Syracuse Player Quotes
December 30, 2003
Carrier Dome, Syracuse, N.Y.
Sophomore Billy Edelin:
On his career-high 28 points against the Griffs
“This year Coach has given me the green light to shoot that shot and it’s opening things up. I was just feeling good. Everytime I would get the ball, I was just trying to make a play, whether it was for me or one of my teammates. I felt good.”
On Canisius
“This was a physical team, you can’t be thrown off by their record. They’ve got a couple of losses, but they play all good teams. So, I think they’re a much better team than people give them credit for.”
On the team's performance
“I think we need to play a whole ball game. What you saw today, there were times when we would go on spurts, when we would play real well, force a lot of turnovers, and then there were times when we gave up open three’s. So, I think we need to be more consistent. I like how we’re running and getting easy baskets because it’s making things easy for us.”
On the beginning of the BIG EAST schedule
“Whenever you go into your conference, you’ve got to be ready for physical play. The BIG EAST is a physical conference. We play teams twice and they know what you can do well and they come and try to knock you off, so I think this is a good test to see where we’re at going into the BIG EAST schedule.”
On playing Michigan State next
“This is what you want. This means we probably get to play 40 minutes, so you know I like that. I’m excited.”
“I’m just starting to feel more and more comfortable. They played us man for a lot of the game and zone in spurts, so I just took my time and let things come to me.”
Junior Craig Forth:
On the upcoming Michigan State game
“Last year’s game had such different meaning to it because they had only lost three or four times in that arena that they play in. So, for us to win there was a definite sign for us last year. This year, we lost to Charlotte and have an eight-game winning streak going on right now. It’s going to be a great test for us.”
“I don’t think there’s anything that we don’t have to worry about. We have three days where we have to get every act of our game a step higher. Maybe two steps higher, just to make sure we’re all on the same page.”
On SU's defense
“Our 2-3 zone has to be a lot more solid. We have to hedge out on screens and do other things in the man-to-man zone. Basically just be sharper on the defensive end. The offense is going to come, but the defense has to really step up.”
On the center sitiuation
“It’s a tough way to play, splitting time with three guys. They’re always coming off the bench after sitting five or six minutes. You have to be ready. You have to keep yourself warm somehow.”
Junior Hakim Warrick:
On SU’s inside play
“It’s just about being aggressive. Sometimes I think they’re not as aggressive as they should be, and some games they come out really aggressive. They make a few mistakes, sometimes I think they ease back a little bit. We just have to let them know that they need to keep being aggressive. We need them to be aggressive.”
On SU's center situation
“You just have to keep encouraging them and keep giving them the ball. I think especially Jeremy, he did a really good job. When he’s in there and we press, I think he really allows us to gamble, because he can guard a three-on-one break.”
“It’s tough going in there, especially the way they are sharing minutes, coming in and out of the game, but they’re coming along. We’re really going to need them, especially coming up in this big game Saturday against Michigan State. I think they’re going to be ready. We just need to keep being aggressive and hold that middle down, block shots and grab rebounds.”
On the play of Billy Edelin
“He’s one of the best finishing guards I’ve seen. Whenever you play him man-to-man, he’s going to get to the basket every time. He’s one of the best finishers in the nation.”
On playing Michigan State next
“ They’ve played a lot of games on TV. We saw them against Kansas and Kentucky. They lost some tough games and I know they’re going to be hungry, especially with us beating them last year at their home. I know they’re going to be hungry to beat us at our home.”
“If we can go in there and get a big non-conference win, then that will really propel us in the right direction going into BIG EAST play.”
On the team's identity
“I think we’re a really good transition team. We’ve got a lot of good guys that go to the basket like Josh and Billy, who are really good slashers. I think when we get in our transition and really get running, that’s when teams really have problems stopping us.”
“We’ve got to work on rebounding and stop giving up second-chance points because they really crash the boards and that’s going to really hurt us if we keep giving up second-chance points.”
