St. John's University Athletics
Pregame Quotes: St. John's vs. South Florida
2/6/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Head Coach Norm Roberts
On the similarity of last year???s season closer to Rutgers and tomorrow night???s game against USF:
???The importance of the game is like that but we still have six more games to go in the BIG EAST. Things are going to change in how the BIG EAST bracket looks over the next few weeks because teams are playing teams that are very similar, or there are teams that haven???t played the upper echelon teams yet.???
On USF:
???The bottom line is that you have to come out and compete every night. With a team like South Florida, they are playing really well. If Marquette didn???t make two unbelievable shots, they would have beaten Marquette and then they played very well against Notre Dame. They are a very good team and they are very different team than what they were probably two to three weeks ago.???
On what the team needs to do for tomorrow night:
???We need to be dialed in. We know we are playing against a very good team that is hot right now, and we are going to have come out and play with a lot of energy and intensity. But it is also a long game. There are going to be peaks and valleys throughout the game. We hope there aren???t many and that there is consistency, but we need to come out ready to play right away.???
Junior Guard Eugene Lawrence
On USF:
???South Florida is going to come in aggressive after beating Notre Dame which is one of the top teams in the conference. They are playing right now with sort of an edge. They play hard and have a big frontcourt.???
On the importance of tomorrow night???s game:
???After the loss to Georgetown, Coach Roberts told us in practice going into the Cincinnati game that there are a bunch of teams who have the same record as us, and in order for us to make the BIG EAST Tournament we are going to have to win the remainder of our games we have to win at home and try and get some wins of the road.???
On going to the BIG EAST Tournament:
???Right now we???re focusing on the BIG EAST Tournament. It is something that we???ve missed out on in previous seasons. We feel that we control our own destiny now, as far as if we make it to the BIG EAST Tournament or not. It would be a great accomplishment for the team. For me, it???s my third season here but for guys like Lamont [Hamilton] and Daryll [Hill], they have been here for four years and never made it. It would be big for them and the program, seeing where the program has come from to where it is headed. It would be a big plus for the St. John???s program.???
Sophomore Forward Anthony Mason Jr.
On the importance of tomorrow night???s game:
???This is a big game and each game after this one is as well, especially in the run for the tournament. But this next one is a huge game because we want it and South Florida has never been to the tournament so they are hungry for it too. It going to be a good game and we have to come out with the victory.???
