Head Coach Will Wade
Thoughts on the game
“This was a good win for us. I think everything works better when you shoot the ball well and we certainly had enough made-threes saved up from all of our bricks we've been laying for the past couple of weeks. We've been working a lot on our shooting. We've spent a lot of time on it and it's going to pay off. You never know when it's going to pay off but it's going to pay off. You have to stick with the process and stick with what you're doing. It paid off tonight for us. We stepped in, shot with confidence and knocked them in. That was really good for that to happen.”
On staying strong when the chips were down
“I thought we did a good job of staying in the game when Maine went on runs. We stayed with what we were doing, made it respectable going into the half before we sprinted out in the second. We made a couple of mistakes down the stretch but I thought we executed really well. I thought we got the ball where we wanted to get it and we came up with just enough defensive stops to win the game.”
On who stood out in the game
“I am really proud of Ronrico White. I thought he was tremendous, is coming into his own and is playing at a really high level for us. Gee McGhee played really well tonight. He prepared really well and it paid off with a phenomenal performance, and then Z with 15 rebounds really helped us. I have been harping on how we need him on the boards and that was never more apparent than in this tournament and going into conference play.”
Thoughts on the defense
“We played a little more man than we have lately. I felt like they were really in rhythm and we needed to switch it up. I thought maybe we had a little too much spice because we went to a zone and got them stagnant and were able to get stops, but we were trying to trap the wing. We started boxing and it was effective against their shooters before we settled into a basic zone. I thought our press gave us some good energy in the first half when we kept Lance in and went to our zone press. We mixed them up and our guys executed well.”
On the Dr Pepper Classic
“My expectation of the Dr Pepper Classic was that we win it. I think we've now won five of the last six tournaments, and it's certainly the expectation that we play well and win it. It was good to do that and I thought the crowd was tremendous. It was great having a band play for us because they add tremendously to the atmosphere, and they are giving up some of their holiday break to come cheer us on. We really appreciate them and the fans for supporting us. Some people see this as the kickoff to basketball season so hopefully we left a good impression.”
Ronrico White, guard, junior
On his run of three-pointers
“I have to credit my team mates. They were penetrating and the defense was collapsing. They were leaving me open so I have to thank my team mates for that. They found me open and gave me the shots.”
On playing point guard
“I have been practicing the one and two a little bit – more of the one to give Greg Pryor a little break. I grew more comfortable in the second half of last season with playing point guard. Now I am just a point guard. I am trying to help GP, too, and I have to thank Coach Casey Long because he has helped me since day one in this transition.”
Casey Jones, guard, sophomore
What changed in the second half
“We had a long talk in the locker room even without the coaches. We wanted this win. Gee came out ready to play and I wanted to join him with a lot of energy. He hit me on a couple of passes and I just finished some layups. We brought it back to the AAU days a little bit.”
On his team-rallying dunk
“I just wanted to make a play. The coaches tell me to get on the glass as much as I can and Brooks Savage just kept telling me before the game I couldn't dunk in a game. It was good motivation and I just wanted to make a play. I was there and had some good timing. It was more about energy from it rather than the points.”
