St. John's University Athletics
POSTGAME QUOTES: St. John’s vs. Xavier
St. John’s Head Coach Chris Mullin, Marvin Clark II and LJ Figueroa spoke to the media after Thursday’s loss to Xavier, 84-73.
Head Coach Chris Mullin
On Mustapha Heron's status…
"Day to day."
On tonight's game…
"I thought they put the imprint on the game. Physicality. That was pretty much it. They took it too us physically, dictated tempo of the game, slowed the game down, and got to the free throw line a bunch. We really never got two, three, four good possessions in a row."
On if teams with size will be a problem to face in the postseason…
"We know what we have to do. We just have to do it. Front to post, bump cutters, and be physical just like they are with us. That's what it comes down too. That's the physical part of the game, then we can get to the skilled part. We know what we have to do to win a game like this and it's not what happened tonight."
On the team's intensity…
"I give Xavier some credit with that. They imposed their will physically and put us back on our heels. They pretty much dictated that game and it stayed that way."
On getting more out of Shamorie Ponds without Mustapha Heron in the lineup…
"We need more from everybody. Not just Shamorie [Ponds]. Everybody. He is obviously one of our best players and any level when you take one of your best players off, it's going to put more demand on other guys. The offensive rebounds, 50/50 balls, all of those things become more important."
On the concern of finishing the season with two road games…
"I think we are in a difficult spot every time we walk on the floor if we don't stick to our game plan or our responsibilities. … Not looking backwards, but forward. We have another team very similar to {Xavier] in DePaul. … It's basically a replay of what they did to us here. That's what DePaul did to us. I am not worried at all. Prepare and go play."
Redshirt senior forward Marvin Clark II:
On the team's effort tonight…
"I feel like we did what we had to do to get back into the game. We made runs. I feel like everything else is out of our hands."
On where the team struggled tonight…
"I feel like we brought it. I just feel like we turned the ball over too much. When we did get a stop and get an opportunity, we either turned the ball over or they got an offensive rebound. When it comes to that you're just not going to win. They get more possessions, more free throws, we do the hard work and then turn it over, we're just beating ourselves."
On struggling to string consecutive wins together in BIG EAST play…
"Honestly, I don't have an explanation. I just say inconsistencies. It's that simple. We have to lock in and get better and realize that we're playing for something more than just BIG EAST play. We're playing for seeding. In the tournament, it's one game, it's one game that you're promised. After that, you choose your fate. We've got to realize that either we've got to lock in and figure it out or we put in all this work for nothing, because that means we play one game and then get sent home. We've got to figure out how to string some [wins] together."
On the atmosphere inside Carnesecca Arena….
"The crowd was great. The energy was great. We used that energy to rally."
Sophomore guard LJ Figueroa:
On the emotions of tonight's game…
"The game is just natural instincts. We tried to come back during the game. Things weren't going our way the whole entire 40 minutes. We just kept trying to stay together and be one, be a team."
On Mustapha Heron's status…
"Day to day."
On tonight's game…
"I thought they put the imprint on the game. Physicality. That was pretty much it. They took it too us physically, dictated tempo of the game, slowed the game down, and got to the free throw line a bunch. We really never got two, three, four good possessions in a row."
On if teams with size will be a problem to face in the postseason…
"We know what we have to do. We just have to do it. Front to post, bump cutters, and be physical just like they are with us. That's what it comes down too. That's the physical part of the game, then we can get to the skilled part. We know what we have to do to win a game like this and it's not what happened tonight."
On the team's intensity…
"I give Xavier some credit with that. They imposed their will physically and put us back on our heels. They pretty much dictated that game and it stayed that way."
On getting more out of Shamorie Ponds without Mustapha Heron in the lineup…
"We need more from everybody. Not just Shamorie [Ponds]. Everybody. He is obviously one of our best players and any level when you take one of your best players off, it's going to put more demand on other guys. The offensive rebounds, 50/50 balls, all of those things become more important."
On the concern of finishing the season with two road games…
"I think we are in a difficult spot every time we walk on the floor if we don't stick to our game plan or our responsibilities. … Not looking backwards, but forward. We have another team very similar to {Xavier] in DePaul. … It's basically a replay of what they did to us here. That's what DePaul did to us. I am not worried at all. Prepare and go play."
Redshirt senior forward Marvin Clark II:
On the team's effort tonight…
"I feel like we did what we had to do to get back into the game. We made runs. I feel like everything else is out of our hands."
On where the team struggled tonight…
"I feel like we brought it. I just feel like we turned the ball over too much. When we did get a stop and get an opportunity, we either turned the ball over or they got an offensive rebound. When it comes to that you're just not going to win. They get more possessions, more free throws, we do the hard work and then turn it over, we're just beating ourselves."
On struggling to string consecutive wins together in BIG EAST play…
"Honestly, I don't have an explanation. I just say inconsistencies. It's that simple. We have to lock in and get better and realize that we're playing for something more than just BIG EAST play. We're playing for seeding. In the tournament, it's one game, it's one game that you're promised. After that, you choose your fate. We've got to realize that either we've got to lock in and figure it out or we put in all this work for nothing, because that means we play one game and then get sent home. We've got to figure out how to string some [wins] together."
On the atmosphere inside Carnesecca Arena….
"The crowd was great. The energy was great. We used that energy to rally."
Sophomore guard LJ Figueroa:
On the emotions of tonight's game…
"The game is just natural instincts. We tried to come back during the game. Things weren't going our way the whole entire 40 minutes. We just kept trying to stay together and be one, be a team."