Feb. 5, 2011
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Vanderbilt vs South Carolina Postgame Quotes
February 5, 2011
Memorial Gymnasium
Vanderbilt Head Coach Kevin Stalllings
Opening Comments:
“I’m really proud of our effort. The key to the game was Jeffery Taylor’s defense on [Bruce] Ellington. We had a good balance except for Lance [Goulbourne]. Obviously, he’s not doing very well. Another big key was Ron Odom’s offensive punch. Our bench played well and that helped us also. We have to have balance when we have a key guy not able to pull his load. We had to do that today to be successful.”
On Vanderbilt’s Freshmen:
“They were both really good. Kyle [Fuller] took care of the ball… and was able to find guys. We just need our bench to be solid. They don’t need to be good; they just need to be solid.”
On Why Jeffery Taylor Guarded Bruce Ellington:
“Jeff [Taylor] is our best defender… We can’t always put him on their best guy because of other variables, but we were able to today and I thought he was fantastic. He has quick feet. He has the foot speed and quickness that [Bruce] Ellington has. He can change direction and move like a six-foot guy. He has great endurance and tenacity.”
On the State of Vanderbilt’s Season:
“I don’t know where we off-track. We had an emotional thing where Arkansas came in here and played really well. We didn’t play great at Florida, but we went at it and slugged it out. We certainly couldn’t afford to lose today. Our guys played with a sense of urgency. We can control only what’s with us. We can’t control what Florida or Alabama or anyone else above us in our league does.”
Vanderbilt forward Jeffery Taylor
On guarding South Carolina’s Bruce Ellington:
“I think I did a good job on him. He’s a very quick player, he can also shoot the ball, so he presents a lot of problems for opposing defenses. I just tried my best to keep him in front and contest his shots and make the day difficult for him.“
On his improved rebounding against South Carolina:
“Coach challenged me to really just start rebounding on the offensive end and I took it to heart and tried my best to do it today.”
On the importance of winning after two consecutive losses:
“We definitely have to have that sense of urgency right now. We’re towards the bottom of the SEC East, so every game from here on out we have to play like it’s our last and every game has a huge importance for how we want the year to end for us.”
Vanderbilt guard Brad Tinsley
On Coach Stallings expectations for the game:
“Yeah, definitely. We got told that after the Florida loss cause I thought our team wasn’t going down the right path and we addressed that issue. We should have a sense of urgency and just playing on fire and playing like it’s the last game of the season and I thought we did that today.”
On the performance of freshman Rod Odom and Kyle Fuller:
“I thought they played huge today, but it’s kind of something we need to expect from them. They’re great players and they help us big time off the bench. You’re talking about two guys that really work hard outside of practice. Rod and Kyle are always trying to get shots up and they deserve this kind of performance.”
Vanderbilt forward Rod Odom
On his three-pointer at the start of the second half:
“You know I was just trying to run the play. Coach called the play and I knew I was supposed to come up on the side and I knew if Brad found me I was going to try to step in and knock down a three.”
On his role on the team:
“I just try to go out and play hard on defense and get offensive rebounds and just hit open shots when I can.“
South Carolina Head Coach Darrin Horn
Opening Comments:
“I really think this game is pretty simple. It came down to Vanderbilt making tough shots and I credit them for knocking them down when they got it. I will have to watch the film to see how pleased I am with how many I feel like we gave them open and how many they made. As a team, they came in struggling, but we knew they had guys that could make shots, [Brad] Tinsley and [Jeffrey] Taylor. I think Taylor coming into the game shooting 21% and they had a bust-out game that they’ve been looking for. They were knocking down shots against us, especially in that stretch in the second half where they stretched the lead.”
On Jeffery Taylor’s Defense of Bruce Ellington:
“I think his length is effective. We didn’t move the ball well either. He did it a little bit too much with their defense being set. In the second half, we got into transition some and [Bruce Ellington] shot a little better. “
On Allowing Three-Point Shots:
“I will have to watch the film to judge the way we do based on how we did. The shot at the [end of the first] half was a big shot. It seemed like we didn’t get the handle that we wanted to, but you have to give [Odom] credit too for making the shot. He wasn’t wide open.”
On Sam Muldrow Approaching South Carolina’s Career Blocks Record:
“He hasn’t mentioned it. He is a low-key guy that comes and brings his lunch pail every day. The thing about being first in something at your program means consistency in your ability to produce year in and year out. It speaks volumes about what he’s done over four years at South Carolina.
South Carolina guard Ramon Galloway
General Comments:
“Shots weren’t going down, but we’ve gotta keep defending and rebounding.
About your effort today:
I just try to bring what I can bring for the team. And go out there and play hard.”
On responding to Odom’s 3 before half:
“He hit a good shot. And we just came (back out) into the gym and just got on each other and said we’ve gotta have high hands and just play defense aggressively.”