March 8, 2008
Recap | Box Score | AP Photo Gallery 
Georgetown Head Coach John Thompson III On DaJuan Summers' final shot being planned... "No, we were just playing to tell you the truth. Like I've said all season, you get good players and you allow them to make good decisions. We came down in one particular set and then just moved the ball around, we actually wanted to get a shot for Jon (Wallace) and it wasn't there. He was unselfish as always, kicked it around and we ended up getting a wide open shot for DaJuan that he knocked down."
On cutting the nets down to celebrate the BIG EAST regular season championship...
"The Wizards are playing tonight, so as I said last year my wife and I are going to come back after their game is over and cut the nets down. Winning the regular season is special in any league, because it's a marathon it's not a sprint. In this league with so many terrific coaches, so many terrific teams, so many terrific traditions to be for the most part the hunted all year to be able to stand here the regular season champs makes me extremely proud of this group."
On the program winning back-to-back regular season championships...
"I feel good about the group that we have, I'm just happy for our guys. I don't know what it says about our program, but I've said this from the first day, it's a process and I still feel that way. We're still at the early stages of that process and we've been fortunate enough to have some success, but we're still at the early stages in terms of where I want this program to be."
On getting greedy by all the early success...
"It's my job to be greedy, I'm going to stay greedy. But you have to be fortunate, this league is a monster, you know one week you can be on top the next you can be on the bottom. One year you can be on top, the next year you're fighting for your life, but that's the nature of BIG EAST basketball."
On the Hoyas defensive performance...
"This was a BIG EAST game. I was sitting there in the first half thinking, this is an old school BIG EAST game. It wasn't just a question of who could put the ball in the basket, every shot was tough and contested, it's just traditional BIG EAST battle and we were fortunate to put it away at the end."
On the play of Patrick Ewing Jr...
"That's what Pat does, he's terrific. He's made plays for us all year. His energy and his understanding, he's not just running around like a chicken with his head cut off. His understanding of what's going on, his intelligence and knowing when to take chances and when not to take chances."
On the leadership of Jon Wallace...
"Jon Wallace has been great for four years and hopefully he will be great for another three or four weeks. It's not a surprise, he made plays, he spread it out, he cut when he should've cut, he's in there pivoting amongst the trees. He's been unselfishly leading us for four years now."
On limiting Louisville in transition...
"That's key against them. Coach Pitino has been through everything. There is nothing that we're going to do that he hasn't scene. There is nothing that we're going to do to try to adjust the pace fast or slow that he doesn't have a counter for, he's won a lot of games, so we were fortunate to stop too many breakaways. They had a few, but we tried to make them earn every basket."
On Pitino's comments of the team being lucky...
"I'll say this, when he came out of the locker room after half time with the same clothes on I felt pretty good."
Coach Rick Pitino
On the overall game...
"We're obviously very disappointed we loss but it was a valiant comeback by our guys in a very hostile environment, I'm very proud of our guy's effort. We got a great shot down the stretch that didn't go in but that didn't bother me as much as we defended when we needed it. We guarded that high screen perfect and we rotated poorly, which was a bad mistake. They forced a couple turnovers down the stretch, but they forced them so you got to give them credit."
"I'm really proud of our team, this was a great season. Bitter pill to swallow when you lose but we had a chance to win a championship, didn't do it. We give credit to Georgetown because they earned it."
What brought Louisville back into the game...
"I think just our pride and what we do. We just gutted it out, pressured them into mistakes, made some big plays, made good passes.
On the style of game played today...
"I don't think it was defense as much as it was tempo. I think this was a grind them type basketball game they like to play, we've played all different types of ways. We put ourselves in a situation where we could win. It just takes one blunder for you to lose a game. It was a great game. Georgetown's the number one defensive team in the country, we're number three. It was nothing easy, there were no easy shots. There was a lot of aggressive play out there by both teams. They've been lucky, but they won tonight because they were better."
"They went down low and made tough shots. We took away their slice cut and made the shots, we pressured them. I think if you sit back and don't get at Georgetown they are going to win, you got to pressure them. Give them credit, they played like true champions tonight and they deserved the victory."
Louisville's last shot of the game...
"We had a great shot at the end of the game by Jerry Smith and I am not disappointed at all, it was a good shot, what else can you do. It's the just the little things. I believe defense wins and loses ball games. You got to be good come tournament time with things you can control. Playing on the road, very emotional game, anyone could have won this game. This was a great season by the University of Louisville, theirs was just a little bit better."
On Georgetown basketball...
"Georgetown's been terrific and very tough with this many teams to do it twice. The thing I love about Georgetown is the class they have. How hard they play, they do it with class. I just love everything about the university and the way they carry themselves. It's great, its just terrific. It's a tough lose but give credit to where credits due. Heck of a program, heck of a team, great young coach. The apple doesn't fall to far from the tree."
Georgetown Players
Roy Hibbert
On the season as a whole...
"It feels good. This was the culmination of all our hard work. We played together, we were up at times and we were down, and I think we played together and made it work."
On winning back-to-back BIG EAST Regular Season Championships...
"I didn't know that we were the first Georgetown team to go back-to-back. I feel our league is really tough and to have our last home game be Louisville, that's a hard one. But we did it, we dug it out. They're a really good defensive team and a really good offensive team so we had our hands full today."
"To be able to win back-to-back, and the way we did it...we had so many ups and downs and we stuck together. Who would have ever thought we would have had a 7-footer hit a game winning three or Pat [Ewing] having the blocked shot to win a game, or Jon hitting a couple free throws in two games to win those games so we had a great season. This is the first part: We won this part, and we have to move on to the BIG EAST Tournament."
