Mike Brey Notebook | Central State Win
Notre Dame head coach Mike Brey was pleased with the win over Central State on Thursday to wrap up the final exhibition of the season, but he knows it's the start to a long season.
On the win:
“I thought in the second half we were better with the ball. It was a great night to put the jerseys on. Six new guys and even a DJ Harvey who is working his way back.
“I told them in the second half we have a long way to go, but we’re all signed up for it. It’s a long road with this group, but they’re awesome to be around. They come to work, and we’re going to have to work hard for five months to realize what they dream about.”
On patience in the first half:
“We were really running guys through to get them in there. I’m not sure that will be the case on Tuesday night. The end of the half, we found a little bit of a rhythm. I don’t know who we start. We started a different lineup. I’m not sure who we start on Tuesday, and it will be a discussion over the next few days.”
On John Mooney starting:
“He probably is. He’s been really good for us. He rebounds the ball, and he’s active and around the bucket. He keeps it simple for us. It’s kind of hard to keep him out of there right now.”
On three-point shooting:
“It was a little high. We’re going to have to make shots. Bonzie Colson and Martinas Geben could score inside the arc. We don’t really have somebody. Now, could Johnny develop with his footwork? We’re not going to be able to throw it in the post and score, and that’s not who we’ve been.
“We’re going to have to make some shots or get our big guys rolling off the ball screen. We do have some drivers, and we can drive it more after some movement. We can get to the bonus and make free throws. We didn’t shoot free throws as well as I would have liked and some guys who are good free throw shooters missed some tonight.”
On getting the ball to TJ Gibbs:
“One of the things that’s evident is whoever we start as the third perimeter guy, TJ Gibbs has to have the ball. He has to have the ball to start the game and be the guy. We’ve messed around with that a little bit, and that gets him going. TJ has to have that thing to start the game.
“He may have to have it a lot. The other guards can react off of him, even Prentiss. I’ve got to be clear with that. He had it a lot in the second half, and now he has a forceful presence. He leads, talks and Prentiss just doesn’t have that yet. We put Prentiss to pick them up 3/4 of the way up.”
On the health of DJ Harvey:
“He’s pretty darn close to where he needs to be. It’s just reps now. The one thing you can tell is when he goes up to defensive rebound, he can just go up and get it. We have to play him. He’s gotta play. He and Prentiss have to play. I know they are coming back from major injuries, but they have to play and get a feel for it.”
On the newbies:
“I thought Dane (Goodwin) was the most comfortable. Dane has a presence and knows how to play. The one thing we say about (Robby) Carmody is he makes stuff happen. He drives, gets his hands on stuff and he makes stuff happen.
“I thought Juwan (Durham) was very nervous and I don’t blame him. I don’t blame him. I want him to get comfortable and keep working with him. Nate (Laszewski) got comfortable as it went. He stuck his nose in there. He didn’t shoot it as well as he probably can, but he has to keep shooting.
“Prentiss was pretty solid. We had him picking up the ball and getting after people. He had a couple of turnovers you wish he’d be stronger with but that’s going to come with time. Those guys have to play. They have great heads and want it so bad. We just have to keep teaching them.”