January 10, 1998
Texas A&M Head Coach Tony Barone:
"(Evan) Wiley hurt us. He had some key dunks. He's a good big kid. When we tied the game we missed the free throw to put us in the lead and missed a dunk during that time. I thought we rushed some shots and that's not from being selfish, that's from players trying to be the guy to put us ahead. There's a burning desire to get it done and that's the main cause for those rushed shots. I'm totally pleased with the kids. They want to win and you take guys like Stevie Houston and Brian Barone and those kids have huge hearts. That wasn't my decision to play Brian. I didn't think he should play today with that broken finger. But he came in and told me he was going to play. He gives us enthusiasm and I thought he played great today.
"The band made a difference. The kids came in after warming up and they were excited about the atmosphere. It's a totally different atmosphere when you have the band here and the fans who were here were into the game and that helps.
(On not getting over the hump) "That's life. You have to keep working hard to make good things happen. These kids now how to play and they are working hard.
(On Brian Barone) "He had a hell of a game. One of the best games I have seen since I have been here. He has a unique ability to give himself to the team. I don't know if anyone can play any harder.
"We had no home court advantage, but the people who were here were phenomenal. You don't go to a basketball game and sit on your hands. You yell and scream at the officials and have fun."
Texas A&M Forward Shanne Jones:
"We tied the game at 56, and I missed a free throw that would have put us ahead. Then we made some key turnovers and they got some buckets on the inside. We need to stay positive. We can turn this team around at any time."
Texas A&M Forward Aaron Jack:
"We are disappointed with the loss. We fought back and tied the game up. We had the momentum but we lost it. I think we will be fine. We just beat ourselves. It is not anything that the other team does, we beat ourselves. It doesn't feel good to lose any game, but it is worse when you could have won."
(On Brian Barone) "People get on him for not shooting. But that is his game. He played his game today but he also hit some big shots for us. We really want people to come to the games. I know our record is 6-7, but we will play our butts off. We will play as hard with one person in the stands as we will with 7,500 in the stands."
OU Head Coach Kelvin Sampson:
"We didn't play well. We were very inconsistent. We have been a good rebounding team, but we didn't get many second shots today. Tony's (Barone) team plays as hard and competes as hard as any team. His son Brian is incredible. Brian Barone is a throwback to old-school basketball. Every team needs a Brian Barone. I appreciate the way their team played today. I have a lot of respect for Tony and his basketball team, but it was a good win for our guys. We made some silly turnovers, but we came back and made some great plays. I am proud of our guys. We need to get healthy, so we are back at full strength."
OU Guard Corey Brewer:
"From the start, the game was more physical than I thought it would be. Texas A&M is very aggressive. They are a good team and you have to respect them. There was a point in the game that we didn't respect them and they tied the game. We now have to focus on beating Texas in Norman."
OU Forward Eric Martin:
"Free throws were big down the stretch. Texas A&M is strong and athletic. They were stronger and more athletic then we thought they would be."