23.11.10 P. McCaffery Presser
Patrick McCaffery interview
Transcript
00:00 All right, questions for Patrick.
00:02 Patrick, not that this is necessarily
00:07 different from other games, but to me tonight,
00:09 it looked like your instinct was to score right away
00:12 every time you touched the ball.
00:14 Would you say that that's accurate?
00:16 Yeah.
00:17 That's kind of my mentality.
00:21 If I see something, if I see some sort of advantage,
00:24 if I have space to drive the ball
00:26 or if I have space to shoot the ball,
00:27 I'm really confident in the work I've put into my ability
00:31 to either drive it or shoot it or whatever I
00:33 see in that certain situation.
00:36 So I always try to be aggressive and kind of hunt shots.
00:40 And tonight, they went in, and it was helpful.
00:43 You guys have had single digit turnovers
00:45 in the first two games.
00:47 What's working right now that's cutting that number down?
00:50 I think even just kind of the way we play,
00:53 my whole career here, and I think traditionally
00:55 for our teams, we don't turn the ball over very much.
00:58 That's something we pride ourselves on,
01:00 because you can't get a shot if you turn the ball over.
01:02 We had six in the first half, which for us, I think,
01:04 is too many.
01:05 And then obviously, we had zero in the second half,
01:07 which is a great stat.
01:08 But I think it's something that we really
01:12 stress throughout all of the preseason and the practice
01:15 and all that, is guys, we don't turn the ball over.
01:18 Obviously, you're not going to finish the game with zero
01:20 turnovers.
01:21 That's not possible.
01:22 But we always want to keep that number low
01:24 and always get a shot up every time.
01:27 What is just the first two games,
01:29 like just where do you guys--
01:31 where do you think you guys are at?
01:33 I think we're in a good spot.
01:35 I like our team.
01:36 We have a lot of weapons.
01:38 We can go a lot of different ways.
01:41 And I think, especially tonight, those guys were good.
01:44 And I think we got to be able to keep
01:47 locking in on the defensive end.
01:48 I think we felt them both under 70 or right around there.
01:50 And I think that's a good number for us.
01:52 And we got to keep it pushing and stay aggressive
01:55 and be balanced and move and share the ball.
01:58 It was kind of tight there in the first half.
02:00 And then Peyton had a little stretch.
02:03 What do you think allowed you guys to overcome that,
02:07 I guess, early adversity in the season?
02:09 Yeah, it's-- play a lot of close games.
02:13 You just got to keep playing.
02:14 Just trust the way you play.
02:16 Trust your ability to get stops and run.
02:18 And find Peyton when he's open.
02:20 Make plays.
02:21 And I think that's just kind of-- just kind of stick
02:23 with what you do.
02:24 You always fall to the kind of level of your training.
02:26 And we just kind of stick with where we are.
02:28 I think that's something that we always pride ourselves on
02:32 and something that is good for us moving forward.
02:35 Just no matter what the score is, just play the way we play.
02:38 Tuesday's a whole different deal.
02:40 Atmosphere and opponent in Omaha.
02:44 You've been through this many times.
02:47 What do you tell younger players on your team?
02:50 Just play basketball.
02:51 You've played-- they've played, at this point,
02:53 probably hundreds, maybe thousands of basketball games
02:55 in their life.
02:56 It's just another game.
02:57 Obviously, it's probably-- for our freshmen,
02:59 it's probably the best team they've played against up
03:02 to this point.
03:03 But we respect everybody, but we fear no one.
03:06 We're ready to kind of come in and really push the envelope.
03:09 And it's a great opportunity to compete.
03:11 They're a really good team.
03:12 Coachman Tournament's obviously very successful.
03:15 And they have really good players.
03:16 So I think we just got to go in with a confident mindset
03:20 and play the game.
03:21 30-plus fouls, I think, for them tonight.
03:24 Could you get a feel of that physicality early on?
03:27 And do you think that's why the game was a little bit closer?
03:30 Yeah.
03:31 That kind of happened in our exhibition game, too.
03:33 They just kept fouling.
03:34 So you don't score a ton early because they keep fouling.
03:37 But then eventually, you get the bonus.
03:38 And that's when it kind of separates itself
03:39 because they continue to foul.
03:41 They're a very aggressive, defensive team.
03:43 They shoot gaps.
03:44 They go for steals.
03:45 They're in the gaps.
03:45 They're trying to swipe at the ball.
03:47 So I think just kind of the way they play.
03:52 And it is what it is.
03:55 You just have to adapt and adjust and just
03:58 make our free throws.
03:59 Is that what you've seen from Brock tonight?
04:03 Well, saw what you guys have been seeing?
04:05 Yeah.
04:06 Brock's a very confident guy.
04:08 That's what I love about Brock is just confidence, his moxie.
04:11 I think that's what you need to play at this level, especially
04:14 as a point guard, and especially a small guy like him.
04:17 You need to be very confident in your ability.
04:19 And he is.
04:20 And that's why I love Brock so much.
04:21 That's my guy.
04:23 I've known Brock since he was even smaller than he is now.
04:25 I've known him since he was like 11, 12 years old.
04:28 That's my guy.
04:28 So I always just got to be there for him.
04:32 And I'm excited to go to war with him.
04:34 When you go to war, you want guys like Brock Harding.
04:36 And I'm excited for his future here.