Saint Peter's has "chip on its shoulder" ahead of matchup vs. Kentucky

If the press conferences are any indication, the Saint Peter’s Peacocks are not scared of the Kentucky Wildcats. If there was a phrase of the day during their time on the podium, it was definitely “chip on our shoulder.” To be fair, the person who asked the question used it first, but they really did embrace it.

“We all got a chip on our shoulder,” guard Doug Edert said. “We all have something to prove, both individually and as a team. I feel like tomorrow is a great chance and a great opportunity for us to do so.”

“We all have chip on our shoulder because at the end of day we have one mentality. Whoever we are playing, they put their shoes on, put on a jersey; we do same thing,” starting forward Hassan Drame said. “We don’t need the name on the jersey. All we see is a player in front of us just like us.”

Starting guard Daryl Banks III was the only player of the six not to use the phrase, but he might as well have.

“Just to piggyback, all of us come from different places and high schools where some of us may not have the same opportunity, and Coach sees that in us, and he pushes us every day coming into the season and every year,” Banks said.

Don’t worry, starting forward KC Ndefo went back to it!

“We all just have the same mentality and a chip on our shoulder, because, you know, everybody here, we don’t have as much TV time as others and stuff like that, but we all have the same mindset. And every team wakes up in the morning and puts their sneakers on and does the exact same routine. The chip on our shoulder, we all have it, and we are all here to do our job.”

“Yeah, like everybody said we all have a chip on our shoulder,” starting guard Matthew Lee said. “Maybe depending on what high school you went to or stuff like that people may think you’re overlooked and stuff like that so just trying to prove yourself right as much as you are trying to prove other people wrong is the mentality that we have.”

One more time for the cheap seats in the back!

“Like all of them say, we all have chip on our shoulder ‘cuz no matter who we play we are trying to show who we are and how we got there,” backup forward Fousseyni Drame said. “It doesn’t matter the name of the jersey, but it’s who we are playing.”

“A lot of guys on my team think they’re supposed to be playing against Kentucky”

When informed of the “chip on the shoulder” chorus by his players, head coach Shaheen Holloway smiled.

“First of all, were they good? They wasn’t a little too cocky, was they? No, I’m joking. That’s the way we are. I recruit guys like that, that have a chip on their shoulder with something to prove.

“A lot of guys on my team think they are supposed to be playing against Kentucky so now they get a chance to play against them. That’s who we are, a team that plays hard and have something to prove and play with a chip on your shoulder. I think that’s the best way to play.”

That’s the only way to play if you’re going to pull off an upset like this. Thankfully, Kentucky’s guys seem dialed in.

“Saint Peter’s University is a very good team,” Kellan Grady said. “We can’t take the seeding for granted or think this is going to be an easy task at all. It’s a different predicament for me compared to my experience at Davidson, but the overall focus of trying to execute and play the best game you can remains consistent.”