March 21 2009 at Charlotte
Pacers 108, Bobcats 83
PACERS COACH JIM O'BRIEN
(On tonight’s win) “We played a completely well-rounded game and kept the tempo where we wanted it. We kept our turnovers down and ended up with a great victory. Defense wins, obviously, but it helps to make some shots.”
(On Jarrett Jack) “He was very focused tonight. We decided to make a change and start him. He gave us the spark we needed at the point guard spot. He maintained the aggressiveness of our team the entire time both offensively and defensively. Not only did he score well, he led well.”
(On the decision to start Jarrett Jack) “We lost five games in a row. T.J. (Ford) and I had a talk and he hasn’t played at the top of his game. I decided to shake things up and give us a jolt.”
PACERS GUARD BRANDON RUSH
(On tonight’s game) “Our key to us winning tonight was the fact that we applied offensive pressure from start to finish. Playing this way caused us to get a lot of fast break points. We also got a lot of defensive stops tonight.”
(On the biggest adjustment as an NBA rookie) “I would say the biggest adjustment from college to the NBA is the number of games. With it being so many games in the NBA, you have be better prepared physically and mentally. It takes time.”
PACERS FORWARD TROY MURPHY
(On tonight’s game) “I think we struggled in the first half, but we were able to regroup in the second half and be much more effective. Jarrett Jack was big for us tonight. Jarrett’s great game along with us getting several defensive stops really helped us get this win.”
(On getting back in the playoff hunt) “We really put ourselves in a tough position last week by losing several games in row, but tonight was a big win for us. We are hoping this gets us back in the playoff hunt with only 11 more games to go.”
(On Jarrett Jack) “He was great tonight. That was a great performance. Every time we struggled in the second half, he was a big reason why we were able to stay in the game. He was tremendous.”
BOBCATS COACH LARRY BROWN
(On tonight’s game) “I’ve seen this happen in this league before. The way we started we were 1-5 at the line, Emeka (Okafor) misses two or three dunks - to me that was an omen right there - and then Gerald (Wallace) getting in foul trouble. But the Pacers were great. They executed, they made shots."
"When D.J. (Augustin) and Raymond (Felton) go 3-18 (from the field), that’s always a kiss of death, and then we give up 31 points on turnovers. In every area we just got whooped. We had a chance to stretch it out early and we didn’t take advantage of it.”
BOBCATS FORWARD GERALD WALLACE
(On tonight’s game) “It was an off-night from our standpoint and an on-night for them. We couldn’t seem to get anything going and they had everything going. It’s just one of those nights in the NBA. In an 82-game season, you’re bound to have one of these games throughout the season."
"We’ve just got to pick ourselves back up. We can’t hold our heads down. We’ve still got something to accomplish, so we have to come back out Monday and Tuesday, practice hard and get ready for the end of the stretch.”
BBOBCATS GUARD RAYMOND FELTON
(On tonight’s game) “It was one of those games where (it felt like) they shot 80 percent for the game. They were hitting a lot of shots and things weren’t going for us. Shots weren’t going in for us, we couldn’t guard anybody and they weren’t missing anything. It was just one of those nights.”
(On playing poorly at home) “It’s just tough when you have it in your own building in front of your fans. You don’t ever want to have a performance like that in front of your own fans. But it happened, and we’ve got to put it behind us. We’ve got 12 games left and we’ve got to finish strong. We’re still trying to make this thing (the playoffs) happen.”
(On Pacers guard Jarrett Jack) “He was hitting everything – threes, mid-range (jumpers), getting to the basket. That’s tough. He had a great game tonight.”