Postgame Quotes: No. 12 Ohio State 97, North Carolina A&T 55 – Ohio State Buckeyes
12/17/2014 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Dec. 17, 2014
POSTGAME QUOTES
No. 12 Ohio State 97 (9-1), North Carolina A&T 55 (1-11)?
December 17, 2014?
Nationwide Arena – Columbus, Ohio?
Attendance: 14,585
Thad Matta, Ohio State head coach?
On Shannon Scott’s performance
“He had a pretty accurate game. He was covering a lot of ground out there and reading things well. I thought he did a pretty good job overall in the game tonight.”
On Loving’s performance lately and him being an asset to the offense
“I’ve been talking to him about trying to be a little bit more aggressive in terms of looking for opportunities to score. He’s already a great passer, but we need Marc to be an all-around player for us and I was extremely pleased with how he responded to the conversation we had.”
On the upcoming game and scouting North Carolina
“They are a tremendous basketball team. Their size is something that Carolina has always had. I think one of the biggest things I’ve noticed is their ability to do interior passing. They do a great job at that. They are going to try to pound the ball inside on us and we are going to have to do a great job with that.”
Marc Loving, sophomore forward
On the atmosphere in Nationwide Arena tonight
“It had a Big Ten Tournament feel to it. Coming into a different facility than the Schott, it was something that we aren’t used to. We had to come out of our comfort zone and adjust.”
On how he is making the jump from last year to now
“I just give the credit to my point guards. Shannon and D’Angelo do a great job of finding me in great positions to put the ball in the basket. Shannon had double digit assists, and D’Angelo found me in a lot of good spots to make a play.”
On looking forward to the North Carolina game
“North Carolina is very athletic and can crash the offensive glass very hard. Rebounding seems to be a key to their game, but I’m excited to get some scouting reports and film and get to work.”
Shannon Scott, senior guard
On the close margin in the first half
“It’s just our focus, really. We need to make sure we’re playing hard for the full 40 minutes. I feel like sometimes when we get a big lead, we play at a different level, and playing not to lose the lead instead of playing to win.”
On Ohio State’s halftime adjustments
“We were only up 13 points at halftime, and we felt like we should’ve been up more than that. We took a lot of pride in playing tough defense in the second half.”
On his seven steals vs. the Aggies
“I think we’re active, but it’s more just our positioning. Anyone else in my position could have the same number of steals that I had. I was just in the right spot at the right time.”
Cy Alexander, North Carolina A&T head coach
On the Aggies’ overall performance
“I thought that our young men came out and were intimidated early on and got down, but I think we competed hard the entire game and especially the first half. I give Ohio State credit for taking advantage of our turnovers.”
On freshman point guard Austin Williams
”Our freshman point guard is still young and learning what college basketball is all about so, while that is unacceptable, things like that are going to happen when you are playing this level of competition. We know he can play at this elite level.”
