Jan. 27, 2009

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Maryland Head Coach Gary Williams

On Maryland's defense during tonight's game:
"The game changed at halftime, in terms of them shooting the ball. They shot 60 percent in the second half, after shooting 37 percent in the first half. Our defense wasn't as good in the second half. By now it's become a trend - in front of the bench we play pretty good defense. When the team goes the other way, when our defense is away from us in the second half, we don't play as good defense. We have to put a stop to that and we have to figure out why that takes place, and we'll go from there."

On his team's offensive performance:
"Offensively, I thought we had some good looks. We missed some shots we should've made in crucial situations. Give them credit; they didn't quit. We could've had that thing out further at halftime, but a couple of negative things happened right there before the half. I don't know if that gave them any momentum going in or not. We didn't come out with the same fire we had in the first 20 minutes of the game, and we paid for it."

On the team's second-half struggles continuing from last year:
"If I knew, it wouldn't happen if I could find a way to fix it. The one thing defense always gives you is a way to stop the other team. If you're a good defensive team, and we are for 20 minutes usually, and the second half we don't play as good defense. I really wish I knew the answer to that, but I don't. We're going to work on it. It's one of those things that we have to find a way to make that happen."

Sophomore Guard Adrian Bowie

On why Maryland lost the lead:
"We lacked communication and lacked energy. We let them run their offense and they came back. It's tough losing at home, especially with a big lead like we had in the first half. We just have to communicate better. We don't talk to each other on defense enough in the second half, and it shows."

Freshman Guard Sean Mosley

On Maryland's shortcomings on Tuesday:
"[Holding a lead is] not easy. It's something we have to work on and just need to get better at. The second half is always a let-down. We didn't bring enough energy like we brought in the first half. We just need to get better and finish the game out. "

Junior Forward Landon Milbourne

On his role on the team:
"I'm a leader. I'm a captain on this team. I have some pressure. Me and Dave (Neal), we're the starting guys on the inside, so we have to do what we have to do to get things done. I'm just trying to do my part; I'm not trying to do anything spectacular. I know what I can contribute to the team, and I'm trying to do that."

On Maryland's success in the first half not carrying over to the second half:
"That's something we have to adjust to and something we have to learn. We're students of the game, and that's just something that we've got to figure out. We have a little bit of time to figure it out before Saturday, and hopefully we can get it and try to come in and get a win."

On Maryland's strong start to the game:
"I think we came out pretty fired up, and because of that we played a pretty good first half. Unfortunately, we couldn't do that in the second half. That's something we're trying to work towards, and hopefully we'll get that pretty soon."

Boston College Head Coach Al Skinner

On the teams' difference in the second half:
"As a team we were more organized in the second half in comparison to the first half. In the first half, there was a lot of confusion and we weren't very aggressive, but when we came out in the second half we did a great job of attacking the basket, and we were much more organized."

On struggling to defend Maryland's fast-break offense in the first half:
"We did a terrible job taking care of the ball in the first half and it led to a lot of Maryland fastbreak opportunities, and once we turned the ball over we didn't get back on defense. The lack of offensive rebounds in the first half didn't help our defense."

On his team's poor rebounding in the first half:
"It was all about attitude and in the first half we didn't want the ball. As a team, we did a lot of standing around in the first half, and I thought that Maryland was much more aggressive of the glass. In the second half we came out much more aggressive and we made a point to do a better job of boxing out. At halftime I told them that after every shot we need to make sure there is a body on every man, and that we can't let players come open for easy rebounds."

Senior Guard Tyrese Rice

On allowing Maryland to take an early lead:
"Maryland was getting way too many easy shots in the first half, and they were knocking them down. That's what led to the big lead for Maryland."

On playing better in the second half:
"In the second half we were able to step up and contest more shots."

On winning three consecutive games:
"There are some things that we still need to work on, but I think we are definitely heading in the right direction."

Sophomore Forward Joe Trapani

On getting contributions from different players:
"Having the kind of balanced scoring that we had tonight definitely helps. If one guy isn't hitting his shots, then someone else will make the shot. It shows the versatility that we have in our lineup."