Head Coach Jim Boeheim Quotes - St. Francis Brooklyn
Syracuse Men’s Basketball
Syracuse vs. St. Francis Brooklyn
November 18, 2013
Carrier Dome, Syracuse, NY
Head Coach Jim Boeheim
Opening Statement
“We saw St. Francis’ tape and they really are a very, very good defensive team and they’re really patient. They’re really the first team that got the ball inside. We played three games against teams that were really doing nothing but shooting on the perimeter and this is the first team that really got the ball in the post and we weren’t in good position. Our centers were not in good position. They scored 22 points in the paint and that’s (almost) more than half of their points when they get 50. We did a good job on their perimeter guys. I’ll tell you, (Ben) Mockford is a great shooter. We just left him open three times, he made all three. We just got spread out a little bit and their post guys just had opportunities in there and finished."
"Offensively it’s the first time since the summer - the game with Carelton probably helped us in this game because they played the same way. They face guard C.J., they made it hard for him to get anything. He got tough shots the whole night. I thought that again, you play three teams in a row that don’t do that, and now all of a sudden, you get that kind of pressure and I don’t think we handled it well. We finally started trying to get to the basket where we could create an opportunity and then get an offensive rebound situation. But offensively it’s really the first game that we’ve seen that and we’re going see that a lot, that kind of physical defense. You can still play physical defense, just you’ve got to play with your body and I thought they did a great job of that and really took control of the game late."
"We had to make a couple of big defensive stops down the end and we did. Jerami (Grant) got a monster offensive rebound and then when he needed to he make his free throws. He did the same thing this summer in the game in Canada. We were down and he had to make - I think four - he made four in a row. But the difference was we got a couple of stops late and we got on the boards. It’s a very, very difficult game and I think it will help us. I think we can learn some things from this to help us going forward. We certainly have got a lot of work to do and that’s not a surprise.”
Can you talk about the play of DaJuan Coleman?
“He scored four points in a row and they scored four points in a row, so you can’t have that. He’s got to be better down there. I didn’t think our other centers were that much better but they were a little better, and at the end they were better. They made some plays down there. He got four offensive rebounds because he goes to the basket, he got good penetration, got a shot up there and he got four offensive rebound baskets and that’s what he does. He did that in Canada this summer. He’s our best offensive rebounder, it’s just a question of can we give up what we’re giving up. I really thought our other two centers would do a better job -- they did not really do a much better job. Although finally late, Baye (Moussa Keita) got around and we kept the ball out of the low post a few times and that made a difference. I think that’s something we just have to work on more, because again, nobody’s done that. So we played three games, you never see that, all of the sudden now here it comes, it’s a new thing and it took us too long to adjust to. I think the toughest guys to play down there are 6’6’’ guys, everyone thinks they’re little guys, but they’re the toughest guys to play when they get down low. It’s much easier to play a 6’10’’ guy -- they don’t have that ability to put the ball on the floor and spin and turn. They just kind of turn and we can block that. Again, that’s something we can learn, there’s no question, when a team decides to go inside, which now I’m sure people are going to, we have to be better when that happens.
“I think other guys tried to, I think Mike (Gbinije) came in and tried and made a couple plays. I thought Trevor (Cooney) got to the basket, tried to get to the basket better. They’re not going to give him any shots, he’s not going to get many good looks out there. I think Tyler (Ennis) really struggled tonight. Before he was just playing and making the play. Now he’s thinking that I’m going to go and shoot, and it wasn’t there. Trevor was over here wide open, somebody was trailing, and he’s trying to shoot over a guy. He has not made those plays, at all, in practice or this summer. Now he’s doing things that you would expect a freshman to do. He’s trying to do some things there when he should just make the pass, but he got to the basket and made a big drive for us. Again, he’s a freshman, he’s got a lot of work ahead of him. He will play better but he will have games like this. They all do, freshman, sophomores. Michael Carter-Williams went 3-for-17 more than a couple times. That’s just what happens. He will make better decisions, he will see it. We’ll try to show him some things and I think he’ll get better. When you get that many guys not playing very well and you can still get out of there, it’s pretty fortunate I think. Jerami (Grant) made some really good plays down the stretch. Same thing he did in Canada.”
You didn’t press until pretty late in the game.
“We’re not a good pressing team. They went right by us and the guy would have had a layup and a dunk except he lost the ball. You can’t get lucky all the time. That’s why we finally tied it and took it off, because we’d probably give them a bucket. By getting back and playing defense they were thinking when it’s a tie game, and you’re trying to pull an upset, you start thinking about it a little bit. We had a couple turnovers there. We’re not a good pressing team.”
Jerami Grant stepped up.
“Well he’s a good player. You know, we expect him to be able to do that. He did it last year as a freshman and he’s better this year. He’s bigger, stronger, he’s worked hard on his shot and they’re giving him his shot. He can make that 15-footer and when he starts making that he’s going to be difficult to guard. Now they are playing off him, and it’s harder to get to the basket when they don’t guard you out there. He’ll make that shot.”
From an emotional perspective, from a game perspective, what do you have to tell your team when you’re in a close game?
“You’re in a tough situation, you’re down. You get in that situation, we had to make plays, we had to make stops and if we didn’t make stops we wouldn’t have had the chance to win the game. After we made the stops, we had to convert and we did that. We made a couple really good defensive plays and then they fouled us right out of the defensive play. Those are things you have to do and then you have to go and make the free throws, and we did that. But we’re going to be in a lot of games like this.
We had a really good team last year, and we lost nine regular season games – five out of six - and we had a very experienced backcourt. We lost three guys that could get 20 (points) any night we played, and we didn’t replace them with anyone that could get 20. So we’re a different team. I thought this team was really in trouble in this game and they hung in there. They made plays when they had to on the defensive end and that turned over and we got something on the offense. We got points off of our defense because we got the steal. Jerami made a good play, we got the layup and then we got another steal, we got fouled. It was all defensive plays, there was no offense involved. Our offense was non-existent tonight, it was not good.”
Syracuse vs. St. Francis Brooklyn
November 18, 2013
Carrier Dome, Syracuse, NY
Head Coach Jim Boeheim
Opening Statement
“We saw St. Francis’ tape and they really are a very, very good defensive team and they’re really patient. They’re really the first team that got the ball inside. We played three games against teams that were really doing nothing but shooting on the perimeter and this is the first team that really got the ball in the post and we weren’t in good position. Our centers were not in good position. They scored 22 points in the paint and that’s (almost) more than half of their points when they get 50. We did a good job on their perimeter guys. I’ll tell you, (Ben) Mockford is a great shooter. We just left him open three times, he made all three. We just got spread out a little bit and their post guys just had opportunities in there and finished."
"Offensively it’s the first time since the summer - the game with Carelton probably helped us in this game because they played the same way. They face guard C.J., they made it hard for him to get anything. He got tough shots the whole night. I thought that again, you play three teams in a row that don’t do that, and now all of a sudden, you get that kind of pressure and I don’t think we handled it well. We finally started trying to get to the basket where we could create an opportunity and then get an offensive rebound situation. But offensively it’s really the first game that we’ve seen that and we’re going see that a lot, that kind of physical defense. You can still play physical defense, just you’ve got to play with your body and I thought they did a great job of that and really took control of the game late."
"We had to make a couple of big defensive stops down the end and we did. Jerami (Grant) got a monster offensive rebound and then when he needed to he make his free throws. He did the same thing this summer in the game in Canada. We were down and he had to make - I think four - he made four in a row. But the difference was we got a couple of stops late and we got on the boards. It’s a very, very difficult game and I think it will help us. I think we can learn some things from this to help us going forward. We certainly have got a lot of work to do and that’s not a surprise.”
Can you talk about the play of DaJuan Coleman?
“He scored four points in a row and they scored four points in a row, so you can’t have that. He’s got to be better down there. I didn’t think our other centers were that much better but they were a little better, and at the end they were better. They made some plays down there. He got four offensive rebounds because he goes to the basket, he got good penetration, got a shot up there and he got four offensive rebound baskets and that’s what he does. He did that in Canada this summer. He’s our best offensive rebounder, it’s just a question of can we give up what we’re giving up. I really thought our other two centers would do a better job -- they did not really do a much better job. Although finally late, Baye (Moussa Keita) got around and we kept the ball out of the low post a few times and that made a difference. I think that’s something we just have to work on more, because again, nobody’s done that. So we played three games, you never see that, all of the sudden now here it comes, it’s a new thing and it took us too long to adjust to. I think the toughest guys to play down there are 6’6’’ guys, everyone thinks they’re little guys, but they’re the toughest guys to play when they get down low. It’s much easier to play a 6’10’’ guy -- they don’t have that ability to put the ball on the floor and spin and turn. They just kind of turn and we can block that. Again, that’s something we can learn, there’s no question, when a team decides to go inside, which now I’m sure people are going to, we have to be better when that happens.
“I think other guys tried to, I think Mike (Gbinije) came in and tried and made a couple plays. I thought Trevor (Cooney) got to the basket, tried to get to the basket better. They’re not going to give him any shots, he’s not going to get many good looks out there. I think Tyler (Ennis) really struggled tonight. Before he was just playing and making the play. Now he’s thinking that I’m going to go and shoot, and it wasn’t there. Trevor was over here wide open, somebody was trailing, and he’s trying to shoot over a guy. He has not made those plays, at all, in practice or this summer. Now he’s doing things that you would expect a freshman to do. He’s trying to do some things there when he should just make the pass, but he got to the basket and made a big drive for us. Again, he’s a freshman, he’s got a lot of work ahead of him. He will play better but he will have games like this. They all do, freshman, sophomores. Michael Carter-Williams went 3-for-17 more than a couple times. That’s just what happens. He will make better decisions, he will see it. We’ll try to show him some things and I think he’ll get better. When you get that many guys not playing very well and you can still get out of there, it’s pretty fortunate I think. Jerami (Grant) made some really good plays down the stretch. Same thing he did in Canada.”
You didn’t press until pretty late in the game.
“We’re not a good pressing team. They went right by us and the guy would have had a layup and a dunk except he lost the ball. You can’t get lucky all the time. That’s why we finally tied it and took it off, because we’d probably give them a bucket. By getting back and playing defense they were thinking when it’s a tie game, and you’re trying to pull an upset, you start thinking about it a little bit. We had a couple turnovers there. We’re not a good pressing team.”
Jerami Grant stepped up.
“Well he’s a good player. You know, we expect him to be able to do that. He did it last year as a freshman and he’s better this year. He’s bigger, stronger, he’s worked hard on his shot and they’re giving him his shot. He can make that 15-footer and when he starts making that he’s going to be difficult to guard. Now they are playing off him, and it’s harder to get to the basket when they don’t guard you out there. He’ll make that shot.”
From an emotional perspective, from a game perspective, what do you have to tell your team when you’re in a close game?
“You’re in a tough situation, you’re down. You get in that situation, we had to make plays, we had to make stops and if we didn’t make stops we wouldn’t have had the chance to win the game. After we made the stops, we had to convert and we did that. We made a couple really good defensive plays and then they fouled us right out of the defensive play. Those are things you have to do and then you have to go and make the free throws, and we did that. But we’re going to be in a lot of games like this.
We had a really good team last year, and we lost nine regular season games – five out of six - and we had a very experienced backcourt. We lost three guys that could get 20 (points) any night we played, and we didn’t replace them with anyone that could get 20. So we’re a different team. I thought this team was really in trouble in this game and they hung in there. They made plays when they had to on the defensive end and that turned over and we got something on the offense. We got points off of our defense because we got the steal. Jerami made a good play, we got the layup and then we got another steal, we got fouled. It was all defensive plays, there was no offense involved. Our offense was non-existent tonight, it was not good.”
