Playoff Quotations | Page 3

He's been the difference for us. We were 1-13 in district last year, and we believe we're a playoff contender this year.

He's been playing well for them all year. He's a guys who's been experienced for them, he's played in the NBA Finals, so a first-round playoff game, there's not so much pressure on him to perform.

He's having a real solid year. He's probably why, through the first two-thirds of the year, we were able to stay close and be in the playoff hunt.

He shoots the ball extremely well from the perimeter, which will help our low-post players, ... He is a veteran who brings both playoff experience and leadership.

He's going to go out there and compete. I've seen it in playoff situations. I've seen it during the course of the year. My job is to go out there and compete right with him.

Hopefully we'll be able to get a home playoff match to set us up where we can get a couple of wins at home and compete for the state title.

Hopefully we can improve on our (pitching) numbers from last year, and come conference and playoff time we should be pretty experienced. Bobby and Kyle have the ability to be dominant and Casey, Phil and Tony are solid, too.

Hopefully, this pushes us to the next level. A playoff spot is out there. It's definitely attainable.

Hopefully the next game. I'm hoping that if this were a playoff game, he'd be playing.

(The Rangers have) gone from a non-playoff team to a playoff team, and that would have to play a huge role.

We match up with them pretty good, despite how the record turned out when we played them throughout the season. I look forward to playing the Clippers. Playoff basketball is a lot of excitement. It's going to be fun, especially in L.A.

We matched them better physically and we matched their intensity through the whole game. Every win is big for us. We are trying to get back into the playoff race.

We looked at it like it was a playoff series for us. The more we could wear them down in those first and second games, the easier it would be for us in the third game. I think that showed.

We look at these back-to-back games as a playoff series. That's what we've done all year. We want to win both games and not give them any life.

We look at it as this is a playoff match. This is a playoff match to get into the playoffs.

We lost most of last year's playoff team and will be very young. If some of our younger players step up, then we can compete for a playoff spot.

How will he react? Will he be focused to lead this team the right way to as many victories as we can get? Will he sulk for three weeks? My belief is that he'll be a focused assassin -- a focused basketball player to get the job done and lead this team to a good playoff position.

He was incredible. You can always count on big players to come through in big games. Those were playoff style, gritty goals.

He was impressive early in the year, but coming in that way in his first playoff game was really something.

He was 25 games above .500 as a head coach and took teams to the Super Bowl and four playoff appearances. The fact that he got fired by the Rams is a travesty. All the sudden they think they're the Yankees because they have one down year.

He can put the ball on the floor and make a play, and make a play for somebody. There's no question he's going to have opportunities during this playoff run.

There are still concerns at both the top and the bottom. The goal would be to get a tighter range that would ensure that even more than 20 clubs at Labor Day still have a chance to compete for playoff spots, that playoff spots are based on skill and talent and blossoming stars and not just on plugging holes with economics.

(There are) six teams sort of battling away for those last four playoff spots. But as far as we're concerned we probably have to win those last two games to really assure ourselves of going. If we were to lose one then we'd probably need some help somewhere along the way.

I was like it's just like the playoff game. Keep trucking, keep trucking.

Josh Fulmer had a bogey on the third playoff hole and Rich made a great par,

I talked to him last night and this is the first time he's been in a playoff situation. I just told him to go enjoy it.

I think it is very important for us to continue to improve. We're reaching a point where we are close to being playoff eligible -- We're concerned about being part of it at the end.

It almost feels like they're taking over the clubhouse. I guess it's a good thing, because you're in a playoff race. Hopefully it's something that we all need to get used to. I'd much rather have this than to be .500 and playing out the season.

It can happen every night. But you've got to give the credit to Owen J. They came right at us. They had nothing to lose. We've got to regroup. We're still playing for our playoff lives.

I think it's a slap in the face for people to say that we're not going to be a good playoff team because Larry's gone. We didn't make the playoffs last season because of one player.

It could be. And it might just be luck, but I haven't lost a playoff (in four tries). Every time I have a playoff, I haven't lost any of them.

I thought we should be competing for a playoff spot and we weren't even close to that.

I thought we were right in the game. We did a pretty good job to get back into the game, and then we made some mistakes. We can't have it in playoff time. We made crucial mistakes at times when we couldn't afford it.

I think the program is back. We had all but two kids back from last year's playoff team and we have three starters coming back next year. Hopefully we can keep it going.

I think the people of New York are happy. We came out here and handled our business and now we can go home and give those guys one playoff game. They're going to be rowdy.

I thought for playoff situations that was maybe the most important, to have home court in the Eastern Conference. With the way that it's set up, 2-2-1-1-1, I think home court becomes extremely important.

I thought as the game wore on we were out-competed. This was like a playoff game. For a game where you're going to checked this hard, I thought we had too many people below the bar today. Way too many people.

I think you're seeing playoff baseball. I think (the wild-card race) is coming down to the last week.

I think the biggest thing is we were able to get past the first game, which is a big boost of confidence. I mean, none of these kids had won a playoff game (until Tuesday).

It is frustrating but it's also playoff hockey.

I was encouraged by the wins against Atlanta and Denver. And even when we lost against Phoenix, I thought that we played as well as we could. (Against New York), for some reason we weren't focused like we need to. We're in the playoff hunt for our lives right now. We have to bring out hard hats Wednesday against a good Sacramento team. We've got to play (well) or we could be out of this.

I was concerned about this game. Byron Scott has done as good a job as anybody in the league, and they have that team in playoff contention.

It is playoff time. Whoever responds and changes quicker is going to win four games and then go to the next round. So I think it's pretty much time for us to respond and make some different decisions and then win the game.

It is playoff time, and we had to take it to another level. We just tried to play Patriots football the way it should be played.

I thought we'd have our playoff spot sewn up by now. Our division is just too tight to think we were just going to walk away with it, but I didn't expect for us to be at the other end of the spectrum (either).

I thought we played really well in the first half; we just didn't knock down shots. We came a little bit unglued just because it's a playoff game, but I thought we started out the way we are capable of playing. But they wear on you with the defense.

I thought that we played regular season hockey to that point. They've been playing playoff hockey, and we said, 'You know what? We've got nothing to lose.

I think we feel confident that we have a good team. But the thing at playoff time is we've got to bring more discipline and more composure than we've been playing with. The jury's still out, but I think we've put ourselves in a position that we can compete with anybody.

I think we played with more desperation and we had the puck more in their zone. That just comes from moving your feet and not playing on your heels. This is playoff hockey and you can't play on your heels.

I think we're definitely hitting our stride. Hopefully we're a playoff contender. I think we're excited about the next couple weeks.

I think we lost a little from the week off. We had won seven straight and those three road playoff wins had given us momentum. I think we lost a little of our sharpness.

I think we have a chance to compete for a playoff spot. The kids are really dedicated.

I think we have a chance just like everybody else. There's no doubt in my mind we're going to have a playoff spot. I don't think it's a rebuilding year. No way.

I think we picked the right guys up, a lot of veteran guys who have been around the game a lot and with playoff experience. I feel we're going to learn a lot as young players from them.

I thought our kids played about as hard and about as good as we could. If we could have eliminated penalties I think we might have won the game. I don't know how many holding penalties we got in the red zone. It seemed like every time we got to the red zone there was a holding penalty, even in the playoff in the end. We were our own worst enemy in that regard.

I think we've played for a long time like a playoff team, but we can still do better. The key now is to look forward instead of looking back. I'd like to start looking ahead at Nashville than look behind at the teams that are chasing us.

I think what this trade does is put us, hopefully, in the forefront of being a playoff team. We want to make the transition easy for Andrew.

I think both kids played their best all-around basketball in that five-game playoff stretch leading us to the state championship.

I think it's very important you don't get caught up in all the 'what if' scenarios. I think our football team needs to prepare mentally to play this football game like it's a home playoff game. The fact is if we don't win, we may not go anywhere. If you get caught up, deviate from that focus and start looking at other scenarios, you start cluttering your mind with things that are very, very dangerous.

I think it's still at the point of learning how to finish games. I feel like last year we did a good job of it. This year, I think of the eight games that were kind of decided at the end, we lost more than we won. Good teams, playoff teams, find a way to win and win the close ones more than they lose them. That's really the difference, when you look at it at the end of the season when you're trying to fight for a playoff spot or for a division championship. Unfortunately, we were on the losing end of those. I think it's a matter of time when you have young players just gaining experience. You learn how to win.

I think it's real good to have a game like this. I tried to play my second team more than I usually do, because I want to get them acclimated to playoff (atmosphere), and I thought this was kind of a tournament game. Fred's kids played very hard and they did a good job. What they do is execute probably better than anybody in the league, and I wanted to get my kids used to coming across screens, because (the Hawks) set a lot of screens.

It got close. They kept fighting. That's the kind of test we need going into the playoffs. When we're (in a playoff game) and a team comes back and gets hot, we need to know who has the fortitude to step up and answer.

It had to come to an end, sooner or later. It's time for us to bounce back and play hard against two potential playoff opponents (Milwaukee and Chicago) on the road. We have to be at our best once again.

I think this kid is going to help us on the playoff roster,

I think they were all superficial deals. You hope that somebody might help you out a little bit but I don't think there's one deal where you can say, 'This is the guy that's going to put us way over the top.' They were deals that might help a little bit, maybe improve your playoff position, but that's all.

I think we are going to be a team that makes a real good push. We have been a team that people consistently talk about for the last five years (come) playoff time. Sometimes people forget what we can do. I think the last 15 games, a lot of people are going to be talking about other (teams) while we are still playing well and having a chance to make some noise in the playoffs.

I think we are definitely a playoff team. We were disappointed that we didn't make it last year. But this is a solid, realistic goal for us.

I think that a big part of this game is how you deal with distractions. I've always felt that when you watch teams in the last game of the season, especially if they are out of the playoff race, it comes down to the most focused team and who plays with the most effort comes out on top. It's a challenge.

It is in the best interest of the Calgary Flames that I use this opportunity to ensure I am totally recovered for the NHL playoff drive. I have always been very proud to represent my country in international competition and I'm disappointed that I will not be joining them at the Olympics in Italy.

Like Nieuwendyk and Roberts, Marty brings with him proven leadership and skills as well as a history of playoff success. He knows what it takes to win and has the experience to help guide our younger players and accelerate the growth of our team.

Last year, I lost here in our playoff match. So this year, I was going to punish whoever got in my way.

Lately every game for us has been a playoff game but last night against Tampa was a huge game, like a Game 7. But we told each other not to play tight, just to play hard. And we did. We played as a team and you saw what happened.

I went through some tough times as the closer last year in Colorado, booed off the field some games, and that's at home, where I grew up, in front of family and friends. I came over here, with a chance to be in a playoff race, something I've never been a part of, and I'm thinking, what have I got to lose?

I think they handled their first playoff game really well. I didn't think they looked any different from guys who have been five or six years in the playoffs. If we're going to go on a run, (the rookies) are going to be a big part of it ? just like they were last year.

It is an opportunity to utilize this as a home playoff game. There will be no talk whatsoever about any other scenario.

I think these are all teams that are going to be in playoff contention. Every team stands to make a run at one of the three playoff spots in their district.

I think there' s some substantial reservation ... about whether it really is an issue that has to be addressed anytime soon. My view is that there are just a lot of anomalies that come into play when you talk about playoff pairings, particularly in the first rounds.

I think there's probably a middle ground of expectations. We're going to hear a lot of playoff (talk) -- and that's a good thing. I would think we'd be competitive in every game we play. We have the thought we're good enough to beat anybody on a given night. Maybe that's a starting point. Let's talk about winning more (games) than losing.

Just go out and play as hard as you can and have fun with it. It's not different, but it's a game. It's still a game. It's a playoff game and you know, it's obviously sudden death. But hey, let's go out and have fun like we've been doing all year.

Jim had a little bad luck on the second playoff hole and that opened the door for me and I hit a pretty good shot out of the bunker.

Last weekend was a weekend when a few results kept things very tight. I still believe that it says a lot about the conference that everybody's grouped so closely and that really winning a game at the right time, making a couple of plays at the right time, those are the things that really will determine the standings and the playoff pairings.

Larry Hughes's agent informed us that Larry is not returning to Washington, ... He rejected our final offer which we regarded as very fair and very meaningful. We have a lot of outstanding players on this team including All-Stars Gilbert Arenas and Antawn Jamison, and we will add players that will continue to make us a very competitive ball club. Our goals remain the same which is to be a perennial playoff contender.

Landon has a knack of knowing when it really matters, ... Is that a sense of timing or a really good player? I don't know what it is but he has it: 2001 playoff run, playoff run this year, 2002 World Cup, we could go on and on and on. For the big games he'd done it.

I think desperation is a key. We have to play with desperation and not act in desperation. Any time you're in a playoff series, it's about how you react. How we react to being down 2-0 and how we react to losing this game will make the difference.

I think everyone's going to be happy with the split. It gives the small tier that playoff spot every year.

Our guys have a lot of respect for Pat. He has done a lot for our organization and he continues to work hard into getting us into a playoff position.

Our guys always come back. But it was the second game in a row we weren't ready to play when the ball went up. We're still learning on the fly. We don't have guys with 30, 40, 60 games of playoff experience.

Our goal was to clinch a playoff spot. To be up four points with less than two minutes is disappointing to see it slip away.

Our goal this year was to get a home playoff game as a young team. We?re playing well, and we still have a chance at that.

Our team's goal is always to win the Stanley Cup. I don't want to get too carried away with this regular-season success because we've had playoff disappointments the last few years, and I don't forget those. I do think it's overlooked how good a job this organization does finding players, drafting players. That's been the illusion, that we just go out and buy a team.

Our team goal this year was to host a playoff match and we've accomplished that. Our second goal is to win region. We lost to them earlier (in a non-region match). We've gotten better since then and they've gotten better. It's going to be a great match Tuesday night." ()

Our goal is to get a playoff spot. We definitely have the pieces, but we're going to need to execute and we'll need a little luck, too. Our district is killer.

Our goal is to get through the first half and hopefully stay in the playoff picture. The kids have to keep working and plugging away. We have the talent to be a playoff team, but haven't been able to use a set lineup.

Our goal all year was to win a playoff series. This team will do it soon, probably next year.

Our goal all along was to get at least one win from Reno, Carson and Douglas. Those are the three teams to beat in the Sierra. If we can get at least one from each from them, we will have a great chance to get that fourth (and final) playoff spot.

Our girls are playing good right now. We are going to give our best shot as playoff time approaches.

Our first goal this year was to make the playoffs, and that we did. This is three wins in a row, and a playoff spot.

Overall, I played pretty well but I felt I threw away some shots. I'd love to be in a playoff now. It's disappointing. I'm a little frustrated.

Overall records are misleading, we are treating the PSAC West schedule as a new season and we are pushing for a PSAC playoff spot. We must execute better and our margin of error is very small right now.

Our ball pressure was very good and we rebounded well. I wouldn't say we played a great game, because I think we did have some playoff jitters in the first half, but we played a good team game.