Robert McCullum Quotes (41 Quotes)

Losing Solomon for the last four minutes of the game was huge for us. We are not very deep so we don not have the luxury of having one or two of our better players getting in foul trouble.

I couldn't be prouder of the effort. The guys did everything that we asked them to do - things that we needed to do to position ourselves to have a chance to win against just an outstanding team - an experienced team, which I thought in the end was the difference in the game.

In addition to being talented, they're experienced. They never lost their poise against Seton Hall, never panicked, their body language never changed. It was like they knew it was only a matter of time before they would win.

If that was an issue, I hope we learned our lesson with St. John's. Every night out in this league you have to come to play.

I don't know that you can get any closer without getting one. We feel like when we absolutely have to have a defensive stop or a basket at that pivotal time we haven't been able to do it.

It's certainly a game, a performance, an effort that we can build on. We can only keep it close so many times. It's going to get to the point where you've got to win some of those.

Tonight it was a combination of things. When it was all said and done, we were affected by foul trouble. In the last four minutes of the game their seniors Kelly Whitney and Copeland stepped up and made plays.

Players on the all-league team usually have the benefit of playing on wining teams, and Solomon has not had the advantage of playing for a winning team.

He does a very good job of finishing, and he's become a fan favorite. He's capable of making explosive athletic plays, and he's really responding in the way he's scoring and rebounding. We're really pleased with his progress.

James got some good looks that he just didn't knock down, as did Buckley. James has been pretty consistent, but the reality is when he and Melvin go 2 for 21 and Solomon (Jones) only gets four offensive rebounds, this is going to be the outcome.

When you look at the big picture, I have no fault with the way we played defensively. Our problems lay offensively. It's a combination of things. Bottom line is We got what we got.

I thought it was a game that was tailor made for his talents. He's very athletic and you get the ball 10 to 15 feet away from the basket, and he's good at finishing plays.

I thought this was clearly our best effort of the season. But I don't think I have ever been associated with a team that shot 61 percent from the floor and lost.

We're determined to turn this thing around. If we could get one of these wins but if we don't hurry up and get one, there won't be one after that to get. That's kind of where we are.

(Jones) has probably had the best fall. He hasn't missed a sprint. He's been as close to perfection as a player can be in the conditioning program.

I couldn't be prouder of the effort. They did everything we asked them to do to give ourselves a chance to win against an outstanding, experienced team - which in the end, I thought was the difference in the game.

They have a lot of size across the board and are very deep. We're all aware of DePaul's record and all the teams just above us, but we won't approach this any differently.

UAB will play with a level of intensity that will match if not surpass anybody we'll play against all year. We certainly have our work cut out for us Friday night, so we're not going to look ahead any farther than that.

We didn't go in the locker room and jump for joy. Every time we line up and play, we're going to be the underdog and people are going to take us lightly. ... We're going to surprise some people who think it'll be a walk in the park. We can line up and play with anybody on our schedule. I really believe that.

I thought they (the traveling violations) were legitimate calls. It's extremely disappointing not to be able to get a shot at the end. That is the last thing we wanted to happen. The last two traveling violations hurt because we work on that stuff everyday in practice, and our players practice footwork coming off screens and getting the ball in that situation.

I just think, if it was important at all, the timing was important. We're obviously in the heart of recruiting, it never stops.

I thought the last 3 or 4 minutes there in the first half is when things kind of got away. We had four or five consecutive possessions where we didn't execute well.

I really did the best I could to try to ignore it. When I first heard it, I literally laughed at it. I thought it was a joke. I still think it's a joke. Anything that's not coming from the administration, I don't think there's any need to give any credence to it.

Part of me is furious. As you can expect, I'm extremely disappointed. I thought we had more opportunities to win than any of the other Big East games, but we didn't capitalize.

We're still winless in conference play but we've played a number of games that could have gone either way. I feel our fortunes are going to change.

I think as a head coach, it's your responsibility to protect your players.

I don't know how, but I just know we'll be ready to play Saturday.

The fact that we've been so close and our guys can taste victory, that's what has kept us going. If those were 15 or 20-point losses, we'd be struggling to keep it together.

Howard was the one we expected so much from. In a controlled scrimmage against Florida State, (FSU) coach Leonard Hamilton predicted he would make the All-Big East freshman team. Two days later Howard was lost for the season.

We are deeply saddened by the loss of Bradley and it is an extremely difficult time for us as a team. There are no words to express our feelings and Bradley's impact on this team. Our prayers go out to his family and loved ones.

A lot of our offense (was run through Holmes). He came out aggressive, he wanted the basketball. You need guys with the willingness and the ability to put their team on their shoulders for a while, and he did that.

It hurt us. It depleted our depth we couldn't sub to keep guys fresh.

I never believed (the rumors), I never thought one time I wasn't going to be back. It wasn't a revelation to me. Other than that, it was their decision to release that statement.

When I first heard it, I laughed at it. I thought it was a joke. I never believed it. I never believed one time I wasn't going to be back.

I thought they were one of the more physical teams we've faced all year.

We'll put different guys on him, but you're not going to shut him down. You try to contain him. He has the ability to make difficult shots. You can do a great job on him and he'll still knock down a shot.

It's not like we are trying to walk the ball up, or trying to milk the clock. We were not trying to miss shots no more than they were trying to miss shots. We don't purposely make the game ugly. I think each team has to find the way that gives them the best chance to be successful.

As strange as it may sound, we've played our best basketball against the upper-echelon teams. Others may not believe, but I wouldn't be surprised if we come out and are ready to play.

I thought it was a joke. I still think it's a joke. Anything that's not coming from the administration, there's no need to give any credence to it.

I think that's an example that they were the more physical team. They have a lot of options and a lot of weapons offensively.

You could not have asked for a better start, but our missed opportunities on transition we couldn't convert, that was the killer.