Dec. 7, 2006
Vanderbilt vs. Lipscomb
Thursday, December 07, 2006
Memorial Gym
Vanderbilt Head Coach Kevin Stallings
“I was proud of the team’s effort tonight. I thought Lipscomb played great defensively and did what they had to do to keep the game within reach. They had some very long possessions and defended very well, especially in the first half. We made some adjustments at halftime and decided to go with two post players. We wanted to get it inside and that opened up penetration. We got to the foul line, which was key. It was a lot more difficult for them as opposed to playing the game with four guards.”
On the First Half:
“We didn’t execute offensively in the first half. Some of that was my fault for not having the right guys on the floor for what Lipscomb was doing. I think when we figured out the best way to play them with their scheme, we did pretty well.”
On Playing a Local Team:
“Whomever we play, I feel like they have a lot more to gain. I’ve always been willing to play local teams. It sounds like a good idea when you schedule it in the spring or summer, but when gametime comes, you begin to question it. I hope Lipscomb thought it was good for them.”
On Vanderbilt’s First Half Shots:
“I think we became impatient. They’re a good defensive team. Shan [Foster] had a couple of shots that he missed that he’d normally make. For him to have five points and win is a great sign for our team.”
Vanderbilt Forward Derrick Byars
On Lipscomb’s Offense:
“They were methodical in their possessions. I thought we played great defense in the first half and held them to only 27 points. We only had 21, so we had trouble making shots.”
On the Mood in the Locker Room at Halftime:
“I was disappointed that I wasn’t getting my shots to fall. I knew I was going to get it going in the second half.”
Vanderbilt Forward Ross Neltner
On Vanderbilt’s Winning Streak:
“It’s always good to get wins. Last year’s NCAA tournament proved that mid major teams are a force to be reckoned with. On any given night, shots can fall. It was good to get our shots going tonight. We’re getting our heads up and getting our confidence up.”
On Second Half Post Play:
“It’s been tough the past few weeks. We’ve put together a team without a true five man. Alan [Metcalfe] is out hurt, so we have a smaller lineup. Tonight, we felt we could have an advantage with it.”
Lipscomb Head Coach Scott Sanderson
“I definitely felt as if we had a chance. We had the tempo of the game exactly where we wanted it. We had the pace for a long time. But they came out and out-rebounded us by 14 in the second half and got eight offensive rebounds. That did us in, plus the fouls. They made seventeen free throws in the second half. Welcome to the road in the SEC.”
“We got tired [defensively]. We got tired offensively, too. We stopped moving on offense and we settled for contested three’s. Some of our guys played too many minutes and that is my fault.”
“Give Vanderbilt credit. They played very well tonight. Byars made some big shots for them and Neltner made a few big shots as well.”
“We are a young program, and so for us to get to play a game like this is great. We got some great exposure. The fact that we are a young team means that we are trying to build our identity. I wanted to win this game, obviously, but either way it is a win-win for us.”
“Our guys learned a lot tonight. Hopefully we can continue to build on this.”
Lipscomb G Trey Williams
“Going into halftime we were feeling pretty good about ourselves. We felt like if we could come out in the second half and play the way that we did in the first half that we would give ourselves a really good chance. But unfortunately, they came out and pounded us on the backboards and unfortunately they came out with the win.”
On the Lipscomb fans who made the trip across town…
“Our fans were awesome. They were more than we probably could have asked for. When we came out before the game, the only thing that you could really hear was our fans. That is a real credit to the Lipscomb family that they would come out and try to help us get a win.”
Lipscomb G/F Eddie Ard
On playing some familiar faces on the Vanderbilt team…
“We didn’t have a whole lot of conversation. We exchanged greetings and good luck and all that sort of thing, but once you get out on the court it is strictly competition. We didn’t talk much on the floor.”
“This game is something that we can build on. Our team is maturing more and more each game. This game helps us mature a lot, actually, having a lead and letting it slip away like we did.”
“We just wanted to come out in the second half with the same kind of intensity that we had in the first half. Unfortunately, we didn’t. We wanted to win both halves, the first half and the second half. But, unfortunately, we didn’t win the second half and that is the most important half to win.”
