Jan. 31, 2009

Recap |  Final Stats |  Notes |  Photo Gallery 

Maryland Coach Gary Williams

Opening Statement:
"I was really pleased with the way we ran our offense in the second half. We shot 50 percent in the second half. We used more of the clock with each possession and when we were set up in the half-court offense. I thought that the key was our patience today. This was a team tonight, it was not a one-man deal. The guys, including Jin Soo Kim, all played and contributed to our game. That's the team that we are this year and that how we have to be this year. Some nights, somebody is going to get a lot of points, but at the same time we have to dig in for each other. I thought the players really pulled for each other tonight. We did some things defensively to mix it up. Adrian Bowie was very tough. Every possession he was there working and good defensively."

On containing Miami and Jack McClinton defensively:
"We were able to do some things defensively to keep Miami off balance. Jack McClinton has such great range. He has better range than some players playing in the NBA and we did a job not giving him a lot of open looks."

On the play of Eric Hayes coming off the bench:
"Eric Hayes did a great job. I am really proud of the way that he handled himself coming off the bench. He is really a team player. He never complained about it, just went about his business and played great when he was in there."

On holding the lead late in the game:
"Once we got the lead, we did a pretty good job of running our half-court offense."

On success on defense:
"I think our mix on defense had a lot to do with our success tonight. We went to zone late in the first half with McClinton out there. Miami had some pretty good match-ups on us and playing the zone took some of those advantages away."

On the play of Greivis Vasquez:
"Greivis Vasquez played great tonight. He knew we really wanted to win this game. He moved really well in the game against Boston College and that continued tonight."

Maryland Guard Greivis Vasquez

On the game:
"We had to play all 40 minutes. I actually like that better. The other game (vs. Boston College), we were up 16 points. Sometimes we get overconfident. I like it better playing close."

On the offensive execution:
"We executed well on offense and our defense was outstanding. It was a win when we needed it and I'm just proud of our team."

On building on the win:
"We can win games. We can do some damage down in North Carolina, but we have to play for 40 minutes."

On Maryland head coach Gary Williams:
"He's a great coach, he's the best coach that has ever coached me. He's a tough guy, who never gives up and always tries hard. It's just a privilege to play for him."

Maryland Guard Eric Hayes

On containing Miami guard Jack McClinton:
"He's one of the best players in the league. He's got crazy range and can make his own shot, we knew that coming in. We did a good job of getting a hand up [in his face], finding him in transition, and stopping the three."

On coming off the bench instead of starting:
"Even if I'm coming off the bench, I'm getting the same minutes. They need a veteran to come off the bench and I can help the team that way. That's what's best for the team right now and I get to play the minutes I usually play."

On the win:
"We had a couple of tough games, we had to come out here against Miami and get a win to get back on track."

Miami Coach Frank Haith

Opening Statement:
"They played harder than us. They were tougher than us. They were more physical than us. They took the game to us right from the start, and they never let up."

On failing to establish an offensive rhythm:
"Well, we missed shots, and we didn't have the presence of post guys. They did a good job of getting physical with our guys, and because of their physicality, they did push us away from the basket. We were turning the ball over. We had 16 turnovers in the game, 12 of which came in the first half."

On preparing for Miami's tough upcoming schedule:
"We have a tough game on Wednesday. Wake Forest. Tough game. We've got to get ourselves ready to go, and get ready to compete at home against Wake Forest."

On his teams' 31 3-point attempts:
"We got caught into shooting the ball too quickly. We can't play like that. That's not our game. I thought we took a lot of quick 3's in the offense early, and we can't do that. That's part of the rhythm that we weren't able to get into. We just took way too many quick 3's."

Miami Guard Jack McClinton

On the team's 3-5 ACC mark halfway through the conference schedule:
"If you look back to where we were last year, we're not worse off than that. We've just to grow from this and keep going forward"

On playing in front of his hometown crowd:
"I had a lot of friends and family come but it's not about that. It's about our team. It's about coming out and playing hard and playing tough. Today we didn't do it so we've just got to grow from it."

Miami Guard James Dews

On hoping to reach the NCAA Tournament:
"We've just got to come together, be out there at practice and work hard. We've got to come together as a team, rebound better, things like that. Just the little stuff, and we can get back there."