The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB 100, Alabama 68
12/28/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Dec. 28, 2004
UAB HEAD COACH Mike Anderson
On the game "I couldn't ask them to play any better than they did tonight. They came out at the start of the game and took some shots. They were sharing the basketball, but it started from the defensive side of the ball. They did a good job covering the other team, getting the ball back and trying to get in position to make good shots. We shot the ball well tonight."
On coming home after a long road trip "It's good to come home. We played well tonight, but it's a lot tougher on the road. It's a lot different when you're playing in your own arena with your fans."
On getting everyone in the game "I'm not quite sure how we were able to get everyone in the game for so long. The guys were out there playing tonight. We play with such a fast pace that we had to get everyone in there. If we can have guys in there running around making good plays on defense, then the offense will be able to take care of itself."
Alabama A&M Head Basketball Coach Vann Pettaway
On the game "They call it the fastest 40-minutes in basketball, but it wasn't near fast enough for me, at least in terms of the clock running out. The game was fast. They were fast. We knew they were a very good transition team and we didn't do a very good job in the first half of stopping their transition, and once you dig a hole that deep it's kind of hard to get out of it. They (UAB) are a very good team and I am disappointed with how we responded to their aggressiveness."
On UAB's Defense "I thought that their defense was very aggressive, and they are by far the best team we have played this year. I think that they will do well in their conference play because the kids play so well together. They move the basketball."
On the first half "I told the team at halftime that was the worst half of basketball that I have ever been a part of. I have never had a team shoot 70 % from the field against me. It's like we were stuck in mud. We didn't have people getting down the floor on their breaks to stop the basketball and they were getting easy buckets. They scored 48 points in the paint, and it wasn't because they pounded the basketball - it was because they were scoring lay-ups. I think that when (Mike Anderson's) team plays that hard they are going to be hard to deal with. The only thing that will stop them is if they play a power team and they don't force turnovers."
