St. John's University Athletics
POSTGAME QUOTES: St. John’s vs. St. Francis Brooklyn
St. John’s upperclassmen Julian Champagnie, Montez Mathis and Head Coach Mike Anderson spoke to the media after a 76-70 victory against St. Francis Brooklyn
St. John’s Head Coach Mike Anderson
Opening statement...
“St. Francis, they came in like it was a neighborhood game, and you saw what happens when teams come in and play like they have nothing to lose. I always say never look at the name on the jerseys, because each game has its own characteristics. They shot the lights out and that gave them energy. We were able to find a way to win. It was a gut check and that’s what you are going to have as you continue to become a team. I was just glad to see our guys have some adversity and figure it out. We’ll learn from it.”
On the team’s response to St. Francis Brooklyn's three-point shooting...
“First of all, we were giving [up] middle drives and when you give middle drives they have options to pass the basketball. … When they sucked us in, it was leaving guys wide open. They hadn’t been shooting the ball well, but you knew they had some capable shooters. ... [In the second half] I thought we did a better job of staying attached to those shooters. When they penetrated we did a better job of keeping them out of the lane without fouling.”
On the offense...
“We didn’t make shots, but I thought we did a good job of attacking the basket. We shot over 50% [from the floor]. I know we’re a much better shooting team than we shot. Tonight, I think we made some timely threes. I think Stef [Smith] made two in the second half. … Tareq’s [Coburn] been sick for the last week. He just played in practice yesterday. We have a lot of moving parts and as they come together, they’re going to be a good basketball team. I was proud of Montez [Mathis]. He really rose to the occasion. I thought Dylan [Addae-Wusu] was really good as well. We had a lot things going against us, but we found a way.”
Junior forward Julian Champagnie
On the second-half effort to pull out the win…
“We just got after it. …We found the right combination of five guys and got it going quickly. The last eight minutes is when we got rolling. We work on that in practice with eight minute periods to simulate that kind of environment.”
On how the team can build on the way they finished this game…
“I think we finished the game pretty well. I give credit to my teammates like [Montez Mathis] and everyone else. We came together and pulled it out. At some point things started to click. In order to reach the goals that we’re striving for we have to win games. I couldn’t tell you what really clicked, but we found the right vibe at that time. We just kept getting stops and easy buckets in transition. We pushed the pace and that helped us.”
On how to improve the team’s start to games…
“Making sure we have better first-half [performances] is going to be a point of emphasis. We have to come out with more energy and tighten up our rebounding and defending. … Kudos to St. Francis Brooklyn, they played a really good game today.”
Senior guard Montez Mathis
On Julian Champagnie’s ability to heat up quickly…
“It’s very impressive. He’s a hard worker. He puts the time in at the gym, so I’m not surprised by it at all by the shots he makes. It’s fun when he gets hot.”
On his third-career 20-point performance and first at St. John’s…
“I treat every game the same. I just go out there and play as hard as I can. I’m just trying to get a win. I don’t care too much about statistics and just go out there and give it my all.“
Opening statement...
“St. Francis, they came in like it was a neighborhood game, and you saw what happens when teams come in and play like they have nothing to lose. I always say never look at the name on the jerseys, because each game has its own characteristics. They shot the lights out and that gave them energy. We were able to find a way to win. It was a gut check and that’s what you are going to have as you continue to become a team. I was just glad to see our guys have some adversity and figure it out. We’ll learn from it.”
On the team’s response to St. Francis Brooklyn's three-point shooting...
“First of all, we were giving [up] middle drives and when you give middle drives they have options to pass the basketball. … When they sucked us in, it was leaving guys wide open. They hadn’t been shooting the ball well, but you knew they had some capable shooters. ... [In the second half] I thought we did a better job of staying attached to those shooters. When they penetrated we did a better job of keeping them out of the lane without fouling.”
On the offense...
“We didn’t make shots, but I thought we did a good job of attacking the basket. We shot over 50% [from the floor]. I know we’re a much better shooting team than we shot. Tonight, I think we made some timely threes. I think Stef [Smith] made two in the second half. … Tareq’s [Coburn] been sick for the last week. He just played in practice yesterday. We have a lot of moving parts and as they come together, they’re going to be a good basketball team. I was proud of Montez [Mathis]. He really rose to the occasion. I thought Dylan [Addae-Wusu] was really good as well. We had a lot things going against us, but we found a way.”
Junior forward Julian Champagnie
On the second-half effort to pull out the win…
“We just got after it. …We found the right combination of five guys and got it going quickly. The last eight minutes is when we got rolling. We work on that in practice with eight minute periods to simulate that kind of environment.”
On how the team can build on the way they finished this game…
“I think we finished the game pretty well. I give credit to my teammates like [Montez Mathis] and everyone else. We came together and pulled it out. At some point things started to click. In order to reach the goals that we’re striving for we have to win games. I couldn’t tell you what really clicked, but we found the right vibe at that time. We just kept getting stops and easy buckets in transition. We pushed the pace and that helped us.”
On how to improve the team’s start to games…
“Making sure we have better first-half [performances] is going to be a point of emphasis. We have to come out with more energy and tighten up our rebounding and defending. … Kudos to St. Francis Brooklyn, they played a really good game today.”
Senior guard Montez Mathis
On Julian Champagnie’s ability to heat up quickly…
“It’s very impressive. He’s a hard worker. He puts the time in at the gym, so I’m not surprised by it at all by the shots he makes. It’s fun when he gets hot.”
On his third-career 20-point performance and first at St. John’s…
“I treat every game the same. I just go out there and play as hard as I can. I’m just trying to get a win. I don’t care too much about statistics and just go out there and give it my all.“