Just pointing out again for those that assume all games are a given. The Big East is a dog fight.
Also, it’s hard to cover taking the favorites!
Also, it’s hard to cover taking the favorites!
Nova by 7?
- Thread starter setonball46
- Start date
St. John's thrives on athleticism. They are long and versatile and they do a great job in areas like turnovers and blocked shots. They had a big TO margin last night and played Nova tough in the paint, but the Johnnies aren't a good rebounding team.
DiVincenzo went off; 6/9 from 3.
DiVincenzo went off; 6/9 from 3.
Ponds had 37. Totally dominated the ball. No other Johnnie had more than 7 points. The last 6-7 minutes of the game he had one nice asst but usually passed to a team mate only when he was in trouble. Everybody else just played D and tried to muck up the game. They played really hard. It might have worked if DiVencenso (sp) didn’t go off and hit 5 straight 3s in the second half.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
POSTGAME QUOTES: St. John’s vs. No. 1/1 Villanova
Head Coach Chris Mullin, Shamorie Ponds, and Marvin Clark II spoke to the media following Saturday’s loss at Madison Square Garden
January 13, 2018
Web Release: http://www.redstormsports.com/sports/m-baskbl/recaps/011318aaa.html
St. John’s Head Coach Chris Mullin…
On the game:
“I think this effort, which I’ve said a few times and it hasn’t happened yet, but this effort will get us wins. We played the No. 1 team in the country to a tie in the second half. I think we were down four when whatever play that was [happened]. You probably got a better look at it than me, but that’s great effort. That’s winning basketball. They’re No. 1, best in the country, and I’m proud of my guys. I told them after the game, the effort is there, it really is. It’s been there for the most part, no question about that, we just have to do a little more and make winning plays. We will get there, there’s no question in my mind.”
On the defensive possession after St. John’s cut it to four:
“We’re not going to talk about it. You can look at it just like we can. … We were down four with whatever time was left against the No. 1 team. That’s the point. That’s pretty good. We were down 10 and hung in there. We made some plays, got stops, some of those loose-balls rebounds, some tip-ins, and things like that. To me, that’s what I’ve been preaching, and I believe it. It’s not a cliché to me. If we keep doing that, we will knock the door down and get wins. We just really got to keep that positive mindset, and the worker’s mentality. It’s not supposed to be easy. Any path that’s easy isn’t worth it, so this is going to be really worth it for us.”
On Villanova:
“They move the ball, attack the paint, they come to classic two-foot stops, they use crisp passes, and they end it with made shots. They are just a well-oiled machine. They play old-fashioned basketball with the three mixed in. It’s nothing fancy, come with triple threats, get low, and try to get to the paint. They’ll post-up, they don’t always shoot from the post-up, but they’re very disciplined. Nothing but respect for them.”
Redshirt junior forward Marvin Clark II…
On learning they were without Marcus LoVett for season:
“At the end of the day he is our teammate and we love him, but at the end of the day there are no excuses. We have a good group of guys and I believe we can win with who we have playing on the floor.”
On the team’s vibe:
“We just try to keep a positive mindset. It’s adversity. We are in a rut right now, like Coach [Mullin] said, we just have to figure out how to knock the door down and feel like once we get that first win, we will taste blood and go on a run. We have to figure out how to knock down that gate and climb over that wall.”
On Shamorie Ponds’ performance:
“I have the utmost respect for [Shamorie Ponds]. He is one of the best players in the country and one of the better players in our conference. I am happy that he got to see the ball go in. He is a player that we need to play at a very high level for us to win. I think it just speaks to his worth ethic. He is from here, he is made for this, he never backs down from any opportunity or any challenge that is put in front of him, and I am proud and happy for him.”
On his personal performance:
“It kind of hurts. I wish I could have done a little more. I didn’t really shoot the ball as well as I am capable of shooting it, and didn’t provide much in terms of rebounding. If I bring a little more I feel like we win that game.”
Sophomore guard Shamorie Ponds…
On his personal performance:
“I just tried to do what was possible to get my team a win, if it wasn’t scoring it was defending, rebounding, and just trying to do what my team needed.”
On the team’s performance:
“I think we were doing a good job defending. We had little mental errors where we messed up and they converted on them.”
POSTGAME QUOTES: St. John’s vs. No. 1/1 Villanova
Head Coach Chris Mullin, Shamorie Ponds, and Marvin Clark II spoke to the media following Saturday’s loss at Madison Square Garden
January 13, 2018
Web Release: http://www.redstormsports.com/sports/m-baskbl/recaps/011318aaa.html
St. John’s Head Coach Chris Mullin…
On the game:
“I think this effort, which I’ve said a few times and it hasn’t happened yet, but this effort will get us wins. We played the No. 1 team in the country to a tie in the second half. I think we were down four when whatever play that was [happened]. You probably got a better look at it than me, but that’s great effort. That’s winning basketball. They’re No. 1, best in the country, and I’m proud of my guys. I told them after the game, the effort is there, it really is. It’s been there for the most part, no question about that, we just have to do a little more and make winning plays. We will get there, there’s no question in my mind.”
On the defensive possession after St. John’s cut it to four:
“We’re not going to talk about it. You can look at it just like we can. … We were down four with whatever time was left against the No. 1 team. That’s the point. That’s pretty good. We were down 10 and hung in there. We made some plays, got stops, some of those loose-balls rebounds, some tip-ins, and things like that. To me, that’s what I’ve been preaching, and I believe it. It’s not a cliché to me. If we keep doing that, we will knock the door down and get wins. We just really got to keep that positive mindset, and the worker’s mentality. It’s not supposed to be easy. Any path that’s easy isn’t worth it, so this is going to be really worth it for us.”
On Villanova:
“They move the ball, attack the paint, they come to classic two-foot stops, they use crisp passes, and they end it with made shots. They are just a well-oiled machine. They play old-fashioned basketball with the three mixed in. It’s nothing fancy, come with triple threats, get low, and try to get to the paint. They’ll post-up, they don’t always shoot from the post-up, but they’re very disciplined. Nothing but respect for them.”
Redshirt junior forward Marvin Clark II…
On learning they were without Marcus LoVett for season:
“At the end of the day he is our teammate and we love him, but at the end of the day there are no excuses. We have a good group of guys and I believe we can win with who we have playing on the floor.”
On the team’s vibe:
“We just try to keep a positive mindset. It’s adversity. We are in a rut right now, like Coach [Mullin] said, we just have to figure out how to knock the door down and feel like once we get that first win, we will taste blood and go on a run. We have to figure out how to knock down that gate and climb over that wall.”
On Shamorie Ponds’ performance:
“I have the utmost respect for [Shamorie Ponds]. He is one of the best players in the country and one of the better players in our conference. I am happy that he got to see the ball go in. He is a player that we need to play at a very high level for us to win. I think it just speaks to his worth ethic. He is from here, he is made for this, he never backs down from any opportunity or any challenge that is put in front of him, and I am proud and happy for him.”
On his personal performance:
“It kind of hurts. I wish I could have done a little more. I didn’t really shoot the ball as well as I am capable of shooting it, and didn’t provide much in terms of rebounding. If I bring a little more I feel like we win that game.”
Sophomore guard Shamorie Ponds…
On his personal performance:
“I just tried to do what was possible to get my team a win, if it wasn’t scoring it was defending, rebounding, and just trying to do what my team needed.”
On the team’s performance:
“I think we were doing a good job defending. We had little mental errors where we messed up and they converted on them.”
I assume he means by other teams. I would be careful judging any team on one game. Especially when coming off playing a major foe like Xavier and blowing them out.
It was clear that they did not bring their A game to the Garden. It's a very long season and no team can play to their max in every time out.
It was clear that they did not bring their A game to the Garden. It's a very long season and no team can play to their max in every time out.
If you can force Nova into one on one basketball and get them to be selfish; I think we can beat them. If they do what they do; move the ball and find themselves with good open looks; they’ll make shots and be hard to beat.
The biggest challenge with them is the fact they have 5 guys on the floor who can shoot the 3. Tough matchup with Angel with Spellman if they draw him away from basket.
The biggest challenge with them is the fact they have 5 guys on the floor who can shoot the 3. Tough matchup with Angel with Spellman if they draw him away from basket.
