HEAT Head Coach Stan Van Gundy

On the game:
“I thought we played a great first half and had a great finish. We did a good job on the boards, and we did a good job on their pick-and-roll game. It was a pretty good win. The third quarter was not what I would have liked, but other than that it was pretty good.”

On the HEAT Players:
“Dwyane and Shaq were obviously fantastic. Tonight, they just rose above everybody. Other than Eddie [Jones] getting off to a great start in the first quarter, everyone else gave us great energy but had trouble making shots. Therefore, our offense really did come down to Dwyane and Shaq. We needed it, and they stepped up and did one heck of a job.”

“Shaq is a leverage game, and the Knicks guys are good down there. Shaq just really played well tonight. He really worked to get position. He took the extra dribble to get a little deeper. He did some really good things, and obviously making some free throws helped a great deal. Besides, he is not an easy guy to guard.”

On the Knicks:
“The Knicks played really hard against us the other night in New York, and I didn’t notice a difference tonight. I don’t mean that as a negative because I think they have come hard at us all four times we have played. They came out great tonight, with great energy. They came out and got a great start.”

HEAT Center Alonzo Mourning

On the injury to Christian Laettner:
“It is unfortunate that Christian [Laettner] is going to be out. Christian was a part of a rotation that had been working for the whole season. When I came to this organization, I made sure that my body was ready so that when I was called upon, I would be ready to perform. The only thing that was difficult for me coming off the bench was getting myself loose enough to get out there and play. At the same time, I was always prepared. If my name was called, I was prepared to do whatever I had to do to help this team. My main focus now is to continue to help this team win, by any means necessary. I have not forgotten how to play this game. I still feel I am very effective, and whatever Stan [Van Gundy] needs from me, I am going to go out and do it as hard as I can.”

On Shaquille O’Neal and Dwyane Wade:
“They play in a way that opens the game up for the rest of the players. It is one thing scoring 30 or 40 points and not getting everyone else involved in the game. They do it in a way that gets everyone involved in the game. The good thing about Shaq and D-Wade is that they make the game easy for the rest of us. That is where our success is going to lie. What really needs to be magnified is how they make everyone else on the team better. A guy like Damon Jones is shooting in the highest percentage and he has more threes than anyone in the league. They make the game easier for other guys.”

HEAT Forward/Guard Eddie Jones

On the game:
“I tried to keep myself moving, knowing that I was playing against more of a power forward than a small forward. I knew if I kept moving, I was going to get some open looks. I hope teams believe that they can’t come in here and beat us. If we come out and play with the effort that we played with in the fourth quarter, it is going to be hard to beat us.”

HEAT Center Shaquille O'Neal

On the game:
“It was one of those situations where they came out hot. They are a lot smaller than we are, so Dwyane [Wade] just told me to take over. I had a horrible first quarter. I missed shots that I don’t usually miss, but guys kept coming to me and I woke up. Dwyane told me to stop messing around and go ahead and dominate. That is what I did.”

On the current 12 game winning streak:
“Nothing matters unless you win the whole thing. To all of you single men out there, it is not how you start the date, it is how you finish the date. Remember that.”

On the MVP chant:
“It is not something I am trying for. I am just trying to stay focused, keep my team on the same page, put together wins, dominate, and just get it done at the end of the year. [Dwyane Wade’s] name should be mentioned up there too. He is having a great year. He is a humble kid. I am glad to be a part of this new experience for him. I look forward to taking him to the apex of his game.”

HEAT Guard Dwyane Wade

On the Knicks:
“They came out from the start with an 8-2 run. They were very energetic and excited. We are a team that knows that teams are going to come out like that against us. We just continue to play our game. We got a lead in the first quarter and never looked back. I think we did a good job of taking their early confidence away.”

On whether he and Shaquille are the best NBA tandem:
“I think so. With a night like tonight, to have two guys score 30 and still get the other guys involved is special.”

New York Knicks Head Coach Herb Williams

On the game:
“They played well tonight. Their rotation was a lot crisper [than the last game]. They can be a championship team.”

On Shaquille O’Neal:
Shaq was making his shots over the top tonight. He was making his free throws. When he’s catching and he’s shooting the ball over the top, he is impossible to stop. He was 3- -for 13 the other night. He missed shots over the top the other night. Tonight, he was getting the ball in the post and he was not waiting. He was going straight to the hole. Once Shaq gets going, he gets everyone else going around him. He makes everyone around him better. Your focus is on him, and then other guys on that team start to get going. When you have to focus on stopping the guy in the paint. That is what tears up your defense. You have to double him and rotate to him. He is next to impossible to stop.”

On Dwyane Wade:
“Dwyane Wade got loose. He has been playing well all year.”

On the combination of Dwyane Wade and Shaquille O’Neal:
“I don’t think anyone has the personnel to contain those two guys. When they are rolling, nobody in this league can stop them.”

Knicks Guard Stephon Marbury

On the Miami HEAT as a championship caliber team:
“They’re a good team. They’re a really good team. I don’t know [if they are championship caliber] because I never won a championship. So, I can’t really speak on that subject.”

On Shaquille O’Neal:
“Shaquille O’Neal was definitely a force tonight.”

“He played like Shaquille O’Neal, the most dominant person to ever play.”

On Dwyane Wade’s three-point play in the third quarter:
“That was a big play. They made some big shots while we were trying to make a run.”

On the gamearter:
“We came in to win. We didn’t go in and lay down. We could have easily shut it down when they went up. We didn’t. We continued to fight against a very good team.”

Knicks Forward Michael Sweetney

On the game:
“Shaq and Dwyane Wade just took over the game. They’re playing well together. They’ve bonded.”

“We tried to make a run and they just came back with a run of their own. You can make runs sometimes, and teams will just run back at you. They ran back at us.”

On defending Shaquille O’Neal:
“You have to play good team defense, because there’s no way in the world you’re going to stop the guy.”

Knicks Guard Jamal Crawford

On Shaquille O’Neal:
“Shaq just makes it easier for everybody else on his team. They’re two different teams, actually. One with Shaq on the floor and one without. Without Shaq, guys understand their roles and they’re a pretty good team. But with Shaq you can take it to the next level.”

On defending Shaquille O’Neal:
“With Shaq you’ve got to pick your poison. You can choose to play him straight up, and he’ll over power you. You can double and triple team him, but he’ll just find the open guys. He’s been double teamed since he came into the league since he came in the league. So, he’s used to finding the open man.