Thoughts from the HC postgame this afternoon. Happy New Year.
Opening statement:
"As usual, what an outstanding crowd we had. Basically willed us after being down 18 with 10 minutes to go to get back into the game. A really disappointing start would be an understatement. Give them credit, I thought Darius Johnson and his leadership, his physicality the way he drove the basketball, the way they guarded. They made it really difficult on us, they made it difficult on Chance. Their switching, their physicality. Then they drove it at us and put us on our heels and we couldn't guard em. That's on me 100%, I've got to have us ready to go defensively and I didn't. I've tried to think through this, we've had good defensive teams at Texas Tech, we've had good defensive teams where I've coached previously. I knew it was a glaring weakness for us. But to start Big 12 play with this lack of physicality defensively and let a team come in here and score 87 points is ridiculous. I told our team, there's a lot of improvement we can make. I love our team, our team identifies with the fact that we can play good offense and score. Man, do we have a lot of growing up to do and experience that's needed to come very quickly to be a legitimate contender in this league. We need to do it through practices but we need to do it in games. I loved our scrap at the end of the game when we finally got to doing it. We were more physical when we needed to and that showed our lack of maturity to guard the ball over the course of the game. It was non-existent for the first 20 minutes. When we did finally start to scrap, we fouled at the worst times. Them getting to the line 22 times showed our lack of experience guarding the ball. Disappointing as it can get to start Big 12 play. I still believe in this team and I know where we can be when this is all finished but we've got a lot of growing to do to compete for a Big 12 championship."
As a coach, how much can you control defensively from matchups, personnel etc.?
"A lot of it, honestly. I think we got into some of the rotations that we wanted to tonight. I probably hung in there a little longer with some lineups thinking that we could get it figured out. It got worse. To be real honest, that's where I'm most disappointed. There needs to be an accountability in regards to guarding. If we're not guarding the way we want to it doesn't matter if you're an all-Big 12 player historically, we're going to have to be anchored by the fact we can guard people. We've got good depth on this team but we don't have a lot of experience being great defenders, I'll be honest. That's been exposed against teams that are actually Big 12 caliber teams. We need these games, I'm not saying we should play this way and that way we can learn. We need these games to expose what we need to improve on. I do believe the heart of this team is right and we will get better because of it. But I do think there are things I can do from an accountability standpoint, different lineups we can look at quicker instead of allowing it to be something, as in tonight where we let it keep going."
How did you like the results of Toppin & Fede together?
"A lot of that was when Keyshawn Hall was going. That lineup wasn't as effective, you could just see the comfort level is just not there with those two guys. We watched film of the Northern Colorado game when JT was moving good. We saw it at the end of the game when he got in the switch and Benny Williams shot a three from the wing and he closed out and blocked the shot. That's where I feel there is a lot of hope in this group, you just can't get more disappointed than this to start Big 12 play...we need the experience of playing teams like this against teams that can expose us, you just don't want it to result in a loss. That's where I've got to do a better job as a coach."
On the final possession, did you like the look or do you wish you called TO?
"I wish I would've called timeout on the previous make when we cut it to one with ~35 seconds left in the game. I wish I used the timeout to set our defense and trap, get a good look. Instead, we wasted too much time guarding and Christian fouled at half court. In regards to the shot that Chance took at the end of the game, I think he recognized that he was trying to come off and tie it. Really, you and I both know that we can get a better look. Chance hit the tough one in the corner and it felt like he was moving that way shooting it. We do practice that play to give him that option, they helped out of the corner and we could've made another pass to attack the basket. We also had enough time to get a two and extend the game...something that we haven't been in a lot of close games and we'll be able to learn from but probably the right call just not the right execution."
Is there a trend on the three losses?
"I don't think it's that complicated. Our defensive mistakes, especially scouting mistakes were glaring in this one. It was the same way against St Joes and A&M. They started with an offensive rebound and a three, talk about two things we know they would do. Then we went under a ball screen, it felt like that again tonight. Darius going right and getting to the basket, then Hall driving left and driving right and spinning back. That's what he does and he's great at it. And so, the urgency it takes to be great in this league, we felt like we were going to feel it out and get some points back, but it's a lesson that we can learn and now have learned three times. That's where as a coach, the accountability piece bears on my shoulders and I've got to do a better job holding our team accountable to the things we've got to do better defensively. So, yes, there is a theme to the three losses we've had. It starts with our inability to guard and do it the right way according to what the scout says going into games."
Opening statement:
"As usual, what an outstanding crowd we had. Basically willed us after being down 18 with 10 minutes to go to get back into the game. A really disappointing start would be an understatement. Give them credit, I thought Darius Johnson and his leadership, his physicality the way he drove the basketball, the way they guarded. They made it really difficult on us, they made it difficult on Chance. Their switching, their physicality. Then they drove it at us and put us on our heels and we couldn't guard em. That's on me 100%, I've got to have us ready to go defensively and I didn't. I've tried to think through this, we've had good defensive teams at Texas Tech, we've had good defensive teams where I've coached previously. I knew it was a glaring weakness for us. But to start Big 12 play with this lack of physicality defensively and let a team come in here and score 87 points is ridiculous. I told our team, there's a lot of improvement we can make. I love our team, our team identifies with the fact that we can play good offense and score. Man, do we have a lot of growing up to do and experience that's needed to come very quickly to be a legitimate contender in this league. We need to do it through practices but we need to do it in games. I loved our scrap at the end of the game when we finally got to doing it. We were more physical when we needed to and that showed our lack of maturity to guard the ball over the course of the game. It was non-existent for the first 20 minutes. When we did finally start to scrap, we fouled at the worst times. Them getting to the line 22 times showed our lack of experience guarding the ball. Disappointing as it can get to start Big 12 play. I still believe in this team and I know where we can be when this is all finished but we've got a lot of growing to do to compete for a Big 12 championship."
As a coach, how much can you control defensively from matchups, personnel etc.?
"A lot of it, honestly. I think we got into some of the rotations that we wanted to tonight. I probably hung in there a little longer with some lineups thinking that we could get it figured out. It got worse. To be real honest, that's where I'm most disappointed. There needs to be an accountability in regards to guarding. If we're not guarding the way we want to it doesn't matter if you're an all-Big 12 player historically, we're going to have to be anchored by the fact we can guard people. We've got good depth on this team but we don't have a lot of experience being great defenders, I'll be honest. That's been exposed against teams that are actually Big 12 caliber teams. We need these games, I'm not saying we should play this way and that way we can learn. We need these games to expose what we need to improve on. I do believe the heart of this team is right and we will get better because of it. But I do think there are things I can do from an accountability standpoint, different lineups we can look at quicker instead of allowing it to be something, as in tonight where we let it keep going."
How did you like the results of Toppin & Fede together?
"A lot of that was when Keyshawn Hall was going. That lineup wasn't as effective, you could just see the comfort level is just not there with those two guys. We watched film of the Northern Colorado game when JT was moving good. We saw it at the end of the game when he got in the switch and Benny Williams shot a three from the wing and he closed out and blocked the shot. That's where I feel there is a lot of hope in this group, you just can't get more disappointed than this to start Big 12 play...we need the experience of playing teams like this against teams that can expose us, you just don't want it to result in a loss. That's where I've got to do a better job as a coach."
On the final possession, did you like the look or do you wish you called TO?
"I wish I would've called timeout on the previous make when we cut it to one with ~35 seconds left in the game. I wish I used the timeout to set our defense and trap, get a good look. Instead, we wasted too much time guarding and Christian fouled at half court. In regards to the shot that Chance took at the end of the game, I think he recognized that he was trying to come off and tie it. Really, you and I both know that we can get a better look. Chance hit the tough one in the corner and it felt like he was moving that way shooting it. We do practice that play to give him that option, they helped out of the corner and we could've made another pass to attack the basket. We also had enough time to get a two and extend the game...something that we haven't been in a lot of close games and we'll be able to learn from but probably the right call just not the right execution."
Is there a trend on the three losses?
"I don't think it's that complicated. Our defensive mistakes, especially scouting mistakes were glaring in this one. It was the same way against St Joes and A&M. They started with an offensive rebound and a three, talk about two things we know they would do. Then we went under a ball screen, it felt like that again tonight. Darius going right and getting to the basket, then Hall driving left and driving right and spinning back. That's what he does and he's great at it. And so, the urgency it takes to be great in this league, we felt like we were going to feel it out and get some points back, but it's a lesson that we can learn and now have learned three times. That's where as a coach, the accountability piece bears on my shoulders and I've got to do a better job holding our team accountable to the things we've got to do better defensively. So, yes, there is a theme to the three losses we've had. It starts with our inability to guard and do it the right way according to what the scout says going into games."
