Everything Andy Enfield said after SMU's 77-75 win over Syracuse

Andy Enfield was happy with his team after securing a late win over Syracuse, but he is already thinking about SMU’s next matchup against FSU.

Opening statement: “Last 30 seconds to a minute, proud of our guys coming back and playing as well as we did. Defensively, we turned the ball over in the second half. And then some big, big time plays, winning plays. Obviously, Keon’s tip-in, but BJ Edwards is really sick right now. So, I didn’t think he was gonna play [but he had] that blocked shot. Matt Cross’s offensive rebound, and Kario was terrific. Boopie hasn’t played for over three weeks, and gosh, he was really good. Chuck Harris, five assists, no turnovers, gets his eye cut. I have no idea how many stitches he’s gonna have to have, but just showed a lot of toughness on our last regular season home game here on senior night. Very proud of our guys, we have 22 wins, and really proud of our seniors. Just tell Keon the next time he tips the ball over with three seconds, there’s still three seconds left in the game. He had already been signing autographs before we won. And they’re racing the ball down the other way. So someone mention that to him, please.” 

On overcoming the challenges in the game: “I mean, when you go 13/27 from the foul line, I call this a very fortunate win because we missed 14 free throws. But once again, we had a chance to win on Saturday and we went 0 for 5 with our best players missing easy shots against Stanford. And Cal, we made a couple wins. So this league’s tough. When we get in league play and Syracuse play an outstanding game, they were making everything early and their guards are very good and they’re big guys. So yeah, sometimes it goes your way. And tonight it went our way because our guys defended the entire second half and we did not turn the ball over.” 

On having Boopie back in a tight game: “Well, we wouldn’t have been able to come back down 12 without Boopie. He was great, he controlled the game, he pushed the pace, he was very disruptive on the defensive end, especially in the second half. We’re just totally different, especially with BJ being sick today. If we didn’t have Boopie, we would have been in big trouble. So we’re just a different team with him. We were 19 and 5 when he went down with his injury, and then went 2 and 3 without him, and we needed him, and it was a couple of big home games we lost. So we’re happy to have him back. Hopefully BJ will be healthy and we can go in Saturday to Tallahassee with a full roster or close to it.” 

On if a close win like this one feels different from other wins this season: “Yeah, it’s a very gratifying win. The reason we have 22 wins right now is because these guys have been doing this over and over. And we are 7-2 on the road, we won a lot of road games in this league by grinding it out defensively and really improving defensively throughout the season. And our first half defense, they were making a lot of tough shots and then a guy banked it in with no time left at the end of the half. And it just seemed like everything they were throwing up went in. And so sometimes that happens, but our players, they came together at halftime and we just told them no matter what the score is, you have to defend at a higher level than we did in the first half. And they did that.”

On the importance of the win regarding the ACC standings: “Well, our goal is to win two games this week. And we won one, and now we’ll take tomorrow off, get some guys healthy. And then try to go into Florida State, which is a very hard place to play. I had coached there for five years with Coach Hamilton, I know how hard a place to play that is. So we’ll go give it our best shot. But to answer your question, it was a very important win for us. We needed to win this game.” 

On the improved defense in the final few minutes: “Yeah, it was really impressive. And Keon, some games he plays more than others. Tonight, he came off the bench and played the center position for us. He played a power forward and center position, different types, including the last minute and a half when Samet fouled out. And these guys just got it done. And as I said, that’s why we’re 22-8, because they find ways to win. They’re doing close games, and they’ve done it all season.” 

On not letting the emotions of the night get the best of the players: “Well, I think when you miss 14 free throws, it becomes contagious. And we had good shooters missing free throws. Boopie missed a front end. And Kario is shooting 87% in the league, and he went one for three. BJ went one for four. Boopie went three for six, including a front end of a one on one. Samet was two for seven. And we’re a very good shooting team. I think we’re top 15 in the nation three-point percentage. We shoot 49% from the field and free throw 73% as a team. So it’s very unusual, but we’ve had two games at home, ironically. Sometimes on the road, you’re not used to the surroundings or shoot poorly. But the Duke game and this game, we were really poor from the foul line. It’s unusual. But it’s one thing if your big guys who aren’t great shooters miss. But when your guards are really good shooters start missing, it just kind of snowballed. I thought it became contagious, and to your question about trying to focus, every time it looked like we’re gonna tie it up or take the lead or have a chance to, we would miss the free throw or two, and then they go down score, and just became very frustrating for our guys. But, they somehow didn’t let it affect them and figured out a way to win.” 

On the special moment for Keon Ambrose-Hylton: “Well, I said it earlier, he tipped it in and started running towards the stands and celebrating and signing autographs. So I guess that’s all you have to know. Then someone said, Keon, and then he turned around, saw the ball going towards half court, and decided to get back on the court. So, thank goodness the guy didn’t make a shot. But Keon is a captain. He’s a leader, he’s a high energy, and the thing about him is he does it every day in practice with a lot of people who don’t see. He comes off the bench. He started a couple games early when we had injuries and so he is just a guy that we know that when we put him on the court, he’s gonna bring us great energy and help the team in some way.” 

On how Chuck’s injury affected him in the game: “Yeah, you know, at this level of basketball, it’s hard just to say, hey, we want to get Chuck a wide open three, you know. And so the impressive thing about our team is we have six guys averaging double figures, and we lead the ACC in scoring. Chuck had five assists and no turnovers. He had 13 points, and that big three he hit in the corner was huge for us to help us come back. But he’s really improved as an all-around guard. So even when he’s not making shots, he can help us win. And as I said, five assists, no turnovers, and that one pass he had to Samet for the and-one on the, we ran the side balls, pitched back, and he threw that perfect pass to Samet. He probably missed the free throws. Those were probably just two. But those are plays that Chuck has really improved on throughout this season and has become a very, very good player.” 

On how to use this game to prepare for the emotions of the FSU game: “I think [this game] gives us confidence to go in and play great on Saturday. I think we’re gonna play great on Saturday. Whether we win or not, who knows, we just have to compete. But I feel great. I think we’ll have a lot of confidence. We’ll take tomorrow off and Thursday they’re gonna show up with smiles on their face, knowing that we have 22 wins and we have a lot to play for. Thank you.”