Kent State vs. Ohio Post-Game Quotes
2/18/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Kent State Men's Basketball vs. Ohio
Kent State Head Coach Geno Ford
Opening Statement:
"We really guarded well down the stretch. (Ohio freshman guard D.J.) Cooper and (junior guard Armon) Bassett are probably the most skilled backcourt in the conference off the dribble. When they're playing off the bounce, they're going to score some points. It's a matter of making them take tough shots. I thought in the last nine minutes we made them make tough shots."
On senior guard Chis Singletary stepping up in the second half:
"Chris finally started going to score. He was in a pass mentality and playing in slow motion. The challenge for Chris is to find that balance between being a playmaker and finishing plays. He's such a great passer and an unselfish kid. Early in the game, he just wasn't taking the ball to the basket to finish; he was taking it to try to get it to other guys. It took him awhile to get in the flow of the game tonight, but I thought he really carried us through long stretches of the second half."
On play of sophomore forward Justin Greene:
"I guess the definition of a good player is if you can play bad and have a double-double. I thought he stunk, and he would too, if you asked him. He didn't feel like he played well tonight, and the guy had 15 points and 11 rebounds. Those are stats most guys can't get. He missed some easy ones in tight that we're used to him finishing, but he's a sophomore who is getting better and better."
Kent State Redshirt Junior Guard Rodriquez Sherman
On pulling out a tough win:
"It was very tough. We knew it was going to be tough coming in. Coach said we had to continue to grind it out and keep playing for each other and keep on playing defense. They're great at driving the ball. We knew we had to win the game so that we could continue to do what we're trying to do, and that's win a championship."
On team coming up with big blocked shots and converting off of them on the offensive end:
"I don't consider us a shot blocking team, but when we get them it gets us more into the game. Once we see that, we feed off of that. We foam at the mouth to get the ball and get another score."
Kent State Senior Guard Chris Singletary
On coming out strong in the second:
"Coach ran some great plays to give me some great looks. My teammates did a great job of getting me the ball in a position where I'm comfortable with it and was able to make plays and get buckets."
On team's ability to overcome early adversity and come through in the clutch:
"Awhile back we made the ten-second rule. When a play happens, it's over and forgot about after ten seconds. That's what we showed today. Even though shots weren't falling, we knew we had to get stops, put everything else aside and focus on the task at hand. That's the great thing about our team."
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Ohio Head Coach John Groce
Opening Statement:
"I was really proud of our guys' effort. They played with tremendous toughness. This was our sixth game in 14 days. For us to defend the way that we did and hold them to those shooting percentages, I certainly would have taken that before the game."
On Kent State's defensive toughness down the stretch:
"I thought defensively, they (Kent State) did a great job. I thought (Kent State redshirt junior guard Rodriquez) Sherman really played hard and on the ball and did a good job of imposing his will defensively on the game. They played like they had six seniors and a fifth-year junior when it was time to amp up their defense and get some stops. That was certainly a difference-maker as well.
