Quotables: Malcolm Lee
On the team finding positives in the Kansas loss:
"Although we played somewhat better than we have been playing, we shouldn't be happy with an 'L.' We should take how hard we play and how intense we are. We competed a lot. But I just feel like we need to treat every team like the No. 1 team in the country."
At some points you guys were pushing the tempo and controlling the action; how important is that?
"We were going more up and down and it was more fluid. But at the same time, we have to play in the system. We have to stay with this identity, but yet don't forget how we got here."
On Drew Gordon's transfer:
"Drew was a good presence inside; he could defend the post and run up the court. That's going to be missing. I don't think we're better off without him. We're going to miss his presence. But there was a lot of drama off the court. That affected on the court."
Guess it was a better kept secret than Tiger Woods' infidelity...
Having had kids that played sports, including at the D1 level, I can say for sure that drama outside the game is always present and always a distraction. Too much and it leads to a team collapse.
I'm glad that Howland recognized this and cut it off now.