MOUNTAIN WEST MEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP

March 12, 2025

Vance Walberg

Jasir Tremble

Elijah Price

Thomas & Mack Center

Fresno State Bulldogs

Postgame Press Conference

NEVADA 86, FRESNO STATE 71

MODERATOR: Coach, if we can start with you on thoughts on tonight's game.

VANCE WALBERG: It was a tough one. Obviously, you don't want to get behind like we got behind. I thought we fought back a little bit there, did some things that I was proud of, and then all of a sudden a guy who's shooting under 20 percent from the three for the year goes three for three in the first half. Kind of figures that here we go again. It's kind of been that way all year.

Again, we've been limited all year. We've gone through a lot of different things, but I've been very proud of the seven guys who finished the year and what they gave us and how hard they tried, and I appreciate them.

MODERATOR: Questions for the student-athletes.

Q. Elijah, your nose got banged up in the game. How are you feeling right now?

ELIJAH PRICE: I'm okay.

Q. And being such a young player and having this big of a role this season, what's your biggest learning point that you take into next season?

ELIJAH PRICE: Just understanding what it takes to win games. Playing here this year, I got a lot of experience, was in a lot of close games. So I saw how we lost those games down the stretch and how we should win them next year.

Q. And Jasir, four from eight from three. Was there a certain look that you got tonight that led to your success?

JASIR TREMBLE: No. Just my teammates believing in me, my coaches believing in me to knock down shots, and just being ready when my number is called. That's basically what my season has come up to. I didn't play a lot on the front end of the season, but I'm playing now on the back end, just being ready when my number is called and never shying away from the moment.

Q. To start the game, you guys started off slow. Shots were kind of rushed. Would you say nerves played a role in that?

VANCE WALBERG: I don't think nerves. I would give Nevada the credit on their defense. For us, we gotta get some buckets inside and some easy buckets, and they did a good job of taking that away from us. I don't think it was nerves. I think the players were ready to go.

Q. You guys have basically a new team. What was it like just building chemistry this season?

VANCE WALBERG: Again, it's funny, the game ended with the five that were out there who played the majority of the time, there was not one of those five had any Division I experience from last year. We had two freshmen, and then three JC players. So it's a learning curve. It's something that I definitely did not want to see this season. I thought we would be a lot better. But, again, things happen for a reason, and we're going to learn and we're going to get better.

Q. Elijah, you've had five double-doubles in the last seven games. Even though the season wasn't going the way you wanted it to, how do you stay prepared for the games?

ELIJAH PRICE: Just trusting in my work, trusting in the work I've put in all year. My coaches and teammates put me in good position to succeed. So it makes it easy.

Q. 14 points off the bench. What were you seeing out there?

JASIR TREMBLE: Just coming in trying to give us a spark. That's basically what it's been these last couple of games with us. Been limited in numbers with seven guys and the last game we played with six. Just coming in and giving us a spark and giving us something to rely on off the bench since we only had me and another guy off the bench this season.

Q. And even though the game didn't go the way you wanted it to, what was the experience like to play in a tournament like this with such high-caliber teams?

ELIJAH PRICE: It was fun. It was a good environment, a good crowd. So we're ready to play once it started. So I had fun.

MODERATOR: Any other questions for our athletes? Okay. We'll dismiss them at this time. Questions for the coach?

Q. Coach, having players have to play 35, 37, Zaon played 40 minutes of the game. How proud are you of this team?

VANCE WALBERG: I'm very proud. I've told people all year, just come watch our practices, you see how hard they work.

Like I said, we know we're limited. It's really tough. It's the way I like to play. I like playing 10, 11 players. I don't think we've had that -- actually, we did. We had 10 players the first time we played Reno at our house. That was the first time all year we had 10 players that could play. I like an up tempo, be able to put pressure on people, but for these six, seven players that finished, I was very proud of them.

Q. After going in the zone in the first half, you went into a man-to-man. Can you comment on your thoughts on their performance on that end?

VANCE WALBERG: Again, at this point we're trying anything we can. They jumped on us so good and so hard. Like I said, Bailey goes three for three from the three, kind of put us in a little bit of a disadvantage there.

Just so you know, I've played four games of zone my whole life coming into this year. So I'm not a zone coach. I'm a big believer in man-to-man, but when you get down to six or seven players and Jasir right here, who was supposed to be our backup point guard, I had to play him at the 2.

When you play a five-nine 2 and a six-foot 1 in this league, they're going to post you up all the time. So we had to go to the zone and make some changes.

Q. Elijah Price has had 11 double-doubles on the season. Just what does he bring to the program?

VANCE WALBERG: He is your number one culture guy. He is what you believe in, what I've always believed in. You get five, six, seven Elijahs, you've got a heck of a team. He's that type of a player. He's a leader on the court. He's a leader off the court. You watch him, he'll compete every time, and that's something I really, really appreciate.

MODERATOR: Thank you for your time.

VANCE WALBERG: Thank you guys.