Post-Game Quotes: Oregon vs. UC Irvine
12/16/15 | Men's Basketball
Dana Altman – Oregon Head Coach
On Jordan Bell returning…
“It is such a big change for us. He is obviously our most physical player, so he really gives us some presence in there. Chris (Boucher) gives us some presence with the shot blocking, but he is not physical and Jordan is. It looked like a different team tonight.”
“He has been really anxious to play for a long time. That is the only good thing ever about getting hurt. You learn to appreciate the game much, much more. Sometimes you take it for granted when you get to play all the time, practice all the time. It takes something away when guys have to sit there. He has been sitting for six months. You realize how much you enjoy playing, how fired up you get for games. I think Jordan really missed it.”
On Elgin Cook's performance…
“Elgin was really good. His father flew in and obviously, he listens to his dad a lot better than he listens to me. He played a heck of a game.”
On Elgin Cook's leadership…
“He has the most experience. He has kind of been the guy. It is his third year here. He has been on two NCAA Tournament teams. He made a big jump from his sophomore to his junior season and we expected that same jump. Guys are going to look at him. He has been here the longest, and he is so athletic that guys respect him.”
On the team's defensive efforts…
“I thought that Elgin's activity really helped us. We didn't play well defensively on our road trip. That was my fault. I didn't get after them hard enough and there were a lot of excuses being made. Bottom line was we didn't get after it. I thought our activity was much better tonight but there is still so much more there.”
Jordan Bell- Sophomore, Forward
On getting back on the floor…
“It's been great. Having to sit out six and a half months watching everybody practice and do everything was tough. Being out really helped me out though basketball wise. I learned a lot watching.”
On his jump shot…
“When I was hurt, I couldn't do anything besides lift and shoot. So I got bigger and improved my shot.”
On what he learned while being out…
“Sitting on the sideline for six and a half months you hear everything that coach is saying. So now when I get out there, I'm trying to keep that in mind and make the right play.”
Dillon Brooks- Sophomore, Forward
On getting healthy as a team…
“We can attack everyone from every different angle, especially with Tyler (Dorsey) and Dwayne (Benjamin) coming back to full speed, and Jordan (Bell) over here blocking shots and guarding the 7'6” guy. It's just a great feeling having everyone back.”
On ball movement…
“That was a big emphasis coming into this game. In practice we have been moving the ball around. Casey (Benson) had nine assists, no turnovers. Elgin had three assists, no turnovers. We are really just trying to make plays for our teammates, and get our assist to turnover ratio up. That will help us win games.”
Russell Turner – UCI Head Coach
On the team's lack of energy in the second half…
“I told our team I was a little disappointed with the level of play in the second half. We got relaxed and complacent a little bit . In the second half, we didn't have the same level of energy. If we're not going to play all out, then we're not going to be able to beat good teams. That was exposed tonight. We've seen it on video, and hopefully we'll be able to be better.”
On the cause of his team's struggles tonight…
“We haven't been on the road a ton, and maybe that's a little bit of a factor. I didn't feel like our focus coming into this game was what it needed to be for an NCAA Tournament-type game, which is what I thought that it would be. We just weren't ready for it.”
