March 11, 2004

Recap| Box Score

Head Coach Stan Joplin

(Opening comments)

"We played Buffalo in early January and I thought by the end of the year they would be a very good team and with the success they've enjoyed in the league it's obvious Reggie (Witherspoon) has done a very good job. We were concerned about Buffalo because they are very athletic, shoot well from the outside and take the ball to the basket. They also get in the passing lanes, get steals and push the ball up the court. We knew we had our work cut out for us and we had to take care of the basketball. We did that in the second half and limited them to one shot. We had a lot of guys play well for us down the stretch and we made some free throws. We're excited about the win and we have another opportunity tomorrow to play the best team in the league."

(on being physical inside and having more depth)

We have a lot of fouls to give and we use whoever is playing well. They all gave us a lift today. Buffalo only has two big guys (Mark Bortz and Yassin Idbihi) and that made it little tough for them. It was definitely to our advantage to have a deeper bench."

(On defensive adjustments made in the second half)

"We wanted to be aggressive and take them out of their comfort zone. They run a continuous offense with ball screens and we had to be aggressive. We wanted to make sure they caught the ball two or three feet farther away from the basket than they were used to."

(On Buffalo's differences since playing them in January)

"They have pretty good chemistry. With Cage, Battle and Bird they are pretty tough on the perimeter and Reggie has the right offense for them because Idbihi can pass the ball. They are a much better team they were earlier in the year."

(on playing Western Michigan)

"We're going to have play better defense tomorrow night. Mike Williams and Ben Reed are hard to handle and they shoot the ball well from the perimeter and they have a veteran club. If both teams are on it could be a high scoring game. We're going to get tested and we're going to have to play our best game tomorrow in order to come away with a win."

Senior center A.J. Shellabarger

(On defensive adjustments made in the second half)

"We just had to take a lot of stuff away that we weren't in the first half. We wanted to deny the top and we weren't really doing that. They have some good shooters on their team too so you can't take anything away from them."

(On whether getting the ball inside was a priority)

"It wasn't really a priority for today. It just kind of happened. When we go inside out and everybody's clicking we're probably one of the best teams in the MAC. If the inside game is going along with the outside game I don't think a whole lot of people can hang with us."

(on Keith Triplett's play)

"He was carrying us tonight in the first half. He's the man of this team and he's our first option. He does whatever it takes. If he's not clicking we have to sometimes carry him. Keith is an exceptional player and he's going to be playing for a long time to come."

Senior forward Ricardo Thomas

(on getting the ball inside and giving the team balance)

"We've been known for our great perimeter play. We just try to get the guards to dump the ball into us and they bought into it. Then if we can draw a double team then we can pass it back out for uncontested jump shots."

(on Keith Triplett's play)

"It's great to have a guy like Keith who has to be double-teamed when he gets into the lane. That opens up the passing lines for myself and A.J."

(on playing Western Michigan)

"They're the best team in the league coming into the tournament. Buffalo was the hottest team in the league and now we face the second hottest team. It's not really a physical thing for us because we're going to know their plays. We just to rest tonight and get ready for the game."