Dec. 11, 2004
Notre Dame v. DePaul
December 11, 2004
Post Game Quotes
NOTRE DAME HEAD COACH Mike Brey
On DePaul…
“I think you have to give DePaul a lot of credit. I tried to prepare our guys all week for them and I told them that this was the best team we were going to be playing in this stretch. They won their conference championship last year and made it to the NCAA tournament and they play very well as a team. They were getting around our zone, they shot the ball well and overall just played an outstanding game.”
On Quemont Greer…
“I was really afraid of this guy and tried to prepare our guys for him and he did everything I was afraid he would do. He shot the ball well, he ran off screens very well, he just had an amazing game.”
On the team…
“Our big guys were out of rhythm a bit I think and that hurt a bit. We had trouble getting the ball inside but they did not, they got through our zone. I think that when we played a controlled game like the other night, we did very well, but tonight they had an answer for everything that we threw at them. It was kind of like last year when we went over there and scored like 82 and just shot the heck out of the ball.”
On Colin Falls… “Colin had a great game. His ankle is fine, he should be playing next week, but he’s just been playing so well off the bench. You know we have a lot of guys playing. We are playing the most guys off the bench since I came here and we are still evaluating talent.”
NOTRE DAME PLAYERS
Senior Guard Chris Thomas
On where to go from here…
“I think we have a lot of combinations that we need to look at. Russell came in tonight and did what he always does in practice. People always ask me why we don’t play him more and I say I don’t know. Every time he gets in the game he does something well for the team.
On the performance of sophomore guard Colin Falls…
“Colin is our best shooter. He shoots like that every day in practice. I have to guard him and it’s like guarding Reggie Miller. He’s a quick shooter and can shoot from anywhere. We encourage him to do that. Sometimes he’s a little hesitant, but the more aggressive he is, the more it helps our team.”
Senior Forward Jordan Cornette
On the overall play of both teams…
“Coming down the stretch, they turned up the intensity a little bit and we turned it down. As much as it kills me to say it, they played a great game tonight. I don’t think we overlooked DePaul by any means but we didn’t come out to play like we did against Indiana.”
On Notre Dame’s energy level…
“It’s all about heart, and I think we lacked it at some points tonight. You have to be fired up to run back at them and our energy level wasn’t as high as it should have been. They were sharper than us tonight.”
Sophomore Guard Colin Falls
On his performance today…
“I think I can attribute it to the comfort level. As I play more games with the guys around me, it makes it a lot easier to perform.”
On hurting his ankle…
“I had hurt it in the preseason. Tonight I just came down on it wrong and turned it a little. It feels better now than it did 20 minutes ago.”
DEPAUL PLAYER QUOTES
Senior Guard, Drake Diener
On Finally Beating Notre Dame…
“We lost the first three since I’ve been here, so it’s really nice to beat Notre Dame. It’s a big rivalry, and this was my last chance at them, so it was good to get a win.”
On the game and final score…
“I wasn’t expecting to win going away like that. I was really expecting a dog-fight. They are a really tough squad especially at home. I know it is kind of a cliché, but tonight it was really a team effort.”
On shutting down Notre Dame…
“We did a great job of fighting off their spurts tonight. Last year we played them close and they made a spurt on us and we couldn’t recover. This year it started heading that same way, then Quemont took a three and set the tone that we weren’t going to let them come back and take the lead. We did a great job not letting them get over the hump”
Senior Forward, Quemont Greer
On neutralizing Notre Dame’s big men…
“We had a game plan. We went out and played them physically and pushed them off the blocks.”
On his big 3-point shots…
“I just felt comfortable – I felt that they left me open and I took advantage of the shots and I just happened to knock him down.”
On having fun playing tonight…
“We just went out there and played – running the offense and just doing what our team is capable of doing. That is a lot of fun.”
On playing as a team… “We played really well together tonight – sharing the ball and everybody playing as a team.”
Senior Guard, Levar Seals
On team play and his 8 assists…
“That’s basketball – when you pump-fake and draw two people, you kick the ball back out. We have confidence in each other, when we are open and are playing good offense, to knock those shots down.”
DEPAUL HEAD COACH DAVE LEITAO QUOTES
On the character of DePaul’s players…
“Going on the road against a high-quality team like this, which we have not had recent success doing, speaks very big of the character we are trying to develop in our guys. They never doubted that we could win.”
On the overall play of his team…
“We dug down and played defense when we needed to. We shared the ball and made it difficult to be guarded in the half court, as well as the full court, because we were moving the ball and looking for people.”
On playing on the road at Notre Dame…
“I am tremendously proud of a victory on the road. With Notre Dame having played two quality teams, Michigan and Indiana, then coming back home, it speaks volumes for the effort that our guys put forth today.”