Arkansas Razorbacks Samara Spencer and Saylor Poffenbarger after downing UCA, 81-67, on Monday night at Bud Walton Arena before leaving for tournament in Florida.
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00 Oh yeah, okay. So just for either of you, it was a really good like distributed scoring game. Just
00:05 what do you think of the ball movement and everybody kind of getting involved tonight?
00:08 I think that it showed how good we are when we do share the ball and I think when everyone touches
00:16 the ball we all use our abilities to help each other so much and I think that we never like we
00:23 never questioned how individually talented everyone is and I think that when we work like together
00:31 it just goes to show like even if we miss a shot we're still like together like if we run the play
00:37 execute miss a shot like get a good shot it's still better than like you know just just kind
00:42 of the like feeling of when we go down and we don't play and we don't involve each other I just
00:47 think it kind of like exposed how good we are when we play together. And then Sam you really got going
00:54 like just getting downhill and finishing around the rim. Just what do you think of kind of your
00:59 ability tonight the creases that you saw? Well as a lot of people know we have three very fast guards
01:06 and so a lot of teams have to choose which person like one of which one of their fastest people
01:12 they're going to put on one of our fastest guards and so that kind of leaves like an advantage for
01:17 the person who doesn't have the fast person so I took advantage of the fact that I didn't have
01:21 somebody who I felt was able to guard me on me and I capitalized. And the last thing I'll ask
01:28 is Saylor it just seems like the past couple games just like you're stepping in your shot with so much
01:32 confidence. I guess how does it feel right now just on the offensive end for you? It feels good
01:39 I think I put in a lot of work to my shot and sometimes when I come in the game I think a lot
01:44 and so just taking that aspect out of it and trying my best like focusing so much on defense
01:48 allows me to take the pressure off the offensive end and I think going into the season focusing on
01:53 rebounding has helped because I don't put a pressure on offense and I kind of do what comes
01:59 in the flow and I think that it just shows like when I'm in the flow of it I'm very confident and
02:04 when I force things or I'm not when I fall away or I'm not sure it just like it shows I'm not it
02:10 won't go in and I think that me stepping in has to show like that I'm letting the game come to me a
02:16 little bit more offensively. All right so going into the match with UCA was there any specific
02:28 play style you know you had going into it and this is for either of y'all? No we just played
02:34 how we normally play. UCA I mean we played them in the past they weren't the same team that we
02:41 played in the past I can definitely say that they shot the ball a lot more than they did the past
02:45 two years that I've been here but honestly we just played our game and normally we play our game but
02:50 sometimes it doesn't look the best I feel like tonight it kind of looked the best because the
02:54 ball was very well distributed we were taking good shots getting everybody involved. Okay and then
03:00 this is another general question so this is the second year in a row that the women's basketball
03:04 program is going 5-0 into the season like how does that speak for the continuity of the program and
03:10 the season prospects? It's always good to go 5-0 but I think when you schedule sometimes you're
03:20 using these games to you know get a flow get a feel let your team get acclimated let all the kinks
03:25 come out and I think Coach Neighbors breaks it down into segments of you know we go on a stretch
03:31 it's a three game or a five like whatever this was our five game stretch so I think just being able
03:35 to complete it and you know not have lost feels good it allows us to go into Florida go on our
03:41 Thanksgiving trip with like an open mindset and I think it's just like a good start but also it's
03:47 more we really showed how much we grew through those five games like I think if you watch like
03:54 our first game you could see like certain things weren't clicking but like as it went I think it
03:59 we progressed very well. Okay and then speaking on the Thanksgiving trip y'all guys won't be home
04:06 again until the UCLA match what are your thoughts going into the Elevans Health women's Fort Myers
04:11 tip-off? There are good teams there I feel like it'll be kind of like a good time for us and then
04:21 after we leave there our next game is against Florida State who we all know is pretty decent
04:26 this year so honestly I just feel like all of that this game stretch I feel like is will probably be
04:32 our toughest besides the SEC just because we're playing a lot of really good and sound teams
04:37 but I feel like it'll also prepare us for league play when it comes. I think you get a chance to
04:42 talk to y'all after the ASU game obviously going on the road getting a win like that and then going
04:46 on you know down to this tournament talk about playing in those situations and you know you know
04:51 how it helps you develop confidence you continue to go throughout the season. At Arkansas State
04:57 it was like a it was kind of a fun environment like it was there's a smaller arena so everyone
05:02 packed but I think that when you are an Arkansas school like a lot of those players take pride in
05:08 playing the state school like I mean they're Arkansas State but like the University of
05:12 Arkansas they want to they're going to give us our best shot it would show so much like if they
05:17 beat us and I think that it's kind of a fun environment because like when we go to LSU
05:21 it's going to be a very hostile environment so it's not it's definitely not on a scale of LSU
05:25 but it is fun to go down there and be able to win and be able to you know kind of get past that
05:32 because I a lot of girls haven't played in like even though it's not the biggest arena like
05:36 the fans being like all rah-rah is kind of new for people so just being able to experience that
05:42 was fun. So I think Miriam got some of your rebounds but she went I think she made more
05:49 threes than she did layups but but have y'all encouraged her to shoot the three ball more?
05:55 Um yes Miriam's shot is so beautiful and sometimes she's she's a hard overthinker so
06:03 she's always like I don't know I don't know and I'm like Miriam just shoot the ball I'm more mad
06:07 at her when she doesn't shoot it but yeah I I'm always on her about shooting the ball I want her
06:12 to succeed from the three-point line like we all do. Yeah and I think it's a big deal when your
06:18 post player can shoot a three because when you're it doesn't matter if she's in the corner or if
06:22 she's in the top like they're gonna have to guard her which opens up the paint for all of our guards
06:26 so it's big when she can shoot confidently. Just to hop on the Miriam point obviously playing really
06:35 confident and Saylor in particular with you how does it kind of open things up when she's playing
06:39 as aggressive as she's been both on the outside and the inside? It forces the defense to have to
06:45 make a choice because if she's like we when we set up they can't step off of either one of us and I
06:51 think that it allows it to open up for either one of us even for me if I'm if I continue to shoot
06:57 well like they're not going to be able to get in the gap as much for her so I think when Miriam and
07:02 I play confident together it makes it very difficult because they can't they have to be
07:08 able to guard all five and I think that's a big that's really big in the SEC is being able to not
07:13 have like oh we can sag off on her we can you know like whatever it is so I think when she plays
07:19 confident it's a big difference. And for both of you as you head into the Thanksgiving tournament
07:24 you know points of emphasis for the team this week what are you guys looking to do as you go down there?
07:29 Win. Yeah win. I think also have fun into things. Coach Nabors does a really good job of
07:36 like emphasizing fun so I think go down there have fun Thanksgiving and win.