From Athletic Communications:
Minnesota Head Coach Richard Pitino
On Isaiah Washington seeing more minutes...
“I think it’s tough for any Freshman to thrust him into that role. Isaiah does a lot of good, and he’s got a lot to learn too. He had eight rebounds, which was terrific. We’re a better team when everyone's healthy. We’ll get Dupree back as well. The more experience that Isaiah gets the better for him. But, you just don’t replace Nate Mason when he’s injured.”
On Dupree McBrayer returning...
“Don’t know, but I think more of this rest will be good for him and we’ll reevaluate in three days.”
On Reggie Lynch...
“I thought he was okay. That big kid shoots a lot of fadeaway jumpers, and I thought Bakary did a good job there. I think Reggie was efficient when he was in, but he didn’t play a whole lot.”
On Michael Hurt...
“I don’t put much stock into starting. I think what he did was he had 27 minutes. It was really hard to develop our bench at Nebraska, at Arkansas, against Miami, all those tough games we played early, so it was a really good night for Davonte, for Michael Hurt, Bakary, Jamir, those guys who hadn’t played a lot. It was really hard in that we had, so the last two games have been good for those guys.”
Redshirt Senior Reggie Lynch
On Nate Mason...
"If it turns out to be something bad, which we’re hoping it isn’t, We’ll band together and fight through it as a team”
On being a senior...
“I feel like all the seniors have been feeling that way throughout the entire season, not just the fact that we’re going into conference play soon, but obviously all of us seniors want to go out with a bang, but we’re not trying to get our personal stats and think about the future too much, just take it day by day like the rest of the team is, just improve daily as a team.
On midrange jumper...
“I can actually shoot three pointers, but coach just doesn’t let me. Whenever i get the opportunity to shoot a midranger, I will shoot it. I think I missed three last year, and I missed three this year, but I finally got one to go. So, just watch out for some more later.”
Junior Forward Jordan Murphy
On Nate Mason...
“He seemed to be in good spirits when I saw him, so your guess is as good as mine right now. I just wanted to know what was wrong and try to be there for him as best as I could. At the end of the day, He’s the type of dude that wants to deal with that it on his own. We’re going to be there for him.”
On Washington...
“He’s become more of a defensive minded guard, I think he’s really stepped it up on that end.
We already knew he had a good offensive game. Just telling him to be himself and shooting regular layups, just to know when to pull out the jelly. That’s probably been the biggest thing for him and he’s really grown in that aspect and getting guys open since he’s such a good playmaker.
On defense...
“There were a couple rebounds we could have gotten to earlier, myself included.”
On leading country in rebounds...
“It would give me a great sense of pride just knowing it’s something i've really put my mind to, and I've really worked to make it the forefront of my game. As long as it leads to helping the team wins. That’s my biggest concern, making sure it helps the team win.”
Minnesota Head Coach Richard Pitino
On Isaiah Washington seeing more minutes...
“I think it’s tough for any Freshman to thrust him into that role. Isaiah does a lot of good, and he’s got a lot to learn too. He had eight rebounds, which was terrific. We’re a better team when everyone's healthy. We’ll get Dupree back as well. The more experience that Isaiah gets the better for him. But, you just don’t replace Nate Mason when he’s injured.”
On Dupree McBrayer returning...
“Don’t know, but I think more of this rest will be good for him and we’ll reevaluate in three days.”
On Reggie Lynch...
“I thought he was okay. That big kid shoots a lot of fadeaway jumpers, and I thought Bakary did a good job there. I think Reggie was efficient when he was in, but he didn’t play a whole lot.”
On Michael Hurt...
“I don’t put much stock into starting. I think what he did was he had 27 minutes. It was really hard to develop our bench at Nebraska, at Arkansas, against Miami, all those tough games we played early, so it was a really good night for Davonte, for Michael Hurt, Bakary, Jamir, those guys who hadn’t played a lot. It was really hard in that we had, so the last two games have been good for those guys.”
Redshirt Senior Reggie Lynch
On Nate Mason...
"If it turns out to be something bad, which we’re hoping it isn’t, We’ll band together and fight through it as a team”
On being a senior...
“I feel like all the seniors have been feeling that way throughout the entire season, not just the fact that we’re going into conference play soon, but obviously all of us seniors want to go out with a bang, but we’re not trying to get our personal stats and think about the future too much, just take it day by day like the rest of the team is, just improve daily as a team.
On midrange jumper...
“I can actually shoot three pointers, but coach just doesn’t let me. Whenever i get the opportunity to shoot a midranger, I will shoot it. I think I missed three last year, and I missed three this year, but I finally got one to go. So, just watch out for some more later.”
Junior Forward Jordan Murphy
On Nate Mason...
“He seemed to be in good spirits when I saw him, so your guess is as good as mine right now. I just wanted to know what was wrong and try to be there for him as best as I could. At the end of the day, He’s the type of dude that wants to deal with that it on his own. We’re going to be there for him.”
On Washington...
“He’s become more of a defensive minded guard, I think he’s really stepped it up on that end.
We already knew he had a good offensive game. Just telling him to be himself and shooting regular layups, just to know when to pull out the jelly. That’s probably been the biggest thing for him and he’s really grown in that aspect and getting guys open since he’s such a good playmaker.
On defense...
“There were a couple rebounds we could have gotten to earlier, myself included.”
On leading country in rebounds...
“It would give me a great sense of pride just knowing it’s something i've really put my mind to, and I've really worked to make it the forefront of my game. As long as it leads to helping the team wins. That’s my biggest concern, making sure it helps the team win.”
