Feb. 23, 2008
Vanderbilt Head Coach Kevin Stallings:
Opening statement:
“Dennis (Felton’s) teams always play hard and always play physical and Georgia made shots today also. That made the game a bit more difficult than we would have liked, but we knew it’d be a difficult game coming in. We got on a roll offensively in the second half and, maybe because of their lack of depth, we were able to wear them down. I’m pleased with our second half performance and wasn’t with the first half.”
On perhaps overlooking Georgia:
“We have a ton of respect for Georgia. They’ve slapped us around on a couple of different occasions that ended up having a damaging difference in our season. We never discussed our next game and were totally focused on Georgia. The reason we didn’t play well in the first half was because of Georgia’s play, not because of us looking ahead.”
On Shan Foster and Alex Gordon:
“Shan missed some wide open threes, but was phenomenal on offense, especially in the second half. When (Alex Gordon) shoots like that, it opens things up for A.J. (Ogilvy) inside. It’s good to see both of them get on that sort of roll. In the second half, we didn’t stand around on offense and didn’t hold the ball. That’s what it will take for us to get on a roll offensively.”
On Alex Gordon’s leadership:
“He’s a great team guy. He’s been a good leader for us for the last couple of years. His growth in the last month or so has been in his play.”
Vanderbilt Players:
Forward Shan Foster:
On the possibility of overlooking today’s game:
“Not at all. We have four seniors on this team that have been around here and that is where maturity comes in. We try to take things one game at a time and that starts in practice, and carries on into games. We never look past games. We knew (Georgia) was going to come in and they were going to play hard, they were going to play well and we were going to have to be on top of our game in order to have a chance to win.”
On why the team was trailing by one at the half:
“In my opinion it was a direct relation to the way we practiced the last two days it really wasn’t up to our capability and that’s the way we came out and played. We were lackadaisical in terms of our defensive intensity and effort, and we came in and allowed 38 points in the first half. Coach (Stallings) came in and said it at the end of the game today that, `you can’t go out and play medium, you have to play with an edge in this league every single night, every possession in order to have a chance to win.'”
Guard Alex Gordon:
On his game:
“Being here for four years you definitely learn. It’s been a long road, but coach has done a good job of teaching. I just wanted to take good shots. My teammates found me and I was able to knock them down.”
On the team trailing by one at the half:
“We scored 37 points, and that’s enough if we had played some defense. We were scoring, but we just weren’t playing on defense. We picked it up and scored more in the second half and played a little bit more defense.”
Georgia Head Coach Dennis Felton:
On Vanderbilt’s run to take the lead in the second half:
“I don’t care who were are playing against, I’m never going to be satisfied when our defense is giving up 63 percent shooting from the field.”
On Georgia’s defense:
“We had a couple of breakdowns defensively (in the opening minutes of the second half) that were just unacceptable and led to quick baskets. Vanderbilt is a very good offensive team that’s very explosive. Our defense just wasn’t good enough in the second half to give us a chance to win. But if we don’t have those two (early second half) breakdowns, maybe they don’t get off to that start.”
On Vanderbilt:
“Absolutely give credit to Vanderbilt. They are a very good team, one of the best in the nation, but that (defense) was unacceptable.”
Georgia Players:
Guard Billy Humphrey:
On Vanderbilt’s hot shooting in the second half:
“They had a lot of momentum and good looks at the basket. They fed off the crowd and fed off of our lack of momentum. They made us pay for it.”
On the team’s defensive breakdowns in the second half:
“It’s really hard to put my finger on it. My guess is a lack of urgency. We weren’t as urgent as we were in the first half and I think we got a little complacent with us being up by one and we got a little too comfortable.”
On playing at Vanderbilt:
“They’re undefeated in this place and I see why. They did catch fire on us. They didn’t miss a shot. (Alex) Gordon was 7-of-9 I think from three which is bizarre. (Shan) Foster hit a lot of shots that makes you tip your hat a little bit.”
Guard Sundiata Gaines:
On the team’s defensive breakdowns in the second half:
“It was a combination of both (their offense and our defense). They came out and I know they scored on several possessions right back after each other. We contributed by not trying to distract their ball movement. We weren’t trying to disturb it at all which built their momentum.”
On how frustrating it is to guard Vanderbilt when it shoots well:
“It’s frustrating but at the same time you’ve got to think about it: there’s a reason that they’re hitting those shots. Players are going to make tough shots. At the same time, you’re defense has got to get better. When a guy is getting hot you have to be more conscious of where they are and you’ve got to be more aggressive and try to deny touches. We didn’t do that. We kind of sagged back and let them pass the ball around.”
On having Billy Humphrey playing key minutes:
“It helps us a lot; he brings his shooting to the table and his experience. Beside that, we just have to find a way as a team to dig down and get some stops on defense.”