Everything From Head Coach Damon Stoudamire After A 79-67 Win Over Monmouth

Head coach Damon Stoudamire talked to the media after a much needed win over Monmouth on Saturday. Here is everything he had to say

Opening Statement:

“It was a good team win. You know, I thought I was happy for the players because I thought they were a connected group, and that's all I've been talking to them about is being more connected. I think the only reason it feels funny out there at times is that they lose confidence in themselves. I think because they just like most young players, you base your existence on making and missing shots, you know. But for me, like I just thought it was really good today to see guys being connected. Um, even when we weren't making shots, I thought we did a great job defensively. Um and then we made shots when we needed them. You know, game numbers for this crew were 48, 40, and 80 from the line. We need that on a consistent basis, but you know, this is a building block for me. You know, it's brick by brick this season. I think that's what the guys are figuring out. It's not going to be easy. It's not going to be pretty. We got to just keep grinding this thing out. And I think that that's what we're learning, you know, amongst other things, is you've got to learn to fight. Unfortunately, in this business that we in, I try to tell them all the time, like, man, don't nobody really cares. People see the left column and the right column. They look at the coaches winning record, win-loss record, and they look at y'all statistics. That's where we at. And that's what it is. And I'm fine with that. And so what I try to do is just to help them get through those rough patches. I just thought collectively today they just did a great job. I want to give a shout-out to Cole (Kirouac), you know, because Cole got on the court today, and he did some really good things defensively. I thought he was in the right space. Um and it really impacted the game in that area. I think that you know his sample size is really small right now for people in terms of what they've seen because you've only seen him today. But I think that you can see why I've always been excited about him, and I think that he's going to have a big impact on this program.”

On Cole Kirouac and having an impact…

“In being a player, and I've been there before. They seen him come to practice every day and work and don't get any payback for it, you know what I mean? And so, when a guy goes in there and, you know, now all of a sudden nobody in the arena has seen him play. The players have seen him obviously, and he comes in and has success. Um, you know, if they didn't cheer for him, I would have been pissed when I watched the film, you know, but Cole did a great job. Like I say, he blocked some shots. Um, he got some rebounds in traffic and, you know, he played like he had been playing. He's been working when nobody's looking, and that's all you can ask for for a guy that hadn't up to this point gotten an opportunity.”

On if Lamar Washington is settling in…

“I think Lamar was good tonight, obviously, but I think that, you know, he's a guy that he's not ever going to be perfect, but that's what makes him who he is, you know, all at the same time, because he brings oughness and he brings a spirit to the game and he plays hard as I don't know what. I think that even as a fan, you can see that watching, you know, and so when you have guys like that I think his teammates can't help but rally around him. And I was proud of him and, you know, he only took nine shots, you know, but he directed traffic. He didn't turn the ball over. A couple of mental lapses on D kind of help a lot, you know, well, too much at times, but, you know, overall, man, he did a really good job, and I do believe that he's getting comfortable and his teammates are getting comfortable with him.”

On Kam Craft…..

“I thought Kam just did a better job on the defensive end, and I think that helped. To be honest with you, I thought he was good defensively. Um, he didn't get picked on, you know, he did a good job of staying between his man and the basket. I thought there were a couple of possessions where he went up and got some big rebounds. I tell people this all the time. The way I coach, I'm not really, you know, yes, making shots is part of the job, but at the same time, too, if you're doing everything else, I'll reward you for that. You know, I mean, I didn't think that, you know, even talking about Cam, I bring this guy up. Akai was 0-9, but I didn't waver in my confidence in him. Like, I thought he did a solid job defensively, and he got six rebounds. And so, there are certain things that you can come back to, and you get teaching points. Um, but the biggest thing is when you look at, and you alluded to it, Kam was plus 12. I think this is the first time all season if you look at the stat sheet, everybody who played was in the plus side.”

On free throw shooting….

“Wacie (Kowacie Reeces) and Lamar (Washington) stepped up and made big shots for us, uh, from the free throw line. We were just more poised.I thought there were times where, you know, I felt like we could have been rattled, but as a group, again, collectively, we just weren't. For today's game, our two best foul shooters they made free throws. You look, they made uh what 14 out of 17, 14 out of 16 from the line between the two of them. So, you know, that's big. But yeah, you know, it was really good to see both of those guys from that standpoint. Even Kam, went to the line, he responded, made his free throws. So, the only one we got to get Mo (Mouhamed Sylla) right, you know, because if he's going to get fouled that way, we got to make sure he's making free throws.

On Peyton Marshall and his struggles…

“I would say this first and foremost about P. This is the most minutes that P has played since he's been in college. And so, I think that goes into the seasoning part of it. I think that he's done a great job with his body of dropping the weight. There's going to be some ups and downs with him, you know, during this year, because this is really the first time he's played in college. But I think up until this point, you know, he's he's been pretty good, you know, but we have the luxury with our team that we just got to keep building him up because he can help us and he's shown that this season so far, but you know, tonight it just wasn't it just wasn't his game. I think that P's been good and you know, yeah, he needs to work on some things, but for the most part, um, the inconsistencies are due in part to the fact that as he gets more court time, he'll be better.”

On Baye Ndongo status…

“A little maintenance on his on his knee, you know, it's a continuous thing. We'll check back, and you know, by he knows his body better than anyone, you know, and I think that that's the biggest thing. And we just want to do the right thing because at the end of the day, we need them big picture long term. Mot that we didn't need him today. I wouldn't say that, like it's not like we just watch the game like we didn't need them, but you know, you've got to keep guys healthy and keep them in the right frame of mind as we move forward. That's the most important thing. As you know, you've been here. You know, this is the first time that I've actually had bodies that I've been able to rotate on a consistent basis.

More Georgia Tech Basketball News:

•Everything From Damon Stoudamire After 85-73 Loss To Mississippi State

•Georgia Tech vs Mississippi State SEC/ACC Challenge Live Updates NCAA Basketball

•Georgia Tech Drops Their Third Consecutive Game After 85-73 Loss To Mississippi State

•How to Watch Georgia Tech vs Mississippi State: Tipoff Time and TV Channel