Jan. 15, 2013

Recap | Box Score | Notes | Photo Gallery

Notre Dame Head Coach Mike Brey

On the Game:
“I loved how we fought back and gave ourselves a chance to win. I think they played great and made big buckets to go along with big free-throws. Their ball pressure on us; it bothered us and wore us down a bit. I think for us to escape with a win against anybody in this league, our offensive efficiency has to be better for more of than 25 minutes. We scratched and clawed. We had some looks that could have helped us maybe escape but a lot of that was their doing with their speed and them chasing us around.”

Decision to go with Tom Knight down the stretch:
“He gave us great energy and I think it is something we need to build on. This is four games into the season and just like last year at a key time he came off the bench for us. In the midst of a disappointing loss, that is a real bright spot for us to build on as our first big off the bench going forward.”

On St. John’s:
“They’re really different. Of course, they came in a little smaller tonight. There was no matchup zone tonight, they really guarded the heck out of us with their speed and over the course of time it wore on us. We had seven turnovers in the first-half and that’s tough for us. They have guys that can drive it, their forwards can spread you out and we couldn’t guard them in man-to-man. We had to play zone. We probably did a good enough job; they shot 41-percent in zone but we had to be a little more efficient. We had to make some shots to escape on the road against them.”

Senior Center, Garrick Sherman

On how St. John’s was successful:
“They did a good job of pressuring the ball. We really couldn’t get any offensive rhythm in the last two minutes just because of their ball pressure….We could have done a better job of attacking.”

St. John’s Head Coach Steve Lavin

On the Game:
“[I’m] Just proud, really pleased with our kids. As you guys know who followed us, we’re a work in progress. And as I said the other day, expect the unexpected, buckle up and enjoy the roller coaster ride with this wonderfully young team who will at times play maddening basketball, but also balance it out with some brilliant play. I thought today was a collective victory.”

On his team’s progress this season:
“Throughout the non-conference, we’ve had stretches where we played really well, and even in league play, I mean let’s face it, we’re a whisker from being 4-1. And we’re that same team, so you’re never as good as you feel after a win at Cincinnati or Notre Dame, and you’re never as bad after a close loss at Villanova or Rutgers as you feel. You’re somewhere in between, and that’s who we are. We’re just a young team that’s a work in progress.”

Sophomore Guard D’Angelo Harrison on his block on Notre Dame’s Tom Knight:
“He didn’t see me, so I watch how the other guys block shots during practice. I went up with two hands to contest the shots and got the ball.

On Notre Dame’s comeback:
“They’re ranked, so we knew that they were going to come back. We didn’t want them to come back, but they did. We extended, we got a big stop after. I think (Eric) Atkins got a layup to go up two, [and] I don’t think they really scored after that.”

Sophomore Guard Amir Garrett on his team’s effort:
“We came out very intense today. You know, coming off a loss to Georgetown; that definitely wasn’t the way that we play. We had a good few days of practice, so we knew we just had to come out hard today and we came out and got the win. We came out with intensity and we were very fierce.”