Feb. 23, 2011
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TEXAS A&M
HEAD COACH Mark Turgeon
It was a good win. We weren't great early, I thought they played really well and got control of the tempo. I thought we played with a little bit of a panic in the first half, trying to get 6- or 7-point plays, and Oklahoma wasn't going to allow it.
At half time, it wasn't about x's and o's, it was about three things. About rebounding, we're a good rebounding team, about playing better, and about having fun out there. I think you saw a lot more smiles on our faces out there.
On beating Oklahoma by double digits twice...I think we guard them well. It's hard to get away from them, they're really deliberate. Our defense was so good in the second half and our rebounding was so good, we were able to get away from them.
What were you thinking when BJ had it running down the court alone...I'm just yelling `by yourself.' We've missed a few layups lately. I thought during that stretch we were wearing them down. Ray really gave us good minutes in there. That put us up 8, and we talked about continuing to build it up.
On getting the bye in the Big 12 tournament...We haven't talked about it yet, we're just going to prepare for Baylor and try to play well. We've become a pretty good road team, hopefully that will continue. We have to get fresh, we looked tired and lethargic in the first half. Obviously we're not going to win the league, but that'd be the next step, talking about trying to get that bye. But we don't talk about it.
On Baylor's height...We didn't have Ray against Baylor the first game, and I didn't play Keith, which was probably a mistake. We hope to play a little bit bigger of a lineup, maybe, we'll see. Kourtney is really coming, Ray has had really good practices, and he's coming at the right time. I thought those two really gave us good minutes tonight.
SENIOR FORWARD Nathan Walkup
On being down on rebounds in the first half...We realized we were down eight, coach said they were being tougher than us. We had to get tough and get better on rebounds.
On the start of the second half...We played really good defense in that stretch, we executed and got some easy buckets. It was a big momentum shift. We got our whole team involved, got the crowd in it.
On being close to the NCAA tournament...You never want to settle, whether or not you're in the tournament, you never want to settle. Even if you're in the tournament, you want to get the best seed possible for your team and keep working to win.
JUNIOR GUARD Dash Harris
Have you thought ahead to getting a bye in the Big 12 Tournament....Not at all. We take it game by game. We haven't even reached the Big 12 Tournament, we're taking it game by game and trying to get better every day.
On matching up with Oklahoma...They're a good basketball team, but we match up with them well. They don't have much height so we utilize our big man, like Ray on the key and Kourtney on the block. They don't match up as well as us size-wise, so we try to go inside out.
SENIOR GUARD B.J. Holmes
On what was better in the second half...We came out with more energy. That's one of the biggest things coach was talking about at half. We looked flat in the first half. In the second half, we were able to get the fast break and get some better shots.
On the bench's play...We've been trying to be a deep team this whole year. I don't think there's a better time for our bench to come on then now. Those guys work just as hard as us in practice, I feel like when they're out there they can really help us.
OKLAHOMA
HEAD COACH JEFF CAPEL
First of all congrats to A&M. I thought both teams played hard, but our inability to make a shot in the second half did us in. We just couldn't finish plays, and I thought it allowed them to get out in transition and it deflated us.
On A&M's bench play...Their bench came in a really did a good job. I thought we did a pretty good job on their first five, on Loubeau, Holmes and even Middleton.
On missing free throws...It's uncharacteristic of us. We're a pretty good free throw shooting team. I think it was just thinking about missing those shots. We weren't thinking about getting down and being a better defender or a better screener.
On giving up the lead at the start of the second half...For whatever reason, during this stretch here, that's what we've been. We make a run and stay close, but then we run out of gas. But again, it's just our inability to continue to stay focused or stay tough.
On Rebounding...I thought we played a really good first half, we controlled the tempo. We were getting fouled. If we were a little bit better offensively, it would've been a great first half. In the second half, I thought they really made a concerted effort to speed up the game.
SENIOR GUARD CADE DAVIS
On the start of the second half...We just couldn't make shots. We were getting open looks, but we just couldn't knock them down. That led to us having poor defense on the other end.
On missing free throws...I think it was just a carry-over from missing shots and it being in your head. If you haven't seen the ball go in the hole for a few minutes, that just got us rattled a little bit. But they kept knocking them down and really finished.
On the difference against A&M...They're a good ball club. Their size is certainly a problem, especially for us, having to double the post and rotate, leaving shooters out. They have the full package; they have a great coach. Mental mistakes on us, early and in the second half, you can't do that against a good team like A&M.