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Mike White Post Southern Miss

Opening Statement:

"It is fitting for these guys to have this opportunity and have this party. They accomplished so much and they are great young men who have done so much for our program. I do not want to say that it is fitting that we won the championship out right, because it is a heck of a league, but because we had the opportunity to win it outright, it felt perfect on senior night."

On UAB loss:

"I was made aware of it as we were walking out to the floor to start the second half. We wanted to do what we were supposed to do on senior night more than anything. We wanted to continue the streak at home of excellence that these guys have achieved. As much as we wanted it for the seniors, we wanted it for everyone in the building, what a great atmosphere."

On seniors:

"They did what they do. They played to their strengths. Over the past three or four weeks, Michale Kyser has been incredible. I thought Speedy did Speedy and Raheem made some hard shots. Raheem really put us on his back offensively."

On early struggles:

"I thought we just gambled a little too much. I thought we played really hard from the tip. We had 16 deflections at halftime. I just did not think we played very intelligently defensively. We were trying to hit home runs and grand slams, as opposed to just trying to string together some stops. We ran past five or six loose balls. We were leaking out as opposed to defensive rebounding. We were just too eager to get out in transition and make big plays. I thought we settled in, in the second half."

On keeping emotions in check:

"We knew we were playing a capable opponent. We had our hands full with Southern Miss. I thought they were terrific with their preparation. Doc has done a great job holding it together all year through their adversity. We kept our minds set on the task at hand. This is not our last game. We are eager to prepare for next week so we can do something in Birmingham."

On celebration:

"The celebration lasts until we wake up tomorrow. We are not thinking about Birmingham until tomorrow. We are going to enjoy this."