Coach Boehiem Quotes
Syracuse vs. Wagner
November 18, 2012
Carrier Dome – Syracuse, N.Y.
Coach Boeheim Quotes
Can you talk a bit about the way Baye [Keita] has played as well as the other guys?
“Baye started slow, but then he got active and when he’s very active, he’s extremely good. I thought Rakeem [Christmas] was very good early – he was active. James has the capabilities of coming in and giving us a big boost off the bench. I thought James [Southerland] and Trevor [Cooney] were really good today, and Trevor particularly on defense was very good."
Has Baye [Keita] improved his pass catching ability or is that just a matter of that hand and wrist being healthy?
“I think he’s getting better, he’s working harder in practice and he’s showing that he wants to play harder and better.”
DaJuan [Coleman] had a few balls stripped away today, is he getting frustrated you think a little bit about the attention he’s getting on the inside?
“No, he’s used to that – he’s always gotten that attention and he’s used to being able to just try and make the layup and he can’t do that here. There are big guys out there, he’s got to learn how to use his body – he did a good job of that in that back bucket he made in the first half, he got into the guy with his body and made it. He got hit a couple of times out there, but that’s just the way it goes. He’ll get better, he’s not used to seeing as many big guys as he’s going to see, so it will take some time.”
Can you talk about Jerami [Grant] off the bench and the energy that he brings?
“You know, Jerami’s an active player and he still has a lot to learn, but he’s active and he can run the court and he’s going to be a good player. He has to take advantage of the time he gets right now.”
Coach, you mentioned the defensive effort right at the very beginning, can you expand on that, especially with the way their guards were attacking?
"I think everybody has been attacking us very similarly the last couple of years. You’ve got to get down and play good defense, just like man to man and you’ve got to keep the guy in front of you. A couple of times we didn’t do that, and they scored layups. I think overall, we're doing a good job on the defensive end, getting around screens and keeping people outside so they can shoot from the perimeter.”
What changed for Michael [Carter-Williams] from the first half to the second half?
“Well, at the end of the first half when he went back in, I thought he made three or four really good plays. Brandon [Triche] missed a couple of wide-open jump shots, but he made a good post speed and made a couple of other good passes that would have been easy buckets and we just missed them. I thought he really played like a point guard today, he really got the ball to people and I thought he really did a good job with finding people. He had 11 assists, he probably could have had 15 or 16, if he would have made a couple of jump shots, but it’s a work in progress. He’s learning – he struggled a little bit for a while, but he came right back in and played well. That guard is a really good little defensive guard playing him and it’s good experience for him.”
Jim your guards had 13 rebounds today, is there more of an emphasis on getting them back in the rebounding area?
“I think they are capable of it – they’re big, they’re long and they can play strong. Brandon is particularly strong and I think that’s something he can do.”
November 18, 2012
Carrier Dome – Syracuse, N.Y.
Coach Boeheim Quotes
Can you talk a bit about the way Baye [Keita] has played as well as the other guys?
“Baye started slow, but then he got active and when he’s very active, he’s extremely good. I thought Rakeem [Christmas] was very good early – he was active. James has the capabilities of coming in and giving us a big boost off the bench. I thought James [Southerland] and Trevor [Cooney] were really good today, and Trevor particularly on defense was very good."
Has Baye [Keita] improved his pass catching ability or is that just a matter of that hand and wrist being healthy?
“I think he’s getting better, he’s working harder in practice and he’s showing that he wants to play harder and better.”
DaJuan [Coleman] had a few balls stripped away today, is he getting frustrated you think a little bit about the attention he’s getting on the inside?
“No, he’s used to that – he’s always gotten that attention and he’s used to being able to just try and make the layup and he can’t do that here. There are big guys out there, he’s got to learn how to use his body – he did a good job of that in that back bucket he made in the first half, he got into the guy with his body and made it. He got hit a couple of times out there, but that’s just the way it goes. He’ll get better, he’s not used to seeing as many big guys as he’s going to see, so it will take some time.”
Can you talk about Jerami [Grant] off the bench and the energy that he brings?
“You know, Jerami’s an active player and he still has a lot to learn, but he’s active and he can run the court and he’s going to be a good player. He has to take advantage of the time he gets right now.”
Coach, you mentioned the defensive effort right at the very beginning, can you expand on that, especially with the way their guards were attacking?
"I think everybody has been attacking us very similarly the last couple of years. You’ve got to get down and play good defense, just like man to man and you’ve got to keep the guy in front of you. A couple of times we didn’t do that, and they scored layups. I think overall, we're doing a good job on the defensive end, getting around screens and keeping people outside so they can shoot from the perimeter.”
What changed for Michael [Carter-Williams] from the first half to the second half?
“Well, at the end of the first half when he went back in, I thought he made three or four really good plays. Brandon [Triche] missed a couple of wide-open jump shots, but he made a good post speed and made a couple of other good passes that would have been easy buckets and we just missed them. I thought he really played like a point guard today, he really got the ball to people and I thought he really did a good job with finding people. He had 11 assists, he probably could have had 15 or 16, if he would have made a couple of jump shots, but it’s a work in progress. He’s learning – he struggled a little bit for a while, but he came right back in and played well. That guard is a really good little defensive guard playing him and it’s good experience for him.”
Jim your guards had 13 rebounds today, is there more of an emphasis on getting them back in the rebounding area?
“I think they are capable of it – they’re big, they’re long and they can play strong. Brandon is particularly strong and I think that’s something he can do.”
