The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB vs. Southern Miss Coaches Quotes
1/5/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 5, 2005
UAB vs. Southern Miss Head Coaches Quotes January 5, 2005 Birmingham, Ala. Bartow Arena
UAB Head Coach Mike Anderson
On playing Southern Miss in the conference opener:
"You've got two teams that are bordering states and you're going to have some interesting contests. I thought Southern Miss came in and really took the fight to us. In the first half, we were kind of tentative and they were very aggressive. When you go to the rebounding statistic, that's where it shows."
On UAB's run at the end of the first half:
"Derrick Broom came in and gave us a big lift off the bench and then Marvett (McDonald) hits a shot. It was important to cut the lead to nine at the half and in the second half, our defensive intensity really picked up. They scored 45 points in the first half and only 30 in the second half. A combination of our defensive intensity and pressure defense and the wear and tear and we got into a groove and made some shots. We were very fortunate to win the ball game."
On the victory:
"Anytime you get in conference play, it's a different mindset. There's a sense of urgency when you get to conference play, but I'm proud of our guys. Quite a few guys stepped up for us tonight. I thought Demario (Eddins) played really well in the second half. Donell (Taylor) had another career high. He's playing outstanding basketball right now. And I think tonight was twins night because Ronell (Taylor) came in and gave us some big minutes off the bench too, especially in the second half."
On what he said to the Blazers at halftime:
"I went after them pretty hard. I felt our whole team was playing really tentative. Southern Miss got every loose ball and every bounce seemed to go their way because they were playing with a sense of urgency knowing that its conference play. So I told them we weren't playing the way I knew we could."
Southern Miss head coach Larry Eustachy
On the game: "I've never had a team since I've been a head coach that just will not compete. That's my job -- to make them more competitive. UAB was by far tougher. The problem with this team, and it may not change this year, is that this (performance) is what these guys are used to. They are used to coming out and playing the way we saw them tonight. This program has to get a base of toughness--and UAB was far, far tougher than we were. It all reflects back to me. I'm as frustrated as I've ever been. I don't care about winning the game, I care about playing the game right. I'm really disappointed, I'm not discouraged, just disappointed. We will practice the way the game should be played, in my opinion, and hopefully it will show up on the court."
