Postgame Quotes - February 5, 2010

Detroit: John Kuester | Rodney Stuckey | Richard Hamilton
Indiana: Jim O'Brien | Roy Hibbert | T. J. Ford

Pistons Head Coach John Kuester
“We had looks early but didn’t convert. We were forced to play catch up. We had energy early on but we didn’t make shots and that deflated us. (On T.J. Ford) T.J. played with confidence for a guy that hadn’t played in a while. He did a good job.”

Pistons Guard Rodney Stuckey
“We just missed shots. Indiana has a good team, and if you give them open threes they’re going to hit them. I just don’t know what happened. They just beat us, pretty much. (On T.J. Ford’s performance) That’s T.J. He’s just a good player. (Was there a lack of energy?) I think we played pretty good at the beginning of the game and then they got a lead. We got down and against a team like this you just have to pace yourself. They are always on the go. You don’t want to get in a race with them because they can beat you at any given time. Indiana is a team that plays with each other and moves the ball well. They beat us tonight.”

Pistons Guard Richard Hamilton
“We’re finally healthy and we have everybody back on the floor so we’ll be better. We just have to get more and more time out on the floor together. (On Ben Gordon) It was great to see him get it going. That’s the one thing that me and Tay (Tayshaun Prince) were talking about on the bench. It was just good to see him catch a rhythm. We’re going to need him to do that. I thought it was a good game for him. (On T.J. Ford) It just shows you how professional he is. He’s a guy that’s been in the league a long time and has started for a long time. Even though he hasn’t played, he still came out there and showed he can play this game and be professional at it.”

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Pacers Head Coach Jim O'Brien
“I thought we put together four good quarters and kept the pressure on them. It was the second solid game in a row for us. I thought we were very unselfish and it started with our point guards. (On T.J. Ford) I thought he looked sharp. It’s a credit to his professionalism. He showed everybody what he’s all about, staying in a frame of mind and staying ready.”

Pacers Center Roy Hibbert
“I think we played really hard tonight and played tough together. We wanted to start from the beginning of the game to control the tempo. They seemed to be getting rebounds off the glass and we really looked to work at doing better as the game went on. We wanted to make it our tempo, not theirs. It was good having some of our injured players back and I think now we’ll be able to gel better as a team. We’re a three point shooting team and I’ve been working hard on my post moves before and after practice and trying to use both my right hand and left hand to be effective down low.”

Pacers Guard T.J. Ford
“I knew I had to keep my conditioning up, it’s been a really tough five weeks watching from afar. But I’ve run sprints and tried to keep my conditioning up and I’ve been doing everything I can to keep in good shape. I know I just have to be ready so that any time I’m called I’m ready to contribute. I’m really happy to come out and be able to contribute and it felt good out there tonight.”