Nov. 5, 2007
Recap | Final Stats | Notes
SAN DIEGO -
PLNU-SDSU Postgame Quotes in PDF Format
San Diego Head Coach Steve Fisher
Opening Statement
"This (game) was really good for us. It exposed a lot of blemishes and warts that we can now go back and correct after looking at the film. I know we will be able to correct them (the mistakes).
"At halftime, if you take away Lorenzo Wade's six turnovers, we played great defense. They were 7-for-21 and the shots they (Point Loma) took were very difficult. I was really pleased with how we guarded in the first half.
"It was just the opposite in the second half. They became the stalker and the aggressor. We began to play tentative and turned the ball over. We'll have to learn from this second half. We can't play that way if we want to be successful. They had 17 second half offensive rebounds after having only four in the first half. Part of that was fatigue, but a lot of that was energy created by Point Loma. I was obviously disappointed in our second half and our carelessness with the ball. To Point Loma's credit, they played hard. They will have a good season at their level and if we are to become the team we want to be, we will have to play 40 minutes of good basketball.
"Our two freshmen (D.J. Gay and Tim Shelton) were the brightest spots of tonight's game. I know (Ryan) Amoroso can play and is a legitimate low-post presence. You did not see that tonight. The way our two freshmen played allows me to say the positives out-weighed the negatives in this game. The teaching points from this game will help us as we continue on this season."
On freshman D.J. Gay's performance tonight:
"His play tonight did not surprise me. I've watched him practice and he has more than held his own with Richie (Williams). He's gone toe-to-toe with Richie and has proven to be able to guard well. He doesn't have great speed going on a straight line, but he has really good lateral movement that allows him to keep people in front of him. He (Gay) is a tough-minded guy. He had eight assists and no turnovers tonight and that is one heck of a stat line for anybody, especially with the up-and-down nature of this game where he handled the ball the majority of the time. I was very impressed with him."
Point Loma Nazarene Head Coach Art Wilmore
On the team's preparation for tonight's game:
"We actually just got back from a road trip late Saturday night and we do not have practice on Sundays. We arrived at this game without the chance to see San Diego State play, but we know that that the Aztecs are always a tough team to play against and that it would be a physical game."
On playing San Diego State after winning its first two games:
"This is actually our fourth straight game on the road. We played two of those teams very well and had pretty lopsided scores for the two games we won. Those are not like the competition we face down here. We are very fortunate that the Universities from our home town give us the chance to play. I am very appreciative to Coach (Steve) Fisher.
On how PLNU played tonight:
"The team just did not give up. It just seemed like we were able to get extra oxygen from different players. (Brian) Ormon played a great game and Noble'd (Shelton) provided pressure. There were a lot of factors that contributed to it, but over all we just did not quit. There were a couple time we almost were able to close that gap to five with a really good fast break. But again we need to recognize that this is a very athletic group. The Aztecs did an excellent job you can see it in their defensive stats. They were able to hold us to 32 percent (overall) and 21 percent from the arc. That's why I think Coach Fisher's teams are always good because they will always perform at the defensive end of the court.