Quote Center: St. John's Pregame vs. Providence
COURTESY OF ST. JOHN’S RED STORM ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS OFFICE
St. John’s Head Coach Chris Mullin…
On the defensive effort during the Marquette game:
“Any game that we have won we’ve played good defense. That has been a constant. [The Marquette game] sticks out because they were such a highly potent offensive team at home.”
On Sedee Keita:
“His athleticism is incredible. … In the summertime he was an elite athletic defender. Even in the Marquette game when we were switching him on guards, he could guard them with his feet and recover and block their shots. At any level that is a pretty unique skill set to have.”
“As he gets healthier he will be able to do more. He was a huge key in that game with a few blocks and guarding that perimeter. I think it lifts our team up energy wise. A center guarding one of the best scorers in the country, moving his feet, sticking to the game plan, distracting shots. Our defense energized us. … We’ve done it in stretches, but I think that night in particular.”
St. John’s guard Justin Simon…
On the recent road trip being a turning point for the season:
“I think we matured a little bit, great wins on the road at Creighton and Marquette, and learned a lot from the Duke loss. So yeah, I believe this could be a turning point in a way.”
On the defensive energy:
“We have always been capable of playing this type of defense. We have the length, the size, the athleticism. ... We are capable of playing with anybody defensively. We’ve always talked to each other about having that spark out there. We know the difference between when we are playing hard and when we aren’t playing hard. We just upped the level of alertness.”
St. John’s forward Marvin Clark II…
On the team’s defense of late:
“That’s something I take pride in and something we will continue to get better at. When we have that mindset, it doesn’t matter if we are scoring, we aren’t going to let you score.”
On having five of the next six games at home:
“It’s designed for us to have success. It’s definitely something to look forward to. What player, especially me being a senior, doesn’t want to have this backend stretch? Doesn’t want to have more home games than on the road? It’s definitely set up for us to succeed.“