St. John’s Head Coach Mike Anderson
On the game…
“Well, the game is what I thought it would be. It was a bit raggedy. I thought, defensively, we were connected, and I thought the [U22] Dominican Republic team was exposing us and getting in the lanes. I thought we were much better in the second half, defensively.”
On Joel Soriano and Posh Alexander…
“Those guys are coming back and we want better versions of them this year. I think Joel [Soriano] has been consistent in his play in practice and picking up from where he left off last year. It was good to see him play with that energy level that you need to play with. Now, we have guys that can get him the ball on time, and all he has to do is finish. I’m glad to see him go to the glass; he had 15 rebounds. Posh has a chance to get off the ball and show what he’s capable of. I thought those guys were very instrumental.”
On what he would like to see the team improve on heading into the next game…
“I think [we can improve] defensively and not getting so emotionally caught up in the game. I thought some guys got too emotional, and it took away from their play. I want to see us be connected defensively and continue to work on offensive execution. There were times where we got tired and the ball got stuck, and that’s not good for our basketball team. This should be one of the top teams in terms of sharing the basketball.”
Senior Center Joel Soriano
On the team’s performance…
“I think it was a great experience for the guys. We definitely had some adversity [in the game]. In the second half, we were down nine, but we fought back well defensively. I think we picked it up in the second half. … We emphasized offense and defense. We played together more.”
On the experience of playing in the Dominican Republic…
“It was a great experience. I had a lot of people who came to watch me today, and I feel overwhelmed. It was great to come back and play in front of my family.”
On Posh Alexander’s performance…
“He’s been in the gym so many times working on that three-point jump shot. He shoots it with so much confidence now. I’m so proud of him. Words can’t describe how much work he has put in to get to where he is right now. He’s the one that puts that hardhat on for us and goes 110-percent when he plays.”
