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BIG 12 CONFERENCE MEN'S TOURNAMENTMarch 11, 2009Ryan AndersonAde DagunduroDoc SadlerOKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA Baylor – 65 CHARLIE FISS: We are joined now by the Huskers of Nebraska with Coach Doc Sadler and his two student-athletes. Coach, your thoughts on today's game? COACH SADLER: Thanks, Charlie. First of all, you know, got to congratulate Baylor. I don't think that they did anything different than what we saw down there. It is just that we didn't make shots. Our defense again has been our solid point all year at 60. We have been averaging -- giving up 62 points a game, and we gave up 65. So there wasn't that much difference there. We haven't turned the ball over. We didn't turn it over today. It comes down to one thing. It comes down to you making or missing shots. You are not going to win very many ball games shooting 31% from the field. And we didn't get to the free-throw line enough, but give Baylor credit. And as far as my team, I told them after the game, there is not a team that I have been more happy with than the guys that we got. It is just the shots would not fall today, and that's something you can't control. I think we got great shots. I was talking to the coaches. I think there was two bad shots in the whole ball game I wish we wouldn't have shot. If you can say that in most games, you'll be happy. Q. Ryan and Ade, Baylor was in the zone just about all for a couple of possessions. Can you talk about the challenge of that and how you all responded to it? ADE DAGUNDURO: Yeah, Baylor is a team that heavily relies on our three-point shots. And today they were falling a lot today. We were hoping that they might go on a cold streak, but they just continued for 42 minutes hitting. RYAN ANDERSON: 2-3 zone they played on defense, is that what you are saying? They have big guys. We were banking on us hitting our shots, but they weren't falling. That was just kind of the case today. To get them out of the zone, you have to hit some shots to make them respect the shot so they come out of the zone. But they didn't come out of it. Q. In the first half against the zone, you guys did seem to kind of get some shots inside. And the second half, was the three the only shot that was there? It seemed like you took a lot of threes in the second half. Is that because you couldn't get -- I think 18 of your 29 shots in the second half were threes. Was it just because you couldn't get anything inside? ADE DAGUNDURO: I think it was a matter of us just stop executing our zone offense. In the first half, the middle was wide open. We tried to attack the middle. For some reason in the second half, we did a poor job of attacking the middle. RYAN ANDERSON: Again, what he said. The middle was wide open. Second half, we didn't do that, even though the shots that we did take, they were good shots. They just weren't falling. Q. I know it is hard to think about this after a loss, can you take a measure of satisfaction from this season so far? It may not be over for you guys, but can you talk about the level of satisfaction for this team this season. RYAN ANDERSON: Definitely, we have been -- we're not satisfied with where we are, but I'm satisfied -- we are satisfied with the team, how we play hard and come out and execute and just give it everything we got every game. Like Coach said, you couldn't ask anyone more from us. I think the team, we have given everything we got. We can't control if the ball goes in or not, but we can control if we come out and play hard and give it everything we got every time on the court. CHARLIE FISS: Ryan and Ade, we'll let you return to the locker room. Now we'll take questions for Coach Sadler. Q. Doc, they say the first half you guys did get the ball around the free-throw line against their zone. The middle was open. That kind of broke things down. Was it not open in the second half, or did they make some adjustments to take that away? COACH SADLER: I thought we was real able to get the ball down in the low post, especially -- you know, but then you get yourself in a situation they were spreading it out. The inside was much more open than the outside. We just didn't attack -- we didn't attack the block the way you have got to attack it against the zone or the baseline. I thought unfortunately the last five or six minutes we started doing what we needed to do. But, no, I don't think they did anything different. We wouldn't be -- you are not going to win many ball games shooting 31 percent. It is just not going to do it. That's been the Achilles heel of this basketball team all year. You hold them to 65 points, you got to think that you got a chance. And I don't think -- I think this may be one of our probably -- but you got to give Baylor credit. They are awful big down there against us. They had a couple of guys make some threes. But even that, 65 points is not too many points. It is just our lack of ability to score. Again, you look at it and you turn the ball over eight times. You just get frustrated as players. When shots -- 24 threes is probably too many. But as I said before, I think out of 24 threes, I think there is only one I wished we wouldn't have taken. Q. Doc, you hate to single somebody out. Paul had a tough day shooting. Do you want to see him continue to take that and shoot his way out of it? COACH SADLER: Oh, yeah, if I'm going to play Paul, that's what he does best for us. Again, I think he took good shots. I don't think he took bad shots. It just didn't fall for him. Paul Velander, guys, is -- he's the -- you are never going to take anything because, you know, Paul Velander, make or miss shots or whatever he's doing, is always going to do it in the best interest of the team and not even have him -- I mean, there is not a selfish bone in that guy's body. So he did what he was supposed to do. He knows for us, this team, he needs to shoot the ball. It didn't go in. So, yeah, I'm not disappointed that he took 10 shots at all. Q. Talk about the play of Josh Lomers down low. How much did that affect you guys today? COACH SADLER: It is not difficult to look at our team and understand that anybody with any size -- you know, you get down in that lane and stay in there for a long time, you know, it is hard to defend. And he is a big 'ole guy down there. It definitely had an effect on us. Q. Along those lines, Kevin Rogers had a career high 20 rebounds. Did those two big bodies in the middle make it hard for you guys to get into the routine on the boards? COACH SADLER: Sure. Everybody -- Kevin Rogers, I think, is one of the most talented players in this league. I know he's probably disappointed in his season. But Kevin Rogers, you don't see many 6'9" guys that does the things that he does. He has a chance to do something special if that's what he chooses to do. Who are we going to match up with Kevin and Lomers together? We are just not going to -- you have to take something away, you know? When they went to the two big guys as late in the year -- I think it started with the Kansas game. I think that's when people really just started attacking the offensive boards against us. I mean, it has been a concern every game from that point. We had done a decent job. But from the Kansas game at Kansas, people really exposed that and I think they did that today. Q. You like this team's chances of moving on and playing post-season? COACH SADLER: There is no question about that. If you're playing in supposedly -- if it's the third-best league in the country -- I mean, if it is not, then people in our conference office need to take a long look at themselves and wonder why you don't have more teams in post-season. If you are the third-best team and you got teams below you that's getting seven -- or talking about six, seven teams in the NCAA tournament, there is no way an 8-8 team in this league is not going to continue to play. If it doesn't, then they need to take a long look at themselves because the teams are doing what they need to do. So that's my opinion. I'm sure some people don't want to hear that, but that's how I feel. Q. Can you talk about Ade's performance today? COACH SADLER: Yeah, I mean it's like it's been, just gutsy. Ade is a guy that gives you everything he's got. And the thing that you got to be careful with him sometimes is trying to do too much because he wants to so bad. But, boy, how can you get -- you are not going to get any more out of a 6'4" guy than what we are getting. He is a total warrior. CHARLIE FISS: Coach, thank you. End of FastScripts |
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