"(Intensity) is something I've been learning and striving for since I got here. Coach is always on me about my intensity level. He told me I was talented but I had to pick up my intensity level. In the past, I would often defer. This season I wasn't allowed to do that. He had to stay on me to make sure I bring it every night. Now I'm seeing that all the hard work paid off. Playing hard all the time can be rewarded."
"In my heart, I would have liked to have seen him come to Washington because I feel like the things I've been through here have made me not only a better person but a better basketball player. You come to college and nobody looks at you as a star anymore. You're just another guy on the team, and that would have been great for him."
"I'm still kicking myself because I think for the first time in basketball, I felt sorry for myself. Like, 'Man, I did everything I could to win and then that happened.' It took me a minute to get my engine going. I think Bobby [Jones] felt the same way. I think Jamaal [Williams] felt the same way."
"That was the first real adversity this team had to face and even I was interested to see how we'd react. We had bad chemistry [during the losing streak]. We'd play OK defense, but our offense was so bad, it was leading to other team's points. Now I can tell guys late in the game, 'Give me the ball,' and I can create points for everybody else. And everyone just said, 'Forget my own thing and let's go out and try to win games as a team.' Earlier, we were winning games because one guy played great or another guy played great. But now we are winning as a team."
"We've got a lot of experience. When I was a sophomore, we were just excited to be there. Last year, being a one-seed, we just wanted to live up to expectations. This season is fun because no one is really saying much about us. We have the chance to go in there and surprise some people. We almost get to play the underdog role."
"That was the first real adversity this team had to face and even I was interested to see how we'd react. We had bad chemistry [during the losing streak]. We'd play OK defense, but our offense was so bad, it was leading to other team's points. Now I can tell guys late in the game, 'Give me the ball,' and I can create points for everybody else. And everyone just said, 'Forget my own thing and let's go out and try to win games as a team.' Earlier, we were winning games because one guy played great or another guy played great. But now we are winning as a team."
"We've got a lot of experience. When I was a sophomore, we were just excited to be there. Last year, being a one-seed, we just wanted to live up to expectations. This season is fun because no one is really saying much about us. We have the chance to go in there and surprise some people. We almost get to play the underdog role."