St. John's University Athletics
Postgame Quotes: Manhattan vs. St. John's
11/16/2010 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Nov. 16, 2010
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Head Coach Kim Barnes Arico
Opening Statement:
"I thought we did a decent job at defending and really playing hard, but we still have a long way to go and have to get 40 solid minutes together. We showed some spurts of being a good team, which was nice. It was good to bounce back after the K-State loss. It was great to play on our home court. We still have a lot of areas to improve, but it was a bright spot tonight."
On the play of the team's bench:
"I think it was a great opportunity for us to have a chance to play some of the kids off the bench. Eugeneia McPherson is obviously a go-to player. She is capable of being in our starting lineup, but I think she gives us a spark off the bench. It was a great opportunity to see some of our freshmen in action. I think they really have a lot to offer. I think those minutes and that experience will just continue to help them get better. Amanda [Burakoski] really gave us a spark off the bench. She's going to be our three-point shooter that we lost in Kelly McManmon. She did a great job of knocking a couple of them down tonight, and we did a good job of finding her. It was a great opportunity for those kids to get some quality minutes."
On tempering the expectations of the new freshmen:
"It's really difficult. That's been an adjustment because we were really spoiled with Nadirah and Shenneika last year. Most of the time you get freshmen that can't come in and make an immediate impact. Nadirah and Shenneika were able to do that, which talks to the type of players that they are. Our freshmen this year are going to be great players, but they are freshmen. They are learning on the job and experience helps them. They will continue to grow as the season goes on."
On if Centhya "Coco" Hart's can handle so much playing time:
"I hope so. I definitely think she can. She's prepared herself for this. She's a senior and she's worked incredibly hard throughout her career. She knows this is an important year for her to contribute major minutes."
On keeping consistency when Nadirah isn't playing:
"Nadirah is, if not the best point guard, probably one of the best point guards in America. If she was on anyone's team and you took her off the court, that team would be significantly different. We are trying to work with Keylantra [Langley] and have her give us key minutes. Sky Lindsay does a tremendous job when we need her to play that position. She's done that for four years, being able to come in and play point guard. Obviously, Nadirah is very special, so when she's not in the game everybody notices a big difference. But we are able to steal minutes here and there and be successful with our other kids as well."
On Eugeneia's ability to shoot from outside:
"Eugeneia McPherson, along with Amanda Burakoski, are capable of knocking down shots. I think Eugeneia is going to be an impact player this year."
Sophomore forward Shenneika Smith
On her early scoring:
"We were working on getting me the ball in the short corner in practice today, and my teammates found me early and I was able to be successful."
On her behind-the-back assist to Eugeneia McPherson:
"I do it all the time in practice. In practice it doesn't work, but today I guess was successful."
On her transition game:
"Defense always helps offense. When you are playing better defense, offense will come. We are a running team. When we are playing really good defense, I can just leap out and run. I found Sky [Lindsay] a few times. When we play really good defense, like we're capable, it turns us into a really good offense."
Sophomore guard Nadirah McKenith
On her performance:
"I'm always looking to be a playmaker first. When we were on the road I had to score and be more of a scoring point guard. But today I got my teammates involved, and got them in a position to score."
On the differences between tonight's game and Saturday's game:
"Today we moved the ball and got extra passes. Today we actually made some shots. On Saturday, we couldn't buy a basket."
Head Coach John Olenowski
Opening Statement:
"We lost to a great basketball team. We played much better in the second half. We executed our offense a little better and hit more of our shots. St. John's is a quick team and they played great defense. They really took it to us, especially in the first half. I'm proud of our squad, but tonight, we lost to a great basketball team."
On the outlook of his team:
"We feel very positive about the outlook of our team. We lost to the No. 20 team in the country. We don't think we'll see another team as good as St. John's all season long. So I think we'll find a lot of positives about tonight."
On preparing for the next game:
"We're going to value the basketball better. We're going to make sure we get back in transition. We're going to rebound a little bit better and fight a little more on the offensive boards."
