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Auburn HC Steven Pearl - Kentucky Win · The Auburn Undercover Podcast

• 0:00
  Uh yeah, first before I get started, I
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  want to, you know, uh offer, you know,
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  my sincerest condolences to, you know,
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  the family of Wes Rucker. Um,
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  you know,
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  it's obviously a tragedy. Um, Wes
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  covered me when I was at Tennessee and,
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  um, you know, he
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  was a basketball guy before it became
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  fashionable because the SEC wasn't very
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  good in basketball. and um
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  a true professional guy that just knew
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  his stuff, was very fair and honest in
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  his assessments. Um you know, he he when
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  you think about, you know, journalism
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  and beat writing at Tennessee, that's
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  that's the name that that you always um
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  will remember. And uh you know, he did
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  me a ton of solids when I was having a
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  really bad uh radio show out of college
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  trying to find my way. and he would come
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  on Sunday mornings and uh be my guest.
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  Um and he didn't have to do that and he
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  was always incredibly generous to me and
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  um so I'm just praying for his wife
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  Lauren right now and um you know it's a
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  terrible tragedy and uh you know
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  hopefully everybody keeps them in their
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  prayers right now um while they're going
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  through a really difficult time. Um, you
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  know, once again, you know, our our fan
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  base, um, whether we deserve it or not,
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  they are unbelievable and they just
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  continue to show up and show out and
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  just continue to support this team and,
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  um, we're, you know, we're just we're so
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  thankful and we're grateful. Um, you
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  know, the Outlive game was another huge
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  success. Um, you know, my sister Jackie
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  did an unbelievable job of putting the
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  event on. Um, and uh, you know, raised a
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  ton of awareness and and hopefully a ton
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  of money. So, um, incredibly
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  appreciative to our fan base and our
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  administration for allowing us to keep
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  this tradition going and it's obviously
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  a great cause and, um, you know, was
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  another successful night. Um, big win
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  obviously for our team. Um, felt like
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  that was one we had to get, you know,
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  just based on where we were in the
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  season uh, in in that recent fiveame
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  stretch.
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  um
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  you know, our guys, you know, um did a
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  good job of, you know, kind of battling
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  the highs and the lows of that game
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  because there there was a bunch of them.
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  You know, there was 11 lead changes.
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  Game was tied 10 times and our guys just
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  continued to fight. We got down nine
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  early. Had to burn a timeout and just
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  kind of refocus the group. We had to fix
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  our body language a little bit. Wasn't
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  wasn't great at halftime. It wasn't
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  great coming out of halftime. And then
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  Elijah Freeman comes in and him and
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  Keshan Murphy are just, you know,
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  phenomenal the second half. and just did
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  a lot of really good things for us. Um,
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  you know, we uh we had to do a better
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  job of finishing games. You know, we're
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  I don't know, we were up four, I think,
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  at the under four media and just talked
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  about having to finish and uh you know,
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  we had two coverage mistakes on
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  backto-back possessions that led to
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  threes, very similar to the Mississippi
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  State game. So, we got to stop doing
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  that if we want to win. Um, so a lot to
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  learn from, but you know, down three
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  late, you know, find a way to get to the
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  free throw line, make two and draw a
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  foul on the press, you know, and our
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  guys just, you know, hung in there and
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  Elijah obviously makes a big play late.
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  So, uh, with that, take any questions.
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  >> Obviously Elijah can put back, but he
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  was he was plus 10 for y'all tonight led
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  the team. just how big was he in the in
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  the end, but also just throughout the
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  game giving all that spark.
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  >> Yeah, I mean that was about as physical
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  I've seen as I've seen him play
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  offensively probably I mean in a while.
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  Um he was just had his shoulders down,
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  did a great job putting the ball on the
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  floor and just being aggressive and I
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  liked a lot of the looks that he had in
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  the game. you know, he had a couple
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  clean ones from three that I thought
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  were in. And uh he just did a really
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  good job of just playing physically and
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  to be plus 10 in a one-point win really
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  speaks to, you know, his contributions
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  and did a lot of really good things out
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  there defensively and uh you know, he
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  was he was great tonight. So that's
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  that's the Elijah that, you know, we
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  need every game in order for us to beat
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  the best teams on our schedule. So our
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  bench, you know, gave some good
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  contributions tonight and Elijah was
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  great.
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  >> Brian,
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  Stephen, you mentioned Mississippi
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  State. What does it say about the
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  resiliency of your team that you're
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  going through that possibly again, but
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  this time they bounced back and made the
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  end. The second part is what did you see
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  on that? Um I think it's Kevin Overton
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  that threw that foul there late. What
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  you see on that play?
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  >> Uh yeah, I mean our guys did a great job
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  of bouncing back. Um you know, I think
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  it's it's been a pretty interesting
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  slate up to this point. Um, and I don't
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  ever want to say that we've been
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  unlucky, but if you look at some of the
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  performances that opposing players have
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  had, especially from three, I think
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  we've had 11 or 12 guys since conference
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  play has started that have either
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  matched their season highs or had a
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  season high and three-point makes
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  against us. And a lot of those guys are
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  guys that are like shooting 28 to 32%
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  from three at the time. And then, you
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  know, obviously, um, Hubard goes
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  ballistic and has 46 and then he goes
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  four for 20 tonight at South Carolina.
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  So, about threw up my lunch when I watch
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  that.
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  So, to answer your question, I think our
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  guys have done a good job of recognizing
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  that we we've had a little we've been a
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  little unlucky in some of these games.
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  Um, because that's how we have to
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  defend. You know, we can't we can't not
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  be in gaps because teams would be too
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  good getting to the rim and finishing
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  through contact. And tonight was
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  probably the first time that the the
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  numbers actually went back into our
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  favor as far as teams not making open
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  shots. Um, you know, Kentucky goes six
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  for 23.
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  They shoot like 36% I think from three.
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  So, um, finally, you know, we we had one
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  go our way, which was great. And then I
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  I mean I just you know we KO was in a
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  stance and I KO's backs to me so I
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  didn't you know see the play but looked
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  like he extended his arms and we got the
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  offensive foul so we were able to get
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  the ball back and um did a great job of
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  you know getting a inside touch so we
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  could at least have the opportunity to
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  get an offensive rebound and then you
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  know we we kind of knew what they were
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  going to run at the end of the game. We
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  saw Marino do it against LSU. Um so you
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  know he almost caught it again and uh
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  you know fortunately he kind of bobbled
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  it and we were able to win the game.
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  >> Coach um Mark came in here and he very
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  articulately expressed his thoughts on
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  how physical the game was. What are your
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  thoughts on how physical this was and
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  how do you keep your team focused
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  through kind of how this game was
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  called?
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  >> Yeah, I mean I thought that there was a
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  foul on every single possession the
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  first five minutes of the game. Um, and
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  you know, I think the officials tried to
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  let both teams play through it. Um, cuz
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  I mean, if every foul was called on both
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  ends, it would have been, you know, both
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  teams would have shot 50 free throws.
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  So, um, yeah, a lot of physicality on
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  both ends, you know, I thought they were
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  holding us on every single entry pass,
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  you know, um, and, you know, so I mean,
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  I think it it works both ways. Um, so
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  yeah, very physical game and uh, you
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  know, I thought for the most part our
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  guys did a pretty good job of handling
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  it and uh, you know, I told him I was
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  like, don't don't ask for whistles in
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  this game because obviously like that's
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  not how they're calling it right now.
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  You got to adjust to what the officials
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  are doing and they already have an
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  impossible job as it is. And um, you
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  know, our guys did a decent job of
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  hanging in there and trying to play
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  through contact.
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  going 25 and 10 minutes of those boards
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  were on the offense and just how this in
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  this game considering a lot of
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  >> right. No, it was great. We we talked
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  about trying to set the tone early in
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  this game and send a message as far as
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  how we were going to play. And Murf
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  having four offensive rebounds pretty
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  early in that game uh did did a really
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  good job of uh you know kind of
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  establishing his presence early. um you
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  know that was what Mississippi State did
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  to us early in the game and Murf took to
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  the coaching and you know he kind of
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  flipped that tonight which was great and
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  then obviously I didn't realize he had
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  25 that's you know he obviously played
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  great and uh made his free throws and uh
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  after we had two just horrendous
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  defensive mistakes he they don't guard
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  him at the top of the floor and he just
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  you know bangs that three which was you
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  know obviously uh that kind of shifted
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  the game right there and uh you know he
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  had a lot of step up tonight and I'm
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  glad he played well cuz you know
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  obviously he was disappointed point in
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  how he played against Mississippi State
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  and uh he followed it up with a
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  incredible effort tonight.
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  >> Nathan Stegy's three-point shooting
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  coming way down in this game. What did
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  you see defensively from your squad
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  particularly as y'all were making your
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  comeback in the second half? I think
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  they went six minutes without a basket
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  at one point.
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  >> Yeah, I think we just we were a little
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  more connected and I haven't I got to
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  watch the film obviously, but I thought
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  we just did a better job of uh you know
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  communicating our switches. We did a
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  good job communicating our ball screen
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  coverages. You know, um we did a better
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  job with our framing. You know, we
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  didn't get um back doored as much. And I
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  thought our bigs had great ball pressure
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  on their bigs, which made it really
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  difficult for them to see.
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  Part of it was, you know, we got a
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  little fortunate. They they missed some
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  some open ones. Um
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  yeah, I mean Chandler goes one for six,
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  so I mean that's, you know, obviously
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  very important, you know, for us, but
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  you know, we we went five for 19, so we
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  missed our fair share as well. So um
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  yeah, I just thought we were more
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  connected defensively, did a good job um
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  communicating and you know, I thought we
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  Keshan Hall, here's your difference.
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  Kean Hall had eight huge defensive
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  rebounds and a lot of those came in the
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  second half. So we were able to finish
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  possessions. Take a few more.
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  >> Uh, coach, seems to still be a lot of
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  hard coaching and conversations going on
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  with guys like Tahad and Kean Holland
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  who's struggling offensively tonight.
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  What are those conversations for you
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  tonight in particular and then just
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  moving forward with with some of your
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  best players?
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  >> I asked them, you know, there's a couple
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  restaurants in in Norman, Oklahoma that
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  we're trying to decide on Monday night
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  if we're going to go to. And, you know,
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  we said we're going to go.
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  Um, honestly, I'm not really sure which
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  conversations, you know, you're
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  referring to, but you know, at the end
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  of the game, I I lit up Key because he
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  had two bad defensive mistakes and, uh,
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  you know, Tahad, I think the one you're
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  probably referring to is when he fell
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  down. Um, so both those came late,
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  right? Is that what you're probably
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  talking about? Yeah. Yeah. Okay. So
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  Tahad falls down when he's on the
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  baseline runner action and Chandler's
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  coming off and he's like, "Well, he
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  pushed me with me." I was like, "I don't
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  care if he like, you know, suplexed you.
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  You got to get through that. You can't
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  be on the ground because then we're
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  we're outnumbered if if bodies are on
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  the floor." So um yeah, I mean, you
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  know, we had a a spirited conversation,
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  but you know, he he was good and he
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  locked back in and, you know, did a good
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  job. And then Key just, you know, had
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  two had two tough mistakes late. uh let
• 10:43
  you know drive it left downhill and we
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  talked about sending him right and you
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  know we messed we messed up what we call
• 10:49
  a top on top bottom on bottom um and uh
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  you know gave an open three in the
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  corner. So that was my conversations
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  with him.
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  >> Last one
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  >> Stephen I think it was right after the
• 10:59
  game Wednesday you immediately talked
• 11:01
  about just how big this game was to get
• 11:04
  the win in the last seconds. How
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  important is this for your team with
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  four games left?
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  >> Yeah, it was crucial. You know it was a
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  game that we had to have. Obviously, you
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  know, we kind of played our way into a
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  you know, a bubble situation and uh you
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  know, that's going to be another I'm not
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  sure what how much they'll move. They're
• 11:23
  at 30 right now uh in the net. So
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  hopefully only winning by one moves them
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  up a spot and we can keep it as a quad
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  one because you know every quad one win
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  is obviously important. So that's going
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  to be our fifth I think of the season.
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  Um which is significant because a lot of
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  the teams on the bubble don't have that
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  many. So huge win for us. Um, but it
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  means nothing if we don't prepare for
• 11:43
  Oklahoma with the same desperation that
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  we prepared for tonight.
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  >> All right. Thanks, guys.