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PAC-12 MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENTMarch 9, 2017Bobby HurleyKodi JusticeTorian GrahamLas Vegas, Nevada Oregon - 80, Arizona State - 57 THE MODERATOR: Coach, an opening statement and then questions. BOBBY HURLEY: Disappointed end. These guys played so well yesterday and competed hard. I think today we played a great basketball team, a great defensive basketball team. We weren't as good as we needed to be offensively in the game, bottom line. First half I thought we started out fairly well. Torian had it going early from the perimeter and our offense was doing pretty well, and then we just -- we hit a wall in terms of just fatigue or the wear from yesterday's game. But just didn't have quite the same pop in the second half. And our defense didn't help. But they're an elite team and have the type of defense that's going to keep them in games as they play championship-level basketball. Q. Coach, you talked about them maybe not having the same pop in the second half. How much of a toll do you think not just for this tournament but throughout this season having basically the same seven guys all season? BOBBY HURLEY: Yeah, they've sacrificed so much. These guys have been unbelievable. The five starters that have played the minutes they played. I mean, yesterday they scored 96 of 98 points and guys played over 40 minutes in that game and defended, and Kodi's 6'4" combo guard that's like guarding Jordan Bell and Boucher, and battling all these bigger players. He came into this game with a hip pointer from yesterday. So he pushed through a lot of physical stuff, as did everybody. Torian he handled himself, conducted himself in such a great way to finish his senior year, and he's been so good all year for us. Scoring 32 tonight was a great way for it to end. But it's hard when it ends. It doesn't feel good. I'm excited that we took a step in the program. The seniors are a big part of that. Tra Holder, Shannon Evans, Kodi also, to get us a win in the Pac-12 Tournament, to get that win yesterday is nice, and we're going to keep building off of that in the future. Q. In that second half when you went seven-plus minutes without getting a field goal, what did you think about the shot quality there, the shot selection? BOBBY HURLEY: I didn't have the best plan to attack them. I thought we attacked them better in our first game with them, and I think we got by them a little bit easier. Some of that could be a physical toll, just not having the gear that you need to go by your man off the dribble and create a play. I think at times we didn't kick the ball out on drives that we made. So we struggled. We just got into a bad space on offense, and they switched a lot. When they switched, their bigs, you know, we couldn't make them pay for it, unfortunately, in this game. But we have done that to a lot of teams this year. Again, I'm not sure how much that is the physical toll of playing such a tough game, and an overtime game yesterday. Q. Having coached against Brooks a few times, what is the challenge as he diversifies his game more to try to contain him? I thought you guys did a fairly good job trying to keep him in check, yet his talent seems to be at such a level he could overcome pretty much whatever teams do? What do you see in this kid's game that impresses you? BOBBY HURLEY: Well, he's more than a scorer. He's got a charisma about him or something special about him that gives his team confidence and an intangible quality of toughness. Tenacious competitor, and a competitive drive. He competes, goes after the ball hard, rebounding, scoring. I think that was a silent killer for us in the first half, was losing him a couple times in transition and allowing him to make a couple threes. It would have been nice for us to be in a better position at halftime. So that affected us, certainly. But he's a great player and a clutch player. One of the best players in the country. Q. Bobby, you talked about this being a step for the program. Where do you see the progress of the program over the last couple of years, especially with as much as you guys improved? BOBBY HURLEY: I just think for what we were this year and the adversities that we had, and whether it's transfers and academic red shirts and injuries, that these guys sacrificed and gave as much as they could give. I loved coaching them. I'll always remember this year in a very positive way because of how the five guys competed. Andre and Ramon kept making progress as well. So I'm excited about the guys returning, the recruitment, the guys that we have signed and where we're heading. Q. Torian, you had 32 tonight. How much has this season meant to you, and what really was working for you tonight? TORIAN GRAHAM: First I'd like to thank my teammates and my coach for putting me in situations to score the ball the best way I can. I mean, I'm just blessed, honestly. I just thank Coach for keeping faith in me. We had a lot of adversity last year, and we were able to fight through it and build a strong relationship. But I don't really want to talk about points because we lost. I just want to talk about the team and the things that we can work on as a team or what they could do to move forward. I just try to help the young guys prepare themselves for next year. That's it. Q. Torian and Kodi, was fatigue a factor today? KODI JUSTICE: I can't really say it was a factor. There were times where, yeah, you could see we might be tired here or there, and there were breaks where we kind of got our wind. For me, I didn't feel fatigued. I mean, we've played many a games like this where we've played 40-plus minutes and bounced back two days later. So it wasn't a big issue for me. So for me, personally, I didn't feel like it was a factor. Q. Torian? TORIAN GRAHAM: No, I mean, we're in pretty good shape, I feel. I mean, we played yesterday. You could say we were tired a little bit, but that doesn't play a factor in how we performed today. Q. Kodi, could you just talk about Torian and what he's meant to the program as your teammate? KODI JUSTICE: I mean, what can't you say about him? He comes in every day, works hard. He pushes us during practice to make us better. He's one of the toughest shot makers I've ever been around. I mean, he makes my job easier. There are so many teams looking out for him, it leaves me open, it gives me easy buckets because of how great of a scorer he is, how great of a player he is. He helps out everywhere. So next year's going to be tough without him, but he kind of leaves the keys for us to keep building this program up. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports   |
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