Nov. 18, 2007

Villanova head coach Jay Wright...

On the game: First of all I want to congratulate Bucknell because they are a great team and as an alum I am so proud of the way they represent the school. They are so well-coached but in the end I think we had a little bit bigger and better athletes. That is what it came down to, where we got a couple of offensive rebounds and loose balls but that's it. I am proud of our guys because I think they beat a great basketball team. We aren't going to get any teams that execute that well and are so well-coached. We'll come close with some teams, but that was a good win for us.

On the inside play in the second half: It wasn't really an emphasis but we wanted to be balanced. The matchups Bucknell gives you are so tough and you just have to read what you get. I don't think we are that good at doing that yet but we made some good plays in the second half. Dante Cunningham and Casiem Drummond had some nice plays and that helped us because it took some pressure off the perimeter.

On the defense in the second half: John Griffin was terrific for Bucknell and he hit some tough shots. Defense is always a team effort but Reggie Redding did an incredible job of chasing him around. When Griffin went out for a minute we tried to get Reggie a rest because I knew it was tough chasing him around. I am proud of Reggie's defensive effort tonight.

On why Reggie Redding played defense on high school teammate John Griffin: Reggie has really improved his defense and that is something we have seen coming from him. We have had some great defensive guards here and we need that. We want our guys to take pride in their defense and Reggie is starting to do that. I'm really happy for him; he defended an outstanding college guard tonight and it was a great team defensive effort.

On Bucknell: I think that right now at this point in the season they are a better team, better coached and more disciplined than we are. We had bigger, better athletes and in the end that showed up a lot. Even at the end we missed a free throw and if they get the rebound they had the ball down only three points but Dwayne Anderson getting an offensive rebound there was big time. Plays like that are what the game came down to.

On Dwayne Anderson: Dwayne is like a utility guy in baseball for us. We will put him in the game anytime, anywhere and at any position. He is so smart and experienced and is so committed to being a Villanova basketball player. I was really proud of him tonight. We just talked last night about how important he is to our team so it was great for him to do that today.

On Bucknell no longer being an underdog: I don't think they are. Nobody is surprised by the score tonight and I don't think anyone would be surprised by the halftime score. They do this to everybody because they are that good. They are getting some very good players and I think that Pat Flannery is one of the best coaches in the country given where he is and that they have beaten some top times. We had everything we could handle tonight.

On John Griffin: John Griffin is an incredible leader. Forget how talented he is because as a leader he reminds me of some of the guys we have had in the past few years who made us good because they take the will of the team on their back. Griffin is the only senior on their team and he is doing that; he is a really impressive kid. We feared him touching the ball at times because we couldn't stop him. It wasn't his shooting but he had some assists too when he got his hands on the ball.

Villanova sophomore guard Reggie Redding...

On the defense in the second half: I think in the second half the team did a better job of helping off of screens. In the first half that wasn't the case at times and we picked it up as a team in the second half.

Villanova junior forward Shane Clark...

On the game: Bucknell is really good and they are a well-coached team. They played hard to the end so for a team like us that is still getting used to each other it was a good win for us.

Bucknell head coach Pat Flannery...

On the game: Obviously I could come in here right now and say a whole lot about Villanova. As a coach looking at things I think one of the things that happened in the game is they started to take over in the second half in the one stretch and with 10 minutes left were already in the 1-and-1. Their play inside had a lot to do with that. They are very aggressive and drive it. I thought our guys were doing a good job keeping the game in front of them but their big guy hurt us. He got a couple in there and they got some put-backs and that gave them confidence. I thought as long as we were up on them and making some shots they were looking around a little bit. Obviously I can't say anything but good things about our kids. They fought and I think both teams are going to be awfully fun to watch as the season goes along. I hope you were able to enjoy a good college basketball game tonight.

On the Bucknell underdog status: We have been there and competed and we have had some good wins. Some of the kids have been around but you won't have any more fun than I have with John Griffin every day. He has taught some of the younger players that. I think before we would come in to a place like Villanova and have to play a certain kind of game. These kids didn't have to do that tonight and give them credit because they are going to get better and better. Villanova plays hard and you can see that they love playing the game but our program does a great job of teaching each other. When you come in to a place like this there isn't that sense of awe now. We know what we are getting into and you can see that in the rebounds.

On Bucknell: We are coming in here with some players now. Stephen Tyree did a great job playing up with the Villanova kids and we are making aggressive plays, which is all you can do right now. We have to be smart in a game like this but it is early in the season and we have to take shots and get open looks. That led to us getting hurt in transition a few times but also we played eight guys and had Griffin in their 35 minutes. Down the stretch we had some looks that would have kept it a possession game and that is all we were trying to do. They made their free throws and had some big rebounds down the stretch.

Bucknell senior guard John Griffin...

On Bucknell: We talked about it in the locker room that given how young we are we showed a tremendous amount of poise and great courage in a situation where our youth could have been exposed. It really wasn't and you couldn't tell that we had three freshmen on the floor at some points. That is our hard work in practice showing up. We are throwing some young players into the fire but they are ready for it and up to the challenge. I am happy with the way we kept our composure tonight.

On overcoming the Goliath factor: I think my past three years we have put the whole Goliath thing past us and established ourselves as a legitimate program. I think that we have gained a lot of respect around the country and I don't think of ourselves as underdogs because we play hard, play good defense and execute on offense.