Gonzaga 67, Washington 47
December 12, 2001 | Men's Basketball
Gonzaga 67, Washington 47
December 11, 2001
Bank of America Arena, Seattle, Wash.
POST-GAME QUOTES
WASHINGTON HEAD COACH BOB BENDER
General Remarks
"The outcome of this game was decided in some areas that we have, for the most part, have been pretty good in through our first eight games. That is, not panicking and getting it up and getting defensive with things start to come unraveled. Tonight against a team that is capable of doing what Gonzaga always does, it is not a good situation to be in. We brought out a lot of energy early and got out of the blocks with that, but I think it was a good example of that alone, wasn't going to make enough difference as far as 40 minutes go. It was a learning experience for guys who will be better prepared come the 21st when we play UCLA. We didn't play that great and you better play well against them to give yourself a chance to win. That certainly wasn't the case tonight and they took advantage of that."
On shooting
"In the first half, for the most part, we took good shots. We missed a lot of shots, probably that had a two-fold effect on us. Number one, our confidence went down so that when we got open shots we weren't releasing them in a good rhythm. Number two, we let it carry over to the defensive end and that is when they got control of the game, at least as far as taking the lead in the first half off of easy baskets. We missed some buckets and were running back with no purpose and they were scoring. When that happened, our confidence went down and our defensive concentration lapsed and they punished us for that."
On the inside game
"The inside game was something that also suffers when you struggle shooting the ball. All of a sudden your perimeter players are thinking they have to hit a shot. We are not looking inside. There are a lot of stats that could be looked at but one of them is free-throw shooting because we are not getting inside. We don't get to the line because we are not getting the ball where you are going to get fouled, and that is inside. The inside-outside game and good balance certainly was not there for us tonight. Again, it is a result of us not making shots early and then not looking inside, because we are more determined to get back on track on the perimeter."
On the zone defense
"The zone defense was effective because we were missing shots. We took some early shots and the whole beauty of the zone is that if you take quick shots, that is exactly what the zone wants you to do. We didn't probe or have player movement and never let ourselves get to that. It was very effective and we didn't help ourselves when they went to it because we were a little impatient. We didn't attack, we simply passed it around the perimeter and were willing to shoot a jumpshot."
GONZAGA HEAD COACH MARK FEW
General Remarks
"This is going to be a great win for us down the road. It is right now and it will be even later. The Huskies have been playing very very well, I think they are going to beat a lot of teams in here and do some damage in the Pac-10. I couldn't be happier, it was a great win for our program, especially going on the road and doing so well. It is a different Zags team we aren't exactly rippin the nets right now but we set out in September to really pound the glass and we have done that every game except for the one we lost."
On the inside game
"I don't know if you have seen us but our strength is inside. Zach (Gourde) and Corey (Violette) are having great years right now. We have always been an inside out team. I thought the Huskies did a really nice job defending our two bigs. That was as many short shots as I have seen our guys miss. They scouted us well and really kind of took us out of what we like to do.
On Corey Violette
"He is playing great right now. The 13 years that I have been at Gonzaga we haven't had anybody doing what he is doing on the glass. It is unbelievable, he had 20 rebounds last game and 13 tonight those are Nate Thurmond type numbers, throwback NBA guys. Nobody is doing that anymore, he has really seized the moment. He played behind Casey last year and now he is kind of stepping into his role."
