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NCAA MEN'S 1ST & 2ND ROUNDS REGIONALS: RALEIGHMarch 20, 2008Gary ErvinSteven HillJohn PelphreySonny WeemsRALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA COACH PELPHREY: We certainly feel very fortunate to be in the NCAA Tournament having a chance to participate in March Madness, and obviously this is the ultimate for what we do in our profession as coaches and certainly as players. To be here, as I said before, is an honor and for us to have a chance to play against such a storied history and tradition of which Indiana has and the type of season they have had, we are very excited to have that opportunity. We know it will be very difficult, but we are certainly excited about being here. Q. How did you hurt your knee the other day and how has it been feeling coming along? And how has the week felt different this week compared to other years in the NCAA Tournament, knowing this will be the last time you guys play, as seniors? SONNY WEEMS: My knee is actually feeling good today. I did a little practice today, kind of ran around a little bit. Actually it feels great today. STEVEN HILL: The week has been fun. We try to soak it up as much as we could. Our days are numbered, win or lose. So, you know, we got a lot of good practice in and just try and enjoy it. GARY ERVIN: We are very excited, especially the seniors, coming to the University of Arkansas, we knew what we were getting ourselves into, a great tradition. There's nothing better than just being part of the NCAA for our last time, and, you know, just going out there and giving our all. Q. Do you know how you hurt your knee, and would you say you're 100%? SONNY WEEMS: I was coming around in practice, one of those things, just bump into your teammate and I think I'm about 95 percent and if we had to play today, I could play. Q. Do you think you'll be one hundred tomorrow night? SONNY WEEMS: No doubt. Q. How does he look in practice to you? COACH PELPHREY: Looks like Sonny. Q. When your careers are over at Arkansas, you'll be remembered for putting the program back at a respectable level, but how important is getting that first tournament win before you get out of here to add on to that? GARY ERVIN: The first game is always the toughest, any tournament, that's just the biggest thing. You know we are going to go out there and do some of the things we have been doing to get us to the point in the season. We are a very confident bunch and we are just excited to be here. STEVEN HILL: I think it would be a lot to the seniors to get a win in this tournament. We have gone through a lot of ups and downs, and to go out playing well in the NCAA tournament, it would be special. SONNY WEEMS: What Steven said, it would mean a lot. We've cried, we've sweated and this first win would be very important to us. Q. I'm sure you know what the Indiana players have been through, losing their head coach with just a few weeks left in the regular season. Put yourself in their shoes; what would that be like to deal with? SONNY WEEMS: I know it's very tough for them. You know, we had to go through a similar situation losing our coach and getting another one. You know, they have great players on the team and they fought through it and we fought through it. No, it's going to be a good game between both of us. STEVEN HILL: For me personally, I couldn't imagine, it's a lot of adversity for a team in the middle of a season. It's got to be a huge adjustment but they seemed to handle this very, very well, still a very good ballclub, and so you've really got to tip your hat to the job they have done. GARY ERVIN: I think it shows a lot about their character as a whole, because that's a difficult situation. That's not something that you come across through anybody's time in college, you know, and for a team like that, to know to bounce back, to win 25 games, is great, and it's showing what they can do. Q. For Sonny, the four games leading up to Georgia, it seems like your scoring was down. Were you in a slump at all and did the Georgia game get you out of it? And can you talk about what Sonny has meant to the team? SONNY WEEMS: I'm a team player and do what it takes for my team to win. We are not just a one-man team group. We are a team. We have equal scoring and we have good players on the team that are capable of giving 20 night-in and night-out. It's just equal opportunity on this team. STEVEN HILL: Sonny means a lot to this team for sure. He's been able to knock down some big shots and he played really well defensively. Obviously he's a senior and provides good leadership. So, you know, he's definitely one of the pillars of this team, and he's been big for us all year. GARY ERVIN: Like Steven said, he means a lot to this team. You know, every good team, every great team needs a go-to guy. He's our go-to guy and at the same time, he's not the type of person that when he's playing bad and not knocking down shots, he'll do other things like grab defensive players or grab rebounds and just do whatever it takes to win. Q. When you see a team like Indiana go through what it's gone through, do you wonder what kind of team you're going to face, if they are going to be motivated or if they are going to be distracted and change their approach at all? COACH PELPHREY: No, we actually anticipate getting their best shot, they have two of the toughest players of any league we play in. They have other guys on the basketball team that I think are tremendous. I think Bassett is awesome. Crawford, obviously for a first-year player, has done a lot for them. I'm very familiar with the two junior college guys because that's very close to me when I was at Chapala, south Alabama, outstanding players. We fully anticipate them playing their best game tomorrow. Q. They said you were stuck in traffic there kind of. What was going on and were you worried about the media at that time? (Laughter). COACH PELPHREY: Hopefully that's as much as we get slowed down. No, we were just -- you're forced into it. You have somebody driving for you, and satellite TV was in the bus, so we were okay. Q. With Charles Thomas having a good series at the tournament, does he go back in the starting lineup or do you stay with Hunter? COACH PELPHREY: We'll go the same way we did at the SEC Tournament. End of FastScripts |
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