Additional Quotes >> USA 113, Canada 59 (medal quarterfinals)

July 6, 2012 • Kaunas, Lithuania

USA head coach Don Showalter (Iowa City High School, Iowa)
On tonight’s game:
I give Canada a lot of credit. They came out very strong in the first half. They really powered the boards in the first half. Of their 30 points, they had 24 in the paint. We had to shore some things up in the second half. We respect all of our opponents a great deal, so we felt that at halftime we had to come out right away and establish our game. Fortunately we did that.

In the second half when you pulled away, was it just about buckling down on defense?
Yeah, I thought we were a step slow in the first half in going after loose balls. We didn’t box out really well in the first half. I think we did a much better job of that in the second half. Obviously as the game went on, we tend to wear our opponents down a little bit because our depth is so good coming off the bench. We don’t consider that we have a starting five. We have like two starting fives. That goes a long way for our pressure defense and wearing our opponent down.

The biggest positive for you so far going into the semifinals?
The way we’re playing defense. We’re getting some people back and healthy again. We’ve wanted that since the start of the tournament. I think that’s going to help us a lot in the long run.

On Spain, the USA’s semifinal opponent:
Obviously Spain is a good team. They finished really high in the European U16s. At this point you can’t overlook anybody and our players understand that. We’re going to take the old cliché of one game at a time. That’s what we’re doing right now.

Conner Frankamp (Wichita North H.S. / Wichita, Kan.)
How were you able to put Canada away in the second half?
Just our defense, obviously. Like always, defense for us and rebounding is a big part of our game.

What kind of team is Spain?
They get up and down a lot, but they’re not that big. I think our big men will help us out a lot.

Do you feel you’re coming together at the right time?
Definitely. Our team chemistry is really good and I feel like everybody’s bonding together and having a great time.

What’s it like having Jabari Parker back in the lineup?
It’s really nice to have him back out there. Having him out there, the defense has to be aware of where he is at all times. That just opens everybody else up as well.

Tyus Jones (Apple Valley H.S. / Apple Valley, Minn.)
On tonight’s game:
Shots were just falling for me. I was putting the ball in the hole. It was just one of those nights for me. I take what the defense gives me. Setting up my teammates, just running the team is what I do. But I’ll take what the defense gives me and they were giving me shots tonight.  

How do you stay focused after two big blow-outs?
Our coaches stay on us not to let up, to keep playing hard and not take any team for granted. That’s what we’re doing. We’re just coming out every game focused and ready to play.

It seemed that Canada knew your plays pretty well. How did you combat that?
We got out in transition and scored in transition, pushed the ball and sped up the tempo. They scouted us, but they still had to stop us. We still ran our stuff. We executed it. That’s all that matters, if you can execute it. We were doing that and that’s what was getting us points. We were also getting defensive stops.

On Spain, the USA’s semifinal opponent:
They’re a very well-coached team. They’re a very talented team as well. They play extremely hard. We’ll have to come out tomorrow and be focused, play hard and not let up at all.

Jabari Parker (Simeon Career Academy / Chicago, Ill.)
How did it feel to get back on the court after sitting the last two games?
It felt real good. It was very fun, getting to play with my teammates. I was very excited from the get-go because I haven’t played in two games. But, I can’t take it for granted. I have to play like that all the time, with a passion and for the enjoyment of it.

How were you able to pull away from Canada?
At halftime, we always have these big halftime speeches. Coming in after the second quarter coach talks to us and tells us what we have to do. Then we came out with the aggressiveness that we didn’t have in the first half. We just came out and killed it.

How fun is it playing with this group of guys?
It’s very fun. Our biggest strength is our relationship off the court. That’s why we have so much success on it. We just mold together as a good team.

Johnathan Williams (Southwind H.S. / Memphis, Tenn.)
It seemed that Canada knew your plays pretty well. How did you combat that?
We just played hard on defense, pushed the ball. We got a lot of fast-break points in the second half.

How does the team stay focused after a couple big blowouts?
Basically we just need to stick together, play hard and press them on full court because we have the depth. We just need to play hard and rebound.

What was the key to the win against Canada?
Just playing hard and rebounding. Our press, our press kills everybody. So, that’s what we need to keep on doing.

Why do you think teams can’t handle your press?
We have a lot of depth. We just run them down.

Justise Winslow (St. John’s School / Houston, Texas).
On tonight’s game:
We would get the lead up and then we would stop boxing out. Then they would get off the boards and that really kept them in the game. They were playing hard. It’s tough to get a good team out of the game in the first half. But, in the second half we kept pushing it, kept being aggressive and blew them out.

What did coach talk about at halftime?
He told us the three main things that we need to do on defense, which were box out, help side and pressure the ball.

Was it good to have Jabari Parker back to give you an extra man?
Yeah, definitely. Jabari is a top player. He’s really good. He kept us focused and concentrated on winning the game.

How can you keep focused tomorrow night against Spain?
Coach keeps us humble. He talks more about the stuff we do wrong than the stuff we did well. He keeps us focused on how we can get better the next game.