Dec. 20, 2008
Notre Dame Head Coach Mike Brey
On the play of Notre Dame…
“I thought this game was a test of our concentration because you’re having to guard a team that is holding the ball and when you get the ball you have to be patient in getting a good shot and it can be tough. I thought it was good to get some guys extended minutes off the bench like (Tyrone) Nash and get him moving around heading towards BIG EAST play.”
On getting off to a strong start defensively…
“Well I used last week (against Boston University) as an example when we got off to a slow start before we woke up and I said let’s get into people defensively and rebound.”
On distributing the ball as a team…
“I thought our guys did a great job in making the extra pass and I am very proud of this group. We are up 20 points and all the guys are still distributing the ball and making sure they are making the extra pass. I think it starts with recruiting and finding those guys with great basketball intelligence. To have 25 assists tonight is great and I know these guys take great pride in the fact that they always make the extra pass. They wear that honor of having the most assists in the country from last very proudly.”
On the play of Notre Dame senior Ryan Ayers…
“They started out in a box and one on (Kyle) McAlarney which means Ryan will get open looks and when Ayers gets looks he has to keep taking them. Sometimes he takes three or four shots and starts to turn them down and he needs to keep shooting. His teammates get on him more than I do and I think that is good because he will continue to find himself having open looks throughout the season. Teams will double up on (Luke) Harangody and McAlarney and he will always get looks and he has to be ready to step up and knock them down.”
Notre Dame Player Quotes
Kyle McAlarney, Sr., G
On playing defensively…
“When we get into teams defensively it gets our energy level up; we rebound better, we play better offense, we are able to transition, we dug up on them. Getting on them defensively really helped us out.”
On the pace of the game…
“We knew they were going to have long possessions but we didn’t think they were going to delay that much. On every one of their plays we called something ‘delay’ and they were really trying to slow the game down. It was a good test for us offensively and defensively.”
Luke Harangody, Jr., F
On the game’s momentum…
“We like to get up and play with a lot of emotion and energy. That’s how we play. It fuels our offense. When it comes to offense we set the tone for the entire game.”
On Notre Dame’s defensive play…
“We got to show a couple of different things [on defense] and that is good for us going into BIG EAST play. We’re going to have to do that in league play. We wanted to come out big right away. With good defense comes our offense.”
On playing after finals week…
“You’re always worried about coming out after a break like that, but it was good to get everything done. Now we don’t have to worry about school right now and we can just worry about basketball and the BIG EAST season.”
Delaware State Head Coach Greg Jackson
His thoughts on the game…
“I don’t know what you can say after a game like that. This team is very good, well coached, all five guys can hurt you in so many ways. We’ve had the opportunity to go down this road for the last month-and-a-half and we’ve played a lot of major Division I schools on this journey and I can promise you that this is one of the better teams in the country. They shoot the ball extremely well, as well as anybody we have played against in four or five years. If they keep playing with the same intensity they played with today, this team can go a long way.”
On where Notre Dame compares with Delaware State’s other opponents…
“They are well coached and they shoot the ball extremely well. They space the floor so wide that it is tough to get any help. They understand exactly what they are trying to get out of their offense and defense on both ends of the floor, which makes it difficult to get into any type of rhythm.”
On what makes it difficult to defend Notre Dame…
“They spread the floor so wide and it’s hard to get help. They have one of the better shooters I’ve seen in the country in a long time. It’s hard to try and contain him and then try to contain the inside kid as well. They can hurt you from the inside and they can hurt you from the outside.”
On what Notre Dame did to give their offense trouble…
“They take away a lot of things that you try to do as far as trying to get any type of continuity with your offense. They’re strong on the wings and they denied extremely well in the post. For most of the game, we were unable to get into any type of offensive rhythm.”
On trying to slow down the tempo…
“We tried, but their defensive intensity forced us to pick up the tempo and they got their way with us taking some quick shots and they got out in transition and we were unable to play the type of game we wanted to play.”