We played hard. Illinois is very, very strong, but we competed very well and challenged them.

We played very hard and unfortunately came up on the short end of the score. I am very proud of our effort. They out rebounded us and that one factor was the difference in the outcome.

Nobody's ever challenged me and tapped into what I can do. I ain't played a villain which I believe I can do and do real well. There hasn't been any director who has been able to challenge me to go there. At this point in my life I've done a lot of things from stand-up to my own television show for five years to successful comedy shows, and concert films.

We have a very committed, loyal audience that wants to be both entertained and challenged. They want to see the big-name jazz stars, but they also want to see what's new and different out there. They have this 'show me' attitude. They want guidance to new and creative things.

I didn't like the way we played in the third quarter at all, ... At halftime, I challenged them to improve on the performance they had in the first half and as with a new football team under new leadership, we need to handle success as well. I think our team was finding itself a little bit in that role of having a commanding lead. I did my best to prepare them at halftime.

I was really happy with most of what I saw in singles. We always emphasize that the focus needs to be on the process, and the outcomes will take care of themselves. That's exactly what happened today.