St. John's University Athletics
POSTGAME QUOTES: St. John’s Men’s Basketball at Marquette
Red Storm Head Coach Mike Anderson spoke with the media after an 85-77 loss at Marquette on Saturday
St. John’s Head Coach Mike Anderson
Opening Statement…
“I say this after most games, especially a game of this magnitude, the free throw line is the biggest difference. The ability to make them at key times. Marquette went 20-for-25 from the free throw line. It was the game I thought it was going to be. … Teams going at each other. We were down seven at the half and we came out with a nice surge. It was a game of runs and I thought they had the last one. That was the difference in the game. I thought our guys competed at a high level. They played to win. We left some plays out there on the floor. At the end of the day, I thought they left everything they had out there on the floor.”
On what prevented the team from coming away with a win…
“We couldn’t get over the hump and couldn’t get a stop. It has to be one of those combinations where we make a shot or get to the free throw line. The game was never out of reach, but we just couldn’t make that play tonight. For whatever reason, we could not get over the hump.”
On Justin Lewis’ improvement this season…
“It reminds me of the jump Julian [Champagnie] made in his first year. Shaka [Smart] has done a good job of letting him be the leader. He’s definitely one of the leaders, and he’s got a good cast around him. When you think about [Darryl] Morsell, he’s the guy that keeps them solid. He’s an older guy. They play the way Shaka wants them to play, attacking defensively. They got some big offensive rebounds. That was one of the killers for us. We were right there, within striking distance, and they get a rebound and get a stick back. Justin [Lewis], I think, has been one of the most improved players in our league.”
Opening Statement…
“I say this after most games, especially a game of this magnitude, the free throw line is the biggest difference. The ability to make them at key times. Marquette went 20-for-25 from the free throw line. It was the game I thought it was going to be. … Teams going at each other. We were down seven at the half and we came out with a nice surge. It was a game of runs and I thought they had the last one. That was the difference in the game. I thought our guys competed at a high level. They played to win. We left some plays out there on the floor. At the end of the day, I thought they left everything they had out there on the floor.”
On what prevented the team from coming away with a win…
“We couldn’t get over the hump and couldn’t get a stop. It has to be one of those combinations where we make a shot or get to the free throw line. The game was never out of reach, but we just couldn’t make that play tonight. For whatever reason, we could not get over the hump.”
On Justin Lewis’ improvement this season…
“It reminds me of the jump Julian [Champagnie] made in his first year. Shaka [Smart] has done a good job of letting him be the leader. He’s definitely one of the leaders, and he’s got a good cast around him. When you think about [Darryl] Morsell, he’s the guy that keeps them solid. He’s an older guy. They play the way Shaka wants them to play, attacking defensively. They got some big offensive rebounds. That was one of the killers for us. We were right there, within striking distance, and they get a rebound and get a stick back. Justin [Lewis], I think, has been one of the most improved players in our league.”