Syracuse vs. George Washington Coach Boeheim Quotes
Syracuse vs. George Washington
December 10, 2011
Carrier Dome, Syracuse, N.Y.
Coach Boeheim Quotes
Coach Boeheim’s opening statement:
“I thought we had really good energy in the first half, offensively and defensively. We moved the ball. The guards coming off the bench, Michael (Carter-Williams) and Dion (Waiters) had really good games. Michael has cut his turnovers back and passed the ball extremely well. The big guys played well. They got in front of people and drew charges. It was a good game. It’s always tough getting ready going into exams. We just have to try to maintain this.
“We have a week of different practice hours and are really going to have to work hard to keep ourselves on an upslope going into North Carolina State. It is our first road game and a really good place to play, a tough place to play. They are a team that could have won all the games that they lost. It’s going to be a great test for us. We get a week of practice and will go down there.”
How do you feel about potentially being ranked first in the polls on Monday?
“It’s nice. These kids have worked hard. Whatever happens, happens. We just have to be ready and get ready to play next week.”
How has Michael Carter-Williams been playing better lately?
“He just hasn’t tried to force things. He is taking care of the ball. He’s a very good defensive player. He really helps our defense. He is very active. He got on the floor and made a big play early for Dion (Waiters). He is running the team and being a good point guard. That is what we need him to do.”
How is the team improving in transition?
“I think we were a little better. We weren’t making as many errors. We made a couple, but didn’t make a lot of them. We made good decisions and finished layups, especially in the first half. We did a good job.”
How has Michael Carter-Williams improved as point guard?
“He’s still working on it. I think he is taking care of the ball better. It takes time. He is playing behind three really good guards. When gets his opportunities that he will get, I think he is comfortable enough to go in there and help us.”
What does C.J. Fair need to do to further help the team?
“He still didn’t rebound. He still has to be a better rebounder for us. That was my main concern. We still didn’t rebound very well again tonight. I think that is something we have to worry about going forward. We need him to get to get six or seven rebounds. I think had one last game and only had one for a really long time tonight. I think we need James (Southerland) and him to rebound better. James got beat on the boards a couple times tonight. This was a good game for Rakeem (Christmas). He got a chance to do some things tonight. All the experience we can get these young guys is going to help us going forward.”
How was the play of George Washington?
“I think George Washington played well. They had some good players. Defensively, we did a really good job for a long time tonight.”
How well did the full court press work today?
“We gave up a couple of layups long. We have to be concerned about that. We had a couple of turnovers and sped them up a little bit. It’s something we will keep working on. Hopefully, it will be helpful for us as we go along.”
How has Dion Waiter improved this year?
“His defense is the biggest improvement he has made. I think that is the main reason he didn’t get on the court a lot of times last year. His defense was good. He has bought into defense. He is playing good defense. I think he has the potential to become a really good defensive player and a better offensive player. That is something he is still working on.”
How has Fab Melo improved defensively this year?
“He just wasn’t able to run up and down the court last year, so we couldn’t keep him out there. He has made some good plays defensively, blocking shots and controlling the area around the basket. His conditioning is much better. He still has a long way to go. He will have some ups and downs as we go through the season. He will have tough games. We will have tough challenges for him and the other younger guys. We obviously have gotten off to a good start, but we know how difficult the league will be. These guys need those experiences to get better.”
How did Dion Waiters’ big dunks help in the game?
“I have never been a big believer in dunk contests. They don’t do much for me. Guys that can’t play at all can dunk. His defense is better and that’s a good thing. It’s the biggest change he has made from last year. He has been very good on defense, which leads to some of his offense. That is a big key for him. He has worked hard since the first day of practice.
“Freshmen are going to improve and if you really work at it, you are going to improve a lot. Those four sophomores have all improved a lot. They have made the normal improvement they will make and have worked hard. Michael (Carter-Williams) is a hard worker. That has helped him get better already. Everyone has been working hard. They know there is still a lot of hard work to do. The season doesn’t get started until we get to the BIG EAST. We have a very difficult game coming up. We will play a couple more games and get ready for the BIG EAST. Everyone has worked hard. They are in a good position. I don’t think we can be in a better position than what we put ourselves in. Now, we just have to stick to the things we’ve been doing, work hard this week, and get ready for North Carolina State.
How were Marshall and George Washington defensively?
“Marshall was good defensively. We did miss some shots. We misplayed some situations in transition that we cannot misplay. Marshall is a very good defensive team. If we didn’t score 20 points off turnovers, it would have been a very close game. It really wasn’t that close. The score ended up close, but it wouldn’t have been if it wasn’t for those turnovers. You can’t get away with how we misplayed some of those fast breaks, but we did. Marshall is a very good defensive team. I thought George Washington played good defense. We just go some layups, steals and easy baskets. There is no defense for that.”
How well did the team play at different points in the game?
“I think we played well in the first half. I think that was a good first half. We did a lot of good things. We used a lot of different things. It was a good experience. This month and November, we have tried a lot of different things to see what we can do. Guys have gotten game experience. That is what we were trying to do.”
December 10, 2011
Carrier Dome, Syracuse, N.Y.
Coach Boeheim Quotes
Coach Boeheim’s opening statement:
“I thought we had really good energy in the first half, offensively and defensively. We moved the ball. The guards coming off the bench, Michael (Carter-Williams) and Dion (Waiters) had really good games. Michael has cut his turnovers back and passed the ball extremely well. The big guys played well. They got in front of people and drew charges. It was a good game. It’s always tough getting ready going into exams. We just have to try to maintain this.
“We have a week of different practice hours and are really going to have to work hard to keep ourselves on an upslope going into North Carolina State. It is our first road game and a really good place to play, a tough place to play. They are a team that could have won all the games that they lost. It’s going to be a great test for us. We get a week of practice and will go down there.”
How do you feel about potentially being ranked first in the polls on Monday?
“It’s nice. These kids have worked hard. Whatever happens, happens. We just have to be ready and get ready to play next week.”
How has Michael Carter-Williams been playing better lately?
“He just hasn’t tried to force things. He is taking care of the ball. He’s a very good defensive player. He really helps our defense. He is very active. He got on the floor and made a big play early for Dion (Waiters). He is running the team and being a good point guard. That is what we need him to do.”
How is the team improving in transition?
“I think we were a little better. We weren’t making as many errors. We made a couple, but didn’t make a lot of them. We made good decisions and finished layups, especially in the first half. We did a good job.”
How has Michael Carter-Williams improved as point guard?
“He’s still working on it. I think he is taking care of the ball better. It takes time. He is playing behind three really good guards. When gets his opportunities that he will get, I think he is comfortable enough to go in there and help us.”
What does C.J. Fair need to do to further help the team?
“He still didn’t rebound. He still has to be a better rebounder for us. That was my main concern. We still didn’t rebound very well again tonight. I think that is something we have to worry about going forward. We need him to get to get six or seven rebounds. I think had one last game and only had one for a really long time tonight. I think we need James (Southerland) and him to rebound better. James got beat on the boards a couple times tonight. This was a good game for Rakeem (Christmas). He got a chance to do some things tonight. All the experience we can get these young guys is going to help us going forward.”
How was the play of George Washington?
“I think George Washington played well. They had some good players. Defensively, we did a really good job for a long time tonight.”
How well did the full court press work today?
“We gave up a couple of layups long. We have to be concerned about that. We had a couple of turnovers and sped them up a little bit. It’s something we will keep working on. Hopefully, it will be helpful for us as we go along.”
How has Dion Waiter improved this year?
“His defense is the biggest improvement he has made. I think that is the main reason he didn’t get on the court a lot of times last year. His defense was good. He has bought into defense. He is playing good defense. I think he has the potential to become a really good defensive player and a better offensive player. That is something he is still working on.”
How has Fab Melo improved defensively this year?
“He just wasn’t able to run up and down the court last year, so we couldn’t keep him out there. He has made some good plays defensively, blocking shots and controlling the area around the basket. His conditioning is much better. He still has a long way to go. He will have some ups and downs as we go through the season. He will have tough games. We will have tough challenges for him and the other younger guys. We obviously have gotten off to a good start, but we know how difficult the league will be. These guys need those experiences to get better.”
How did Dion Waiters’ big dunks help in the game?
“I have never been a big believer in dunk contests. They don’t do much for me. Guys that can’t play at all can dunk. His defense is better and that’s a good thing. It’s the biggest change he has made from last year. He has been very good on defense, which leads to some of his offense. That is a big key for him. He has worked hard since the first day of practice.
“Freshmen are going to improve and if you really work at it, you are going to improve a lot. Those four sophomores have all improved a lot. They have made the normal improvement they will make and have worked hard. Michael (Carter-Williams) is a hard worker. That has helped him get better already. Everyone has been working hard. They know there is still a lot of hard work to do. The season doesn’t get started until we get to the BIG EAST. We have a very difficult game coming up. We will play a couple more games and get ready for the BIG EAST. Everyone has worked hard. They are in a good position. I don’t think we can be in a better position than what we put ourselves in. Now, we just have to stick to the things we’ve been doing, work hard this week, and get ready for North Carolina State.
How were Marshall and George Washington defensively?
“Marshall was good defensively. We did miss some shots. We misplayed some situations in transition that we cannot misplay. Marshall is a very good defensive team. If we didn’t score 20 points off turnovers, it would have been a very close game. It really wasn’t that close. The score ended up close, but it wouldn’t have been if it wasn’t for those turnovers. You can’t get away with how we misplayed some of those fast breaks, but we did. Marshall is a very good defensive team. I thought George Washington played good defense. We just go some layups, steals and easy baskets. There is no defense for that.”
How well did the team play at different points in the game?
“I think we played well in the first half. I think that was a good first half. We did a lot of good things. We used a lot of different things. It was a good experience. This month and November, we have tried a lot of different things to see what we can do. Guys have gotten game experience. That is what we were trying to do.”
