What Josh Pastner Said After Georgia Tech's 82-54 Win Over Morehouse
Opening statement:
“First off, just give a lot of credit to Morehouse. Obviously, coach [Grady] Brewer has been there 20 years. You don’t stay at a place for 20 years without being very successful, and he’s done a great job at Morehouse and won a lot of games. And not only is he a really good coach, he’s a really good guy too. So it was really good for the community to have both teams play today, I thought it was good for both programs.”
“What I was most proud of, and what I’ve told our guys we’re trying to get to, is to be a championship-level program, I said in order for us to do that, it’s never about the opponent, it’s got to be about us. About playing the right way and giving great energy and competing. And I was really proud of the way we moved the ball. We weren’t real structured on some things offensively today but guys really played the right way. For the most part, the open man was the go-to man. We had 30 made field goals, 24 of them were assisted, and we kept sharing the ball so I was really proud of that. We did a nice job on the glass. Jordan [Usher] in the last two games has had 12 assists and three turnovers, and Evan Cole had 10 boards today. They continue to give us good momentum and we’ve got to be ready to go Saturday at Notre Dame. We’re getting better and we’ve just got to keep staying the course. We’re off tomorrow and we’ll get back practicing on Thursday.”
On scheduling a game during the bye week:
“Well the two reasons, we had an opportunity with Jordan [Usher] being eligible at mid-year, to try and get that extra game in after he became eligible. Plus, we had two byes this year so instead of taking two byes, one of the byes we can play someone. We weren’t able to find a Power Five and so if we weren’t able to get one of those, especially this late in the year because everyone is in league play, we felt it was best to play another program locally and make it a community event. And that’s why it was good for both us and Morehouse. It was a real positive experience for coach Brewer and his group and the same thing with our group. And obviously both Morehouse and Georgia Tech are connected in the city through many ways, so it was a good evening for both the institute and university.”
On what Tech can take away from this game heading into the Notre Dame game on Saturday:
“It’s easy to get into a game like this and you can start playing selfish. And we had a segment or two possessions where it was very easy to score, you’ve got a lead and you can just start trying to get your own shot or points. I was proud of our guys that we kept continuing to find the open man. We shared the ball, we made the one more pass. So that was a positive. But if we didn’t play today we would have practiced and I thought this was better for us than a practice. And we are getting better so it gives us good momentum going into our last 10 games of ACC regular season play. And it starts with Notre Dame on Saturday.”
On how Jordan Usher has improved:
“Here’s what I’ll tell you on Jordan. From where he was in that Ball State game and those first couple games in Hawaii, he was wild and he was rusty. He has gotten better. And you know what he’s improved on? He’s improved as a basketball player. And he’s learning how to play the right way and he’s making really good decisions and he’s playing unselfish. He’s a sponge right now. Anything you tell him, he’s picking up. I’m really proud of him both on and off the court. He’s made a lot of strides. Everyone [saw] him in his first few games here, he wasn’t a good basketball player. He was an athlete, but now he’s becoming a good basketball player. And if he can continue that trajectory, with his athleticism and motor, he’s got a chance to be really good.”
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