Quotes From Head Coach Thad Matta’s Teleconference – Ohio State Buckeyes
3/8/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
March 8, 2006
On instilling confidence in his players
“One thing we talk about is the repetition that we get. And last spring was our first offseason with our players. I want them to know when they get into the game that I have all the confidence in the world in them and that I want them to play with great confidence. I have tremendous confidence in our system. Not panicking is key and keeping them focused on what we’re doing. We are about creating an atmosphere where players are free to shoot. I’ve never had a player shoot a shot that he intentionally missed. That’s the big thing – that I’m here with you all the way.”
On what it takes to have the team confident
“Having your game plan in check is key. Going into a game, knowing the three or four things you really have to hone in on. At this stage of the season, that’s about the only thing I’ll get upset at if we don’t do those three or four things.”
On if it is more beneficial to be `one-and-done’ in the conference tournament
“With what these guys have given us, your competitive nature takes over. We’re going in with the mindset to get better at what we do. On Friday when we play I want to play better than we played last Sunday against Purdue.”
On what the team needs to focus on
“We’ve got some areas we’re trying to shore up for our team. We’re looking at a two-week period rather than just this weekend. The one thing we don’t want to do is take any steps backward. It’s just about us playing better, being sound with the basketball, taking good shots and getting our hands in the right spots defensively.”
On keeping his players from being overconfident
“The one thing we always talk about is humility. Staying grounded starts with me and getting our guys to understand the goal for this team is not to have people write nice things about you, but to play good basketball. When you have four seniors with that type of experience, it’s hopefully a little easier than most times.” On if winning the Big Ten tournament will guarantee Ohio State a No. 1 seed
“I don’t know the answer to that. I’ve always put a lot more stock in winning the conference outright rather than winning the conference tournament. If we are a No. 2 seed or a 1 or a 3 – the one thing I haven’t done yet is look at where we might be sent, that type of scenario. But regardless, for what we have set out to do in the rebuilding process we’re in, a No. 1 seed would be tremendous in Year Two.”
On what his team has done better this year
“There were so many obstacles that we had to overcome. We were 2-6 on the road in the Big Ten last year and we were 5-3 this year. We needed to beat a Top 20 team on the road and we did that. Those were the big things and our guys kept finding ways to win games down the stretch.”
On the satisfaction of winning the Big Ten and being ranked in the Top 10
“A lot of it has to do with the path we’ve had to take. They should take great pride in this. When the first poll came out we got no votes, but we continued to climb through it. With the parity in the Big Ten, everybody was beating up on each other, so that might not give the true gauge of how strong this conference is.”
