Post-Game Quotes: Oregon vs. Washington
02/29/16 | Men's Basketball
Dana Altman – Head Coach, Oregon
On the most important thing from the stat sheet…
“Our rebounding, and them only shooting 39 percent were the two stats that were really important to us…”
On Elgin Cook's last home game…
“I'm really happy for him. He has had three real good games here to finish it up. It's hard to stay undefeated at home, just because you have to keep your focus and every now and then you think the crowd will take care of it… There aren't that many people who have the opportunity to go undefeated at home so I'm really happy for Elgin, and Dwayne, and Max. That's a huge accomplishment.”
On the upcoming game against UCLA…
“Their talent hasn't changed since we saw them last. They are still a very talented group and it's a long season…I'm sure Steve is reminding his guys that they have beaten some really good teams. We are going to have to play well, there is no doubt about it.”
On how the grind of the season affects him personally…
“My wife always says to “have fun” and fun is not the right word. I enjoy being around the guys, and I have been fortunate enough to do this for 36 years, and I do enjoy the guys, but you know I want to win. Players want to win, and it's fun when you get done. During the ball game and all that though it's competition, it's a fight, and it's not done.”
Elgin Cook – Senior, Forward
On playing his last game at MKA and finishing the season undefeated at home…
“It's amazing. We had a great run, and it wouldn't be possible without my teammates and without the fans. We just wanted to finish off strong. We just want to take our home mentality and go on the road with it.”
On getting recognized on senior night…
“It was surreal. Coming from JUCO, it's been a long road and it's just amazing. It was amazing.”
On possibly winning the Pac-12 on this last road trip…
“Yeah, it's a possibility. We just want to go in and worry about UCLA. They're a good offensive rebounding team, Bryce Alford is shooting the ball and it's going to be a fight. They play well at home as well, so it's going to be a fight.”
Dwayne Benjamin – Senior, Guard
On going undefeated at home this season…
“Amazing. Just like the first one when I first played, I was so excited and the fans were great. This was a perfect way to go out for me.”
On why they were so good at home this season…
“The crowd, the energy; a lot of people say it, but I really mean it. When the other team makes a run they just start to chant and the energy that they bring, you just don't want to disappoint your home fans who are always there for you. We always just play so hard for them.”
On the emotion of the game…
“We both needed the game. It was a big game for them, it was a big game for us and it's kind of a rivalry. They played extremely hard and we did, so it was a little chippy but we just kept sportsman.”
On the biggest keys against UCLA…
“Offensive rebounding is the biggest. They're a great offensive rebounding team, I think like two of them are top in the league, so we know they're going to go out there and pound the glass. Like I said, we play with a lot of energy at home, and that goes for a lot of other people too, so we're just going to have to match their energy and rebounding at home.”
“Our main focus is just trying to win on Wednesday. That's all we're talking about right now.”
Lorenzo Romar – Head Coach, Washington
Opening statement…
“Oregon is a very good basketball team. I thought our guys fought. I thought we went out and gave a great effort. We couldn't get over the hump. They're a good team. They're long, and they pressure you the entire time. Although there were a couple of turnovers that cost us, we still only turned the ball over 11 times. We just weren't able to get over the hump. Elgin Cook in his last game (at Matthew Knight Arena) was very good. Dillon Brooksdid a phenomenal job. They got the win, so give them a lot of credit.”
On Oregon's 7-0 run to start the second half…
“There were a couple of crucial (moments). The first minute of the second half, then later on we came back and turned it over and put them on the line. Certain times in the game where we kind of let our guard down, so to speak, and they took advantage of it. That's what good teams really do, they take advantage of mistakes.”
On Oregon's offensive rebounding…
“It helped them. I haven't looked at the final box score, but they had three second-chance points at the half and 14 in the second half. Obviously, that helped them and hurt us.”
On how the season has turned out after such a strong start…
“The most disappointing thing that I have continued to say is that we have made improvements and don't have the wins to show for it. That's the most disappointing thing. We've gotten better, but if you just look at the scores and you look at it from a distance, you can't tell some of the things that we're doing much better than we were doing even when we were 5-1. Other teams have been getting better as well.”
On if there was any hangover from the loss at Oregon State…
“I was asked about that before the game, and I said that I didn't think we would. Our guys were awesome. They came right back in this environment with all of this at stake and really worked.”
