Texas A&M Basketball
Aggie Flashback: Part II with former basketball player Dominique Kirk
“The first couple of minutes against LSU, we were getting beat pretty bad. Typical of our team, we battled back and played our hearts out. Looking back, it was a great game, it really was. Back and forth.”
“It was bittersweet after that game. It was one of those deals where we felt like we belonged after that tournament run. At the same time, it was Chris Walker’s last year and we felt like we could have advanced a little longer for him. We also didn’t know the status of Acie (Law) in the draft. But we did feel like we belonged and I think Acie felt that too, that’s why he came back.”
“We felt very confident about where we stood in the Big 12 and the nation. We were a team that had been put together for three years and were a hard-nosed confident group that felt like we could make a run at not just a Big 12 title but a national championship. We put a lot of work in during that three year period and felt like we could make a run. We felt confident enough that we could get to the championship game. There were some tough teams out there, Florida, the eventual champions, Ohio State, teams like that, but we felt like we could make it that far.”
“Acie just got better each year, not just physically but mentally and became the leader that Coach wanted him to be. If you look at his improvement from sophomore to junior and junior to senior, it was through the roof. For the young guys, he was the guy that they could look up to and having someone with that capability made a world of difference.”
“His game at Kansas was one of the best. I’ve seen a lot of great performances from him. There were times I’d forget I was playing because I’d be watching him play out of his mind. When we went up to Kansas, no Big 12 South school had won up there at the time, so it was either a hit or miss. We felt like we could win, but everyone outside Aggieland didn’t. We stayed on course and Coach Gillispie just told us to stay on course and keep playing, then you reach the part where Acie does what he does and it was a fitting end.”
“That was one of the games where I felt myself just watching. I was in awe during the Texas game with Acie and Durant going back and forth. It was an electric atmosphere and a rivalry game, doesn’t get better than that.”
“We watched him make shots with no rotation in practice, so after a while you got used to it. The shot he made over Kevin Durant was unbelievable. I could see it, but at the same time you’re thinking no way and then, for some reason, it dropped.”
“Rupp Arena was amazing. I love the moment. If you lose, you’re done. I just wanted to be aggressive and coach had been getting after me about being more aggressive for half the season. It was a great 48 hours.”
“The atmosphere in San Antonio was amazing. We went into that game feeling like we would win. It was just one of those games where both teams battled hard and one rebound stood between the Elite Eight and us. We felt like if we could get past Memphis, Ohio State set up well for us. It would have been a really good game, but we felt like we could match up with them and get past them.”
“A lot of programs have to go through a transition, I feel like Turgeon did a good job of keeping it simple for the guys. Leadership kind of took over and we started 15-1, should have been 16-0 and after that it was a bit of a roller coaster. It was a tough end, one of those things where you can’t get the picture out your mind. It was a foul but they didn’t call it so you have to play on.”
“I want to continue to train and coach and hopefully coach at the collegiate level one day. I think I have a good mind for it, so we’ll see what happens.”
“It was bittersweet after that game. It was one of those deals where we felt like we belonged after that tournament run. At the same time, it was Chris Walker’s last year and we felt like we could have advanced a little longer for him. We also didn’t know the status of Acie (Law) in the draft. But we did feel like we belonged and I think Acie felt that too, that’s why he came back.”
“We felt very confident about where we stood in the Big 12 and the nation. We were a team that had been put together for three years and were a hard-nosed confident group that felt like we could make a run at not just a Big 12 title but a national championship. We put a lot of work in during that three year period and felt like we could make a run. We felt confident enough that we could get to the championship game. There were some tough teams out there, Florida, the eventual champions, Ohio State, teams like that, but we felt like we could make it that far.”
“Acie just got better each year, not just physically but mentally and became the leader that Coach wanted him to be. If you look at his improvement from sophomore to junior and junior to senior, it was through the roof. For the young guys, he was the guy that they could look up to and having someone with that capability made a world of difference.”
“His game at Kansas was one of the best. I’ve seen a lot of great performances from him. There were times I’d forget I was playing because I’d be watching him play out of his mind. When we went up to Kansas, no Big 12 South school had won up there at the time, so it was either a hit or miss. We felt like we could win, but everyone outside Aggieland didn’t. We stayed on course and Coach Gillispie just told us to stay on course and keep playing, then you reach the part where Acie does what he does and it was a fitting end.”
“That was one of the games where I felt myself just watching. I was in awe during the Texas game with Acie and Durant going back and forth. It was an electric atmosphere and a rivalry game, doesn’t get better than that.”
“We watched him make shots with no rotation in practice, so after a while you got used to it. The shot he made over Kevin Durant was unbelievable. I could see it, but at the same time you’re thinking no way and then, for some reason, it dropped.”
“Rupp Arena was amazing. I love the moment. If you lose, you’re done. I just wanted to be aggressive and coach had been getting after me about being more aggressive for half the season. It was a great 48 hours.”
“The atmosphere in San Antonio was amazing. We went into that game feeling like we would win. It was just one of those games where both teams battled hard and one rebound stood between the Elite Eight and us. We felt like if we could get past Memphis, Ohio State set up well for us. It would have been a really good game, but we felt like we could match up with them and get past them.”
“A lot of programs have to go through a transition, I feel like Turgeon did a good job of keeping it simple for the guys. Leadership kind of took over and we started 15-1, should have been 16-0 and after that it was a bit of a roller coaster. It was a tough end, one of those things where you can’t get the picture out your mind. It was a foul but they didn’t call it so you have to play on.”
“I want to continue to train and coach and hopefully coach at the collegiate level one day. I think I have a good mind for it, so we’ll see what happens.”
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