Villanova University

Jan. 5, 2012

Recap |  Box Score

VILLANOVA, Pa. - Villanova Head Coach Jay Wright
Opening Statement

"Well not a great performance, but got to give South Florida credit. They came in here playing good basketball. They were physical and just pounded us on the glass. They hit big shots, got to the foul line 22 times and they were just aggressive. We were 4-20 from three point range, didn't make a lot of shots and missed a lot of front end of one and ones. We didn't do anything to get any easy baskets. Our defense wasn't good enough to create easy baskets. We didn't get offensive rebounds and then we just weren't good in chasing them. It just wasn't a good performance, but I got to give them credit. They came in here and played with confidence."

Q: Are you concerned about the defense now because it seems like they are having trouble stopping people?
"Well when you can't score it just puts so much pressure on your defense. When you are missing shots you got to scramble and trap people because you are behind. It all kind of builds on each other. It is all combined. It is not just defenses. When you make a couple shots and get going, it puts pressure on the other team."

Q: Is there a reason why the offense collapses at certain stretches during the game?
"Not really having a proven scorer, besides Maalik, to break somebody's run. We are hoping Mouphtaou [Yarou] can develop into that, as well as Ty [Johnson] and JayVaughn [Pinkston]. Maalik is the only guy and it puts a lot of pressure on him."

Q: Does that put added pressure on the defense?
"Definitely. I think that our defense is not great, but when you are behind and are trying to be aggressive and trap, those good teams are going to slice that up. They did a good job. We had a little run there when we created some turnovers, but they figured it out after that. I thought it was a big play when Markus Kennedy was called for palming in the post. When you are not playing well it makes a difference. When you are making shots you kind of just forget about that play, but that was our chance right there. Markus was ready to make a move and then it is a turnover. When you look at that one play we are a struggling team, but we are going to battle through this and get better."

Villanova Guard Maalik Wayns
Q: How do you feel about the problems that are going on?
"We have to get stops. We have to get better defensively. We have to commit to playing Villanova basketball and the defense will come."

Q: How has this stretch been?
"You have to take the good with the bad. Never let your highs get too high and never let your lows get too low. I try to not get too low and stay even queue. I try to just keep working."

Q: So your outlook is to see the positive?
"We have a bunch of confident guys and not much fazes them. I know we are going to get better. Something good is going to happen to this team so we have to keep working."

Villanova Forward JayVaughn Pinkston
Q: {On the overall game}
"I'm just going out there and playing hard. I'm just trying to play Villanova basketball and help my teammates."

Q: What was going through your mind when you hit those baskets down the stretch?
"I was just trying to play good defense and turn it into good offense."

USF Head Coach Stan Heath
Opening Statement

"We are extremely happy and I am real proud of our team. It is hard to get wins here and they don't happen very often so we will enjoy it for the night. We have to get ready for our next opponent, but a lot of guys stepped up in a big way for us. It was a tough game for both teams, as there were many key guys in foul trouble. We lost one of our key guys Ron Anderson and our point guard with a head injury that we are going to look at when we get back. It was a total team effort. Poland stepped up in a big way and carried the load. Whenever they made that run it seemed like he was the guy that was able to put out the fire. Some of the other guys filled in fantastically. Blake Nash filled in well for A.C. [Anthony Collins] when he was out and Victor Rudd gave us some valuable minutes as well. As a group I thought we did a great job. I thought the rebounding was the biggest key to the game coming in and we did a good job in that area."