Dec. 23, 2008
Cleveland State Head Coach Gary Waters: "I thought our guys came to play today, especially on defense and they executed on offense. When we have 24 baskets and 14 assists, that's a pretty good ratio. We came into this game with two objetives. We wanted to hold them under 40 percent and outrebound them by 10 and we did both things."
"J'Nathan had an outstanding game and George did what he does. He got some rebounds and played hard on defense."
"It was an important win, but I also looked at it that we are getting ready to go into conference play. If we went into league play on a downward spiral, it would have hurt us because we start off with two games on the road, starting with a tough place to play at Wright State. Going in there with a defeat would have turned us backwards. So we put an emphasis on holding serve at home."
"I have taken an hour out of our practice early to shoot free throws. I told them I am wasting practice for that. I was disappointed with how we shot free throws today. And I was disappointed with our turnovers. I want to be under 10 and we were at 13."
"I have to bring Harmon along slowly because he hasn't really been a part of us. He hasn't played in a year and a half and I have to let him figure it out and learn from some mistakes. Eventually, I have to let him go. He is a good shooter and ver athletic."
"Norris is our shooter. You can add Jeremy and now Tre and Schiele to that role. J'Nathan is a good three-point shooter and a good post player and it allows him to take control of the game because he can shoot the three and post up inside. WIth both of those skill sets, it's hard to control him."
"We turned the corner last year and did some things that weren't totally expected of us. This year, we are doing what we are capable of doing."
"We need the crowd. That's going to help us down the road and it was nice to have tonight."
"I thought it would be much closer. They had some unknowns and we only saw them once on tape and I didn't know how good they were. Our goal was to come in and do a good job on Singletary and Fisher. We started out with Norris on Fisher and then the young kids (Montgomery and Harmon) did a great job off the bench. They followed the gameplan and did a good job."
Cleveland State's J'Nathan Bullock: "You don't want to start slow. In the beginning, we were starting slow. Today we started quick and we knew our defense would hold them. Coach didn't let us forget what happened to us at Kent State last year. You win the game at practice and we got our advantage their and we kept last year in the back of our mind."
"We practice our transition defense everyday and we have to get back and get the advantage back. And it worked today."
"We are settling into our roles and know what to expect more this year. We have a better idea than last year and are more comfortable."
"One of the keys was attacking inside and we executed. I let the game come to me and see whatever is open at that moment and just execute the game."
Cleveland State's George Tandy: "To help the team out, you have to go get it and give us possessions And I was able to do that tonight."
"They were pretty physical, but we did what we do. We pride ourselves on defense and our guards did a good job on help side. I think everyone made their rotations well."
Kent State Head Coach Geno Ford: "I thought their effort was outstanding. It didn't look very even on tape. We showed our kids how hard they play and we have had to many times where we let our scoring dictate our effort and you can't do that. Their offensive numbers are not that great, but their defensive numbers are. They outcompeted us and give Coach Waters credit."
"J'Nathan Bullock is focused. He was dripping sweat on the court shooting at 5:15 when we got here. I give him a lot of credit. He is a winner and wants to win a championship and you could see at 5:30 that he was ready to go and we weren't in the same mentality."
"They are a tough match-up because their guards are so fast. They were solid from three tonight, but our primay concern was inside. Guys like Tandy and Moore score on broken plays and that's their best play. We thought that their good offensively when the game becomes chaos. They are tough, qick and fast and we look like we were moving in quicksand. They got to all the 50-50 balls and were tougher and quicker than us."
"Cedric's statistics don't reflect the value to his team. He makes them go. He's a tough kid and has a feel for the pace."
"Al (Fisher) has stuggled six straight games. They didn't do anything we haven't seen the last six games. We have to figure out ways to get him going. He's not finishing like he is capable or shooting the three. He's a big key for us and I'm sure he will bounce back."
"We were up 4-0 and I made the comment to the coaches that we were in trouble. I had a bad feeling. They were faster to the ball and we didn't seem to have that bounce in our step. They make you look slow and they played harder."
"They've got a very, very good team. They are the quickest team we have played so far. This can be a good team. You can tell their guys are committed and have bought in. I think they'll have a heckuva year and I think they are a postseason team."
