Postgame Quotes: St. John's 58, Butler 55

1/15/2014 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball

Jan. 15, 2014

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St. Johns' Head Coach Joe Tartamella

Opening statement:

"We're excited about coming away with a win today. I thought that we put together a great last four minutes of the first half that helped us open up the game a little bit and it eventually set us up again in the second half. However, I was a little bit disappointed with our effort in the second half defensively. I thought we didn't do a great job executing our game plan but making informed plays and drawing a couple of key charges and steals down the stretch helped us win the game. We found a way to win which to me is another step for our team moving forward this season. As I told our players, it's a sign that we are in a better position than we were in the beginning of the year to be able to close a game out like this where maybe we struggled and still got a chance to win the game. It was another hard-fought battle in the BIG EAST and I'm glad we got the win."

On what his team did down the stretch to get the victory over Butler:

"We just executed better. I thought our intensity picked up and our players made great individual plays. We've got a good group of players that have been tested over the years and I think that helps us at end of games. When you've had a number of players who have been in intense situations postseason wise and in different environments in the BIG EAST it helps prepare you moving forward."

On who stood out to him during the game:

"Briana Brown balanced us early. She gave us a couple of good shots that helped us. I thought Aliyyah Handford played a great game but she just didn't finish as well as she normally has. Amber Thompson, who has been playing really well for us, has really emerged especially on the rebounding side. Eugenia McPherson has been a warrior; she has been playing a lot of minutes and she's been very good with controlling the tempo and to her credit playing in a position where she has never played before in her life. Danaejah Grant gives us stability coming off the bench and she's been great for us and she's continuing to learn. The entire roster can give us help on any given day, it's nice to have options, but I felt those players really stood out today."

Senior guard Briana Brown

On the atmosphere of field trip day:

"It was awesome. It's great to have all of the kids and people come out to the game. Just hearing them scream and root for St. John's was a great feeling. It makes everything a lot better."

On the 18-2 run to end the first half:

"We played great basketball period, so that's just something we should do all the time. It's not just a best here or worst there, we should play like that all the time."

Sophomore guard Aliyyah Handford

On ending Butler's second half run:

"I just tried to play harder. I just tried to attack them more and draw fouls. The steal at the end of the game was big for us because we needed it to go up. We just needed to play defense and play hard."

On being able to finish games this season:

"We just need to play harder and come out in the second half like we did in the first half. We need to keep playing better and not as sloppy."