TEMPLE-WESTERN MICHIGAN QUOTES
Senior Guard David Kool:
On the overall effort:
"Yeah, we knew that coming in that they were going to be a tough task for us, a great task for us and I think we passed that test tonight. They just made a lot of plays down the stretch. That's what good teams do, that's what veteran teams do. They picked us apart there down at the end of the game, they got some picks and pops with big number 30, he's a real good shooter. We lost a couple of assignments. A great team will make you pay for that and Temple's a great team. They came in here and played hard as did we."
"I think we played and I think that's also why we're disappointed. We played really well, but we didn't come out with a victory and that hurts, especially on our home floor when we felt like we put up enough to come out with a victory. We got some days off here to work on things."
"They definitely did. They definitely looked like a top-tier team and
it was a great experience for us. It was a lot of fun and we put up a
great with them. Hopefully we can hold our heads high and realize that
we're going to be a great team at the end of the year. We just gotta
keep working. If we can do that, we're going to be fine."
On Temple's size:
"That has a lot to do with it, but then again we knew that coming in. You got to give them a lot of credit but at the same time we didn't get it done as well. We put in a lot of work on rebounding in practice. Even when we didn't hit them it seemed like they came up with the loose balls and made plays because they're great athletes."
Senior Center Donald Lawson:
On facing size in the post:
"It's long. I always try to hit him, but somehow, someway he seemed to come away with a rebound."
"We made some strides, but we still got some work to do. Tonight it got away from us a bit. We had probably five or six or seven on us but guys just need to get a body on someone inside."
Sophomore Guard Mike Douglas:
On his 10-assist effort:
"Today, we ran a lot more so I was more able to pass the ball. Kool was hot too. He scored 30 and it's easy top get a lot of assists with him."
"At the point, you always want the ball in your hands."
On Temple's performance late in the game:
"They just started knocking down their shots, so I mean we could contest, but when the ball goes in the whole, it's kinda hard to contest."
"When you get on the court they do look kinda big and stuff but we've been playing basketball for awhile."
"It's just a basketball game. They gotta put the ball in the hole just like we do."
Coach Hawkins:
On the overall effort:
"It's always tough to lose a basketball game, but we lost to a really good team. They were outstanding. I thought Temple showed a lot of poise when we got our chance early. I thought they showed a lot of maturity, especially from their guard play. Their guard play was just really really solid, and we knew how good of a passing team they were coming into the game and they certainly didn't show anything less than that tonight. I thought their guards were a really huge difference in the game they way they kinda just kept them in there for awhile and then during their key stretched thier guards were really outstanding."
On Temple's offensive rebounding:
"When you combine that with giving up 19 offensive rebounds, I mean the numbers really don't lie. We gave up 19 offensive rebounds and we had nine ourselves so there was a 10 differential when it comes to offensive rebounds. They got off 76 shots, we got off 60, so giving up all those offensive rebounds, we just gave them too many possession by giving up 19 offensive rebounds."
"When you combine that with a couple defensive mistakes we made at key times, it just kind of became too much. I'm really impressed by this team. I said before the game that I don't think I'd ever seen a team that passes the ball as well as Temple does, and they had 15 assists and only six turnovers. They made 31 shots and they had 15 assists. Basically half of their baskets came off the pass. I just thought that we lost to an outstanding basketball team."
