Big 12 Tournament Press Conference Quotes and Audio
Mar 12, 2003 | Men's Basketball
March 12, 2003
Quotes and audio from the press conferences following the practice day at the Phillips 66 Big 12 Tournament, held at the American Airlines Center in Dallas...
IOWA STATE HEAD COACH LARRY EUSTACHY
(opening comments) "We're excited to be here. Obviously, it's a change from Kansas City, but I think change is good at times. We're anxious to get out and try to get our game into form on the court."
(on what has to be done differently this time against A&M) "We broke down in a lot of areas over at A&M, and we couldn't control their dribble penetration. When that happened we had to rotate over and when the ball was shot we couldn't get the rebound. We have to do all the facets better. We can't turn the ball over. We really need to control the tempo of the game. They like to go really fast and we'll need to slow the game down. I think the less possession game it is, the better chance we have to win."
(on missing the home court advantage at Kansas City's Kemper Arena) "Well, we've lost in the first round the last two years, and as bad as I've felt, I felt bad for our fans. Three years ago we won the tournament. We had a really good team the next year and got upset by Baylor, and then lost last year. I've felt for our fans, and obviously the home court would help. But that's not what we have right now. We do miss them. But, I think change is good and good for the league."
IOWA STATE JUNIOR FORWARD JACKSON VROMAN
(on what has to be done differently against A&M this time) "I've really got to slow down in the post. I had four offensive fouls in the first game (against A&M), which also means four turnovers. That is real counterproductive."
TEXAS A&M HEAD COACH MELVIN WATKINS
(opening comments) "We're glad to be here. It was a short bus ride over so we definitely embrace that. We are looking forward to having a great tournament. We feel we've played our best basketball this season compared to the last few seasons, so we feel we've got our best chance to come in and get a win."
(on what an NIT appearance would do for the program and whether or not A&M has to win a game to get there) "First of all, there's an NCAA bid at stake here too. And that means, if you win this thing, that's sitting out there too. So we're not giving up on that as well. An NIT bid would surely be something we would embrace if it comes to that, but we'd still like to go dancing a bit in that big tournament. But for our program, and where we've been and what we're trying to build here, it's surely a stepping stone in the right direction. A lot of teams will be packing up their uniforms and going home, where we'd like to continue to play, and that's one of those opportunities to do that."
(on whether or not the team has a different attitude going into this tournament knowing there is something to play for) "Without a doubt. This team, starting off the year, we knew we had some additional talent coming along which helped us with our depth. We felt like we could do something this year within the Big 12. And if you can do something that can be effective in the Big 12, it's going to be effective in college basketball. We feel like we've been playing for something all year long. Usually at this stage of year, it's pretty much where the team realizes that our chances of continuing to play are not there. This is surely a new arena for us to be playing in, in terms of being able to continue to play, and I think the guys have been very excited about that and will continue to play hard, and keep focused enough to where we can continue to play."
(on Bernard King's four years at A&M) "I've had obviously an up-close view of what has happened to that young man. I've seen a player that's come in and matured as a person, and I think that's important. We want all of our kids to grow as people. Of course, along the way, you want them to become good basketball players. Bernard's a very talented basketball player, there's no doubt about that, or the things he's done for our basketball program. We've put him in a tough situation at times in the past where we didn't have much to go along with him. This is the wrong kind of conference to have that happen. As we've gotten better talent, this year in particular, we've seen him to be a more rounded player where he's giving assists, he's rebounding, he's trying to play that complete game. So, some of those things early on in his career probably caused him to get some bad habits, but he's surely worked his way through it and fought through that, and has been a very integral part in us getting this program going in the right direction. We surely say thanks to Bernard for that."
(on the match-up with Iowa State) "I expect them to present a very, very big challenge, as they did in College Station. But in terms of match-ups, we match up with them pretty good. If there's any advantage, we feel that because of the way we play and the way they play, we feel the match-up works out in our behalf. In saying that, we know we better have our best game face on. We expect them to come here play really well, so we better be hungry and we better be ready to play. I just think this whole tournament's going to be that way. There's probably going to be some upsets, and we don't want to be part of that, on the losing end."
TEXAS A&M SENIOR GUARD BERNARD KING
(on what an NIT bid would do for him and for the program) "I feel it would do a lot. We have picked it up lot this year, better than what we have done in the past, and we have a chance to do something very special. As far as an NIT bid, it would be very big for this program as well as me. It would give me a chance to experience postseason play and not be going home during spring break."
(on his impact on the program and what hopefully happens in the future) "As you can see, they're in good hands. My career's over. They're on the uprise. They're bringing in more talent next year and will be a better team next year. Hopefully, before it's all over, they'll be competing for the Big 12 Championship. That was part of my coming here, just to help turn that around, and help make the A&M staff and team competitive, and be able to compete in the Big 12 night in and night out. Hopefully I have done that and hopefully the players will feel they are capable of doing that."
(on the possibility of more Aggie fans coming with the tourney being in Dallas) "Yes. I'm pretty sure they'll come out and support us. Like you said, it's always been in Kansas (City) and they've had the home court advantage. But this year, we'll have more fans I think and that's good."
(on what's remembered about the Iowa State game in College Station and what needs to be done to beat them again) "Basically, we can't come into this game even thinking about that game. That game's over. Iowa State is playing much better than they were then. That game, I still think we came out flat. They had a 9-point lead in the first half. First of all, we just have to come out with energy, ready to play, and I feel that if we we come out ready to play we should be able to beat them again."
(on whether or not there's a difference in A&M students' attitude towards basketball) "Most definitely. In the beginning, I remember first coming here and there were 1,000 people in the stands. Now, we're averaging 6-7,000 a game. People are really excited about Aggie basketball. When we go to class, they're always giving us support and saying positive things towards us. It has been a tremendous change as far as what people think about basketball at A&M."
TEXAS A&M FRESHMAN FORWARD ANTOINE WRIGHT
(on the possibility of more Aggie fans coming with the tourney being in Dallas) "I think most of the fans know what type of team we are this year, and they know we can compete in this tournament. They're definitely going to come down and support us."
(on the accomplishments of this season and what's to come) "Well, I think we've done a lot this year, just getting a chance to get mentioned in the postseason light, and having a chance to get there by winning a couple of games in this tournament. I think we've done a lot. Some of our seniors have done a good job of leading us, to show us what it takes just to get to this point. We definitely know what it's going to take next year to take it to the next level, and just piggyback off what these guys have left us and the leadership of our seniors."
(on what's remembered about the Iowa State game in College Station and what needs to be done to beat them again) "I think, like Bernard said, we didn't come out and play our best game. The intensity wasn't there for the full 40 minutes. We know what's riding on this game, and we know what to expect from them. We know those guys are going to come out ready to play hard, and we just have to match their intensity."
(on whether or not he sees himself as someone who can do things similar to what Bernard's done at A&M and maybe take the program to another level) "Definitely. Bernard has paved the way pretty much for me. He's been through all the struggles, and he's passed some things on to me to learn from. I'm ready to embrace the challenges of being the leader of this team next year."
