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Home > Blogs > Flyer Connection: University of Dayton sports > Archives > 2009 > January > 30
Friday, January 30, 2009
Martelli believes Hawks have shaken funk
I always enjoy listening to Saint Joseph’s coach Phil Martelli, whose team plays at Dayton on Sunday.
I had a phone interview with him today, and he’s a sports writer’s dream: candid, quotable and accommodating.
When I suggested his team was playing well, having won seven in a row, Martelli countered: “I wouldn’t say ‘well.’ I would say ‘efficiently.’ I thnk we’re doing each time out something a little better, and the beauty of it is I think there’s still a whole lot of growth we can make.”
I suggested the Hawks’ rough start (they were 5-7 at one time) may have stemmed from having had to move its home games to the spacious Palestra this season while that pit known as Alumni Fieldhouse is being renovated, erasing the intimidation factor.
They probably don’t lose to Siena and Drexel at home if those games are played at the Fieldhouse.
But Martelli said he thought the November trip to Maui and then a last-second loss to crosstown rival Villanova left his team dragging.
“Some of the emotional (commitment) and even some of the fortitude was left a little bit behind,” he said. “It took us getting knocked down by Siena and Drexel to get it back.”
Martelli raved about the Flyers’ Chris Wright, who missed the Saint Joe’s game last year (and all but eight minutes of Atlantic 10 play) because of a fractured ankle.
“It’s really exciting to see him play and see what he’s all about,” Martelli said. “I think it’s great for the league to have a player that’s just bubbling nationally beneath the surface and will (emerge) in the next couple years. It’s exciting for the A-10 to have a freakish athlete like him.”
