Vol Hoops Media Monday

Head Coach Rick Barnes Transcript

On what team has to do to have a strong finish to the regular season:
"I thought a lot about that yesterday, and I think the key is we've got to get better. We got to get better as individuals. I think we got to make sure these next couple weeks, month and a half or whatever it is, that we really challenge our guys to get better individually. We know there are things from the team standpoint that we've got to be more consistent with, so we have to clean that up and realize there is a lot of games left to play. Win or lose, the way you respond is going to be really important as well."

On rebounding edge against Iowa State:
"We had been getting beat on the boards and we talked about it with our team. That's an area that we've been up and down all year and we're going to have to find a way to be more consistent there and at least try to even it out some way. We just need to be more consistent."

On team's depth against Iowa State:
"All year, we've had different guys help us at different times. There's no doubt we've got a couple teams within our team. We are figuring out that we're going to have to play certain ways when Grant (Williams) is on the floor or when he is not on the floor. When we have he and AD (Admiral Schofield), it's a different front line. When we have Grant with Kyle (Alexander) or Derrick (Walker) or John Fulkerson, that's kind of a different team. Then when Grant's not out there or AD, and we've got Kyle and Derrick - another team. I think our guys are starting to understand that from game to game, whatever adjustments we need to make. Saturday was really more of a guard game. At times we had three guards out there, as opposed to sometimes we don't. That's one thing good about our team, is that we've said all year long that we need them all. We don't know on any given night what's going to be needed. It goes back to the first question about what we have to do to get better. We got to continue to improve as individuals and stay ready."

On what areas team needs to improve in:
"I still think we've got to get better with our ball screen defense. I think that's really important because so many teams rely heavily on ball screen actions and we've got to be more consistent there. Rebounding, consistently rebounding the ball. I still think we can get so much better offensively in terms of details and execution. I would just say that I look at everything we're doing and I don't think you ever feel complacent and feel that we're there. But we want each player to grow and continue to get better too."

On redshirt-senior guard James Daniel providing spark off the bench in Iowa State game after going through shooting struggles:
"Some nights you got guys that you know can shoot it, they have great looks at it, can't go down. Other nights they come in and it seems like they make more difficult shots. That's part of it. I think the biggest mistake a guy that can shoot the ball can make is when he doesn't take open shots even if he's missing. I think that really puts a lot of pressure on your defense. I think James is much better when he doesn't over-dribble the ball. I think he's one of those guys that if he can continue to develop a work ethic in practice, can get his game to a higher level. His experience - and you could just tell Saturday that he came in and you could see that he was feeling pretty good about his shot, and shooting it well. Then he had a heat check one time, pretty difficult, and sometimes when you do that it can really throw your rhythm off. But overall, I thought he and Lamonte (Turner) and even (Jordan) Bowden were locked in a little bit there where they felt like they were having a good day shooting the ball."

On how to coach and develop consistency:
"I wish I knew how. I talk about it all the time. I do think that your effort is a choice. Now, when you talk about shots, you can work, work, work, some nights that just won't go in. The things that you can control - your mental focus, your physical focus, being on edge with getting ready, scouting reports, knowing exactly what we're trying to do, details on both offense and defense - that's a choice and that's where the kind of consistency that we're talking about (comes from). I think you develop that through day-to-day winning habits. It's hard. That's why there's so many teams that aren't consistent. Because it is really hard to play this game the right way all the time and at the level that we as coaches always want guys to play. But it has to be a mindset that there's certain things that you've got to fight through, kick through that are non-negotiable. Hard work is a talent. It really is. It's not a given. People might watch the game and think that everybody plays hard. I don't think that's true. I think that it's something that you have to work at both mentally and physically to get that consistency. Again, that's where we need to improve probably as much as anywhere."

On the team turning offense into defense:
"I do think that (is something we've improved on), and it should be like that. We have guys that played a lot as freshmen that are closer to being juniors now than they are to being sophomores, and those are steps that you want to see our team make. I do think Saturday at Iowa State, our guys were locked in from the beginning defensively. There's no doubt that Iowa State was locked in themselves, because they were making it really difficult for us to get the ball inside early to Grant Williams or whoever was in there. So we took a couple threes early that we'd probably like to have back, even though they were open shots. And we've talked about that before, some teams come in with the game plan of 'we'll let them shoot as many outside jumpers as they want. But I thought we kept working and settled in and our defense got us going in transition a little bit, and they were good. I just feel like we had a good mindset when things weren't going well early, and we talked about in some of those early timeouts, let's just do what we do and keep playing defense."

On the team handing success and staying focused:
"Well, I think in you look at our league, you have to realize it was a great week for the SEC, with the fact that we were able to win the SEC Big 12 Challenge for the first time. But when you look at a team like LSU to start with, they've had great wins. They beat Michigan, they beat Houston early in the year, and they beat Memphis. They were picked last in the league, but they're right in the middle of it with everyone else. I'll be shocked if the winner of this league doesn't have four, five, or six losses. This league is that good. So if our guys at this point in time think they can take any nights off, we won't win, plain and simple. We just have to go about the process we go through. They went to Texas A&M and won, they beat Arkansas, which we didn't. It goes back to everyday being about what we're going to do in practice today, tomorrow, and get ready to play on Wednesday."

On the defense improving as SEC play has progressed:
"You think about the games when we allowed a lot of points, Arkansas was a game with two teams that really gets up and down the floor, so I would expect a higher scoring game because there are a lot more possessions in a game like that. Even Vanderbilt is going to be higher possession game because both teams will get up and play. Some games you go into where a team's going to control the ball a little more, and don't put as much of a premium on transition offense, so possessions are down a little bit. So every game is different. I don't think we're trying to do anything different, other than we talk about rebounding. We gave up a lot of offensive rebounds in the Vanderbilt game, and we came back the other day and did a pretty good job of not doing that. But every game is different. I go back to the Vanderbilt game over there, everyone was making shots. It was just one of those high possession games, and so numbers can get skewed that way a little bit. And some nights, to be frank, we're not quite as good defensively. And I do think we've been better the last couple games for the most part, but we still have to continue to play for 40 minutes and we didn't do that in the second Vanderbilt game. We let up for a little bit and they took advantage of it and built momentum and got going. It's hard to turn that switch on and off. I think it goes back to maturity sometimes where guys get a lead, they look at the scoreboard and they're not playing the game. Sometimes when you have a big lead too and need to hold the ball, they're not. So we still have some areas we can grow in those situations."

On LSU's Tremont Waters and Duop Reath:
"Tremont Waters' numbers as a freshman are as impressive as anyone in the league. He gives his team a great deal of confidence and plays a lot of minutes. I think they've got a pretty good punch there. They're capable and we know that. There are not just two guys we have to get ready for. There's a team of guys. Looking at those two guys, their numbers are as impressive as any two in the league."

On how being on the team for a couple years helps the players know what to avoid and not avoid:
"You hope they know it. We've got some guys that have been through it. A year ago, we had some guys that hadn't. The only guy that I'd say had been through it and truly understood it was Robert Hubbs III. He was carrying us at this point in time a year ago. When we were playing well and had any win of importance, he was our main guy. When he got hurt, we weren't mature enough to handle it. I hope this year we've learned and can grow from it. You hope that when your team starts getting older they realize that this is the month where things start getting separated. If you want to be one of those teams that people are talking about in another month, this month is important."

On his impression of Will Wade taking over the LSU program:
"Will worked for one of my former assistants, Larry Shyatt, at Clemson. In this business, we all know each other someway somehow. Will had done a good job, and I'm not surprised. I think he's done a good job at LSU. I don't think there's any question that he's gone in there really quickly and has done some good things there and created excitement and enthusiasm. I watched them when they were getting ready for Texas A&M and the way they went in there and played early. I watched them beat Houston, which has proven to be a great win along with Michigan. You really have to give them credit for what he's been able to do in a short time there."

On having extra days between games:
"I think you want to get into a rhythm right now as much as you can. We had a tough go there, and we came through it. It was like Saturday-Tuesday-Saturday. I think right now we've got some minor things that everybody has and so an extra day here can help everybody. Everybody's got the bumps and bruises you've got to deal with. I think any time that you can get that extra day at this time of year it's good for you."

On how being able to use the bench helps the maturity of the team:
"I think the bench can be a great motivator. Going back to the first time we all gathered and talked about this team, I said we've got a team with depth for the first time. We can overcome some things we haven't been able to do in the past with injuries. If guys want to take things for granted, we've got guys sitting there waiting to take those minutes. I'd like to sit here and tell you that we've got a routine or rotation, but I don't. I go into every game thinking some things, but something else may be needed. That's why we tell each one of those guys that we have to be on edge and be ready to go in and impact the winning someway. We've got a good group of guys that buy into that, and we just have to keep going."

On if there is any thought to starting Lamonte Turner over Jordan Bone:
"No. I like what Lamonte is doing. I don't care who starts, and I think Lamonte would tell you he's rather be on the bench than start anyway. If I think changing the starting lineups will help us, I will. I think Lamonte has played well because he has put more thought into his defense. When he starts thinking totally offense, his minutes will go back to what they were. He has really worked really well on the defensive end in the last 10 days. He has really tried to recreate himself. We know he can score and that he's competitive, but there has been games where he hasn't been as sharp as he needed to be defensively. The last couple weeks he has. If he will continue to do that, he will keep getting better and better as a player."

University of Tennessee Athletics

Head Coach Rick Barnes Transcript

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Players Mentioned

Jordan Bone

John Fulkerson

Robert Hubbs III

Admiral Schofield

Lamonte Turner

Grant Williams

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