BIG EAST CONFERENCE MEN'S TOURNAMENT

March 8, 2000

Erron Maxey

Tim Welsh

COACH WELSH: Certainly Seton Hall, I thought, played an outstanding basketball game today and really had a step up on us in almost every aspect of the game as far as quickness, quickness to the basketball, advancing the ball up the court, low-post toughness, getting to loose balls, and denying passing lanes. It pushed the offense out quite a bit on the perimeter, and we struggled to score as it is, but they really got in our chest and hurt us. That's when our inside guys have to finish plays. Dalembert did a good job, protecting the middle for them. When we did get the ball inside, we didn't finish. Get right behind by 17, 18 points, then you're always scrambling behind. They're a good basketball team, especially with excellent guards, it's hard to make that up. Try to run at them, press them a little bit, try to change the pace of the game, but it's very difficult to get behind them at that point. I wanted to see -- to keep the game close early and maybe try to play a slow-down game, but they just jumped on us. Transition baskets were key in the first half. They just had a few runouts and three-on-ones, we got into foul trouble. And they got the ball into the paint, got it to the rim, they got open threes, they played very well, and we just were -- always seemed to be chasing them. When you're chasing a good team, usually the result is not what you're looking for. That's what happened.

COACH WELSH: Yeah, I mean they played very well. I mean, you know, people were saying, "Oh, they lost four in a row." They lost to some very good teams four in a row. They didn't shoot the ball well against Notre Dame, Connecticut came in and played tremendous against them. Villanova played one of their best games of the year and they lost to St. John's, who's, you know, one of the best teams in the league. So I mean, not like they were awful. You know, I was very concerned because they had had a week off and during that slump I think Kaukenas was banged up and he had a week to heal. You know, he gives them that third weapon out there, Shaheen shooting the ball, coming in off the bench. He looks good. So it's hard to cut down all their things because when they shoot the ball so well, they also -- try to get out to their shooters but then they can also complete players. I mean Holloway and Lane and Kaukenas are complete basketball players, they make things happen. Their big guys do a good job, they're high percentage. They don't do more than they can. Dalembert and even Morton, they kind of stay their ground in there, they don't really throw it into them too much. But if you bite on penetration, they'll finish the plays.

COACH WELSH: Yeah. I mean... You know, it's -- when you've gone through what we've gone through this year, there's been a lot of things that happened during basketball games. You know, the two games they played us, they just totally outplayed us. You know, it's not a team that, I guess, probably a team that we don't match up that well against because their guards are just really -- we're not good enough defensively at the guard spot to slow them down. And, you know, we're always chasing. That was the same thing happened the first game, they just jumped out on us. They're hitting the threes, but they had a step on us coming off screens and on curls. So...

COACH WELSH: Yeah, they went zone from the middle of the first half. But the zone was aggressive. The zone was aggressive. They matched up with our inside guys man-to-man and they played the ball hard. They sagged on the wings because we're not a great shooting team, hit some threes at the end. They knew to play Wade and play off some other people and sag in towards Maxey. Their zone was good, aggressive. I know Tom doesn't play much zone, but he's not stupid either. He watches tape, sees that usually we struggle against zones. You know, no one really -- the only game we've had success against zone was (inaudible.) If we got into any offensive rhythm, he was going to see what we looked like. Struggled for a while, I thought we were getting a better offensive rhythm against man-to-man, then he went zone. It was a smart move.

COACH WELSH: Yeah, I mean a learning experience, sure. That's the way you've got to look at it. Obviously you want to keep pushing. I told the guys I'm going to start working tomorrow morning on getting better for next year. They've got to do the same thing. You just don't get better because you become freshmen and sophomores. They had young guys out there, too; Morton, Lane, Dalembert, and are all freshmen. That can't be an excuse. Our guys have to go back to work. We've got upperclassmen who were beat up in there. We have to finish plays. We have to get the older guys to get in the weight room and we've got to get John Linehan back and add a couple other pieces, and maybe we'll be better. I don't know. It's not automatic because you're older, you're better. If we work hard, the guys are dedicated, yes, we will be better. And certainly my foot will be on their back starting Monday when they get back to school to make them better. Because I told them, I'm not going through this again. I'm not used to it; I don't like it. Not that anyone likes it, but it's a -- something that won't be tolerated. We'll chalk this one up to inexperience as a group, with eight new players, but not use it as an excuse. I have to say, "Okay, let's go back to work now."

COACH WELSH: I would expect him to. I spoke with our physician actually this morning, and his prognosis is strong. He's almost fully healed on his groin injury, still got the fractured wrist, but he's going through some light shooting drills with us right now presently, and certainly I would imagine that he'd be playing basketball within probably a month to six weeks hopefully. But we're taking a high road as far as being very precautionary and making sure that he's fully healed because, you know, it was a delicate injury and we certainly missed him this year.

ERRON MAXEY: I mean, the second half we were already down in a hole. I mean, we were just trying to do everything that we possibly could to dig ourselves out. No matter what we did, we continued to stay in the hole. Every time we came down on defense, there was either one person or another leaving somebody open, they're coming down the line, getting uncontested layups. In order for us to win, we can't do that. We can't allow teams to come down and just do what they want on offense. And get what they want.

ERRON MAXEY: Not a bad matchup. Just comes down to heart and determination. I mean, the will to want to stop your man on defense. I mean, of course you're not going to be able to shut a team out like the game of baseball or football, but with basketball, you have to continue your man, and that comes down to how big your heart is.

ERRON MAXEY: They're a good team. Their guards push the ball extremely well, but, again, for ourselves,, it depends on the size of our heart. Our team is extremely quick as well. If we choose not to get back on defense and we don't -- we choose to not play hard, then teams are going to be able to run the ball and continue to get open layups and two-on-ones or three-on-twos, just depends on how hard you want to work. Again, they're a great team; don't get me wrong. But if our heart's not big enough, we're not going to be able to do anything.

COACH WELSH: Well, you know, that was a tragic thing this morning. I got the phone call at the hotel. I just feel very proud and honored to know that I was able to get to know him in the last year and a half. And when he first walked in my office, it was like he apologized for bothering me. I said, "You can have this office. I mean, this office is here because of you." He's just a great man, was a great man. And I was honored to get to know him. So happy that we were able to have the banquet for him a couple weeks ago, just the look in his eye, just -- it was just astonishing to see the people who came out in droves just for his honor. You know, where we are today as a national program is because of Joe Mullaney and Dave Gavitt, and certainly we'll all miss them. Our best to his wife and family.

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