Arkansas Razorbacks coach Mike Neighbors talked Tuesday morning about freshman Tahlia Scott getting freshman of the week honors and heading out for Thanksgiving tournament against Wisconsin, Marquette and some solid opposition.
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00:00 You know, in a year where there's lots of great freshmen,
00:02 not only in our league, but across the country,
00:04 it's been kind of fun to follow,
00:05 but she's obviously off to a great start.
00:08 You know, the scoring numbers jump off the chart at you,
00:13 but there's, y'all have seen enough to know
00:16 that she's impacted us on both ends,
00:18 offensively and defensively, so good honor for them.
00:22 I think it makes, I don't know how many straight years,
00:24 Callie, we've had a freshman of the week,
00:26 at least one week, but three straight years.
00:29 I figured you'd probably know that, so that's a good sign,
00:32 and probably more to come,
00:35 and a good place to start two weeks in.
00:39 Thought she had a pretty good week last week, too.
00:40 It could have been back-to-back.
00:44 All right, we'll get started. Dudley?
00:48 Tell me a little bit about Wisconsin,
00:49 what you know about them,
00:50 and really the other possible opponents, as well.
00:53 Well, we've played these guys, like,
00:54 four out of the last five years.
00:56 I don't know. I mean, it seems like we've played them
00:58 in three out of the last four. I don't know what it is.
00:59 We play them in tournaments.
01:02 We're pretty familiar with them, for sure.
01:04 I watched them the other night against Kansas State.
01:07 Obviously, Kansas State's a really, really good team,
01:09 not a lot like us. They've got a really big kid.
01:12 They throw it to a bunch,
01:13 but my first chance to put my eyes on them.
01:15 They beat a really good South Dakota State team,
01:18 which is a hard thing to do, so they're coming in three-and-one,
01:23 coming off the loss to Kansas State.
01:26 I'm really good friends. Marissa and I kind of grew up
01:28 in assistant coaches in the same area when she was at Denver,
01:32 so I know her well, know her teams well.
01:34 Rugged Big Ten, when you look at them on film,
01:39 they're very strong.
01:41 You can tell they spend a lot of time in the weight room.
01:43 Their best player is their five-player,
01:46 which this will be the first time all year
01:47 that we've played a team whose best player
01:49 is their five-player.
01:50 We've been playing a lot of really good guards
01:52 and some small forwards, but first time this year
01:54 for us to play, their best player is the big kid.
01:59 They throw it to her a bunch. She's real active.
02:02 She'll be a challenge for us around the basket.
02:07 A couple of good returners around.
02:09 A freshman, they've got a freshman
02:10 coming in that's starting for them.
02:13 Very similar to us in rotation.
02:15 They'll play six, seven kids, double-figure minutes.
02:20 It could be a great matchup.
02:21 It'd be a fun one to get kicked off down there,
02:23 but again, a team we're pretty familiar with
02:26 because of the number of times we've played
02:28 throughout the years, and then my familiarity with Marissa.
02:31 If they're on TV, I try to clip over and watch them,
02:33 whether we're playing them or not.
02:37 So talk a little bit about --
02:38 Last night, you mentioned that you try to be home
02:41 for Thanksgiving or home for Christmas,
02:42 and what made this the right tournament this year?
02:46 It's in Florida.
02:47 We want to get Sam and Talia back home.
02:51 We try to get every kid back for non-conference opportunities
02:55 and preferably a tournament
02:56 where they can spend a couple of days.
02:58 This year, it just so happened they both fell that way.
03:01 Dudley, on years when we take a foreign trip,
03:04 we try to stay on the mainland.
03:06 We don't try to go to one of the more exotic places.
03:10 Since we had the foreign trip this summer,
03:12 Florida worked out. The opponents were good.
03:16 When you look for these events, you want to have a good venue.
03:19 We're playing in a venue we're familiar with.
03:23 And I, quite frankly, like to go to places that are warm.
03:27 I know there's a lot of other places you can go,
03:29 and I would rather in November go someplace
03:32 where you got to pack the shorts.
03:33 I purposely didn't switch my closets over so quickly
03:37 this year because I knew I was going to hopefully need
03:39 the shorts and the flip-flops one more time.
03:41 You can appreciate that, I hope.
03:44 You bet. Thanks.
03:45 You got it.
03:47 Ethan?
03:49 Yeah, talking about just getting the Florida kids
03:51 back home during the holiday, I know especially just for Sam,
03:54 I think she played her freshman year at Fort Myers.
03:57 Have you gotten to talk to her a little bit about just kind of
03:59 what it means that you decided to go back to her home?
04:03 Yeah, they were excited when we got the contract signed.
04:07 I kind of reached out to them
04:08 and let those two kids know that we'd be playing.
04:11 Then after that, at that point in time,
04:13 we didn't know we were going to be going to Tallahassee
04:15 to play in the ACC Challenge.
04:16 So I know they're excited.
04:18 They've got a lot of friends, got a lot of family,
04:22 coaches that they grew up with, both of them.
04:26 It's a short enough drive.
04:28 I think being there for an extended period,
04:30 not just in and out,
04:32 gives them a chance to come hang out at the hotel,
04:34 come hang out, do some things with us,
04:36 eat Thanksgiving dinner with each other.
04:38 Everybody celebrates holidays differently,
04:44 but I like to try to take care of the half
04:47 that likes Thanksgiving and the half that likes Christmas
04:50 every other year the best we can.
04:51 So this year, there'll be a long Christmas break,
04:55 but we'll all be together, have a good meal,
04:58 and then two good games.
04:59 I like to play the back-to-backs.
05:01 I'm not a huge fan of the three in a row.
05:04 We've done it in the past sometimes,
05:05 but I really like the two-game classics
05:10 or the two-game format,
05:12 advanced, where you do win advanced,
05:14 not the predetermined ones.
05:15 I like the ones where you win and you play the other team
05:18 that won on the other side the next day.
05:19 So it's fun.
05:21 It presents us a new preparation.
05:26 We'll prepare kind of for both teams a little bit,
05:30 all potential three teams, all three teams a little bit
05:33 the next couple days,
05:34 and then turn our focus specifically to Wisconsin
05:37 when we get down there.
05:38 We will practice here tomorrow.
05:40 Today was an off day.
05:42 We will practice here tomorrow,
05:43 then travel, practice, and eat Thanksgiving dinner together,
05:47 then play on Friday and Saturday.
05:50 And talking about just how you have
05:52 two potential opponents the day after,
05:54 just not -- I know Wisconsin's the one ahead.
05:56 That's what you're more probably in-depth with right now,
05:58 but just general things, I guess,
06:00 about Boston College and Marquette you might know.
06:02 No, Marquette really well.
06:04 I've watched him three times already,
06:05 just sitting on the couch in between "Paw Patrol"
06:08 and "Rescue Bot" episodes.
06:12 They're really talented.
06:15 Older team, a lot of veterans, a go-to kid in Jordan King,
06:20 and then really nice pieces around them
06:22 with their post player, the Griffin kid.
06:25 But they're not -- then they got transferred from Lehigh.
06:27 That was one of the top transfers in Hottinger.
06:31 Megan is another person I go way, way back with.
06:34 We were in Villa 7 together,
06:36 some coaching clinics up and coming with Nike.
06:39 She's done a great job everywhere she's been
06:41 and has really gotten Marquette.
06:44 You know, their perennial tournament team,
06:45 I think they're picked second or third
06:47 maybe in the preseason in the Big East
06:49 with UConn and those guys, Creighton.
06:52 So, really good job.
06:53 Boston College, I don't know as much about yet,
06:57 not because I think they're any better or any worse.
07:00 They just haven't been on the feeds
07:02 when I've been able to watch.
07:04 I follow some of their scores. I know a little bit about them.
07:07 We'll get a chance to see that game.
07:09 I don't -- if I know we're going to get a chance
07:11 to see somebody live,
07:13 I don't do a whole lot of pre-scouting.
07:16 Coach Todd and Evan and the guys that do our pre-scouting
07:19 will have that all ready to go.
07:21 But I like to watch somebody live.
07:22 I can tell a lot more about them being in the gym.
07:26 I spend half -- I spend the first two videos on my computer
07:29 with my eyes going like they are trying to figure out numbers
07:32 and figure out who players are.
07:33 So, it takes me a while on that little --
07:36 that miniature screen I'm watching it on.
07:38 But being able to see people live,
07:41 you learn a lot more about them.
07:42 So, we'll get that game live,
07:44 plus the film that we have on those two.
07:47 But two quality opponents,
07:49 and I think that's what drew us all four teams down there.
07:52 I talk to these coaches.
07:53 I think when these tournaments start
07:57 trying to fill their fields, who's there matters a lot.
08:02 And I think -- I know when I heard Wisconsin Marquette
08:04 and Boston College, we all kind of looked at each other like,
08:07 we get a chance to go down there and play.
08:09 You know, there's four power five teams.
08:11 That's pretty rare.
08:12 You usually see -- you don't usually see that.
08:14 You usually see different levels represented.
08:18 But this is, you know, four teams.
08:19 We're all kind of in similar spots,
08:21 I think, within our leagues.
08:23 So, I think it's a good tournament for all of us.
08:26 Just a couple more for me.
08:28 Just I think we knew season opener watching ULM,
08:31 like they were good.
08:33 And I know that you all cheer after you beat a team,
08:34 like for them to win out pretty much.
08:36 So, how good has it been to see, you know,
08:38 Coach Bilderbeck have that success after playing ULM?
08:41 They're playing pretty well right now.
08:42 Well, I said it in our press conference.
08:43 I thought they were going to win their next eight.
08:45 I didn't want to put any pressure on her,
08:46 but I think they're well on their way to doing that.
08:50 You know, listen, I do those chalk talks.
08:52 Y'all are in there postgame.
08:54 Y'all ought to pop in there early one night
08:55 and see my chalk talks I do.
08:57 I've got -- the crowd has gotten big.
08:59 I think we probably had 75 or 100 in there last night,
09:02 didn't we, Kylie?
09:03 I mean, it was packed.
09:04 But, you know, they get tired of hearing me
09:06 say the same thing over and over, like,
09:08 "Hey, this team's really good, y'all."
09:10 And they're all kind of looking at me like,
09:11 "Yeah, you're setting us up."
09:12 But, I mean, it's justified,
09:15 and I'm glad they're going out and doing it.
09:19 And all of them, you know,
09:20 I want to see everybody we play go out there.
09:22 I follow their scores very, very closely.
09:25 So, I do think ULM is going to have a great --
09:27 and I will say the same thing about UCA.
09:30 I think the improvement that they've made in one calendar
09:33 year again shows you what's possible now
09:38 at certain places to turn rosters around.
09:40 So, I think UCA.
09:41 I haven't looked at their schedule to see who they play.
09:45 But, yeah, it's fun to see ULM,
09:48 and I'll be pulling for Foley and for Coach Rogers.
09:51 Everybody we play, I become their biggest fans
09:54 the rest of the way out.
09:56 And then last thing I wanted to ask is just --
09:58 I think it's probably always worth asking
09:59 just, like, how Sasha's doing.
10:02 I know it's asking a kid to come back after a year.
10:04 There's probably some hurdles to cross.
10:06 Just have you gotten to talk with her?
10:08 I talk with her every day.
10:09 You know, I check in. She checks in with me.
10:11 Some days we don't. I don't say every day.
10:13 It's not every day, but it's as needed.
10:16 And, you know, it is hard to take any time off
10:20 from anything that you do and expect to come back
10:23 and be at the same level.
10:25 She gets mad when she misses a layup.
10:27 She doesn't get mad.
10:28 She feels like she lets people down.
10:30 You know, she's so hard on herself.
10:31 But to see her step up there
10:33 and make those free throws last night was really good.
10:37 There are signs that we see every day in her,
10:42 and it inspires us.
10:44 You know, just seeing her out there inspires our other kids.
10:48 You can really tell a lot about a kid
10:52 and how good of a teammate they are
10:54 when you watch people's reactions
10:56 to things that they do.
10:59 Sasha made a couple of defensive plays,
11:00 made a block shot, got a steal, threw it out in advance.
11:03 And just to see Mac and Sam and even our freshmen,
11:06 Taliyah and Christina.
11:08 Christina cheers for the other team sometimes still.
11:12 We got to get her broken to that.
11:14 But, you know, you can tell a lot about how kids --
11:18 When Sasha made those two free throws last night
11:20 and kind of got a little smile on her face,
11:21 it was really good to see.
11:22 It's certainly going to be something that, you know,
11:26 I don't think it's ever going to be the same,
11:29 you know, for her or for us with that.
11:32 But just seeing her out there and having her around on the bus
11:35 and having her around these environments and that.
11:40 You know, for me, I just --
11:42 I'm willing to speak personally.
11:43 You can ask the other kids.
11:45 But, you know, I can be having a pretty crappy day
11:48 up until the start of practice.
11:49 You know, the stuff that comes across my desk
11:52 that I deal with sometimes, you know,
11:54 it's not what you want to deal with.
11:55 But then you get into practice and you look over there
11:57 and there's Sasha out there and you go, "I'm okay."
12:00 You know, if this kid can show up knowing how she's battled
12:06 to be out there in practice, I think I can put my whistle on
12:10 and go out there and do a good job today.
12:11 So she continues to inspire us.
12:13 And her play is still, you know, you look at it.
12:17 When she goes in, whoever she's guarding,
12:19 you almost see this look on her face like,
12:20 "Oh, God, Sasha's guarding me."
12:22 You know, because they've seen film.
12:23 Those kids watch film, and they're like,
12:25 "Oh, man, anybody but 13," you know, on me.
12:29 So I'm excited every day she's out there.
12:33 I don't take it for granted.
12:34 I know how flimsy college athletics is,
12:41 and I'm glad she's out there with us
12:44 and everything that we're doing.
12:45 So thanks for the question.
12:47 I think you can talk to her.
12:48 She's, as you all know, she's very --
12:53 she's just an old soul, you know, when she talks about things.
12:57 So thanks for checking on her.
12:59 All right, Jacob, we'll wrap up with you.
13:05 Hey, Coach.
13:06 You've talked about this a little bit in the past,
13:08 but just how important are these Thanksgiving tournaments?
13:10 What do you learn about your team overall
13:12 when you get a chance, like you said,
13:13 to play back-to-back games or even three in a row sometimes?
13:17 You know, it does prepare you for March.
13:20 You know, that's what it is.
13:21 You're going to play -- you never play back-to-back
13:23 in the NCAA tournament, but you do in the SEC tournament.
13:27 You know, even if you're a top seed,
13:28 you're going to have to play at least three.
13:31 You know, there's years we've had to play four to advance.
13:34 So it's more just being accustomed to that turnaround,
13:40 your body knowing, you know,
13:42 what it feels like to play back-to-back games.
13:44 So we try to simulate that in practice
13:46 during the offseason as much as we can.
13:48 There will be two days in a row where I get after them
13:50 pretty good on their heart-rate monitors
13:52 to make sure their exertion level is really high,
13:55 so we'll simulate it.
13:56 But, you know, I've always said,
13:58 I think what we really learn more about is,
14:01 you know, the travel, the being in the hotel,
14:03 the going back and forth, the prep, the quick turnaround.
14:08 You know, this first game, it will be normal.
14:10 We'll have a full two-day prep for Wisconsin.
14:12 But then the next one is a no-day prep.
14:15 That's that night in the hotel.
14:17 That's that in the film room.
14:19 That's finding out if your players will watch the edit
14:23 that our people put together, and not only watch it,
14:26 but how long they watch it, how many times they watch it,
14:29 and then how much they can carry over.
14:31 You know, for me, the balance is always,
14:34 how much can you give the kid on a scouting report
14:37 for them to be able to go out and retain and execute?
14:40 It doesn't matter that our staff knows every stat
14:44 or every play or every cut if they don't.
14:48 So, we learned a little bit about that on our foreign tour,
14:52 about how we travel together.
14:54 Obviously, we were together for 21 days, not just two.
14:56 So, we're past all that.
14:58 We're going to spend a lot of time on how we're preparing
15:00 and how our bodies recover.
15:02 You know, everybody's a little different.
15:03 Max got four years on her,
15:05 where, you know, Talia still pops up out of bed,
15:08 like she didn't even play last night.
15:10 You know, those things.
15:12 So, we got to figure all that stuff out,
15:13 and that's what those things do for me.
15:17 And then, you know, there's a lot of family
15:18 that travels with them,
15:20 so just being able to be together for the holidays,
15:23 it's a cool thing to be a part of.
15:26 And then you touched on their post player,
15:27 Sarah Williams, a little bit earlier.
15:29 I did want to ask you about that.
15:31 You know, 6'4", you guys obviously, like you said,
15:33 haven't faced quite a presence like that.
15:35 How is she going to challenge you guys defensively?
15:38 You know, it'll fall not only just to Miriam,
15:41 but, you know, to everybody, to be able to not let her dribble
15:44 it, knock her off her spot.
15:45 I'm anxious to see that matchup.
15:47 They kind of - their games are kind of similar, you know.
15:51 She steps out and shoots the three,
15:53 and by the way, if anybody had Miriam Douda
15:55 as our leading three-point shooter
15:57 through five games on your bingo card,
15:59 I'd like to see it in time stamped, please.
16:03 I think anybody that's been at practice
16:05 knows that she shoots it great.
16:06 I mean, she's got a beautiful - everybody that comes in goes,
16:09 "Her shot's so pretty."
16:10 And she has such long hands and fingers.
16:12 And we all know she can shoot it.
16:14 I mean, she's done it even in high school.
16:16 She made, I think, six threes in the state championship.
16:18 But I bet none of you had that on your bingo card
16:21 going through five games.
16:22 But back to Sarah, you know, the thing that concerns me most
16:26 is how often they throw it to her.
16:28 It's not how - I mean, she's really good,
16:30 but they - it's what they're looking to do.
16:33 You know, it's - that's what they're looking to do.
16:35 Like, last night, I don't know if you all noticed,
16:37 but, like, first play we set up for Miriam
16:39 just because we took 13 perimeter shots
16:42 in a row at Arkansas State
16:44 and got us off to a little bit of a slow start.
16:45 I was glad Miriam went there and got a little post presence.
16:48 But they're going to throw it to her every trip down
16:50 that they can. I mean, her - her usage rate.
16:53 And then she's - she's not a ball hog.
16:55 She's not - she's a good passer.
16:58 The other players, I think, benefit by teams
17:00 maybe spending too much time focused on her.
17:03 So, we'll give our post players a chance.
17:06 I mean, I want to see how Miriam does on her head-to-head,
17:08 one-on-one, and, you know,
17:10 Christina coming in and Emory coming back.
17:12 Emory's - Emory's guarded some of the best post players
17:16 in the SEC history.
17:17 And Aaliyah Boston and Tamari Key,
17:20 and she had a Fooway kid from LSU for a number of years.
17:24 She guarded Angel Reese.
17:25 So, I'm not looking past Emory's toughness, either,
17:28 to be able to give us some minutes down there.
17:30 And she does a really good job of keeping kids off their spots.
17:34 But I'm anxious to see the matchup.
17:37 Obviously, we've got great post players coming in the SEC,
17:41 so I'm glad that we get to face somebody in the non-conference
17:44 before we get there.
17:45 But, you know, if you spend too much time
17:50 trying to keep her from scoring,
17:52 she can turn those other kids into open shooters.
17:54 And they've got kids that will make open shots.
17:57 We've got to guard them.
17:58 But if you spend too much time on her,
17:59 she can make her whole team better.
18:00 So, you know, watching that Kansas State game,
18:04 it helped us but didn't really,
18:05 because Kansas State has a 6'6" kid
18:07 that can just kind of clog everything up.
18:10 We don't have that size.
18:12 I mean, Miriam's got that height and length, but not that size.
18:15 So, it's good for us to have that matchup.
18:21 And then last thing for me, I was wondering,
18:22 do you have any details for us on that Thanksgiving menu?
18:25 I know you said you were trying to eat early
18:26 and get it out of the system.
18:28 Yeah, I saw it.
18:30 All I do is make sure that there's enough,
18:33 but not too much.
18:35 You know, I want everybody -- our group's really pretty good.
18:37 We've got a new nutritionist, Charlotte McIntyre,
18:41 who does a great job.
18:43 She's only been here about a month,
18:44 and our kids have already really taken to her
18:47 in the pregame meals, being very conscious
18:49 of what they're putting in their bodies and stuff.
18:51 So, I trust Charlotte's looked over it.
18:56 I will sometimes go in and make --
18:58 she will cross some things out,
18:59 and I'll go out beside it and write,
19:01 you know, "Coaches only" or something, you know,
19:03 because I've got to have a few of those.
19:05 I try to not eat it in front of the kids
19:08 because I don't want to eat something
19:10 that they're not eating, but I can assure you
19:12 where there's going to be some stuffing on there
19:14 and some gravy, whether or not it's on the kids' menu or not.
19:17 I may have a little to-go cup or something.
19:19 I am a big Thanksgiving holiday person,
19:23 not in decorations, not in that, but in the event,
19:26 and just because of the way I was brought up with the foods
19:30 and everybody bringing something,
19:31 and, you know, I miss those times,
19:35 but we'll have them together.
19:36 But I don't have a very good scouting report
19:39 for you, just a generality.
19:42 And it's amazing, too.
19:43 Sometimes you'd be shocked how good these hotels
19:46 and these restaurants, these resorts at these restaurants,
19:48 what they can come up with for Thanksgiving.