ATHLETICS COMMUNICATIONS AND PUBLIC RELATIONS
MEN’S BASKETBALL
NOV. 29, 2019
RUPP ARENA – LEXINGTON, KY.
Kentucky Student-Athletes
#23, EJ Montgomery, So., F
On how well Ashton Hagans played …
“He played great. Twelve (assists), (six points), I think. He was just getting his team involved and just doing everything he can.”
On if he felt pressure to step up after Nate Sestina’s injury …
“I didn’t feel any pressure. Nate has been great for our team, so I just felt like I needed to step it up and contribute so we could get the win.”
On rebounding well …
“Actually my sister plays professional overseas and she just texted me and was like, ‘Try to find the ball first and find the defender and try your best to just get every point.’ ”
On how closely she watches and appraises how he is doing …
“Very close. She was actually at the game today and she texts me before every game and things like that to just get me motivated about playing.”
On what the brother-sister workouts are like …
“Both of my sisters actually worked out together and we just stay competitive. My family is always competitive. We all play basketball so it’s just a fun thing.”
#0, Aston Hagans, So., G
On assisting on baskets to big men …
“Once I got to the lane, they would try to come over and help so I had the open guy. It wasn’t just those two guys only. I was just trying to find my open man and attack the basket early.”
On what is making Nick (Richards) more consistent this year …
“His confidence. He has been the first one out on the court at practice these past few weeks. Getting up some shots. He has been talking to us more and that’s what we need from him to be at our best. He just has a swagger out there about him that no one can knock off.”
On having big guys that can go up and get the ball …
“Not only just trying to just throw it at the rim. A slip, a pick and pop. They can catch a pass and knock down a mid-range. That just gets them going. Especially with EJ (Montgomery).”
#4, Nick Richards, Jr., F
On demanding the ball …
“Yeah, he’s always emphasizing that in practice. He’s always telling the guys to get me the ball in the post, especially when it’s a quick dunk. Just because of the way other teams were playing every time I caught the ball, I had to kick it out. So, I didn’t really get those chances to get points in the post.”
On elevating his game in the absence of Nate Sestina …
“We were playing the same way, we never really got into a rhythm of playing three bigs at the same time. So, playing two bigs, we know how to rotate. It’s been a hard season so far playing two bigs, but we’re trying to figure it out along the way.”
On the biggest key to consistency …
“A lot of hard work done. I’ve been in the gym hours and hours, night after night, being in the gym with the coaches and the managers. It’s finally just paying off.”
On feeling more conformable this season …
“I’m just doing what the team needs me to do. Whatever coaches tell me I need to do, I do it to the best of my abilities. The vets and I have a good chemistry going on, and the freshmen were building as much chemistry as possible.”
On Ashton Hagans’ performance and what it did for the team …
“That’s just the chemistry we’ve built from last year to this year. It’s been improving our game. Last year we had a little bit of chemistry, and it’s getting better and better each game.”