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Postgame Presser- UConn Big East Qtr Finals · Coaches Corner

• 0:02
  Never be ready. Yeah, uh, obviously thrilled to advance here. Uh
• 0:06
  you know, felt like, uh, you know it, Zavier would have
• 0:08
  the advantage. Just haven't played in the Wednesday game. I think those you
• 0:12
  know, the first couple of media timeouts, maybe they had a higher level
• 0:15
  of comfortability having been the you know, in a playoff game yesterday here.
• 0:19
  So uh but obviously ou are our defense the last thirty minutes and uh you
• 0:25
  know the twenty nine assists. Uh you know it s you know, thrilled
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  it. The way he responded to some early adversity questions, please raise your
• 0:33
  hand and we'll call on you right here. You're front, just abrough you
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  still a band like once you get like you thinking that was from little A
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  lot of the traces to PLU kids and su you like, let me tell
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  you as far as like getting up as a going after the slow start,
• 0:52
  yeah, I mean that it's their off stops, is their time to play,
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  so you know, it's an opportunity for them to be aggressive, and
• 0:59
  you know just kind of looked to you know, look to play in the
• 1:02
  ball screen game or just go make plays, uh you know, for each
• 1:06
  other and get lost in offense and then obviously off of uh you know,
• 1:08
  off of stops or dead ball situations that we're in, you know, the
• 1:12
  situation where we gotta execute you know, actions that we like to run.
• 1:15
  So uh, you know, we're getting stops like that, and we're getting
• 1:19
  transition opportunities and with the way we execute uh offense in the half court,
• 1:23
  uh, you know, with we're tough to guard when we get rolling right
• 1:26
  here in front all three of ya. When you when you came out,
• 1:30
  I I and they started with a ten or run into that first TV time
• 1:34
  out tend for did you reflect back on your last home game, I mean
• 1:38
  your last away game against Providence where they were up fifteen to two on your
• 1:45
  No, not really. You know that was a that was a whole different
• 1:47
  game, a whole different team. You know, like I said, we
• 1:51
  we kind of he he wanted us before the game that they were gonna come
• 1:53
  out later that and just you know, stayed with it. We had to
• 1:55
  start guarding and you know, extra offense, and we didn't really think about
• 1:59
  that game. We just you know, executed and play defense, rebound,
• 2:01
  got on transition in it, and came back from that down here in the
• 2:06
  left show and uh, Donovan. I was been at the best first half,
• 2:09
  but then you know he splayed eleven straight points. Uh at one point
• 2:13
  in the second really blow it open. What did you say to him?
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  And how was you you want to you can pull? That happened great?
• 2:17
  Yeah, I mean we we we got Uh. Yeah, he's he's a
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  gentle giant. You know, he's uh, you know, jolly green giant.
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  So sometimes he's gotta you know, get the you know, get that
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  intensity level up, get that that nastiness. He's such a sweetheart of a
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  guy. And uh, yeah, he just he he turned it up and
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  got pissed off. And uh, but just what the combination of those two
• 2:39
  guys gave us l tonight. That looked a lot like what we were getting
• 2:44
  from our centers last year. Uh. Samson was fabulous and uh and then
• 2:47
  when Donovan turned it up. Uh, he impacts the game like few players
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  in the country. Second row, David did they have a spot stamps And
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  it looks like he was particularly energetic and like first thot, he really came
• 2:59
  up a lot of energy. Is that do you notice that's at this moment?
• 3:02
  Yeah, he's been playing. I think he went to a stretch of
• 3:06
  games. Uh, you know in the you know where he wasn't being as
• 3:10
  effective as he was when Donovan was out in that early part of the season.
• 3:15
  I just think he's gotten back to the things that he does well.
• 3:17
  Uh, he's learned to handle the physicality of these games. And uh,
• 3:21
  I mean he was a m major difference maker what he was doing ball stream
• 3:24
  defense wise too, just kind of backing those guards up and uh, you
• 3:29
  know, keeping him from getting downhill. And then the pressure he puts on
• 3:32
  the rim when he's rolling is it's Uh, it's opens a lot of things
• 3:36
  up in the coach Looking at some of these numbers, they're phenomenal. You
• 3:40
  were up one at the half. You guys outscored up fifty four to twenty
• 3:45
  four of a roll of the pet you had twenty note assist, but you
• 3:47
  were only up one at halftime. What did you say in the locker room
• 3:51
  to get the guys to come out on fire like they did in the second
• 3:53
  half. Yeah, I mean a little bit of it was like raise your
• 3:54
  intensity level as a playoff game. You know, you're trying when you're trying
• 3:59
  to end Uh, the other teams either like their Big East career or the
• 4:02
  Big East season or you're trying to end a team's season period, you know,
• 4:09
  you've got to be absolutely on point. The execution's got to be on
• 4:12
  point. Uh, you know, the effort and the intensity and attention to
• 4:15
  detail. I mean, it's all got to be there. And just I
• 4:18
  think it took us a half to get going. But also credit Xavier.
• 4:21
  I mean they played I thought a really really really good first half back on
• 4:26
  the left thing. Hey there, Lane Higgins from Wall Street Journal, this
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  one's for you. Coach. I understand that Billy Donovan is something of a
• 4:31
  mentor to you. And now as you're getting on the eve of NCAA tournament,
• 4:35
  you know, were there any lessons that he imparted about, you know,
• 4:39
  going back to back like he did with Florida, and you know,
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  any takeaways that you've tried to implement this season. I talked to him a
• 4:45
  couple of times, you know, in the offseason and lead up to the
• 4:47
  preseason. He was h no coaches like, uh, you know, coach
• 4:53
  Calhoun and Tom Izzo and coach Donovan like my college co the Idols coaches I
• 5:00
  idolize. So you know, he said, really like, don't make it
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  about that. You know, like don't don't chase a repeat, like like
• 5:13
  improving the off season as a coach, Serve your players well, stick to
• 5:16
  the formula, like don't pursue the achievement, you know, just you know,
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  do a great job. You know, improve as a coach and and
• 5:26
  you serve your players well and let the chips fall where they may. But
• 5:30
  don't obsess over that accomplishment or else. Uh, you know, it's going
• 5:34
  to make you crazy. Back on the left, coach, your team had
• 5:39
  twenty nine assists on thirty five made shots tonight. What can you tell me
• 5:44
  about your team's chemistry going in as you prepare for the NCAA tournament. I
• 5:46
  mean, I can tell you they should have had thirty four because that one,
• 5:49
  that one stretch at three or four minutes when we were you know,
• 5:53
  lobs were a little bit off, and uh we brick some threes and stuff
• 5:58
  and you know, we have some sleepy shit going on out there that I
• 6:00
  didn't like. But it's a testament to the group. I mean, it's
• 6:04
  not so that many teams in the country with this level of talent and NBA
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  players. I mean I was starting five of all guys that are NBA players
• 6:13
  that are willing for it to be other people's nights on a given night.
• 6:17
  For Tristan, who's an All American and you know, and you know,
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  AP player of the Year in the league, and for him to you know,
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  go get thirteen, seven and five and only take ten shots and allow
• 6:31
  others just speaks to and Cam's done it and just got a team field of
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  you know, guys who brought into the culture and all about winning in the
• 6:41
  middle of pattern. Just good there we go for Tristan and then Dan if
• 6:47
  you wouldn't mind commenting as well, talking about your passing game, how much
• 6:50
  of it is kind of organic, and how much is coached in just you
• 6:55
  guys' ability to find open players all the time, I mean coach, they
• 7:00
  they drop good you know, schemes and plays and we go through them every
• 7:04
  day and to see what we we need. You know, obviously you have
• 7:06
  to reach the floor. But you know, our coaches do a good job
• 7:10
  of putting up some positions to make great passes and and have multiple options.
• 7:14
  So you know, we got great shooters, great lob to it, so
• 7:15
  it's pretty easy to you know, and give our shoes a ball. Kim
• 7:18
  like forty percent shooter. You know, ak uh Donovan road to rim sim
• 7:23
  it's pretty much easy. So uh, Chris the coaches for their schemes and
• 7:27
  help me out with that. All right, We're gonna just two more right
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  here, Tom Kem just coaching mooted. See, the most of the teams
• 7:33
  you're gonna be playing, we're on the troubles fighting for your lodge, not
• 7:38
  necessarily the jase from you you've got. So how do you kind of get
• 7:41
  that feel that you want this badly enough that you're gonna play like the flight
• 7:46
  too much? Yeah, I mean we're we're playing for a championship, you
• 7:48
  know, is one of the biggest goals that we set for ourselves at the
• 7:51
  beginning of the year. So I mean, if you don't wanna win now,
• 7:55
  then you probably shouldn't be playing. So you know, coach that it
• 7:58
  is very tough to end anyone's even but then Dad and the fact that they're
• 8:01
  fighting for an NCAA tournament spot makes it even even greater. So we gotta
• 8:05
  come ready to play tomorrow again. Past one, Jade Jane, you talked
• 8:09
  about, you know, selfishness on his team. Cam's would better passes this
• 8:15
  season now what should that as he worked out in the off season, and
• 8:18
  how satisfied or you lose fresh? Yeah? I think, Uh, when
• 8:20
  you when we watched them on Synergy, you you know, you saw a
• 8:24
  two way player. You saw, you know, a guy that could really
• 8:28
  pass the ball, and and I just think the offensive system fits uh,
• 8:33
  it fits him perfectly. You know. He he's good in the ball screen
• 8:35
  game, he's good fftball movement. He can go get his own shot.
• 8:39
  Uh. You know, did these two guys right here this is you know,
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  best best backcourt, uh in the best backcourt in the country right here,
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  So, uh, you know, did these guys make it easy for
• 8:50
  their teammates? But yeah, we did not teach Cam how to pass,
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  did we did? We did a thank you Cam, thank you you coming,
• 9:03
  yes, thank you