NCAA MEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP: FIRST ROUND - SAINT PETER'S VS KENTUCKY

March 17, 2022

Shaheen Holloway

Doug Edert

KC Ndefo

Daryl Banks

Gainbridge Fieldhouse

Saint Peter's Peacocks

Media Conference

Saint Peter's 85, Kentucky 79

SHAHEEN HOLLOWAY: First of all, want to give Coach Cal and Kentucky a lot of credit. Those guys came out and they fought and fought and our guys stepped up to the level of competition, so hats off to them. Proud of my guys for battling, like we do all year. This is something that these guys understand, no disrespect to anybody, but we wasn't coming down here just to lose. We came down here to fight and we did. Hats off to these guys.

Q. KJ, obviously Kentucky is known for their rebounding but your front court really hung in and you only lost three or four. What allowed to you battle like you did on the glass?

KC NDEFO: Well, we are a hard-working team, you know what I'm saying. So the mindset of the game was to, in practice, we knew that they want to rebound. They have a lot of guys that rebound the basketball, so we just have to box out, stand our ground and fight down there.

Q. For all three of you guys, as Doug is sinking those free throws late, explain the emotion of those last few seconds.

DARYL BANKS III: Yeah, I mean, it was an amazing feeling. You know, playing basketball, you grow up watching college basketball and the March Madness Tournament, so letting that sink in, knowing that the game is over, we got it, just felt really good.

DOUG EDERT: Like Daryl said, I felt like every basketball player's dream is to play in the NCAA Tournament and make a run in it, and it felt amazing to get this first win and we are looking to get more.

KC NDEFO: Emotions was very high. We was very thrilled, but we came down with a mindset of we are not losing and we can beat anybody with hard work and dedication, so that's what we are doing down here.

Q. What's going through your head as you hit those threes?

DOUG EDERT: Yeah, my coach was making great play calls towards the end of the game. I love that he believes in me so much to take those kind of shots. My teammates do a great job of setting screens and giving me good passes when I'm open, and I'm shooting with a lot of confidence.

Q. Yesterday your coach said that you guys would come in with a mentality of Kentucky should have recruited you. How much was that a motivation?

DARYL BANKS III: That goes back to us having a chip on our shoulders. We come from different places. We had different opportunities set up, maybe we could have went somewhere else. But Coach believed in us and he brought us in because he knew what we could do. That's the mentality we have day-in and day-out.

DOUG EDERT: Our team works so hard every day in practice, doesn't matter who we play against, we are going to go out and execute our game plan and play as hard as we possibly can.

KC NDEFO: We just love being the underdogs, going out there fighting, staying together, staying poised and getting the job done.

Q. How much does it help having a coach like Coach Holloway whose demeanor seems so calm as you're shooting free throws down the stretch, he's showing no emotions, arms crossed, like he expected you to be in this position to win?

KC NDEFO: We work on free throws probably more than anybody in the country. That's one thing that we do in practice over and over again. So you know, our coach really believes in us, and this is the stuff that we're supposed to be doing, and we're just going out there to try to execute all the games in every aspect.

DOUG EDERT: Our coach believes in us so much. He knows what we're capable of, and I feel like his belief gives us belief in ourselves to make those plays and shoot those free throws at the end of the game.

DARYL BANKS III: Yeah (indiscernible) just keeps a level head, always tells us to keep calm and when he's fired up. He always gets us going. Like KC said, we practice free throws every day, probably more than anybody really, so yeah.

Q. What does it mean for you guys for your program, the school and also for the conference, knocking off a power five?

DARYL BANKS III: You know, it's huge. Putting Jersey City on the map, in New Jersey, we come from a small state. Probably a lot of people probably don't even know who we are. It's huge for our school and everybody back home.

DOUG EDERT: Our school supports us so much. Like Daryl said, we are a little school and it's awesome to put us on the map.

KC NDEFO: Yeah, this is a tough conference we're in. We all fight. For us to come in here and do what we have to do and get the win is big for our conference and big for our school, too, and for our fans that came down here, and sacrificed their time to come watch us play and get the W.

Q. I wanted to ask you guys, you just mentioned right now playing in the MAAC. How has the conference prepared you to play teams like Kentucky?

DARYL BANKS III: The MAAC is probably one of the most competitive conferences in the country to be honest because any team can beat any team, even if it's the highest seed or lowest team. Each day, you have to bring your A Game because you can get upset. Just that atmosphere and competitiveness all year helped us for this game.

DOUG EDERT: The MAAC is so competitive, any team can beat any team, it doesn't matter. That's why we had to bring our A Game every night and try to get the job done each day.

KC NDEFO: I feel like my teammates is spot on. We just go out there and try our best. Anybody can beat anybody, and that's what we do.

Q. Hostile crowd, seems like everybody from Kentucky was here. Tough place to play. What's it feel like to take down one of the most storied programs in the United States?

DOUG EDERT: It feels amazing, truly it feels amazing. They had a great crowd. A lot of people. We had our little section, too, I don't know if anybody saw that but we did. They came and supported us. It just feels amazing. It's a huge win for the program and our coaches and our teammates and it just feels amazing.

Q. Wondering what you think you can do from here. This is one game and obviously you go forward. What kind of splash do you think you can make?

KC NDEFO: Job is not finished. Trying to compete and with hard work and defense and the way you compete every night, the sky is the limit for us.

Q. You spoke to us yesterday about surviving those first five to seven minutes. Can you describe what you saw out of your team getting through that initial push and it seems as if Kentucky kind of had to survive you guys after a little bit.

SHAHEEN HOLLOWAY: Yeah, I thought the first I think three or four minutes we came out, K.C. got two fouls quick and we had to make some adjustments.

I was proud of the guy that came in for him, Clarence. I thought Clarence, our freshman, came in and played big minutes for us, for a freshman. Then Oumar came in. He was hurt; the last couple games, he didn't play.

But I thought we survived the first six minutes. But then I got upset because I think they scored way too easy.

Q. You're known as a good defensive team. What made you so successful on offense tonight against Kentucky?

SHAHEEN HOLLOWAY: Daryl Banks had an off conference tournament and the last two days he was in the gym working, working, working. I knew he was going to have a big game.

We got good players. We got good players. I know this is getting old, it's a cliché, but we have guys that really have a chip on their shoulder; that really believe they belong at big-time schools.

And I give the guys freedom to play offense. As long as they do what they have got to do for me on defense, on offense, they have their freedom.

Q. It's called March Madness. Here we are. This is what this is about. What does March Madness mean to you right now?

SHAHEEN HOLLOWAY: Tonight, right. At the end of the day, every team that made it to the NCAA Tournament deserved to be here. Every team that made it to the NCAA Tournament think that they could advance. You know, like you just have to be good on this night. It's not about your record. It's not about what school you at. It's whoever is good on that night, and tonight, it was our night.

Q. Last time you played in the NCAA Tournament, your tournament got cut short because you got injured during your senior year at Seton Hall. Does a win like this get rid of that itch a little bit because you didn't get to finish out as a player?

SHAHEEN HOLLOWAY: I'm different, man. This is about the players. This is about them. These guys put up with my nonsense every day in practice. This is about them. I'm so proud of them and so happy for them because these are moments people can't take away from them. These guys came in and took down one of the biggest schools in the country, right. So they are going to remember this moment for the rest of their life. So it's not about me.

Q. With regard to Doug, when you see him play and see him shoot, he scored 20 tonight, had a really good conference tournament, you would wonder why he's not starting, right? Can you speak to that a little bit and that dynamic of him coming off the bench?

SHAHEEN HOLLOWAY: You trying to start trouble, huh?

Q. Not really.

SHAHEEN HOLLOWAY: So in the first half of the season, the non-conference, he was starting. Our team went on a COVID pause for 28 days and the guys that's pretty much starting right now are guys that didn't get COVID, right. So I kind of stuck with the lineup because I'm superstitious like that. It was working for us, so why change it up.

I don't -- I don't have a starting five. You look at my team, I play, you know, ten guys double-figure minutes, so anybody can play for me any time.

Q. You said that you guys, your guys, will remember this the rest of their lives. Wondering if it will be a coaching challenge to get them to move beyond this going forward in the tournament, and what kind of splash do you think your team can make?

SHAHEEN HOLLOWAY: One game at a time. You know, so we going to Saturday, whoever we going to play Saturday, we go into Saturday's game, tomorrow we prepare as best we can and we go into Saturday's game, and that's the most important game right now is Saturday.

I don't ever let my guys look forward too far. We concentrate on the task at hand. And right now it's whoever win tonight and then the one after that.