Nov. 20, 2013
Final Stats | GT Photo Gallery
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GEORGIA TECH HEAD COACH Brian Gregory
Offensive performance:
“Our inability to feed the post and get the ball inside and reverse the ball, just our impatience put us in some difficult situations on the offensive end. There were a couple times in the second half where we were right on the edge of getting back in the game and cutting it to a one-or-two possession game and just didn’t get the stop or the rebound that we needed. Give them credit they played very well.
Defensive performance:
“They got a couple baskets on some drives, but I think you’re going to see more of that nowadays. We have to get better at reading when to help and when not to. I think we gave up a few too many open threes and then at the same time. That’s just an area that we need to get better at on the defensive end. We almost got back in there a couple times. You look at the stats and you see your starting perimeter players only had four defensive rebounds. Our guards need to be more active and engaged on the glass. Sometimes they get spoiled by the fact that our big guys do a good job of rebounding. Those guys need to come up with those one-bounce, two-bounce rebounds.”
Daniel Miller’s performance:
“We’ve got to keep getting him the ball. I thought he did a good job of posting up. Obviously I think that he was the one player today that played like we needed guys to play. At the same time, I think he’d be disappointed in his defensive performance. In the second half he gave up some easy baskets in the post. We needed to make those guys score over us, and Daniel is hard to score over. You’re in a situation you haven’t been in and you kind of get out of sorts and I think that happened a couple times with Daniel.”
At times players taking on too much individually:
“There is part of that, that isn’t the worst thing. Where guys want to be aggressive and make plays and it’s important to them. Again, that’s where we’re at. There’s a maturity piece in there that we have to get a lot better at. You can’t make up a seven-point deficit in one play. No matter how good the play is, it only counts as two or three. Sometimes the best thing is not to force it and get the ball moving. Sometimes in the heat of the game it’s hard to get that across to the guys, because their thought is, `we’ve got to get back in the game’. You need some poise from the players with that. Hopefully we’ll watch some film and show that to them, and hopefully we’ll improve in that area.”
On turnovers:
“I think a key stat in the game was the turnover situation. I’m disappointed in that. We’ve done a good job not only in practice but in some of the games in taking care of the ball. When you have those empty possessions and also baskets on the other end, it puts your defense in a tough situation. It especially a problem in the first half with the number of points they had scored off turnovers. Give them credit, they forced them. It’s an opportunity for us to learn and grow and we’re going to get better. We’re really going to have to tighten that up.”
DAYTON HEAD COACH ARCHIE MILLER
Opening Statement
“It was a heck of a win for our team. I’ve spent a lot of time in this part of the country playing and it’s not easy to win on the road. We’ve got a new group. We haven’t been at our best to start the early part of the season. We came together and had a lot of guys contribute. It was a great team win against a well-coached team. Hopefully we can build on this.”
What did you do defensively that frustrated Georgia Tech?
“They have great size. They are very gifted in size. We are not. With how they were playing the other perimeter players, if we weren’t pressuring the ball, then they were going to have their way with us. They hit us in the mouth early and were able to do what they wanted to do. I thought a few times we got a few rotations in there and our ball pressuring picked up. We were able to start getting back and some steals in the open floor, which gave us some confidence on the other end. More importantly, I thought we had a lot of guys get in the game. We had a lot of freshmen get in the game. We had a lot of guys make plays. This team has to be built defensively to play one way and that’s hard to get up after people. We’re not the biggest team in the world, but I think that with our numbers hopefully there’s a lot of ball pressure, a lot of activity; playing hard, that’s activity. We needed to have that with their inside scoring ability we weren’t going to be able to hold them tight if we let them move around.”
Talk about your bench.
“We talk a lot about it. We don’t have any stars, we’re looking for a group of finishers. Even last year we really had a group that couldn’t finish. I don’t really care who is in the game as long as they’re getting the job done. That’s the feel. To bring Vee Sanford off the bench, you know he’s a double-figure scorer a year ago, for him to be able to come off the bench that’s a punch. I also think we have three freshmen that are getting in the game and earning their keep a little bit. Kyle Davis and Scoochie Smith, guy had five assists and zero turnovers. I know Kyle had three plays on the floor that helped us win. We’re by committee. We talk about it all the time. Be happy for the guy next to you if he does well. At the end of the day, it’s all about the win. We’re beating that down their throats, hopefully they continue to believe it. We’re going to have a lot of different guys have different good nights scoring the ball, but we need guys contributing in the winning category. A lot of guys stepped up and played tonight. We’ve got a lot to build on. We’ve got a new group with seven freshmen and sophomores, and two guys added to the mix who didn’t play a year ago. That’s nine guys that haven’t played together so chemistry has been a big thing. We’re fighting that. We had good play today; 17 assists is good to see.”
Devon Scott looked like he took it to a good shot blocker in Daniel Miller.
“We’ve had a hard time of establishing anything in the paint with easy baskets. The way they play, they use their size and crowd the floor; once we started to throw it in their a few times and our guys started to feel they weren’t getting any help. Devon in particular got a couple angles, he used his shot fake, once he got a couple baskets I thought he played really confident around the rim. That was a heck of a game for him. He’s had a great offseason and been one of our best players in practice. He missed our first two exhibition games, so he’s shaking some rust off early, but for him to play 13 points and five boards and 3-for-3 from the line in 24 minutes we couldn’t ask anything more.”
How was shaking off that early start?
“It was disappointing to be honest with you. They hit us right in the mouth quickly with a couple baskets. It happens on the road. It’s a long game and we have some guys that have been through it a little bit. We subbed and I thought our bench came through. When your bench can come through like they did, 34 points off the bench, that’s a team that can beat you on any given night with different people. They hit us in the mouth like I expected. I also expected them to make some runs. In particular we tried to the get that last four minute segment to give ourselves a chance to win and I think we did that.”
Winning a game on the road against ACC moving forward must be something you can build on.
“I hope it impacts us in a big way. We didn’t come down here to lose. Nobody in that locker room didn’t talk about anything but doing their job and giving ourselves a chance to win. I thought we believed we came down here to compete and play. We have a lot of good players. Hopefully tonight brings us closer to being a good team. We have a lot of talent and a lot of different areas. This is a confidence builder. They start to believe that it’s not about starting, it’s not about points, it’s not about minutes, it’s about winning. This is the greatest feeling in the world to get on that play and fly to Maui. The greatest feeling in the world is winning on the road.”
Did you get a chance to talk to Brian Gregory?
“Not very much. I have a great deal of respect for Coach Gregory and his staff. You know Josh Postorino played at Dayton as well. He did a great job. Dayton is a special place and he knows that. I inherited a very good situation because of his work. Two guys on our team were recruited by him, they got a great offer to get a great degree and play at a great school. I know they have a lot of respect for him as well. It’s not fun to play this type of game if you’re him. For me, I don’t have that same attachment, I’m just trying to beat Georgia Tech. For him, there is a lot of emotion that goes into that game. They’re going to have a good season. They have a lot of young talent and their big guys are good. Once they get a couple guys back like Jason Morris, they are going to be pretty good.”
