Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State
San Jose State
Fresno State vs. San Jose State -- Postgame Quotes
1/2/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 2, 2005
Fresno State head coach Ray LopesOpening statement
"That's a good win for our basketball team. It was an ugly, ugly game and an ugly win but a win is a win. I'm just happy we were able to find a way...to come up with this win. San Jose State did a nice job. (On their game plan) we knew they were going to face guard, frustrate Ja'Vance (Coleman) and collapse on Moose (Mustafa Al-Sayyad)."
"Credit this basketball team (Fresno State). They were able to dig down and some guys came off the bench and stepped up. It was just a good win. I'm happy we're 2-0 and we protected our home in the first weekend of WAC."
On Al-Sayyad's play down the stretch when San Jose State trying to make a run
"With that 14-point lead, we got a good bounce one time and it landed in his hands. Moose stepped up and got a big offensive rebound and a put-back and then he hit a big free throw line jump shot, which he can do because he does it in practice. That's what good players do. When a team needs you to step up, good players step up and make big plays."
On winning the rebounding battle for the first time in seven games and to whom does the credit go for that?
"Thank goodness. We emphasize that in practice. Emphasize that in pregame talk. I've told our team that is where we can become a better basketball team. We start rebounding and winning the battle of the boards then we have a chance to separate ourselves from teams in games. If we're losing the rebound battle, every game is going to be a close game. Every game is going to be nip and tuck. Every game is going to be a dog fight."
"I think we do everything else fairly solid. We're getting better with our offensive execution. Our half-court defense is pretty solid. We're not great at anything but I think we're pretty solid in key, important areas of the game. But we've got to become better on the boards and tonight was a step in the right direction."
On going on the road in WAC
"Our goal is to shoot for a split on the road. This is first time for these kids on the road (in WAC play). We're in WAC play now. Conference play is so much different now. Coaches know other coaches. Players know other players. And our guys don't know a thing. We've got eight guys who don't know a thing about Dallas, about SMU or about getting on American Airlines at 6:30 a.m. If we can find a way to win a game on the road, I'd think it would boost their confidence a lot. If we can get a split then it keeps us in the race. My goal is always to get a split on the road."
On Coleman's tough shooting night
"Ja'Vance had a hard night. They frustrated him. But that's going to be a learning lesson for him because a lot of teams will try to do the same thing: shadow him and stick to him and try to frustrate him. He got going in the second half and that's why I wanted to make sure we stayed with him as long as we could because you just never know with a player like him when he is going to step up and make big plays. He made some big shots in the stretch there in the second half."
On Coleman's rebounding
"He's been consistent all year long. He's the second-highest rebounder behind Moose. I just expect that from Ja'Vance every night. I didn't know we were going to get that when we recruited him but that has been a wonderful thing to have as part of his game for our basketball team. I think he'll consistently rebound like that. He won't have many nights like tonight where he shoots the way he did."
Closing comments
"The best thing about today was that we took care of our home court. Nevada was 2-0 at home this weekend, Rice was 2-0 at home this weekend and now Fresno State is 2-0 at home. It's early but we're in the race. The team stepped up. I thought they did a good job of taking two of our best players out of the game and we still found a way to win. Thank goodness for our depth and versatility. That was a good win for us. San Jose State did a nice job."
San Jose State head coach Phil Johnson
On where the game turned
"I thought the game really was turned in about the eight-minute segment in the second half. When I looked up at the scoreboard and we were stuck on 33, we scored two baskets in about nine minutes. A lot of that was our offense got a little stagnant and their defense had something to do with it. I think our team, right now, is learning how to play. We're looking to Marquin (Chandler) a little bit too much and expect him to bail us out."
On the team's post play
"The other part of it was that we've got to come up with some positive results when we throw it in the post. Tonight, we were 2-of-14 out of our two post guys (Mark Fresby and Matt Misko). We've got to get some production out of those two spots. (Mustafa) Al-Sayyad had a lot to do with that because he's so big and powerful and athletic and he can affect how your post guys play and he did tonight."
