ATHLETICS COMMUNICATIONS AND PUBLIC RELATIONS
CHAMPIONS CLASSIC
MEN’S BASKETBALL
DEC. 1, 2020
BANKERS LIFE FIELDHOUSE – INDIANAPOLIS
Kentucky Head Coach John Calipari
On the team’s offensive struggles …
“What do you see? Why don’t you talk to us? Go ahead. Kyle, you say it. [Reporter: Terrence (Clarke) and BJ (Boston Jr.) need to give it up.] Hmm. And our point guards can’t have eight turnovers between them over dribbling, and trying to control the ball versus just give it up and get away. You’re better off the ball than you are on the ball. It’s hard to accept that, but that’s the truth. Let me say this. They switched everything, so it’s hard to really get some assists. You’ve got to run downhill. And when we did, we got to the rim and got layups. But, it’s hard because you’re going to get bumped. You’d rather pull it back and mess around with the ball and then you just look like you’re not a very good player. But, you know, they’ve got to go through this. I mean this is all part of the growth of this. Let me just say this. If I was Bill Self, I’d be so happy. Because my team was held to 29 percent from the floor and 23 percent from the 3 and we win. I love those games. Just to slog it out, and let me tell you what they did to us in the second half: they punked us. They just got fed. We couldn’t even bring in the ball and all they did was when after people, and guys just ‘it’s not that important.’ ‘Let me do …’ We have to learn. You know sometimes, I think Bill Belichick said: ‘You have to know things that keep you from losing to learn to win.’ Well, what keeps you from losing is not turning it over. Just not. Second thing is, free rebounds we’re getting them. You understand that we didn’t rebound on free throws? The biggest one of the game. The guy didn’t block out. A guy ran right around him and grabbed the ball. It’s embarrassing. But that’s what we need to learn. Olivier (Sarr)? A breakout, you’re going to foul? What? It’s not football. It’s not a touchdown. Let him shoot a layup. We’ll score in three seconds. And that’s a veteran. Davion (Mintz): veteran. In crunch time, you drove in and just threw a ball. We were going to win the game. What did you do that for? ‘I just had the shot. I really had that.’ ‘You just threw it at the rim.’ That’s the stuff we’ve got to work through. So, but you know what? We played a lot of people. Jacob (Toppin) helped himself move into a rotation spot now. Some guys have got to grow up and grow up fast. Part of it is, you can’t have an excuse. This is a no-excuse program. You want to make excuses? You shouldn’t be here. This is, you figure it out and you go. Listen to what I just said. We held them to 29 percent, and 23 from the 3 and we rebound with them, but they got us. We end up with 12 blocked shots and then you have to say: ‘How the hell did you lose?’ We had 16 turnovers and eight from your point guards. You’re going to lose. Well, why did they have eight? Because they’re trying to make hard plays. Instead of making the easiest play and getting away from the ball. But the 16 were spread out because I think Brandon had three, Terrence had three. Between those two they had six. So it was our guards who turned it over.”
On Sarr struggling with foul trouble …
“Yeah, I told him after the game. That was the dumbest foul I’ve ever seen. Let the guy shoot a layup. Who gives a shit? It’s nothing. Again, this isn’t a touchdown where we get a kickoff and march it back. We’ll score in five seconds. So, who cares? I mean we’ve got to be smarter. But, I’ll say it again, you have to know what keeps you from losing before you can win. And we don’t know it yet because I’m not sure – we’re still not playing for ourselves. How about Isaiah (Jackson) who played his heart out shoots a 3? It’s a tie game. Why did you do that? ‘Well, I was open.’ ‘You were open because they left you open.’ I mean there was a lot of – but you know what? We’re 10 new guys playing on national television and playing Kansas who had a chance to be in the game and did well against Gonzaga. And we defended them. We guarded them. We just weren’t rough enough and that’s why I just kept putting guys in the game. If you’ll rebound I’m going to leave you in the game. Couldn’t get Cam (Fletcher) in. Couldn’t get a ball.”
On 3-point shooting being off in two straight games …
“Let’s hope it’s not three. I think we’ve got a good 3-point shooting team, but we’re just not making them right now. It could be the pressure. These kids have never been in this situation and it means more. You’re playing with headphones on and gloves on and shooting the ball. Now all of the sudden this thing is different. A guy is hanging on you. You’re playing with a guy that’s four years older than you and the guy is up in you. Ok. It’s a different deal and it takes time to get used to.”
UK ATHLETICS COMMUNICATIONS AND PUBLIC RELATIONS
KENTUCKY v. KANSAS
DEC. 1, 2020
BANKERS LIFE FIELDHOUSE – INDIANAPOLIS, IND.
Kentucky Players
#23 Isaiah Jackson, Fr., F
On second half offensive woes …
“I feel like they slowed the ball down a lot, Kansas. It really missed us up. We couldn’t really get in the flow of offense and things like that. We’re young. We’ve got a lot to work on still. This is only the third game of the season. We’re just going to get it done, keep working.”
On the end of the first half carrying over to the second half…
“I feel like it hurt us a lot. We didn’t have any energy. I feel like we came out lackadaisical and no energy in the second half. And that’s something that we have to improve on and build on as the season continues.”
On foul trouble…
“The first half, I think I had two. Then I got another two the second half. Again, that’s something we have to work on. Foul trouble, I feel like that really messed us up, our rotations and things like that. Just get in the gym, working on putting our hands straight up, trying not to foul. Still young, still got the rest of the season.”
On what Coach Cal is addressing in team huddles…
“That we have to run. All the guys on the team can run. If we get up the floor fast and try to score after we get stops and rebounds, I feel like that could help us a lot. That’s what we did a lot in the first half, that’s why we had the lead. Running up and down, getting rebounds, getting stops. If we could have done that in the second half, I feel like we would have come out with the win.”
On what the team should be doing in the half court offense…
“First is to get into the offense. There was a couple of times that I, personally messed up a play. I felt like that really messed us up. Really, just get in the offense. All of the plays he has put in I feel like work. Us, as a team, we just have to execute.”
On Coach Cal saying the team got “punked” by Kansas …
“Yeah, I feel like we got punked a little bit.”
On his blocks and a missed rebound late in the game …
“Yeah, I had a lot of blocks. I don’t want to think about that because we still lost. On that last play, I tried to box him out and he pushed me under the basket and I went towards the rim and he got the ball. That’s my mistake and I told the team that was my mistake. Everybody knows that was me.”
On how the last two games have affected the team …
“To be honest, I feel like these losses helped us as a team. We’ve got a lot to work on, got a lot to grow. Just, as the season goes on, we have a lot of stuff to work on, things like that. Yet again, it’s only the third game. We have time. We’re going to keep working, getting in the gym and working.”
On the team’s three-point shooting …
“I feel like it’s both. There was a couple of plays we had for threes and we didn’t execute them right. Then, we were just missing. I don’t know what it is. We just weren’t hitting shots. It happens.”
On what has been difficult adjusting to college basketball …
“Playing with energy the whole game. Because once you stop playing with energy and they start to get that run, if you don’t make baskets or get stops, it can keep going. I feel like that’s one thing – playing defense, really. That’s one of the biggest things. We did, the last couple of games, play pretty good defense. But if we had a couple of more stops or a couple of more rebounds, I feel like we could have had that edge.”
On what has come easy for him …
“No, not really. Me, personally, I just need to get in more condition. If I can run more, be on the floor and be able to lift the team up and give the team energy whenever they need it. I mean that’s me, personally, I just need to work on that and play a little harder.”
On the team’s communication on the floor …
“I feel like it’s going to keep improving. The game against Richmond, that was our first loss, so we didn’t really know to handle being down or anything. I feel like this game, this game and the games going forward, I feel like we’re going to keep growing and growing as a team. So when the season is toward the end, we’ll start getting better and things will start working out in our favor.”
