Dec. 3, 2008

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Maryland Coach Gary Williams

Opening Statement:
"Our team really had a lot of faith in each other. We came in Monday and everyone was tired. I think we got back around midnight from Orlando and mentally we were beaten up a bit. We took some shots the last couple of days and had to get ready to play and we did all we could to get ready to play. When you see things like that and your team has that resiliency, it helps me as a coach because I know they are really trying and listening and that's all you can ask your team to do.

"We are 5-2 and played three ranked teams. We beat a team tonight that beat UCLA on a neutral court so I am pretty pleased with what we did the last week in terms of first winning against Michigan State and then not acting like the season was over after Gonzaga and Georgetown. I think we have a team that is going to get better and we are going to keep working to get better.

On Greivis Vasquez shutting down Michigan guard Manny Harris:
"Tonight, Vasquez showed his defensive ability on a great player. (Michigan guard Manny) Harris is ranked on everybody's list in the NBA as one of the top shooting guards out there and Greivis held him to 5-of-15. He finishes really well and he's a scorer. He's not necessarily a great shooter, but he can score when he gets in the paint and that's what we kept him from doing tonight for the most part."

On Dave Neal:
"Dave Neal was consistent. He was solid even though he struggled a little bit in the beginning. You take a senior out of the game and tell them they need to get better and not necessarily tell them how they need to get better. A guy like that can figure it out himself and I think that is what he did."

On Eric Hayes:
"One of these days Eric Hayes is really going to start knocking it down. I was really pleased that he took 13 shots because he was open. Shooters need to shoot when they are open, it doesn't matter if you miss six in a row, if you are open that seventh shot, you have to shoot it. Eric did that tonight. If he keeps doing that, he is going to be fine."

On Dino Gregory:
"I thought he was a force defensively. He made us bigger when he was out there, which we need."

On whether the ACC/Big Ten Challenge matters in the long run:
"I used to think it did. I don't really think it means anything. I think it is a good win for us over Michigan, a good win for Duke over Purdue, they are all good. But at the end of the year six out of the nine years, the Big Ten has got more teams in the Tournament so it can't be that big of a factor. I hope we win, but I'm not going to declare anything if we do win."

Maryland Guard Eric Hayes

On the importance of beating Michigan:
"It was huge for us. We've probably played the toughest schedule this year out of anybody. Michigan beat UCLA, and they're a pretty good team this year. We're playing for the ACC, and we want to beat the Big 10. So it's great for us to just come in here, stay undefeated at home and get a big win"

On shooting the ball more often this game:
"I'd like to have made a few more [shots] than I did, but I'm definitely looking for my shot. I'm not too worried about it, it's only fall, and they felt good to me. "

Maryland Forward Landon Milbourne

On bringing the crowd to their feet with his dunk in the second half:
"[I don't need to] necessarily make plays, but I want to be that energy guy. Whether you start the game or come off the bench, you give the team a boost, and I wanted to do that tonight. I had an opportunity to do that so I took advantage of it."

Maryland Guard Greivis Vasquez

On his play this game:
"I felt like I let Coach Williams down on Sunday, so that's going to be the first and the last time. I'm not that type of guy. I'm going to be the best player I can, and I'm going to put it all on the floor and do it consistently."

On playing tight defense against Michigan's Manny Harris:
"I was just trying to be myself, I wasn't trying to do anything special. I wanted to play defense, and sacrifice my body and stop him."

Michigan Head Coach John Beilein

On learning from the game:
"Obviously it was a good game. I was able to learn more about my team."

On the mental aspect of playing on the road:
"We just imploded a little bit mentally. I don't like it but you expect it. It was our first road game of the season. The crowd got going."

On Maryland's 3-point shooting:
"They had some good 3-point looks in the first half and made a couple. We needed to respond from that."

On positives in the game:
"I saw some very positive things in the game. There was great leadership from Kelvin Grady in the game. We are still searching for the right mix. I'm still not sure what it is but we will find it."

On DeShawn Sims:
"DeShawn Sims gives us such an explosion off the bench but we got off to a better start and then we stayed strong. He can really shoot the 3-ball."

On Zack Novak:
"You have got to like what you see from Zack Novak. He can shoot it from deep, he plugs, he can get garbage points and he gets second-chance opportunities for us. I am really pleased with him."

On the Maryland press:
"Maryland was able to set the full-court press well and it created a fast tempo so we rushed and created turnovers at the other end."

On playing at Comcast Center:
"This is a tough place to win."

Michigan Guard Zack Novak

On letting Maryland take control early in the second half:
"I think it was the way we started. They came out and hit a few shots and were real aggressive. We made a few errors, but we'll learn from it."

On responding after Maryland's 16-3 run:
"It shows that we gathered our poise after they went on that big run. I mean, we're not going to quit."

On dealing with Maryland's defense:
"We weren't going to get many fast-break opportunities. They were hitting shots. When they're hitting shots, we can't rebound as much and get out on the break. That will slow up the tempo with us, especially with that press, it's tough. When they make it, that slows you down. "

On what Michigan will take away from this game:
"Like coach said, we'll learn a lot from this and put it together. Hopefully soon, we'll be tough. We've got to start halves. We've got to come out of the locker room and put teams away, especially on the road."

Michigan Guard Manny Harris

On what happened in tonight's game:
"We just let them strike first. We just have to learn from it and get ready for Duke."

On responding to Maryland's defense:
"I don't know. We have to watch the film, so I can't really tell you. I don't think it was the press. It was just when we got past half-court, we got rattled a little bit or something."

On not containing Maryland's offense:
"We had lapses on defense. We let them get too many open looks. They were making shots, so credit their offense."