University of Richmond Athletics
Men's Basketball Post-Game Quotes
03/04/2006 | Men's Basketball
March 4, 2006
Richmond Coach Chris Mooney
On The Game
"It is good to win those games, rather than lose them. A call or a fumbled ball or a basket here or there - one point separates misery from feeling good. We are very glad to get it. There was a bit of a gut-check. I thought we came out and played very tough in the second half - our defense was much better. I was disappointed in our defense in the first half. We were scoring rather easily, but we weren't defending. In the second half I thought our defense was much better. We forced turnovers which made it harder for them to score. I just thought it was much, much better. If Kevin (Steenberge) and Buck (Jermaine Bucknor) aren't out there then we don't win the game. That was important and I hope these guys feel good about that."
On Richmond's Game Plan
"St. Bonaventure's game plan wasn't really sophisticated. It was just a lot of simple basketball - guarding your guys - just like you learn in seventh and eighth grade. I think we got away from that again. When we were scoring I think the game became a little looser. I don't think that is good for us because I don't think we could shoot like that in the second half. I think it is better for us to play in a game where it is a struggle for them to score. If we can score a little bit more easily, great, but it always needs to be a struggle for them to score."
On Richmond's Final Play Of The Game
"We didn't run the play perfectly, but what we did do was put the shot up with enough time to get the offensive rebound. I think that was important for us. When the ball got in Jermaine's hands, it was good because he was going to get something off with time left."
On Heading Into The Atlantic 10 Tournament
"The league is a little jumbled besides GW. The rest of the teams would probably be favored to win at home in different head-to-head match-ups. It will be interesting on a neutral floor who can just play close to how they play at home as much as possible. I hope that is us. I think confidence is a tricky thing, but when it is this late in the season wins are the most important thing to bolster that confidence. I hope we do have some (confidence) going in here."
Richmond Senior Jermaine Bucknor
On His Shot At The End Of The Game
"We have a play we practice and it was kind of similar to that. We didn't really get in it, but I thought I got a pretty good look. Kevin (Steenberge) and Gaston (Moliva) was right there expecting it to come off. When I saw those white shirts under there I felt pretty confident going up, especially with those two guys under the bucket."
On Heading Into The Atlantic 10 Tournament
"We have struggled on the road, but what better time to play on the road then after having this recent experience. We are undefeated in March. We have been talking about it all week - get two wins going into the tournament. We accomplished our goal for this week and put ourselves in as good a position as we possibly could. We are just excited. It is a neutral court and we have been there before. We just want to go out there with the momentum we built this week."
Richmond Senior Kevin Steenberge
On His Three-Point Play To Win The Game
"I didn't even see it come off the backboard. I just heard someone call out `shot.' I knew where it was coming from and I rushed to the weak side and tried to find a man to box out and it just dropped. I grabbed and it and at that point just knew I had to get it up to the rim as quickly as possible. The foul was called and the way I have been shooting free throws I was a little anxious. Having the timeout to gather myself and the confidence from the coaches and the team really helped."
St. Bonaventure Coach Anthony Solomon
On The Game
"It was certainly a difficult ending to a very good basketball game under some unique circumstances. It is very unique to play our last regular season game with no chance to compete in our conference tournament. I thought our young men really competed in these circumstances very well. We had a slow start, but we regrouped and finished the last 15 minutes of the first half off on a good note. We stalled there for awhile, but down the stretch we were in a position to finish the game off and it came down to two things that have caused these type of disappointments several times this season. The ability to finish at the free throw line and missing opportunities to come up with game-winning rebounds. It cost us there at the end."
On His Team's Performance Late
"You are never going to play a perfect game and this one was back and forth. We have been in more late-game situations this year than we have been in the last two seasons. That is a good thing for us because it means we are closing the gap. Down the stretch again we had our share of free throw opportunities on the road. The final two possessions of the game defensively - Richmond scored off second-chance opportunities. If we come up with those rebounds I think it is a different outcome. You just have to make the plays."