|
|||
|
|||
|
 |
|
|
NCAA MEN'S REGIONAL SEMIFINALS AND FINALS: LOUISVILLEMarch 28, 2019Jordan BowdenKyle AlexanderLamonte TurnerLouisville, Kentucky Purdue-99, Tennessee-94 Q. What did Coach say to you guys? LAMONTÉ TURNER: He just told us to be proud of our season, keep our heads up. It obviously didn't end the way we wanted it to, but we love each other, and we're a family. We're proud of how hard we worked and what we accomplished. Q. End of regulation, I assume you didn't think that you made any contact with Carsen there in the corner. Can you kind of tell us what you thought? LAMONTÉ TURNER: Well, when you're guarding a shooter, you want to contest every shot. He was kicking his leg out all night. So if he kicks his leg out, I can't contest the shot. I've been talking to the ref about that. Last play of the game, he kicks his leg out, I try to contest the shot and his leg made contact with me and they called a foul. So I don't understand what I'm supposed to do, you know. But that was the call and it didn't decide the game, but we lost in overtime. Q. What do you think was going on with you guys in the first half, just the struggles? What really caused that, do you think? LAMONTÉ TURNER: I just think offensively, we just weren't flowing. We were standing around, weren't getting aggressive like we should have been. Then once we started playing faster, using our speed in the second half, really started playing defense, seemed everybody was making tough shots. Got our offense going. Q. I know it's incredibly fresh, but how will you remember this season? LAMONTÉ TURNER: I'll always remember the season with my brothers. Always. Never have the same team again. That's what hurts the most. JORDAN BOWDEN: We came up short. We fought. We came back from a deficit, but we fought to the end. And I just wanted it for them. Q. How much did this team show to come back from 18 down in the second half to get the lead there at the end of regulation? JORDAN BOWDEN: You know, that's just the fight. We're a tough team. We've been tough this whole year. For us to come back like this means a lot about this team and what we was about. Just like I said, you know, I just wanted it for A.D., Kyle, Lucas and Brad, I wanted it for them. We came up short, but we had a helluva year, and I wouldn't do nothing to trade this team. Q. Do you feel like your four-point play was the spark needed to get you guys back in it? JORDAN BOWDEN: Anything in the second half that we did positive was a spark for us, not just my play. We fought and we continued to fight. It just didn't go our way. Q. I know it's incredibly fresh. What are you going to take away from this season? JORDAN BOWDEN: You know, just it was a heck of a year, you know, and you just got to play a full 40 minutes, you know. That's what I take from this. Everybody's going to give it your best. Just got to come out and play and just execute what you got to do. Q. At the same time, what did you guys think of, obviously, Cline's run there at the end? JORDAN BOWDEN: They're a big-time shotmakers. They was hitting tough shots all night. All respect goes to them, him and Edwards and the whole Purdue team. And we came up short, but we fought. Q. How much do you take out of the fact of you guys coming back from down 18? JORDAN BOWDEN: That's just the fight we have in us. We never gave up. We will never give up. Just continue to play hard. That's what we did. We fought. KYLE ALEXANDER: For the last four years, these guys have been my brothers, my family. I mean, everything we've went through. It's an incredible experience. I can't believe it's over, man. I just can't believe it's over. Q. What did Coach say to you afterwards about the season, about the effort tonight? KYLE ALEXANDER: Just said that we should be proud of ourselves. We've been through a lot these last four years, me, Admiral, Brad, Lucas, even Lamonté, though he's been here for four years. Just that, you know, everything we've been through, everything we've done to build the program to what it is, we should be proud of ourselves. Q. That rally in the second half there, was it something you can put your finger on from the first half, where you guys are shooting cold and then able to come back? KYLE ALEXANDER: I think we just picked up the intensity. We just weren't playing Tennessee basketball in the first half. That's what we told ourselves we were going to come out and do in the second half. Q. You guys ended up tying for a record number of wins this year. How are you going to remember this season? KYLE ALEXANDER: Just as a blessing. As a blessing. The way it worked out for me personally, it was like I wasn't supposed to be here, but God put me here. Just how everything worked out for me to be at the University of Tennessee. God put me here for a reason, and I think I understand that reason. The relationships that I've built, the people that I've been able to influence. It's just unbelievable. And it's really just truly a blessing. The season was just a blessing. I can't thank God enough and show him enough appreciation for what he's done for me these last four years. Q. Seemed like Jordan really, especially the four-point play really sparked you guys. KYLE ALEXANDER: We want to get some sparks. We were down a little bit. They were hitting shots so we needed something to spark us to get us going. Definitely did that. Q. Couple of their half court sets, you guys would guard well through most of the shot clock and they put up they're incredible shots. How frustrating is that as a defender? KYLE ALEXANDER: You know, it can be demoralizing to your defense, you know. But our coaches always tell us, if you play great defense and teams come in the last couple seconds and make a tough shot, you can't let that affect your attitude and your defense that you play. So they're a talented team. I've got to give them that. Q. How difficult is this? How good of a ride was it this year? KYLE ALEXANDER: Can't even describe it, man. I mean, we got guys here that aren't even seniors crying. I mean, guys who have just been influenced by each other in here, we just enjoy each other as people. We spend so much time together off the court, I mean, it's been a great -- not only this year, but the last four years. But this year specifically, you know, it's been fun. I'm just glad I was able to experience it with these guys. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports   |
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
About ASAP Sports •
FastScripts Archive •
Recent Interviews •
Captioning •
Upcoming Events •
Contact Us
FastScripts | Events Covered | Our Clients | Other Services | ASAP in the News | Site Map | Job Opportunities | Links |
|
ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297
|