Everything BJ Edwards and Matt Cross said after SMU's loss to Louisville
The SMU Mustangs did not play up to their standard and it cost them against the #25 team in the country. Louisville beat SMU 98-73.
On not being able to keep the momentum goign after the Miami game:
[BJ Edwards]: “We didn’t play together. We missed a couple shots, some wide open looks, a lot of layups. A lot of things didn’t go our way tonight.”
[Matt Cross]: ” You’re not going to hit shots every night. I don’t knof if that’s what it was to me. At some point you have to get sick and tired of getting pushed around on the boards, on the ball screens. At some point you get sick and tired of that and have to get it done. rebounding on the defensive end. Even if you’re not scoring, you can stop the [other] team from scoring.”
On struggling to score against high qualtiy teams:
[BJ Edwards]: “I would say most times, we gave up a lot of points on the defensive end. Once we get stops on defense, we open up our transition offense, and we didn’t really have that a lot tonight because we gave them second chance points off of rebound. They just hit a lot of shots, so we didn’t get a lot of transition offense.”
[Matt Cross]: “We are a transition team. So when we can’t get out in transition that affects us. But even in the half-court, it’s kind of like the first thing I said, we’re setting up a play and we’re letting them push us out all the way. We’re d*** near catching the ball at half-court, so you just can’t let that happen.”
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On how to be mature in physical games like this
[Matt Cross]: “I think [first off], we are an old team. I don’t know every team in the country, but I would assume we are up there [in age]. So some of that maturity should already be there. Self coaching, and then at some point we have to say it to each other and take it like a man. We have to know that in practice and in games that every time a team pushes us, the hands can’t go in the air every time. If they are going to hit you, why can’t you hit them? At some point pride has to set in for all of us. That’s not [me] pointing fingers, that starts with me and every single person on the team.”
On trying to defend Louisville on the perimeter:
[BJ Edwards]: “We weren’t communicating on defense. They were setting back-screens and on defense you have to talk and let you teammates know what is going on. We gave up a lot of threes, [Reyne Smith] has a quick release, so you have to be there on the catch. But we gave them second chance opportunities as well, but it felt like [Reyne Smith] was shooting as much as he could.”
On how to regroup as a team to prepare for NC State and beyond:
[Matt Cross]: ” Next game mentality. This game is over with but at the same time you have to learn something from these [games]. And that means you forget about the game, but you don’t necessarily forget how it felt. So, practices have to be hard because it’s a good leage. Credit to [Louisville], they are a good team. Their point guard had 16 assists and Reyne Smith got hot, but any shooter knows, once you see a couple of good lucks go in when you’re not being defended, even when you have a hand in your face it feels like no one is there anymore. So we just gotta know personnel and lock in during practice.”
