Jim Boeheim Quotes - Pittsburgh
Syracuse Men’s Basketball
Syracuse vs. Notre Dame
Saturday, Jan. 6
Carrier Dome, Syracuse, N.Y.
Syracuse Head Coach Jim Boeheim
Opening Statement:
“When you lose some games in a row, you lose a little confidence in your shooting. Pitt was smart. They went back inside and just made us shoot a few—and when you’re not making 3’s against a zone, you’re going to have a problem.”
“I thought in the second half that Frank (Howard) tried to use the screens a little more and got in the lane, made a couple big plays. Tyus (Battle) got in there then he got the three that broke it off the same screen play. Marek (Dolezaj) seems to be the only guy in the middle of the zone that has an idea of what he’s doing in there. Our other two freshmen don't and that hurts us against a zone—nobody in there making plays.
I thought defensively we were okay, except our best players have got to know what guy is making shots. If there’s one guy making shots, you cannot let that guy shoot, and this has been a problem a little bit against Florida State and here (Pitt). There’s one guy that can make shots and we’re not guarding them. That's not a good recipe, especially when you’re struggling a bit on offense.”
“We started to find them a little bit better but then right at the end, we were fortunate enough to have a large enough lead, but we just left them open in an inbound situation. You just can’t do that. I just don't think we’re reading things.
I think we’ve got a lot of guys where it’s their first year having to make plays—Frank (Howard). It’s his first time when he’s been in the league and playing these games and the freshmen have a long way to go.”
“I think Paschal (Chukwu) takes a step forward and then takes a step backward. Tonight, he had opportunities and he’d bring the ball down and not finish. At the end he got mad a little bit, got the pass and then he dunked it. He should be doing that the whole game, but he just doesn't have that mentality and he’s got to get that mentality. He’s just not doing that and we need him to do that. His presence on defense is very important and helps us. I think Oshae (Brissett), too, is taking a step back. He was getting to the basket early. I think he did try tonight. I think he might have gotten hit a couple of times but you still have to finish those.”
“I thought it was good how Marek (Dolezaj) played tonight, he took a step up. Howard (Washington) played really well.
We need practice days, this team more than any team I’ve ever had at this stage in the year. We really need some days of practice to understand what we’re trying to do. Offensively, Tyus (Battle) is carrying us.When we struggled early, other guys stepped up to make plays. We’ve got a long way to go but I think these few days will help us. Every game is going to be difficult. We just have to keep working and get a little bit better.”
What was the biggest difference for Frank (Howard) and Tyus (Battle) in the second half?
“They got to the basket. They drove. It’s hard to drive to the basket. In our zone, you can drive against it because we spread out and cover more because we are worried about the 3-point shot, although we didn’t do a good job tonight. When they are as tight as they are in there, it’s difficult. We tried a couple of different kinds of screens to see and we finally did get in there. Frank (Howard) got in there and made a couple big buckets. I was disappointed because we get in there, and the shots we miss were bringing people to us and we’ve got 7’2”, 6’9” and 6’8” and we’re not getting there. Pitt is not a great rebounding team. They're okay but they’re not great. We need to get some of those back and we just didn't.”
Syracuse vs. Notre Dame
Saturday, Jan. 6
Carrier Dome, Syracuse, N.Y.
Syracuse Head Coach Jim Boeheim
Opening Statement:
“When you lose some games in a row, you lose a little confidence in your shooting. Pitt was smart. They went back inside and just made us shoot a few—and when you’re not making 3’s against a zone, you’re going to have a problem.”
“I thought in the second half that Frank (Howard) tried to use the screens a little more and got in the lane, made a couple big plays. Tyus (Battle) got in there then he got the three that broke it off the same screen play. Marek (Dolezaj) seems to be the only guy in the middle of the zone that has an idea of what he’s doing in there. Our other two freshmen don't and that hurts us against a zone—nobody in there making plays.
I thought defensively we were okay, except our best players have got to know what guy is making shots. If there’s one guy making shots, you cannot let that guy shoot, and this has been a problem a little bit against Florida State and here (Pitt). There’s one guy that can make shots and we’re not guarding them. That's not a good recipe, especially when you’re struggling a bit on offense.”
“We started to find them a little bit better but then right at the end, we were fortunate enough to have a large enough lead, but we just left them open in an inbound situation. You just can’t do that. I just don't think we’re reading things.
I think we’ve got a lot of guys where it’s their first year having to make plays—Frank (Howard). It’s his first time when he’s been in the league and playing these games and the freshmen have a long way to go.”
“I think Paschal (Chukwu) takes a step forward and then takes a step backward. Tonight, he had opportunities and he’d bring the ball down and not finish. At the end he got mad a little bit, got the pass and then he dunked it. He should be doing that the whole game, but he just doesn't have that mentality and he’s got to get that mentality. He’s just not doing that and we need him to do that. His presence on defense is very important and helps us. I think Oshae (Brissett), too, is taking a step back. He was getting to the basket early. I think he did try tonight. I think he might have gotten hit a couple of times but you still have to finish those.”
“I thought it was good how Marek (Dolezaj) played tonight, he took a step up. Howard (Washington) played really well.
We need practice days, this team more than any team I’ve ever had at this stage in the year. We really need some days of practice to understand what we’re trying to do. Offensively, Tyus (Battle) is carrying us.When we struggled early, other guys stepped up to make plays. We’ve got a long way to go but I think these few days will help us. Every game is going to be difficult. We just have to keep working and get a little bit better.”
What was the biggest difference for Frank (Howard) and Tyus (Battle) in the second half?
“They got to the basket. They drove. It’s hard to drive to the basket. In our zone, you can drive against it because we spread out and cover more because we are worried about the 3-point shot, although we didn’t do a good job tonight. When they are as tight as they are in there, it’s difficult. We tried a couple of different kinds of screens to see and we finally did get in there. Frank (Howard) got in there and made a couple big buckets. I was disappointed because we get in there, and the shots we miss were bringing people to us and we’ve got 7’2”, 6’9” and 6’8” and we’re not getting there. Pitt is not a great rebounding team. They're okay but they’re not great. We need to get some of those back and we just didn't.”
