Feb. 14, 2004
Head Coach Mike Brey Quotes
On how the Irish played…
“I told everyone that they played well defensively today. We marked up and guarded each player well. We also made a lot of good decisions when we controlled the ball. We had 16 assists to only 9 turnovers. We did a good job of getting offensive rebounds towards the end of the game and passing around, instead of taking tough shots and we forced them to foul us at the end.”
On Chris Thomas…
“Thomas made a lot of good shots. I’ve always thought that he is a second half player, and he came out in the second half. His conditioning is what really paid off. In the second half, the other players got tired but Thomas didn’t.”
On Torrian Jones…
“We couldn’t have asked for more out of our seniors. Torrian played great. He had a bunch of good shots, assists and blocks, including the big one at the end.”
On how injuries are affecting the team…
“It’s tough playing without Torin Francis, but we have always had good character with this group. These past two games have been two good RPI wins.”
Junior PG Chris Thomas
On the play of the team…
” Everybody’s picking up the intensity and playing well. We’re playing with a tremendous amount of confidence. We’re just in a great groove right now, not only offensively, but defensively as well. Defensively we did a heck of a job. We came up with a lot of rebounds. If we continue on like this we should be successful.”
On the future of this season…
“There’s a tremendous amount of momentum right now. We just feel that if we continue to play like this, we’ll give the selection committee a good run for their money. We owe Syracuse. They’ve beaten us before. It will test our experience and our maturity.”
Junior F Jordan Cornette
On the absence of Torin Francis
“Everyone knows we’re missing a star on this team, so everyone knows we have to step up that much more. There’s not as much room for error. The team is lacking one of its leading rebounders. Guys need to step up on the glass, and I think Tom, Rick and I did that.”
On the Syracuse game…
“The confidence is high and that’s great. Going into the Carrier Dome at Syracuse, you need all of the confidence you can have. I think we’re going in there with a full head of steam, and we’re looking forward to Monday night.
Senior F Torrian Jones
On tying his personal assist record…
“I was able to distribute a lot today, because I got into the lane a lot. Guys stepped up, and I found open guys and they were able to finish the baskets.”
Seton Hall
Head Coach Louis Orr Quotes
On Seton Hall’s defense…
“We are a defensive oriented team, that’s our foundation, that’s our identity. We didn’t have the commitment or the pride on defense I felt today. We just didn’t respond to the dribble penetration, we didn’t move our feet. We allowed them to beat us off the dribble too easily and then we didn’t get the cover-downs and the rotations like we needed to. We didn’t team defensively, we weren’t alert and we weren’t as sharp as we needed to be.”
On Chris Thomas…
“He’s a guy that can take the game over at times and he makes some big shots with them down the stretch after we have made a run”
On the outcome of the game…
“We are disappointed because we have to mature, we still have some growing up to do. Our guys have to understand that you have to defend every game. For them to shoot 55 percent in the second half, get as many scores as they did in the paint, and to beat us off in dribbling as they did, it was disappointing.”
Senior guard Andre Barrett
On the difference in the game…
“Today we didn’t come out and defend, and that was a key to our success in the past. We didn’t get any stops. When we get stops we are at our best and play much better as a team, but today we didn’t do that at all.”
On the play of Notre Dame guard Chris Thomas…
“He just made a couple of big shots during the course of the game. We had a couple of defensive mental lapses, and it hurt us.”
On fatigue and fouls…
“At one stretch, I was a little bit tired. I was pretty much denying them the ball the whole first half and then I got a little tired. I had to suck it up and continue to play out there. I had a couple of fouls called against me and it was kind of hard to play as aggressive as I wanted to.”
Senior forward Marcus Toney-El
On the game…
“They outplayed us for 40 minutes. They stepped to us. We didn’t come ready to play. I don’t know whether it was the noon start or that people were still hung over on the Pittsburgh game, or whatever the case may be, but we weren’t ready to play at noon.”
On defensive effort…
“That is what we hang our hats on, and that’s been our staple since coach [Louis] Orr got here — to be the best defensive team we can be. Today we didn’t have the same intensity as we did in our past two games.”
On the play of Notre Dame guard Torrian Jones…
“He’s always had the ability to do big things and be the guy to get the team going. That’s what he’s doing for Notre Dame. When you have guys like Chris Thomas and Chris Quinn knocking down shots, then it’s easier for Torrian to get to the basket.”