Dec. 7, 2013
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GEORGIA TECH COACH Brian Gregory
Opening Remarks
“I thought we may have played as well as we’ve played all year long. East Tennessee came in having won four of their last five, averaging 80 plus points a game during that stretch and really playing well. And our guys were really dialed in and focused. That was good to see. Sometimes after a big win like Tuesday night [versus Illinois] you can lose that a bit. I thought maturity-wise we took a big step today. Every day you want to get a little bit better, a little bit more mature and a little more focused, and we were really focused.”
On Corey Heyward starting
“Corey really played well. Those guys responded well to being told they were starting. Corey was a big part of that initial push that had us leading 10-2. He managed the game, and that’s what we need from that position.”
On Trae Golden and Chris Bolden not starting today
“They responded well to not starting. They were late for pre-game meal, and if you’re late and you’re a starter then you don’t start. I’ve always done that in 23 years of coaching. You can’t be late for stuff. And they were men about it, they took the blame. They know I’m not mad about it. That’s just how we do it. There was a time or two earlier in the year when a sub was late and he missed his first rotation. Guys understand that there’s accountability that you have to have. And then they’re a little more wired in and focused because they know that when they get in they have to play well, because they let down their teammates. It’s not a big issue, but it’s something that’s important to me. You’ve got to be on time to things, not just with us but with life in general.”
On the play of Marcus Georges-Hunt…
“Marcus was great. Sometimes you’re watching a good game, and you look down and Marcus has 15 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists and no turnovers. You don’t even realize it because it’s a three-pointer here, a layup here, a nice pass here. He’s playing at a really high level for us right now.”
On the offense in general…
“We moved the ball well today. We shared it well, passed up maybe-okay shots to get good ones. They made a run in the first half and I called a timeout, and our guys in the past would’ve tried to make plays on their own. Not out of selfishness, but out of desire to make something happen. But today, we just stuck with what we were trying to do, and I thought that was a positive.”
ETSU COACH MURRY BARTOW
Opening Statement
“Obviously for us it wasn’t a very good game. Georgia Tech has a nice team. I’ve known Brian [Gregory] a long time and coming into the game I thought it was a typical team for him. They’ve got size. They defend better than anybody we’ve played and this is our ninth game. Then they’re so big. Coming into the game from a scouting standpoint, when I looked at the three phases of the game our offense, our defense, and our ability to rebound I was concerned. They’re a great rebounding team. They’ve got a lot of size and defensively they’re really sound. They’re not flashy. They’re not trapping and they’re not in denial, but they’re very, very sound with a lot of size. So my worst nightmares came to us. Offensively we weren’t very good, defensively we weren’t very good and we got outrebounded by ten. But I do think it is a much different team than what Brian had last year. I think they’re pretty good.”
On Lester Wilson’s three point shooting in the first half
“The way they guard ball screens we knew that Lester would get looks which he did. Fortunately, in the first half he made three of them. But I don’t think he made any the rest of the game. They’re a very hard hedged team so you can kick it back to the screener and you can get looks. I thought Lester would get a lot of looks in this game which he did, but you need to make more. Coming in I thought we could make maybe eight or nine threes and they would make their normal four or five. But we made four and they made ten. The basket started looking big to them.”
On team’s slow shooting start
“Obviously in a guarantee game like this everything needs to go right and you need Kinard Gadsden-Gilliard and Rashawn Rembert, our two best players to have great, great, great games and it just didn’t happen. It just didn’t happen.”
On A.J. Merriweather’s second half performance
“I love coaching him because he just has a crazy motor to play. I would have preferred to have some of those in the 1st half. But he’s a fun guy to coach because he just goes and goes and goes. He’s a really relentless kid, a great kid, and he’s very vocal. He played pretty well for us, but did get a lot of that in the second half.”
How would you describe Tech’s defense
“Solid. Solid. It’s a typical Brian [Gregory] defense. I played Brian when he was at Dayton. We won one and we lost to him once there. But again there’s no frills. You’re not going to see press. You’re not going to see much zone. You’re not going to see a lot of denial. You’re not going to see traps. They’ve got unbelievable size and they are just very sound. Very sound and very solid. It’s a pack-oriented defense like Virginia runs or like Michigan State runs. It’s `we’re going to keep you out of the paint. We’re going to make you shoot over us.” And it’s not just a tall Georgia Tech team, but it’s a very thick Georgia Tech team. They’re very, very sound defensively and a great rebounding team on both ends of the court. I know the ACC’s very good obviously, but I think they have a chance to be a very good team.”
