BIG 12 CONFERENCE MEN'S TOURNAMENT

March 10, 2005

Rick Barnes

Brad Buckman

Daniel Gibson

Jason Klotz

COACH RICK BARNES: Pretty obvious all year we have been up and down a little bit and we're the type of team that we need everybody playing. We didn't get that tonight. Start of the game I thought we settled way too much for the three-point shot. We felt like we could should take advantage of them inside and we didn't do that as much as we should have. I thought Jason played his heart out tonight. Daniel, again, and Ken, I thought those guys were really, really playing as hard as they could play and that goes back to we have got to have everybody and we didn't get that tonight.

JASON KLOTZ: It's hard to tell when you are out there. It felt like we were playing hard, but you know, kind of lackadaisical throughout the first half. Almost the same scenario when we played them up at Colorado fighting back, got to get back into the game, at the end started hitting shots but never got close. Can't really have late energy in games. Not hitting shots, always got to have good effort to play well.

BRAD BUCKMAN: I don't know. I couldn't tell you. I didn't play my best at all. I didn't really give it my all tonight. It's tough to say that because I let my whole team down but, you know, I think everybody was ready to go. I think energy was high, but I mean, I can't explain it really.

JASON KLOTZ: I mean, we were in the zone a little bit and got to get our block-outs. If we block out we can go get the ball. I think we missed a lot of block-outs. Guys were not blocking when they were supposed to. I think I gave a few, guards too. You can't do that. Any time you give up second chance points, points off turnovers, you are not going to win. Especially that lop-sided. That's a lot of points. They are not even working for it. They are getting a shot right by the basket. Any time you give somebody a second chance, even a third chance, it's crazy. Shot always goes in no matter what type of shot, it falls. You can't do that. Those are big parts of the game.

JASON KLOTZ: I don't know what they look at and how that's going to play out, you know. Wish we could have won tonight. We have to sit and wait and see what happens Sunday. It's one of those things we will have to wait and see.

BRAD BUCKMAN: I don't think so. I just think it feeds us. It's a tough loss, I mean, we should have been in it, I think. But it will break a little bit but we will be all right. We will bounce back. It is just one game. Got to put this behind us and move forward.

DANIEL GIBSON: No, not at all. I think we knew the importance of the game that we had in front of us, but I just think we have to learn how -- just got to play smarter and just know the situations. Like coach said, we started off the game shooting threes when we knew they couldn't handle our big guys in the post. So we just got to learn how to be a lot smarter and just control the games better.

COACH RICK BARNES: It popped out, that's what happened, it popped back out. He had to deal with it all year. Like I said many times, he's not going to get better until the season is over when he has a chance to rest it. But it did pop out tonight.

COACH RICK BARNES: I am disappointed because this time of year I don't understand how guys mentally can't be prepared. I don't. I really, I am besides myself with it because I don't understand how you know, I mean, I look at our team and I don't understand again the point about the second chance points, I mean, Colorado's definitely a more athletic team, we know that, but that's the reason we have got to block-out, we have got to jump, foul trouble, just didn't get off the ground, those type plays. We have got to have everybody. One of the reasons that we settled and didn't go inside was Brad picked up fouls early, was out of the game and the fouls he picked up he shouldn't have picked up. It goes off the scouting report, the first foul he picks up he's playing a guy that drives the ball. He let's him drive it, he put two hands on him so we never got in the flow that way. We were just trying to juggle our lineup, trying to get through the half without foul trouble. Daniel picked up a foul that he really shouldn't have put himself in a position to get. Jason having to play a long period of time. Mike goes in and playing really hard he hurts his back and has to take himself out. Then bounces back. Dion went in and did a good job for us. We have got to have our guards, especially your upperclassmen this time of year have to be on top of it. Those are the ones that really have to lead. We didn't get the kind of effort we have got to have from everybody to be there. Lord knows, they gave us every opportunity we could in the last two minutes to get back in it.

COACH RICK BARNES: We always talk, but right now I am just disappointed in the way we played. I am disappointed in individuals that we know for us to be a good team this time of year that we have got to play. Our preparation, we didn't change our preparation, we have gone about the same way, but I just you know, you can talk about energy and this time of year it's about being intelligent. It is about being smart. It is about because you are going to have to make some adjustments and do some things, but it's just the plays that we made to get in foul trouble, those kind of plays, but again I said at the end, our resume is complete now, and I think if the committee looks at the fact that they are going to take the best 34 at-large teams, I think we're one of them. I do. I do believe that. And I think that they have got to look at your body of work over the course of the season and if they don't do that, you know, I don't know why we want to go out and try and play a tough non-league schedule, but I would be disappointed now the way we finished and what we have done. We know this can happen in Conference play. It happens all over the place, but yet, like I said I will be real disappointed if our League doesn't get representation like we should.

COACH RICK BARNES: Well, you know what, I don't think you can look at -- sometimes you can't group the team together. Daniel Gibson didn't have a letdown. Jason didn't have a letdown. Paulino didn't have a letdown. Dion didn't. You go down the line. And you know we obviously have a very small area to work with here and but we have got to have everybody. You guys watch us all year, you ask me questions you know the answers to them. It's pretty simple, we need everybody to play and it if we don't get it, you know, we can get in these situations.