Head Coach Jim Boeheim Quotes - Colgate
Syracuse Men’s Basketball
Syracuse vs. Colgate
Wednesday, November 21, 2018
Carrier Dome, Syracuse, N.Y.
Head Coach Jim Boeheim
Opening Statement:
“I thought that our defense in the first half was very poor. I think in the second half we played much better but still not the best for us. Second half went much better with shooting the ball. We rebounded the ball better. We’ve got to make shots.
"With the way we shot in the first half we were fortunate to be able to get the win. We had a couple good defensive possessions, and a couple of good steals with a couple baskets. But we missed seven or eight layups around the basket and we’ve got to make those. I think we were 2-for-10 from the three. In the second half it looks like we made a lot of shots but we really didn’t. But, when you’re not making any shots, taking an extra few helps.
“I thought Tyus (Battle) got his rhythm back, got to the basket, and then he made a couple threes. Elijah – we know can shoot, he just hasn’t been shooting really well. He hit two or three there. It’s not really a lot but it’s more than we’ve been making.
“Again, it was good to have Frank (Howard) back. He made a couple really smart plays to start the second half. He got the ball back to Elijah and gave it to Tyus, and we got a couple of threes because of it. I thought when you haven’t played in three weeks it’s really hard to have five assists and no turnovers. I thought he was really good with what he did.
“Tyus was a different player tonight. He didn’t play the last part of the game and had 24 points in 26 minutes so that is more what we expect from him. I think the whole thing (playing point guard) with how he played early wasn’t good for him and wasn’t good with the way he plays. I just think he was much more comfortable at the two but I’m glad to get him back there.
“I think Colgate is really good. They showed that in the first half. We had to get into them and make it hard and of course they gave us a really good game last year. I think they are a really good team. It was a good win and we’re happy to get it.”
Can you talk about the first and second wave of offense you had in the second half?
“It kind of looks like we made a lot of shots when in reality we made a few. We still shot 7-for-20 from the three which is 35 percent. When you’re shooting 20 that’s pretty good, but not what we can do, I think we can do better, but hopefully that will come. I thought Bourama and Marek were really good out there. I think they did a really good job, defensively especially.”
What impact did Frank Howard’s return have on the offense, especially in the second half?
“I think he just got us into the right place. He didn’t have to score to get us going. We have guys that can score but he will, he’ll score. You can’t come out and play basketball after not running. It’s difficult, it’s very difficult and he was really playing the best I’ve ever seen him play this summer. We’re trying to get him back there and it’s not going to happen immediately, it’s going to take some time, but he was very steady and got the ball to people and got us into offense during the second half.”
How did Tyus Battle’s confidence change during the game?
“Tyus had a couple drives but he’s not shooting as well as he shot last year. I hope he never changes his shot again. We’ve got to get him back to where he was shooting last year, he was a pretty good shooter. Now, he’s been struggling from the foul line and last year he didn’t miss many. You know this is the way he can play and he can even play better than this. It was a really good night for him but I think he will continue to improve moving forward.”
Syracuse football great Tim Green announced he has ALS late last week. How has that touched you?
“I have met with Tim on a couple of occasions at a couple of functions that we were at together and the first time I saw him, I was taken aback. He’s such a Syracuse guy. He’s really so important to Syracuse – what he did for football when he came here and all he’s done. He’s a great example of what you’d like to see in somebody.
“ALS is a tragic thing. It’s hard to see it. He’s fighting and he’s going to do everything he can to battle it. He’s one of our guys – one of the greats to ever play here. It’s a very difficult disease and it’s tough to see. We’ll try to help do something out of this thing. It’s very difficult.”
Can you talk about Bourama Sidibe’s play tonight after Paschal Chukwu went out?
“I thought he was effective. I thought he was moving – he’s not moving as quickly as he did in certain stages when he first got here. That was when he did. He’s kind of stationary more than he was. He’s not anywhere near back health-wise. He’s still not there – he’s not as strong. We need him, obviously, to be able to play for us and be effective for us. I think he’s important. He was very important tonight.
“Marek (Dolezaj) was good. Marek has not played that well. Marek is a really good player and we need him to play better.”
How did you plan to guard Colgate’s 6-10 center after Paschal Chukwu went out?
“We have Bourama (Sidibe), who is 6-10, and Marek (Dolezaj), who is 6-10, so we have guys and they did a good job. We contained their big guy pretty well. He’s been good this year. He’s had some really big games.
“We let (Will) Rayman get off to a big start and then after that, we decided to play defense. It took a while. Sometimes, when you’re coming off games when you don’t play well on either end, it can be difficult. I thought we battled it out in the first half and kept it close. Then we started to make some shots.”
