<blank> - Marshall University Athletics

Feb. 16, 2008

Tulane Head Coach Dave Dickerson

Opening Statement

"Marshall did a really good job tonight of being prepared for this game. Guys played with a lot of energy and a lot of passion and that's got to be a credit to their coaching staff. They had the guys prepared to play and they were flying around making great basketball plays. Our team didn't respond at all during any point of the game, and it's very disappointing for us. We have a tough road in front of us. We have one of the top teams in the country coming into our place. It's tough. Donnie and his staff did a great job getting that team ready to play."

On Marshall's performance

"They're a good team. We're looking at team that could be one of the top three or four teams in the conference at the end of the year. They're very good, they're athletic, they can shoot the basketball, they have some guys that have gotten better from last year. Look at [Tyler] Wilkerson, he's one of the best inside players in the conference. [Mark] Dorris is very confident playing on the perimeter, and [Markel] Humphrey is probably one of the top five players in the conference. They're a very good basketball team. I am very disappointed that we played uninspired basketball. This is the first time that I have seen this in one of my teams since I've been here. We have faced more difficult situations than this. We faced [Hurricane] Katrina, the aftermath of Katrina. We played better at the end of seasons, but this year it seems that we're not there yet."

Marshall Guard Mark Dorris

On rebounding and defense

"Those are the key elements to winning a game. You can never control when shots go down or things of that nature. You can control your effort on the offensive and defensive glass. Those are two key contributors in winning any game."

On playing with intensity

"Credit everyone's intensity and paying attention to detail. The guys came out on edge tonight and we played defense hard. We had pretty good energy. We had a good crowd and they fueled us. We came out and did our part and performed well on the court."

Guard Darryl Merthie

On getting open shots

"Pierre [Marie Altidor Cespedes] and Mark Dorris were penetrating and my man was stepping off of me. They were looking for me and I was able to knock down some shots."

On difference between this year and last year

"It's just confidence. Last year, I had no confidence. This year I have a lot more confidence and my teammates trust me a lot more."

Marshall Head Coach Donnie Jones

Opening Statement

"Rebounding is the word we said from the beginning. We played a very good team in Tulane. They're a very good rebounding team. They're one of the top 20 teams in field goal percentage. We knew offensively that second shots would be big for us. It's been our motto to grind it out for 40 minutes and we knew that this was going to be a grind it out type of game. That's the way they play and they've had three great wins over LSU, Georgia and St. John's. We knew that they had a very good low post presence, that we would have to be physical with. Our guys came out and accepted the challenge and in the first half they had 13 offensive rebounds. Darryl Merthie gave us a great stat line tonight. He gave us seven rebounds, five assists and he knocked down some open shots. Our team is starting to have some chemistry. I think they're getting comfortable with what we want them to do. I think the thing that's been the most important of all is our defense. Since we started the season, they have found ways to win and ways to do little things. That will be important for us to have success."

On overall performance

"Our guys did a great job of giving them one shot. Our staff has just done a great job of preparing our guys from a scouting report standpoint. One thing you do when you're new to a basketball team is continue to teach, we've been very limited with our bodies in practice, and we've had to find ways to make guys better without practicing. It helps when you're making shots and we've been making shots lately."

On team's confidence

"Confidence is a scary thing. I think it's important for this team to understand that we have to stay grounded. Winning is a result of doing things the right way. I think that's the next thing this team has to handle because we haven't won big. I think they're still very hungry and we have to keep it simple and focus on the next game."

Marshall University Athletics

Related News

Players Mentioned

Mark Dorris

Darryl Merthie

Related Videos