St. John's University Athletics
POSTGAME QUOTES: No. 22/22 ST. JOHN’S VS. No. 3/3 UCONN
St. John’s Men’s Basketball Head Coach Rick Pitino, senior forwards Zuby Ejiofor and Dillon Mitchell spoke to the media after defeating No. 3/3 UConn, 81-72, on Tuesday.
Head Coach Rick Pitino
Opening statement…
“I thought the Garden was as good as I've seen it. When I was at Louisville, BIG EAST Tournaments, I thought it was unbelievable how good The Garden was [tonight]. ... Tremendous crowd. Proud of our fans, excited for our fans. These two guys [Dillon Mitchell and Zuby Ejiofor] just give me everything every single day, everything. People don't realize I've had great players that sometimes they give it to you in practice, sometimes they don't, and I'm not going to mention any names. But these two guys give it to me every single day. [Zuby] has given it to me for three years and it's an amazing tribute to both of them that they played so great tonight.”
On his team’s character and composure throughout the game…
“Well, I use the expression, no fear of failure. I said it every single time out. I said, ‘whether we go up twelve, they cut it to two, we have no fear. We're going to win this game’. … Every single player was honed in. They did a fabulous job of doing things down the stretch to help you win.”
On Bryce Hopkins increased assertiveness over the last few weeks…
“It's very good because that's exactly the truth. … Bryce [Hopkins] has definitely been a factor in these wins and the way we're playing because Oziyah [Sellers] tonight had four in-and-out threes. I'm shocked that he missed those free throws, shocked, because he's such a good free throw shooter. ... He’ll rebound from that as well. But what Bryce [Hopkins], Dylan [Darling], and Zuby [Ejiofor] are doing in the front court, it's pretty special.”
Senior forward Zuby Ejiofor
On beating the No. 3 team in the country…
“Just an all around, great atmosphere to play basketball. Friday night, MSG, great opponent, and, like Coach said, we had more of a home crowd than we thought, and the student crowd was engaged. Everybody from top to bottom was really engaged, and the moment when the buzzer sounded and it was over, and you realized that you just beat a really well-coached team, all the emotions really just flew out, and I can't even remember what was done or what was said.”
On whether the team showed something new late in the game…
“Nothing different that I haven't seen all year. It was a really a passionate game. It was a meaningful game. We knew exactly what we're playing for but a lot of credit to UConn. They're a great team. Our preparation leading up to this game was as great as it's been. The coaching staff did a great job of just showing us areas where we could be the most successful on offense and defense and we honed in on that. We were able to lock in for a full forty minutes and grind it out, do whatever it takes to win each and every possession.”
On the confidence gained from tonight…
“We're really going to just hone in and focus in on our next opponent, because they're as great as any team in this league, and you can't take any team in this league for granted. When UConn comes again, we'll be ready for them, but we just got to put all our focus in on Xavier right at this moment.”
Senior forward Dillon Mitchell
On comparing the atmosphere at Madison Square Garden to his previous college basketball environments…
“I mean, you really can't. That many people just so into the game, I guess a close second, I would say was Xavier vs. Cincy last year. That was a good one last year. But, being here in that type of atmosphere, they're into it every second of the game. You hear them, they're loud, they're supporting. We pick off a lot on that. We play hard, not only for the fans, but for us. But, it's exciting to hear, and it's definitely different. It's something that I'm blessed to be a part of.”
On whether a performance like tonight felt inevitable during the winning streak…
“I think it's just our preparation. We are always really prepared for teams going into games. We took this the same as any other game, just going in there prepared and I could see just our focus going into this game. I knew that this would be a game that we're going to come out the right way. Just our focus the past couple days in the film room, on the court, just the focus that we've had the past couple days, I could tell that, you know, all the guys were locked in.”
Opening statement…
“I thought the Garden was as good as I've seen it. When I was at Louisville, BIG EAST Tournaments, I thought it was unbelievable how good The Garden was [tonight]. ... Tremendous crowd. Proud of our fans, excited for our fans. These two guys [Dillon Mitchell and Zuby Ejiofor] just give me everything every single day, everything. People don't realize I've had great players that sometimes they give it to you in practice, sometimes they don't, and I'm not going to mention any names. But these two guys give it to me every single day. [Zuby] has given it to me for three years and it's an amazing tribute to both of them that they played so great tonight.”
On his team’s character and composure throughout the game…
“Well, I use the expression, no fear of failure. I said it every single time out. I said, ‘whether we go up twelve, they cut it to two, we have no fear. We're going to win this game’. … Every single player was honed in. They did a fabulous job of doing things down the stretch to help you win.”
On Bryce Hopkins increased assertiveness over the last few weeks…
“It's very good because that's exactly the truth. … Bryce [Hopkins] has definitely been a factor in these wins and the way we're playing because Oziyah [Sellers] tonight had four in-and-out threes. I'm shocked that he missed those free throws, shocked, because he's such a good free throw shooter. ... He’ll rebound from that as well. But what Bryce [Hopkins], Dylan [Darling], and Zuby [Ejiofor] are doing in the front court, it's pretty special.”
Senior forward Zuby Ejiofor
On beating the No. 3 team in the country…
“Just an all around, great atmosphere to play basketball. Friday night, MSG, great opponent, and, like Coach said, we had more of a home crowd than we thought, and the student crowd was engaged. Everybody from top to bottom was really engaged, and the moment when the buzzer sounded and it was over, and you realized that you just beat a really well-coached team, all the emotions really just flew out, and I can't even remember what was done or what was said.”
On whether the team showed something new late in the game…
“Nothing different that I haven't seen all year. It was a really a passionate game. It was a meaningful game. We knew exactly what we're playing for but a lot of credit to UConn. They're a great team. Our preparation leading up to this game was as great as it's been. The coaching staff did a great job of just showing us areas where we could be the most successful on offense and defense and we honed in on that. We were able to lock in for a full forty minutes and grind it out, do whatever it takes to win each and every possession.”
On the confidence gained from tonight…
“We're really going to just hone in and focus in on our next opponent, because they're as great as any team in this league, and you can't take any team in this league for granted. When UConn comes again, we'll be ready for them, but we just got to put all our focus in on Xavier right at this moment.”
Senior forward Dillon Mitchell
On comparing the atmosphere at Madison Square Garden to his previous college basketball environments…
“I mean, you really can't. That many people just so into the game, I guess a close second, I would say was Xavier vs. Cincy last year. That was a good one last year. But, being here in that type of atmosphere, they're into it every second of the game. You hear them, they're loud, they're supporting. We pick off a lot on that. We play hard, not only for the fans, but for us. But, it's exciting to hear, and it's definitely different. It's something that I'm blessed to be a part of.”
On whether a performance like tonight felt inevitable during the winning streak…
“I think it's just our preparation. We are always really prepared for teams going into games. We took this the same as any other game, just going in there prepared and I could see just our focus going into this game. I knew that this would be a game that we're going to come out the right way. Just our focus the past couple days in the film room, on the court, just the focus that we've had the past couple days, I could tell that, you know, all the guys were locked in.”