Donald Copeland Quotations

We spread the court well. Grant, who is an excellent passer, he's able to see over defenses.

We want to take our time and get good shots. You take a quick shot, they get the rebound and they're off to the races. That's not something we want happening.

We've been here through the good, the bad and the ugly. We could have walked out as bad as it got, but we stuck it out because we wanted to finish what we started.

We had a feel for when they were going to go backdoor. We knew that when they start to dribble at you, it's possible for a backdoor. We were always aware of it.

Losing Stan is a tremendous loss for us. Stan is the kind of guy that can get into the game without scoring. He can handle the ball for us, he's a defensive stopper, he rebounds, he passes the ball well.

Of course, I spoke with my father. He means so much to me. I wouldn't be anywhere without him. He was the first person I called.

If we guard, we're a tough team to beat, because we're able to put points on the board. Really, it just came down to us getting stops, and if they tried to make a run, we had to answer.

I looked over at my mother across in the stands and she just looked at me. It was disappointing. It's tough to have a season end like this.

He was definitely down. Especially since they came so close. It has to hurt more coming so close.

We've finally put things together. We just had to put forth the effort and show people. Now we're playing well and getting some recognition, it makes you feel good about yourself.

He's done so much for me. He's good for the program and does everything in life by the book. He's a good man with a good knowledge of basketball, but more importantly, he's just a very good man.

I think we're pretty much a different team because we have more of an identity now. Guys are becoming more comfortable with their roles and things are beginning to jell for us. If we stick together, I think we're going to be able to do some special things.

I think it started with our defense and getting open shots. We shared the ball well and when you start off well in transition the half-court becomes easier.

It has been a problem for me the whole year. Right now is an important stretch for us. If I feel I'm hurting the team I have no problem sitting out.

I think they were a little bit surprised. We hadn't won on the road yet, they were undefeated at home. We lost to Duke by 53, they lost to them by four. But we have confidence that we're a good team. We're obviously a different team from the time we played at Duke.

Our winning streak has given us a little bit of confidence. Plus we've found ways to win. Each game we go into, we're focused and prepared to win the game. We're not prepared to just stay close with anybody.

That doesn't change our preparation. Regardless of who anyone picks, we're preparing to win the game.

It is disappointing, but the way he's handled it shows what type of man he is. He's never made any of this about himself. For him, it's all about the team.

We can't get away from who we are, and we've always been a defensive-minded team. The last few games we've given up a lot of points. We ain't gonna win like that.

You always get nervous and anxious when your name is not called. There's all this suspense and then they went through two brackets and we weren't called. My stomach started to turn a little.

We can't let teams score 89 points on us and expect to win every game, but when it came down to it we gutted it out, we didn't give up, and this team has been like that tall year. There's too much at stake and we believe in ourselves.

Yeah, it would have been nice. Any time you get to play with a player of Randy's caliber, it would be great because he brings so much to the table. He made his decision, and it worked out perfect for him.

When you win, you silence all the doubters. That's why we play the game - to win. You don't play it for anything else. If people think we still don't belong, he just have to keep winning.

We can't really play at their pace. They're looking to push the ball and pressure you and make you play fast. The key is staying poised against them, making sure you're doing what you want to do. You've got to run your offense.

This was very big. South Florida is a team that's struggling right now. It's a game we needed, coming off three losses in a row. Tonight got us back into the thick of things. The Big east is wide open. We can pick up things from here and go on in a positive way.

We finished seventh in a league of 16 teams, the best league in the country. You finish in the first half, it's got to mean something, especially with the talent of the Big East.

We got a lot of shots up, put in a lot of work offensively. We had some real competitive practices, guys really going at each other and pushing each other real hard. Something like that clears things up.

We want to play in the NCAA Tournament so this game was huge. Kelly and I had to make sure the other guys knew we couldn't ever quit. We huddled when we had to let them know. We had to want it more.

We speak to each other practically every day. After I got done talking with my father, Dwayne called me and congratulated me. It would have been great if we were both going.

We moved on from that loss a long time ago. It happened early on in the season, we're a different team now. We really forgot about it.

We feel we've built a strong enough resume. You can't let tonight take that away.

We feel we have a strong enough resume. We finished in the top seven in our league. We had key wins this year ... you can't take anything away from what we did in the regular season.

We feel we built a strong enough resume. We finished top seven in our league, we got some key wins down the stretch. You can't let tonight take that away.

You go in expecting to win the game, and you wind up losing and losing by 20. It wasn't our best defensive or offensive day. We didn't have it today.

We didn't play as well as we usually have been playing, but it's a win. We're on the road. If you can play bad and win on the road, you're a pretty good team.

Every game is more important for us now to get to the N.C.A.A. tournament. We didn't get this one and it really hurt. So we really got to get the next one.

I've never seen that in college. It opens up so many things. Anybody can start their offense. It takes a lot of pressure off of you. You have the confidence that everybody is not focusing just on you because they have to worry about your teammates.

Sometimes guys are coming from places where they're not used to anybody saying anything to them. Regardless of how anybody's going to take it, when you feel like something needs to be said, you just say it.

Any conference that gets four teams here shows you how competitive it is. We've got a great deal of respect for that.

They're a balanced team. They run a lot of screens, a lot of motion. We could win the game 2-0, it doesn't matter. However we get it done.

They moved the ball around. Most of their possessions, I think they had three or four passes before they took shots.

They had a situation on their team, but this was about us. The main thing was we wanted to get better. After the long layoff we wanted to get out and play -- and play well. We shared the ball well, guys spaced the floor well, and we played pretty well off each other.

They're a good team. They share the ball well, they run good offense, they've got good players. It wasn't our best defensive or offensive game. That surprised me, but there's nothing you can do. You give them credit and we didn't have it today.

I tried to keep my head up. It's just disappointing to have the season end like this.

For all the adversity he faced this year, he never once made it about him, it was always about the team. Considering all the circumstances he was under, I can only imagine that was extremely hard.

Everybody has to do a little bit more now. We just want to hold on until we're able to get him back.

(The N.C. State win) gave us a lot of confidence. It definitely carried over, because when we were down at halftime, we got a real strong start in the second half, and we knew we could hold onto it. Maybe we'll get some recognition and start to string on some wins and be one of the teams picked to make the tournament.

It's really been a dream come true. Ever since I made that shot against Shabazz my junior year (ironically, the only points he scored in that entire game) and then coming here and being a backup point guard to now, it's unbelievable. It really is a dream come true. I couldn't ask for a better situation, a better opportunity than that.

The fans living and dying with every play, every shot, that's why you play college basketball.

I had an open look. I felt that was as good a time as ever. It felt good leaving my hand.

If you can play bad and win on the road, you're a pretty good team.

I have to admit it. I broke into tears. I was so happy. I guess this shows what hard work could do.

I didn't hear who we were playing or where. All I heard was Seton Hall and then we all went nuts.

I feel bad for Coach Orr. I wish I could have done more to help out the situation. I really don't know what the requirements were for him to stay. I don't really know what him being fired is based on.

All those guys, they're winners. You put all of that together, the time is now for them.

All year we faced adversity and we were doubted. You have to deal with a lot of things off the court, but the coaches and everybody in the program never quit.

All year we faced adversity and we were doubted. But the coaches and players never quit. That says something about the character of our team.

All season you hear the doubters, you know what's expected of you. You work through it. This team has shown a great deal of resilience. It shows the character of this team the coaches and the players.