Dec. 28, 2005
Santa Clara Head Coach Dick Davey
Opening comments:
"We were absolutely and completely fortunate to be able to get a "W." We aren't maturing right now the way we'd like to as far as understanding the nature of the game and being successful. The little things are getting misplaced in the process and we're hoping we can get those things together before league starts. I'm talking about all the little things to being successful. We're doing a very poor job of that now and I don't know if it'll change in a day or two or whatever. We're not connecting with one another right now."
On the Broncos' one foul in the first half:
"They got a lot of open looks and made some and give credit where credit is due. Our defense has been good up until the last two games, where we've played mediocre defense. Our offense has been a struggle all season long and our defense has been carrying us up until the last couple of games. Very poor communication defensively, but things we think we can correct."
On UC Riverside's comeback:
"When things start going tough, you miss more shots in that period unless you are really demanding of yourself and really focused in. We got to a stage where they started making a run and then our guys got a couple of open looks and couldn't knock them down. We had a few free throws that we couldn't knock down. Things start to fall apart and it's the nature of the beast, when things get tight."
On John Bryant's first-half performance:
"He kept us in the game in the first half. He's potentially going to be a really nice player. He's had spurts of it here and there. We let him play a little bit more than we have in the past and he seems able to handle it. We're excited about it. He's a freshman though and only time will tell."
Santa Clara Forward Travis Niesen
On his opinion of UC Riverside:
"It was just a dramatically different game than ones we've played in the past. They like to slow it down, grind you out, and work the shot clock. These guys are up in you for 40 minutes."
On UC Riverside's second-half rally:
"Well, we couldn't get any defensive rebounds. I thought we had pretty good shots, but they just weren't going in. I think my technical was the turning point. It was stupid and immature."
On the technical foul he picked up in the second half:
"It was an immature thing. I felt like it was a bad call. I'm on the ground, so I throw the ball at the ref and the other ref concluded at that point it was a technical, which I disagreed with. However, I take full responsibility for it and it was stupid of me."
His thoughts on the final moments of the game, when UC Riverside cut the lead to two points:
"Honestly, I hate to beat the bush, but my thoughts were to get a good defensive rebound and make a good shot. They are going to be shooting long shots and you have to be ready for it."
UC Riverside Head Coach David Spencer
On his team's second half rally:
"I think our kids, being 0-8, are really hungry. They would probably sell their souls for a win and they made the kind of effort to get back into it."
On the positives that he during the game:
"Just the fact that our kids did battle for 40 minutes and I don't know if I could say that about any other game we've played this year. It will be very interesting to see what happens tomorrow night, playing back-to-back games. I think when you play back-to-back games in a situation like this, particularly when it isn't league play and the teams don't know one another very well. I think it will come down to what team wants it the most, unless one team is considerably better than the other."
