St. John's University Athletics
POSTGAME QUOTES: 10/9 St. John’s vs RV/RV UConn
St. John’s Men’s Basketball Head Coach Rick Pitino, forward Aaron Scott, guard Deivon Smith and UConn Head Coach Dan Hurley spoke with the media following the team’s 89-75 win over RV/RV UConn on Sunday at Madison Square Garden
Head Coach Rick Pitino
Opening statement…
“Well, I'm incredibly delighted with this victory. Especially when they cut it to nine on some great plays, we were in the huddle and Zuby [Ejiofor] said, ‘Look, we've battled injuries. We don't wilt. We've been there before. We know what to do.’ I was really proud of that. I think once Deivon [Smith] got healthy again, I think our offense picked up. It's not about shooting. It's about the type of shots that you get and he got everybody great shots in that first half. That's why we had 50 points. So he had a big game for us.”
On Aaron Scott and Deivon Smith’s play…
“Aaron [Scott] here was bleeding, getting every shot, me getting on him, and he's bleeding, can't talk back. He just was a warrior out there. Gave us everything he had. Once [Deivon] came back, the whole tempo of our offense changed. You don't see too many players like him in the country, so we're overly delighted.”
On the crowd tonight at Madison Square Garden…
“Great Garden crowd, hopefully, we'll sell out with Seton Hall. We got three games left. We want this BIG EAST crown badly, not only for the players, but for the fans who came back like I never expected. We're very excited about being in the hunt.”
On tonight’s impressive performance…
“When you play against [UConn], it's very difficult, because they shoot the three so well and they get to the foul line, they run great stuff offensively. This was the best offensive-defensive game we played all season. Deivon [Smith] has a lot to do with it because our pace picks up. When you score 50 points in a half against a Connecticut team, you're playing really good offense, really good defense. I mean, you look at it, 20 assists, only 12 turnovers. We shoot 47 percent, 42 percent from three, 78 percent from the line. That's a hell of a game. And when you force all those turnovers and don't turn it over, you have 11 blocks and 11 steals. It's quite a performance by our guys.”
On Kadary Richmond and Simeon Wilcher…
“[Kadary Richmond] is a big-time player. Rebounds, steals, points. He always makes big plays, but they all did. I thought Simeon Wilcher made some big plays down the stretch.”
On what makes Deivon Smith so good…
“I think Deivon [Smith] gets our players great shots, because he's so fast that they have to help, and he got his great shots. Now tonight, he had eight assists, he's got seven rebounds. For a six-foot guard, he's quite a basketball player.”
On Zuby Ejiofor…
“There are very few people like Zuby [Ejiofor], very few in today's college basketball scene. He just is a workhorse, he never gets tired. How many minutes did he play? 34 minutes tonight, and he was active on everyone.”
On what makes his team so good…
“You know what I love about this team? They all buy into the defense, but on offense, they're all so different. RJ [Luis Jr.] is so much different than Aaron [Scott] and Zuby [Ejiofor]. So, it's a different type of basketball team. I'm real proud of them, but it's the defense that turns into offense that makes us go.”
On the next two games and possibly clinching a BIG EAST title…
“Well, winning the BIG EAST [regular season title] would mean a lot. Obviously, it's going to be a whiteout [against Seton Hall next Saturday]. We're hoping to have 19,000 people because that's why we moved it [to MSG]. I think being senior night, the last game of the season, I think the fans are going to bring it in a big way for our players, who have given the fans so much delight. So, we're hoping for a big night, but we're going to focus on Butler right now, because Butler is a hell of an offensive basketball team, outstanding talent, and we've got to win these games to get this BIG EAST crown.”
St John’s forward Aaron Scott:
On Zuby Ejiofor’s message to the team when UConn cut the lead to nine…
“That's our captain. He keeps us going, the man in the middle. So, we just all listen to him and, you know, he's correct. We have been here before and we didn’t wilt. We didn't get down. We just kept going.”
On the fan support and the prospect of winning the BIG EAST Regular Season title…
“We're very excited about all the fans coming out. We're just taking it game-by-game. Coach P. told us, it's been 40 years since St. John's won the BIG EAST Championship [outright], and we are just taking it game by game and getting better.”
On playing two complete halves against UConn tonight…
“Last game against UConn, we kind of started off slow, so Coach [Pitino] was preaching that before the game. We finally put together two halves. Coach always preaches defense, and everybody listens to him and buys in. Everybody wants to win. So that's just the key. Everybody buys in. Everybody bought in. You can see on our defense, we're well connected, and we turn our defense into offense.”
On if the team is still getting better…
“Yes, of course. You can just see in how hard we practice. We get better every day and that's just the key, one percent better every day.”
St. John’s guard Deivon Smith:
On the offensive play the past few games..
“First of all, we're doing a great job of sharing the ball and spacing. We're running our plays with good pace and kind of keeping the defense off balance. Just getting to the paint, getting two feet in there, finding an open man, or hitting our pull-up shots, it opens up the whole floor in the game, and then we get a lot of points in transition. I'm super happy for the team and everybody just finding our confidence. It was a lot of guys in double figures tonight. I think we played a great game all around, multiple people.”
On the team’s defense…
“In order to win games, we got to play defense. Defense wins championships. All week in practice the message was, get in the ball, pressure the ball. Don't let the point guard make good passes because they slip. So, I kind of took that personally tonight, and just wanted to pressure the guard and put our team in a good point to win.”
On the team’s desire to win every game…
“I think we could win every game, even the games we lost. We're hard on ourselves because we're only losing by a point or so. I mean, this is some of our last years, and we're just taking advantage of each and every moment. It's a super special team. We're making history almost every game. I hate losing just as much as [Coach Pitino]. Everybody hates losing. If we lose, the energy is not so good the next day.”
On RJ Luis Jr.’s return to the lineup…
“It was super big. He makes a lot of plays on the offensive and defensive end. He's a great rebounder, finishes well, he hit some big free throws. He's a key guy. I don't think we would have been as successful tonight without him playing. So to have him back was special.”
UConn Head Coach Dan Hurley:
On playing against St. John’s…
“Obviously, for us, you play against this team with that defense and that rebounding, and with those types of wings and [Zuby] Ejiofor and the pressure they could put on the paint. If they shoot the ball like that from the perimeter, they're going to be a problem for anyone. So, credit them. They shot it great in the first half and was able to get that cushion. And obviously, we didn't play very well.”
On defending St. John’s offense…
Kadary Richmond is like, devastating in the paint. RJ Luis Jr. is devastating at the paint. Zuby Ejiofor is a beast down there. I mean, Deivon Smith is so fast off the dribble, he’s like an American Ninja. You gotta pick your poison.”
On what makes the St. John’s defense so good…
I just think the pressure is one thing. It's disconcerting to start your possession just surviving to get the ball in bounds. First, the pressure. But then, I don't even think it's the full-court pressure with them. I just think it's the positionless switching that they're able to do on-ball and off-ball.”
Opening statement…
“Well, I'm incredibly delighted with this victory. Especially when they cut it to nine on some great plays, we were in the huddle and Zuby [Ejiofor] said, ‘Look, we've battled injuries. We don't wilt. We've been there before. We know what to do.’ I was really proud of that. I think once Deivon [Smith] got healthy again, I think our offense picked up. It's not about shooting. It's about the type of shots that you get and he got everybody great shots in that first half. That's why we had 50 points. So he had a big game for us.”
On Aaron Scott and Deivon Smith’s play…
“Aaron [Scott] here was bleeding, getting every shot, me getting on him, and he's bleeding, can't talk back. He just was a warrior out there. Gave us everything he had. Once [Deivon] came back, the whole tempo of our offense changed. You don't see too many players like him in the country, so we're overly delighted.”
On the crowd tonight at Madison Square Garden…
“Great Garden crowd, hopefully, we'll sell out with Seton Hall. We got three games left. We want this BIG EAST crown badly, not only for the players, but for the fans who came back like I never expected. We're very excited about being in the hunt.”
On tonight’s impressive performance…
“When you play against [UConn], it's very difficult, because they shoot the three so well and they get to the foul line, they run great stuff offensively. This was the best offensive-defensive game we played all season. Deivon [Smith] has a lot to do with it because our pace picks up. When you score 50 points in a half against a Connecticut team, you're playing really good offense, really good defense. I mean, you look at it, 20 assists, only 12 turnovers. We shoot 47 percent, 42 percent from three, 78 percent from the line. That's a hell of a game. And when you force all those turnovers and don't turn it over, you have 11 blocks and 11 steals. It's quite a performance by our guys.”
On Kadary Richmond and Simeon Wilcher…
“[Kadary Richmond] is a big-time player. Rebounds, steals, points. He always makes big plays, but they all did. I thought Simeon Wilcher made some big plays down the stretch.”
On what makes Deivon Smith so good…
“I think Deivon [Smith] gets our players great shots, because he's so fast that they have to help, and he got his great shots. Now tonight, he had eight assists, he's got seven rebounds. For a six-foot guard, he's quite a basketball player.”
On Zuby Ejiofor…
“There are very few people like Zuby [Ejiofor], very few in today's college basketball scene. He just is a workhorse, he never gets tired. How many minutes did he play? 34 minutes tonight, and he was active on everyone.”
On what makes his team so good…
“You know what I love about this team? They all buy into the defense, but on offense, they're all so different. RJ [Luis Jr.] is so much different than Aaron [Scott] and Zuby [Ejiofor]. So, it's a different type of basketball team. I'm real proud of them, but it's the defense that turns into offense that makes us go.”
On the next two games and possibly clinching a BIG EAST title…
“Well, winning the BIG EAST [regular season title] would mean a lot. Obviously, it's going to be a whiteout [against Seton Hall next Saturday]. We're hoping to have 19,000 people because that's why we moved it [to MSG]. I think being senior night, the last game of the season, I think the fans are going to bring it in a big way for our players, who have given the fans so much delight. So, we're hoping for a big night, but we're going to focus on Butler right now, because Butler is a hell of an offensive basketball team, outstanding talent, and we've got to win these games to get this BIG EAST crown.”
St John’s forward Aaron Scott:
On Zuby Ejiofor’s message to the team when UConn cut the lead to nine…
“That's our captain. He keeps us going, the man in the middle. So, we just all listen to him and, you know, he's correct. We have been here before and we didn’t wilt. We didn't get down. We just kept going.”
On the fan support and the prospect of winning the BIG EAST Regular Season title…
“We're very excited about all the fans coming out. We're just taking it game-by-game. Coach P. told us, it's been 40 years since St. John's won the BIG EAST Championship [outright], and we are just taking it game by game and getting better.”
On playing two complete halves against UConn tonight…
“Last game against UConn, we kind of started off slow, so Coach [Pitino] was preaching that before the game. We finally put together two halves. Coach always preaches defense, and everybody listens to him and buys in. Everybody wants to win. So that's just the key. Everybody buys in. Everybody bought in. You can see on our defense, we're well connected, and we turn our defense into offense.”
On if the team is still getting better…
“Yes, of course. You can just see in how hard we practice. We get better every day and that's just the key, one percent better every day.”
St. John’s guard Deivon Smith:
On the offensive play the past few games..
“First of all, we're doing a great job of sharing the ball and spacing. We're running our plays with good pace and kind of keeping the defense off balance. Just getting to the paint, getting two feet in there, finding an open man, or hitting our pull-up shots, it opens up the whole floor in the game, and then we get a lot of points in transition. I'm super happy for the team and everybody just finding our confidence. It was a lot of guys in double figures tonight. I think we played a great game all around, multiple people.”
On the team’s defense…
“In order to win games, we got to play defense. Defense wins championships. All week in practice the message was, get in the ball, pressure the ball. Don't let the point guard make good passes because they slip. So, I kind of took that personally tonight, and just wanted to pressure the guard and put our team in a good point to win.”
On the team’s desire to win every game…
“I think we could win every game, even the games we lost. We're hard on ourselves because we're only losing by a point or so. I mean, this is some of our last years, and we're just taking advantage of each and every moment. It's a super special team. We're making history almost every game. I hate losing just as much as [Coach Pitino]. Everybody hates losing. If we lose, the energy is not so good the next day.”
On RJ Luis Jr.’s return to the lineup…
“It was super big. He makes a lot of plays on the offensive and defensive end. He's a great rebounder, finishes well, he hit some big free throws. He's a key guy. I don't think we would have been as successful tonight without him playing. So to have him back was special.”
UConn Head Coach Dan Hurley:
On playing against St. John’s…
“Obviously, for us, you play against this team with that defense and that rebounding, and with those types of wings and [Zuby] Ejiofor and the pressure they could put on the paint. If they shoot the ball like that from the perimeter, they're going to be a problem for anyone. So, credit them. They shot it great in the first half and was able to get that cushion. And obviously, we didn't play very well.”
On defending St. John’s offense…
Kadary Richmond is like, devastating in the paint. RJ Luis Jr. is devastating at the paint. Zuby Ejiofor is a beast down there. I mean, Deivon Smith is so fast off the dribble, he’s like an American Ninja. You gotta pick your poison.”
On what makes the St. John’s defense so good…
I just think the pressure is one thing. It's disconcerting to start your possession just surviving to get the ball in bounds. First, the pressure. But then, I don't even think it's the full-court pressure with them. I just think it's the positionless switching that they're able to do on-ball and off-ball.”