech the way they should be represented. They are going to work and their players are going to get better. They have an excellent class coming in, and I love him and I think he's excellent. It's early and I can tell you last year we thought we were pretty good and it turned the other way so there is too much time to pass judgment on any of us. There is just too much time between now and the end of the year. I do know him well enough to know they are going to keep working and keep getting better."
Texas Tech Player quotes
On Texas Tech's loss to Texas - "They played great defense. They're a great team and we didn't run our offense, that's pretty much what it comes down to. We stood a lot and watched people go one-on-one, and that's not how we run our offense. It's too easy to guard and that's pretty much what happened."
On seniors not playing up to their potential - "The stats don't lie, 1 for 6, 2 for 9, 1 for 10. We can't win like that especially with guys who are supposed to be our top players. It's hard to win Big 12 games like that. As seniors, we are too good to not be pulling our weight and to not be helping this team."
On what Texas Tech needs to do to overcome the loss vs. Texas - "We just have to keep working, you can't do much else. We have to work on shooting and everything else as a whole. We have to do more and demand more from everybody else and show everybody else how to play if that means pulling everybody along with us then that's what we have to do." David Tairu
On the Texas defense - "Well, it wasn't just the fact that they were just playing really good defense on me, we would come down and just throw one pass and shoot and they would get the rebound. It wasn't that they just played really good defense on me, it was just selfishness on our team."
Texas Tech Head Coach Pat Knight
On UT's defense or Texas Tech's poor shooting - "I think you've got to say a little of both. If you look at the stats, we took six more shots. We're just not shooting the ball very well at all right now. We've tried to slow it down a little bit to compensate for that and that hasn't helped. But you have to give them credit too. That's a heck of a team."
On the team's poor shooting - "Boy, if I knew we wouldn't be having these problems and I thought going to the NIT last year would get them hungry to get to the NCAA Tournament. I don't know if they think everything is going to be easy this year and they will just take the next step and go to the NCAA Tournament. I never thought we would have this kind of problem. We just have to keep working and figure it out."
On the loss vs. Texas - "Guys quit moving and cutting. I thought we did a better job of that in the second half but players just stand and go one on one in the first half. But it wasn't just us, that was a really good team. To beat them, you have to play almost perfectly and we didn't even come close to that."
On Texas Tech's rebounding vs. Texas - "Well, they just man handled us. They are big, strong and we have to get tougher. Our guys get shoved around and we have to battle a little better on the boards. I thought we did a great job on the boards against Baylor. Texas also got rebounds because we missed so many shots. It's not just us, that was good team and I'm happy for Coach Barnes. I know he had some problems with his team last year, and this group is just the total opposite of how they were last year."
