UTSA Head Coach Brooks Thompson
Opening statement ...
"I think it’s a huge step forward for our program from where we’ve been the last two years and what this basketball team is now. It was obviously a very hard-fought battle against a very good Sam Houston State basketball team. I felt like our guys came in today and really stepped up and played 40 minutes of good basketball while executing our game plan, for the most part, to a tee. We stepped and a made big shots and offensive plays when we needed to. We also made big defensive stops. Although we got outrebounded for the game, I felt like we did a really great job boxing out and battling. We put the ball in Devin and Omar’s hands and the way they controlled it the last 12 to 15 minutes of this game was a huge asset. It’s a huge credit to where they are, how they’ve grown and the type of players they are now. I just got the box score and we only had 12 turnovers. You have to limit your turnovers at tournament games and I felt like we did. We didn’t turn the ball over at the wrong times. Again, it was a great victory for our program and we look forward to playing Nicholls tomorrow.”
On the difference today from the first two times these two teams played (Sam Houston State wins) ...
"One of the main reasons was Devin Gibson. We didn’t have him in the double-overtime loss at home and Omar ended up playing 50 minutes that game, controlling the offense and having the ball in his hands the whole time. I think a lot of it was just our will to win to be honest with you. I felt like we gave that game away in San Antonio with some late turnovers and we’ve grown as a team since then. We’ve got a lot of new guys on our basketball team that didn’t really understand how and when to do things and I think the maturation process of this team throughout the year has let them learn. I’d like to give them credit for making very big shots and playing well, but I do not think we played well at all as a team. You have to play great transition defense against Sam Houston State and we did today and, in Huntsville, we didn’t. I think that was the biggest difference in the game.”
On the competitive nature of tonight’s game ...
"That’s Southland Conference Tournament basketball. That’s tournament basketball anywhere. This tournament is phenomenal. The setting, the atmosphere, everything. We have eight teams here wanting to watch on Sunday afternoon when their name is called on Selection Sunday. I never felt comfortable with an eight-to 12-point lead. It always seemed like that one-point lead. The reason why is because of this tournament atmosphere. Sam Houston State wasn’t just going to sit down. They wanted to play tomorrow just as much as we did. I will say this about our team. This is as hungry as I have seen them in a long time. If they keep that hunger, anything can happen.”
On Nicholls ...
"I know that we’ve played them once and we were fortunate enough to win on the road. I think they are playing a lot better basketball right now than they were when we beat them. I think they are very well-coached. They’ve got a little bit of everything. They play very. I don’t want to say methodical because it’s not. They know how to free up guy for shots. They’ll look to back-cut you and get some things. They’re a tough guard. There’s no doubt about that. Our shots have to go in in order for us to be successful”
On the difficulties of playing back-to-back games ...
"Obviously everybody’s got to play a back-to-back. We need to get back to the hotel and I told the guys to enjoy this a little bit, but tonight we have to focus in on Nicholls and get right back to work. It’s important because we play a lot of guys a lot of minutes, especially Omar and Devin. They’re going to tire down because the ball is going to be in their hands. I ask a lot of them, honestly, on both ends of the floor. I think it’s about going back and getting our feet up and resting. I remember when I was 18-24 years old. You can recover a lot quicker than you’d think. We’ll work on the mentality-side of that as well. I think a big part of mentality is understanding that your body can take a lot more than you think it can. We can only use fatigue as an excuse if we are not successful because everybody has to do the exact same thing. We’ll get back and start focusing in this evening.”
On having bench players contribute consistently ...
"There’s not a guy on our team that I don’t feel comfortable with going in. There’s a few guys who aren’t playing as much and we feel a little more comfortable with our regular rotation. Our depth this year has really been an asset for us, not only from a rest standpoint, but I think that all year we’ve had a different person step up. We’ve had a lot of consistency with some players, but this year we’ve really had some guys that when one guy is not doing thing or things aren’t going his way, we have somebody step up and play well. It’s not one person. It’s someone different every night. Our depth has helped us and we really need to continue to utilize that in this tournament.”
| Omar Johnson | Devin Gibson |
Omar Johnson, Jr., G
On what is motivating this team right now ...
"We just realized it’s a new season now. It’s gut-check time. We’ve come together and stuck together through ups and downs and have just played for each other.”
On having the ball in his hands late in the game ...
"I’m just trying to control the tempo. As the point guard I’m trying to be a leader and lead my team out there and be smart. I play tough and make our possessions count and make the defense work. It’s about playing smart. That’s what I do. I’m a leader and I just like to lead the team by any means necessary. Whether it’s offence or defense, I like to set the tone, and that’s what I tried to do tonight.”
Devin Gibson, So., G
On having an answer every time SHSU hit a big shot ...
"We just executed our game plan with drives for drives. We worked on it in practice all week, so we just tried to come out and make plays for others.”
Sam Houston State Head Coach Bob Marlin
Opening statement ...
"We’ve beaten them five years in a row and today they had their way. They were very good. They shot 57% from the floor. We’re not going to beat anybody playing like that. Our defense was not good at all during the conference season, and we went 12-4, and sometimes I wonder how. Today it bit us. As Corey said, Gibson had his way. He lived at the free-throw line...went 14 of 15. We got beat at the three-point line and the free-throw line, two things that we’ve been doing a good job of. Two things we normally win.”
On beating a team two or three times in one season ...
"We did that same thing last year. We beat Lamar by 36 in the regular season and got beat by one in the post-season. We’ve given up 50% shooting three years in a row at this tournament and we’re not going to win. That’s what happened. UT-Arlington did it to us last year, and Lamar did it to us two years ago I guess. You can’t beat a team giving them 57%, and this is a good basketball team here today. These guys can score. Shank got them off to a good start. They were hitting threes. The best team wins, and they were the best team today.”
On UTSA having an answer for every big shot they made ...
"We got back in the game. We gave a good effort. We did not want to foul late, and then we ended up fouling at the end of the shot clock. Omar Johnson got a couple of baskets and then Stepter made that one late right at the shot clock expiration when it was a two-possession game. It was unfortunate that we didn’t get a little bit closer. We were in foul trouble and fouls were wrong in the official book and it wasn’t going to help us in overtime either.”
Corey Allmond, Jr., G
On the difference in beating UTSA the first two times this season but losing tonight ...
"Defense. They shot, what? 57%? The last two years Sam Houston State has been here we’ve given up over 50%. History repeats itself. We give up 50%, we lose. We knew it coming in. If they shoot over 50%, we lose. They shot 57%. We’re going home.”
On the end of their season ...
"It’s horrible for me. Even though I’m a junior and I have another season. I really wanted this as bad as the seniors. I know Barkley wanted it the most. I know he wanted a ring. It hurts me to see him go out like this. I wanted to get it for him. This hurt a lot.”
On UTSA having an answer for every big shot they made ...
"Gibson, Johnson, and Gabbidon are some great players. They fit their system well. If you have anyone...a center...sitting there with his feet planted and he can take all day to shoot a three, like Omar Johnson did, they’ll hit that every time. It goes back to defense. They shot 57%. Joey Shank got going for a minute. We knew he could shoot. They hit some tough shots.”
On Devin Gibson going to the line 15 times ...
"We watched Devin Gibson when we played him. He was hurt the first time, but we got to see him the second time. We knew he kind of flops and we knew he likes to get to the line a lot and tonight it worked for him. We couldn’t stop him. At one point in the game he was hitting threes. We knew he could drive, but we didn’t know he could jab and then pull up for three. He had a great night tonight.”
Barkley Falkner, Sr., C
On UTSA having an answer for every big shot they made ...
"We just couldn’t get going. We couldn’t get over the hump. It was always 8 or 12 points. We cut it to 4 at one point. We didn’t want to foul, and then we fouled and sent them to the line. They only hit one, but we still didn’t want to foul to begin with. You give someone 57% and they go 10 for 19 from the three-point line, it’s hard to beat anybody. Add to that getting beat at the free-throw line. It always hard to cut into a lead like that, but they did a good job.”
On the physicality of the game ...
"It’s tournament time. Every game gets more and more physical as it comes down to the championship and trying to go to the NCAA tournament. You just have to play through it and get the job done, which we didn’t do.”