Player Quotes Versus Manhattan
Syracuse vs. Manhattan
November 30, 2005
Carrier Dome, Syracuse, N.Y.
Syracuse Player Quotes
Sophomore Guard Josh Wright
On stepping up in a big game…
“It’s all part of the learning process. Tonight I learned about the game – trying to make good plays, getting the ball to the right people. That’s why I think Coach put me in there in that situation – to see how I would react and just learn from that experience.”
On coming back from an 11-point deficit with less than two minutes to play…
“We’re a very explosive offensive team, I knew we could come back. Eleven points isn’t that much to us. Terrence, Gerry, Darryl, all of us, we knew there was a lot of time left in this game and we knew we had to pull it out and make plays … We’ve been in this situation tonight, and that prepares us for tougher challenges in the future. I think we’ll have a pretty good outlook on what to do in that situation.”
On what to take away from this game…
“We’re learning. Every game is a learning experience for us. Every game we try to go out there and learn something new, execute different things. As we put these things together, watch out. We don’t get down on ourselves for bad plays and we don’t get over excited for good plays because we know it’s just a stepping stone for other things to come.”
On what the difference was in the second half…
“We had to make shots. I think they made nine of 26 in the first half, so it’s a big deal to hit shots. Any college team is going to hit shots. We left guys open who we weren’t supposed to leave open and they hit shots. They competed really toughly in the second half, and we buckled down and fought this one out.”
On being consistent…
“We know a couple of guys are going to (score) night in and night out. We just have to get that consistent rotation where Coach knows what to expect from each and every player. We have to go out there and perform.”
On playing with confidence…
“My confidence level is the same. It’s the confidence that the team has in me. They feel that I can play and they boost me up every game and every practice. It’s a step and it makes my job that much easier.”
Senior Guard Gerry McNamara
On the play of Josh Wright…
“I was able to take some time off the ball and bring it up so I didn’t have to wear myself down. Josh did everything right – he created shots and made plays. That’s what we expected out of him. We expected big things from Josh, and he expects big things out of himself. Josh did a great job and I’m proud of him.”
On what needs improvement…
“It was a big comeback, but it’s what we had to do. We have to play better defense. We can’t give up a twenty point lead in the second half and then get down by eleven. You just have to play every play like it’s the last. I think we did a pretty good job of that, but to me that situation in the first place is pretty poor. Coming in in the second half, playing pretty good defense, you’re pretty happy with yourself. They you go out and give up 60 more points in the second half, and it’s not something that you’re really proud of. We have a long way to go. We have to know our personnel – know who are drivers and who are shooters – and when we know that we’ll be a little better.”
On consistency:
“We’ll look like one of the best teams in the country for ten or fifteen minutes, and then we shut it down. You’re not going to win games like that, and we realize that. We have to turn around and I think Coach has tried to say that to us a couple of times, but we continue to do it. Hopefully this game tonight will be a wake-up call for us.”
On fighting back into the game:
“I was tired but when you see you’re down ten points, being tired doesn’t really mean anything. We were fortunate. Eric hit a big shot to put us in overtime, I had a chance to win it… I thought I might make it, but I put it a little long. We’re fortunate to come out of this with a win.”
Freshman Guard Eric Devendorf
On adjusting to the college game:
“I’m just going to try to come out and play my game, and hopefully it gets better.”
On the comeback:
“That comeback was a great comeback. I don’t know how much we were down, but it had to be double-digits. I think everybody was emotional in this game. It was a great comeback and we got the victory. I think we showed a lot of poise at the end of the game.”
On what’s next:
“Hopefully this comeback lets us know that we have to be ready for every team. We have (Texas Christian University) on Saturday and they’re a great team. They had Okalahoma State against the ropes, so that means it’s going to be a battle again.”
On what he was thinking down the stretch:
“I just did what Coach told me to do – I went in there and hit the shots.”
