St. John's University Athletics
Pregame Quotes: St. John's vs. Syracuse, January 21, 2007
1/19/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Head Coach Norm Roberts
On the team???s recent losses:
???We have to shake it off. There is nothing else you can do. We can???t worry about what happened yesterday or the day before, you just have to concentrate on what is going on right now. You have to know that this is a different game and a different battle and we have to compete. It???s a long season. Guys understand what we???re doing right and what we???re doing wrong and we just need to continue to try to get better.???
On Sunday???s matchup against Syracuse at Madison Square Garden:
???You have to attack the zone obviously but you also have to rebound the basketball. We can???t allow them to get open looks and we really have to control the backboard because Syracuse does a great job at rebounding the ball.???
On the team???s chemistry:
???I think it has been good at times but it???s inconsistent. We have to do a better job of screening and getting Anthony Mason Jr. and Avery Patterson shots. We have to use all of our guys and get the ball into Lamont Hamilton and really just use all of our strengths.???
Junior Guard Eugene Lawrence
On the importance of Sunday???s game against Syracuse:
???This is a really important game because we???ve gotten off to a tough start in the BIG EAST. We have to start picking it up in order to make postseason play.???
On Syracuse:
???Syracuse is a really good team. They have a lot of depth and they are very long. Teams tend to have trouble against their 2-3 zone.???
More on Syracuse:
???We have to play better defense and get to loose balls faster. We have been working on a lot of zone offense because Syracuse plays zone for the whole game. They don???t play man to man. I think we???ll match up pretty good. We just have to hit open shots and move the ball.???
On the team???s recent struggles:
???Losing four in a row is hard but we have to come in every day at practice and work hard. We see other teams in the league that are good teams and they are in the same position. We know that we have to come in every day and take every game one game at a time and try to win so we can make postseason play.???
Sophomore Center Tomas Jasiulionis
On the importance of Sunday???s game:
???Every game is important especially when we have lost four games in a row. We have to play hard and take the victory because no one is going to give it to you. It???s important to win every single game we play, especially the ones we play at home. It???s a tough conference and a tough schedule so every game is important.???
On Syracuse:
???They are a good team. They???ve got a lot of talent and a good freshman class plus the players they have returning. Their front line is pretty big. They???ve got two 6-10 kids and they are going to be playing zone. Their zone is big so it???s going to be hard to attack them. They???re a solid team, with quick guards, shooters and big men who can run the floor.???
On what the team needs to improve on:
???We have to work on making good decisions like not turning the ball over so much. We need to rebound a lot better and limit our turnovers. We have to execute our plays on offense. Attack the zone. Plus we have to work on our defense and get stops. In order to win against a team like Syracuse, we have to play excellent defense and work on our rebounding.???
Junior Guard Avery Pattesron
On what the team needs to improve on:
???We have to go out and play hard and continue to play our game. We have to execute better and do the little things. When we lose, it???s because we don???t do those little things.???
On Syracuse:
???I???ve seen them play a few times on TV and I know they have some good players. It???s going to be a tough game but if we come out and do what we need to, we???ll be alright.???
