Jim Larranaga Quotes (122 Quotes)

This is history for us. A magic carpet ride.

I don't think you want to create the expectation, now that George Mason has done it they've broken the barrier, so to speak now everybody else should be expected to do that. That would be the wrong message.

We're representing a lot more than just one basketball team. We're having so much fun, it's not like we're in a situation where we're nervous or have any kind of fear. Just as long as we can continue to do that, anything is possible.

We came in as an at-large (bid), when we got to the 'Sweet 16' we were an extra at-large and by beating Connecticut, we'll be a double extra at-large. After 20 years of trying, I'm honored to be taking my own team to the Final Four.

In the first few minutes of the game, we didn't show that natural rhythm we had the last few games. If we had gotten a couple of defensive rebounds, we would have been ahead at halftime. Then it's a different game.

One of the great parts of this team is the balance that we have. This team is like a wheel with spokes, and each shares the responsibility in making the team go.

They've probably opened up the eyes of many people, including myself, that you don't have to have 7-footers or be the biggest and strongest team. I would just hope that our guys in future years would be able to look back and say they did something great.

I know he wished he could take it back the instant he did it. But you have to pay the consequences for your actions. So there was no hesitation and Tony knew how I'd respond. ... We discipline you to teach you. It's a life lesson for all of us.

The first time I saw Lamar play at Oxon Hill High School, he lit it up from the 3-point line. I went and watched him in a Charlie Webber event over at the University of Maryland. He had 36 points, and he only took like 12 shots. They were all 3s, and he made them all, or at least it seemed that way to me.

What I wanted to do with the newspapers is to show them there are people in New York that are writing about them. They're not going to write if no one has interest. There are TV cameras here they're not going to come if no one has interest.

Our players had faced those guys in the summer so there was not a huge fear factor. We hope that will hold true this time.

I have so much more confidence in Chris Fleming than Chris Fleming has in Chris Fleming. Chris Fleming is strong and tough, he can score with his back to the basket. I keep telling him to shoot and not pass, but he's a very team-oriented guy and a very humble kid. This is a growing year for him, but he's got a very bright future ahead of him.

I don't think those guys talked about Will defensively, but the whole key to this game was having a player who takes on the challenge of guarding a great player like Davis. Our defense, which has been so consistent all year long, was a big key. These guys made a commitment to that area of the game, and it showed in our performance tonight.

I know at one point we were 19th in the nation in fewest fouls committed. I think we're higher than that now with the great defense we've been able to play in the tournament without fouling.

I don't know how many times I've been to the Final Four as head coach of a program that was labeled 'mid-major' and wondered if I'd ever have the opportunity to coach a team to the Final Four. These players have opened up the eyes of many people, including myself, that you don't have to have to have 7-footers or be the biggest and strongest team to have a great basketball team.

The entire nation embraced this team. It became so much fun to win a game and have everybody feel great -- not just us -- but everybody around us. That enthusiasm, it defies words. ... It was a magic-carpet ride.

What is the magic number -- 64, 65 or 128 I don't know where you stop.

When you consider we've done something for the first time in the school's history, and only the second time in conference history, you should be excited about that.

Does it concern me Before every game I'm concerned about stuff like that. We've got a very good group of smart players. Jai Lewis and Will Thomas especially are very intelligent.

This season has been a lot about our consistency. We didn't have a lot of ups and downs. We learned some lessons in November and since then, we've played some very consistent basketball. That's what has separated this team because we've been able to play consistently well, even in the NCAA tournament against high-quality programs and teams.

I think the fans got their money's worth today. I think today represents what a good game looks like in the CAA.

When the argument began as to whether we belonged, it created the underdog image for us. Quite frankly, I loved it. Everybody loves the David and Goliath story, but most of the time nobody cheers for Goliath. So when people asked me if I resented what Jim and Billy said, I said, 'Absolutely not, I loved it.' Because it motivated our guys and it created interest. So much so that we've become a media darling.

I've never criticized a single George Mason player. I've told them the truth and they interpret it sometimes as criticism. But I'm just being honest with them. If someone's messing up during practice, I just tell 'em. If they want to consider that something other than helpful hints, that's just the way it is.

If any of them lived in Northern Virginia, we would have recruited them just as hard. I don't know why, but there are a lot of good players in Maryland who have shown interest in us. There were a lot of very good players in Northern Virginia we wanted, but for some reason they didn't have an interest in us.

It means an awful lot to the university, and it means an awful lot to me.

We had no answer for Rivera tonight.

I am so honored to be taking my own team (to the Final Four) after 20 years of trying even to get an at-large team. I can't tell you how much fun I'm having.

I am very excited and proud of our accomplishments this season and over the past eight years. This year's run to the Final Four was a culmination of a lot of hard work by many people, especially my staff and our players.

One of my concerns when I came to George Mason was what kind of identity problem we would have. George Mason was being confused with so many other different schools. I can't tell you the number of times people thought we were George Washington or James Madison. A lot of times we get James Mason or George Madison.

It's been really great for these players ... to see not only the university community embrace them but the whole country. I think we all feel like it would be great to be the underdog and to be the overachiever. I think we can all identify with that attitude and personality. This team has embraced that.

Not until I looked up at the clock and there were under two minutes left. It was at 14 or 15 did I realize, 'Gee, we're not going to have a shot at this.' All through the second half, I thought at some point we'd start going into a nice offensive rhythm of inside-outside, taking the ball to the basket.

I hope his doctor is very smart and knows what he's talking about because that would be awesome.

They don't really care that maybe we weren't supposed to get in. They were excited to show what they were capable of doing on the court and let people decide for themselves who they are and how good they are.

When opportunity knocks, open the door. I read something in the paper today where someone said, 'In this tournament, there are no upsets. There are just good teams, playing hard and playing well.' I would like to think that's true because the college game has changed dramatically over the years. Quite frankly, there is a lot of parity in the country now.

I got an e-mail from a gentleman who was in a car accident not long ago, who is having very difficult times just walking. He said in watching us play that he felt he could overcome anything he was going to face. He was going to work to be like the George Mason Patriots.

When the team returned to the locker room after Friday night's game, I don't know who, but one of them put a message on the chalk board. Someone had written, 'Tony is back.' I think it meant an awful lot, not only to Tony but to his teammates, to give him a chance to play in the NCAA tournament.

It was very important for us to bounce back after Thursday's loss in very sound fashion. I think we did that.

This is yesterday's New York Post. Here's the New York Daily News from yesterday, and USA Today. That's today's. And here's the Washington Post, front section and sports section.

(Butler) is the leading 3-point shooter in the school's history.

Truly one of the great inspirational leaders I've ever been around and the most highly disciplined person I've ever been around. I've referred to him as the George Washington of George Mason University, meaning he was the founding father. He was the true leader of the program, and everything we've done since then is a reflection of his communication to his teammates that what Coach L says (is) what we're going to do.

Those two guys are competitors and they went after each other very hard. And probably what happened at the end is just part of game action.

It didn't matter what game it was, what time of year it was, what was at stake.

We expected big things from John. And we still do. We'll just have to wait another year to see them.

Three weeks ago, I was one of those coaches. I worked at this craft for 35 years. I've been to two Final Fours, but not as a head coach. Twenty years I sat there, 'The Final Four,' hoping one day I might be able to bring a team there. Actually I think I changed my goals -- just give me an at-large berth, I would settle for that. You've got to understand how difficult it is, when you're not one of the top six or seven leagues, to get an at-large.

For us at this time, it was the very best possible scenario. When you're looking at the CAA hoping for a second or even a third bid to the NCAA tournament, playing highly ranked teams is the key. Beating them is the answer.

This past season was not an end, but it is the beginning of more great things to come. Our returning players have already begun to prepare for next season and are confident they can create more great memories for our Mason nation.

I think what this team has done has opened some eyes. They showed you don't have to have 7-footers or the biggest, strongest players to have a great basketball team.

These guys made their free throws down the stretch. We were able to come away and move into the Elite 8 that sounds awfully good.

I'm not going to judge based on the circumstances. I'm not going to be influenced by what the cause and effect might be. If I did that, I'd be changing my philosophy every single day. We can't live that way. We have to have a certain amount of core values that we live by.

Having that kind of support from our student body and from the community, the George Mason community and the Fairfax community, even the whole D.C. Metro Area has kind of adopted this team. We're all just loving it.