Feb. 9, 2014
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Postgame Quotes
Wisconsin vs. Michigan State
Feb. 9, 2014
Kohl Center – Madison, Wis.
Wisconsin Head Coach Bo Ryan
On Josh Gasser’s defense on Gary Harris this afternoon:
“Well, Josh (Gasser) works as hard as he normally works. He got some help from teammates also. When a guy has an off night, is it the defense, is it just something isn’t right on the shot or something goes a little haywire? You never know, it is always a combination. The answer is always somewhere in between. But Josh did a great job of chasing and positioning himself and he had some real good help from his teammates, too.”
On why Traevon Jackson was effective in the last few seconds against Michigan State:
“Well, we got the screen that we wanted and we were able to make a play off it. What didn’t happen against Ohio State was we didn’t space. There was an Ohio State player that helped on the ball on Trae (Jackson) and that offensive player that the guy was guarding that helped didn’t space, so we couldn’t get the ball to him in a good shooting position. So this time we used a rub screen that we had used on the other side of the floor earlier when Frank (Kaminsky) hit the three. So when the ball goes in, it was a pretty good call, right?”
On if his confidence has ever waivered with Traevon Jackson taking the last shot:
“Well, he is a guy that has earned that spot. He proved it last year with some big plays. But what happens is if teams take that away from him his job is to get it to the open guy. His decision-making has been a little sporadic at times, but in a last-second situation, if it starts in his hands, I feel very confident that we are going to get something. It doesn’t mean he has to end up taking the shot, but he was wide open on that pull-up.”
Junior Traevon Jackson
On his game-winning shot:
“I think my teammates put me in a good position. They were fighting the whole game. Josh (Gasser) hit some big shots. He played really well. Sam (Dekker) had some big shots and some big rebounds. Nigel (Hayes) was being Nigel as usual. That’s just what they expected out of me is just to finish the game. I was just thinking ‘I need to get a shot up this time’. I didn’t want to take it to the board and get blocked so the pull-up was there, and I’m blessed to be able to make it go in.”
On Coach Izzo’s comment that he knew Traevon would take the last shot:
“Coach Izzo’s a great guy. We’ve always had animosity between Michigan State and Wisconsin, but I didn’t understand it because even when I didn’t play my freshman year, he was a nice guy, genuine… He just told me (after the game) ‘You deserved it’ and ‘Good shot’. It’s tough for him on the other end losing, but we won today, and we’ve just got to celebrate today and get better for tomorrow. But he’s a great guy.”
Junior Josh Gasser
On his defense against Gary Harris:
“It was a full team effort there. I just didn’t want to give him anything easy. He got going a little bit, in the second half, he got those two fast break dunks. I was kind of thinking to myself, ‘Uh-oh. He’s going to get going now.’ But fortunately, I just tried to force him to my help, and my guys did a good job of helping me out with some tough shots. Sometimes he makes them, sometimes he doesn’t. Fortunately, tonight he didn’t.”
On if the team finds something extra in games like this:
“Yeah, we had to, playing against a team the caliber of Michigan State, how physical they are. If you take a possession off, they’re going to make you pay for it, especially on the glass. They’re so physical, so strong and athletic, if you don’t block them out and put a body on them, you’ve got no shot. We definitely had to bring a little extra energy, a little extra effort that way, but it’s not just against them. We’ve got to do it every game, night in and night out, and that’s something we’ve got to continue to develop.”
On Traevon’s shot:
“I’m inbounding, he’s the first guy I’m looking for to get the ball. I want it in his hands. Obviously, we’ve got a bunch of guys who want to take it, but I think Trae really, really wants to take it, and he’s confident that he’s going to make it. And I’m confident that he’s going to make it.”
Freshman Nigel Hayes
On if the team is on its way back to where they were earlier:
“I don’t know if we’re on our way back, I know we’re moving in the right direction, which I guess is almost one in the same. This was a great win for us, and it’s big for us in terms of confidence. We’ll have to try to ride this win out, and hopefully we can get back to the way we were. “
On the excitement in the Kohl Center when he gets the ball:
“I’m sure they’re probably just getting me mixed up with Sam, but if they really do think it’s me, I don’t want to force the issue. If I have a shot, I try to make it, if not, I find my teammates.”
Sophomore Sam Dekker
On Ben Brust and Frank Kaminsky’s big shots:
“Those were some big shots. Those guys are never afraid to step up and take the big shot, and I think that’s what makes our unit unique because we’re not afraid to take big shots no matter who it is. Frank was going through kind of what I was going through with his jumper, and it’s just all about confidence. He got a look, got a little separation, and we all know Frank’s a great shooter and was going to put that in. Same thing with Ben, I think everyone in this room knows that Ben Brust isn’t a guy who is going to go 0-for-8, so anytime we can get a W with him being not the hot-hand tonight, I think that says a lot about us because other guys picked him up. He said that a couple times, ‘Pick me up.’ Trae said that a couple times, so when you’ve got guys that can trust each other and pick each other up, that’s when you’re going to win games.”
On re-establishing themselves with a win at home:
“We pride ourselves on protecting home turf, and we weren’t able to do that for three games. It was a pretty sour taste. I was talking to one of our guys on the staff, and he said we couldn’t afford to drop another one here, especially in front of fans that support you year-round and come 17,000 strong every single night since I’ve been here. You take a lot of pride in playing in front of them, and you want to go out and perform as well as you can for them, and we weren’t doing that. So this is a big to get back to our winning ways and get that little mojo back in the Kohl Center.”
Michigan State Head Coach Tom Izzo
Opening Statement:
“I’m most disappointed, but proud, pleased in some things. I told my team, when you have these kinds of injuries everybody tries to do too much. We had a couple of guys early that tried to be heroes and Adreian (Payne) really struggled defensively early. But give the kid credit. He actually played better late and that’s what happens when you miss a month. I thought there were some critical calls. I thought Wisconsin played well. A guy like (Ben) Brust who hasn’t been making shots made a big one. (Frank) Kaminsky makes the big one late. Give them credit. They made some big shots, played well. I think the game was more or less lost in the end of the first half. We didn’t score in six minutes and they went on an 11-0 run. We just had so many guys on the bench in foul trouble and some guys in there that couldn’t guard this table. That’s disappointing.
I give credit to Wisconsin. They’ve got a helluva team. They went through a tough time and that’s what happens in this league. Everybody is going to go through some tough times. I give us a lot of credit that we played again with some people that probably wouldn’t get in the game. Guys rallied around each other and we executed that last 3-pointer as well as we’ve executed any play in 10 years. Give Payne credit. He hit a big shot being dead tired. I’m proud of my guys. Disappointed we didn’t find a way to win it. I’ve watched two years worth of (Traevon) Jackson making game-winning shots, so I put my best defender on him and give the guy credit. He made another one. He has the courage to take them. As I told him after, he made a big play.”
On Gary Harris and the team as a whole trying to do too much:
“I wouldn’t include Gary as much. We had some two-on-fours and took shots. When you play Wisconsin you know you’re going to have to play defense for 30-some seconds. And you better be taking a good shot because otherwise you play 34 (seconds on defense), you come down and jack a shot and you come down and play another 34 (seconds on defense). In football terminology, the time of possession really starts to hurt you. We did a very poor job of that early. Yeah, we found ourselves, bounced back. Payne who wasn’t guarding very good early came back, I thought, and guarded well. He even had to guard Dekker, running all over. And Payne’s nowhere near the shape. Poor kid was dying. I have a lot to feel good about, it’s just hard to feel good when you don’t play well.”
On Frank Kaminsky’s 3-point make and other big plays late in the game:
“There were a couple of big plays late. We were hurting because we didn’t have Matt Costello in the game that whole first half. He played what, three minutes? What I tell my guys is, ‘Do your job a little better than you can do it. But don’t try to do somebody else’s job. Don’t try to be a steal guy when you’re not very quick. Don’t try to be a shooter when you’re not a good shooter. Just do your job a little bit better to make up for the people we have missing. Don’t try to do somebody else’s job.’ I thought in that case, we didn’t do that.”
