Arkansas Razorbacks coach Mike Neighbors with the media Tuesday ahead of Thursday at 7 p.m. against Kentucky in Bud Walton Arena in Fayetteville, Ark.
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00:00 You hear me, yes, Sir.
00:02 The talk a little bit about what you found out about Kentucky the last time.
00:06 Very physical.
00:08 You know, we did not have him prepared for the physicality.
00:12 First SEC game out, but we did.
00:14 I was wrong.
00:15 They very physically, defensively, offensively,
00:21 they got to where they just started asserting their athleticism
00:25 and driving it at the basket when Mary got in foul trouble.
00:29 So short answer, physicality.
00:32 Secondly, that they are very good at identifying your weakness
00:37 and going at it until you fix it, which I think we have fixed since then.
00:41 So hopefully it'll be something different.
00:44 You know, I said it pregame last time, and I even further will state it this time.
00:49 I think Asia Petty's maturation, how much hard work she put into the offseason,
00:56 has got to have her in the conversation for them.
00:58 We don't have the award, but did the most with their summer.
01:03 I hate calling it most improved.
01:04 That was-- I always got that award at camps.
01:06 I think I told y'all, and I didn't--
01:08 it always made me feel bad.
01:09 I think she should get an award for most dedicated, most time well spent
01:13 during the offseason, because she has really
01:16 become an impact player in our league.
01:18 Her numbers speak for it.
01:20 So I think between being prepared for their physicality
01:25 and knowing that they're going to attack our weaknesses,
01:28 I kind of like the short turnaround.
01:30 Usually in the past, when we play somebody so closely together,
01:34 I haven't really liked it.
01:35 But I'm kind of glad that we're only four or five games apart
01:37 from playing each other.
01:39 Speaking of short turnaround, obviously nobody
01:41 wants to lose like y'all did Sunday.
01:42 But is it easier to move past that than it is, say, a close loss?
01:47 Yes.
01:47 Heartbreaking?
01:49 Much easier.
01:50 It's easier to flush it, and you don't--
01:52 you don't want to coulda, shoulda beat yourself up over one single play.
01:55 It doesn't make it--
01:58 it doesn't make it more beneficial to get thrashed rather than lose closely.
02:04 But it is easier to move on.
02:06 You don't nitpick as many things.
02:07 The pictures are broader.
02:10 And again, we're playing the defending national champion on the road.
02:14 So I think--
02:16 I'm not making excuses, but it's easier to rationalize and justify
02:19 a little bit when you're playing somebody that good that--
02:21 at their place coming off of a loss a few games ago.
02:26 So you get down--
02:28 you get down to it.
02:29 Offensively, we had more points per possession
02:31 than we did against Alabama the day before, the game before.
02:34 So there's some good, there's some bad to find from it.
02:37 But it is emotionally easier to move along and get focused.
02:41 It was the end of one of our stages that I've been talking to y'all about.
02:45 That completed the stage, and we're kind of starting
02:47 what we're calling stage five right now.
02:49 This next six games, very important stage for us.
02:54 And I think we did turn the page very quickly,
02:57 got refocused on what's ahead and not as much on what's behind.
03:01 And I believe it's my turn to ask about Talia.
03:04 She will return to activity today.
03:08 And we hope that this is that ramp up period when you're out
03:11 for a period of time.
03:13 You don't ever want to bring anybody, especially a freshman, back too fast.
03:18 But she will be in activity today.
03:20 Got that word early this morning, and we're excited about that.
03:25 If you followed Sunday, y'all know Saylor was very limited.
03:27 She didn't practice into our two lead-up games prior to LSU,
03:31 and I limited her minutes after the margin got plus 25.
03:36 If we would have got it inside of 20, I probably would have brought her back in.
03:39 But we never could get over that hump in the second half.
03:41 We got it to 18, I think, one time, and they went down and scored.
03:45 So as long as it was 20, I was going to rest Saylor
03:49 so that we could have her max minutes the rest of the way out.
03:52 She is going to be kind of dealing with a day-to-day issue
03:57 that's going to limit her practice ability,
03:59 but we're going to try to maximize her game ability.
04:02 So we get one back.
04:03 And also, too, I think it's worth noting,
04:05 because I do think she would have played on Sunday,
04:09 Franklin is off chasing and fulfilling a lifelong dream
04:14 of trying with her draft -- the team that drafted her.
04:17 So she's not with us right now.
04:20 So I've been saying all along I'm always this even-steven guy,
04:23 but Phoenix will also be able to be cleared for practice today.
04:27 Our incoming 2024, that'll be Grace Sherding.
04:30 She's gone through all of her pre-physicals,
04:32 and she's enrolled in class.
04:33 So we'll lose B for practice.
04:36 Phoenix will not be eligible to compete, but she is eligible to practice.
04:41 All right, I'll send it over to somebody else.
04:44 Meredith?
04:45 Oh, wait, you're muted.
04:50 Sorry. Here we go. Hey, Coach.
04:52 Hey. You talked about a second ago
04:53 just being able to move on from that LSU loss,
04:56 and this team has done a really great job
04:57 this season of bouncing back.
04:59 They haven't had consecutive losses.
05:00 So how much confidence does that give you going into this Kentucky game,
05:05 a team that you've already faced, that your girls will be able
05:07 to just take care of business at home this week?
05:09 Yeah, it changes your perspective.
05:11 You know, the scout's a lot easier
05:12 because you don't have to try to convince them
05:14 that Anaya Russell's really fast with the ball,
05:17 or you don't have to convince them that Asia Petty
05:19 is going to be very physical.
05:20 They know that.
05:22 So we can spend our time on a lot of technical things.
05:25 I think our bounce-back ability is because I've got Mac and Sam
05:31 in that locker room telling stories of that is life in the SEC for us.
05:35 It's not that way for Don Staley, and it may not be that way for LSU.
05:39 But for the rest of us, you learn that in this league.
05:43 You can't get too high.
05:44 You can't get too low.
05:46 Otherwise, one becomes two, two becomes three, three becomes four,
05:50 and that's when you have bad years.
05:54 I think Mac and Sam are able to tell these kids,
05:57 "This is what you signed up for.
05:59 This is the league you jumped into."
06:01 There is not a team in our league that doesn't have a lot --
06:04 I mean, every team in our league has a win.
06:06 We're the only conference in the country that can say that.
06:11 If you get caught up too much in what has happened,
06:15 this league can't eat you up and spit you out,
06:16 and that's what's different than any other league I've coached in.
06:19 So Mac and Sam being able to tell these kids,
06:22 "Hey, it's one game.
06:23 Let's learn from it. Let's apply it next."
06:27 That's a good question and a good observation,
06:29 but I think that's why our kids are pretty good at it.
06:31 We've been there. We've had to deal with it to survive.
06:35 Thank you. You're welcome.
06:38 Evan.
06:39 Yeah. Hey, Coach. Can you hear me?
06:40 I can very well. Awesome.
06:42 So you talked just a bit ago
06:44 about entering a new stage of the season.
06:46 What do you hope that your team accomplishes in this stage?
06:49 Well, I hope we clean up about three
06:52 or four defensive possessions a game
06:54 and about three or four offensive possessions a game
06:57 because that's what it's come down to in these tight games,
06:59 you know, these six-swing possessions
07:01 whenever they come up,
07:03 whether that's a miscommunication on a coverage,
07:06 whether that's I was a little bit tired
07:09 and I didn't want to ask to come out,
07:11 so I tried to play through it, and I got whipped off the bounce.
07:15 I need to come out.
07:16 I need to raise my hand and say, "Coach,
07:19 you've trusted me to tell you when I'm tired.
07:21 I'm tired. I need a break."
07:23 I hope they've learned that they can do that
07:25 and then go back in the game whenever they choose to,
07:28 that I'm not going to hold it against them.
07:30 I hope they've learned the value that the seventh possession
07:34 is just as valuable as the 77th.
07:38 I think we have.
07:40 I think this is the time of the year
07:41 that that starts to kind of seep in on everybody
07:44 and remind even Mac and Sam the importance of that.
07:50 I like when we've played somebody
07:52 for a second time in preparation.
07:54 I hate it when we play, but I like the preparation of it
07:57 because we go back and we watch that film
07:58 and go, "Look at this," and they see it in preparation,
08:02 but they also in the back of their minds
08:04 see it as, "Wow, I could have done that last game,
08:06 and we might have won."
08:09 So I think that's a valuable lesson for everybody
08:12 to learn that you can't do anything about it now,
08:15 but you can take it and let it kick you forward.
08:18 Let that mistake in the ball-skiing coverage,
08:20 or I should have told Coach I was tired
08:23 rather than resting on defense.
08:24 I should have told him I was tired
08:25 and let somebody fresh get in there.
08:27 I think because of Carly Keats
08:29 and Carly Johnson's extra minutes,
08:31 and even Jenna, I think we've developed
08:33 a little bit of confidence in teammates
08:34 that if Mac is tired, she might can say,
08:37 "Hey, I'm going to set this one out.
08:39 Carly Johnson's got my back for two minutes."
08:42 So I hope that's what we've learned going into this
08:45 because we'll need it.
08:46 It's a six-game span.
08:49 I think we have three at home and three on the road.
08:52 That could really define what happens
08:56 at the end of the season.
08:58 Yeah, and, Coach, you kind of mentioned it right there
09:00 about Carly Keats because the last time
09:02 you played Kentucky,
09:03 your guards did a really good job shutting down Mattie Scher.
09:06 With Keats having 10 and Spencer obviously 25,
09:09 what do you hope to see again this time,
09:10 and what did you learn from shutting down Scher
09:12 and the Kentucky guards last time?
09:14 Well, you know, Matt guarded her the majority of the game,
09:16 and I do not have any idea how Matt held her without a shot.
09:22 I mean, that's not a made shot, a shot, a field goal attempt.
09:26 I know she was in a little bit of foul trouble.
09:27 She was 10 and we don't anticipate that happening,
09:29 but, you know, that was the game that Keats kind of got going,
09:32 got a little confidence and has carried it.
09:35 I think we need all of those kids,
09:39 all of our kids to guard Asia Petty,
09:41 and then, you know, Jenkins came in,
09:42 and Tyler came in and hurt us at spots,
09:44 so I think it's going to take all four of our guards
09:48 and the three bigs in that rotation, too,
09:50 to guard somebody like Mattie.
09:52 You can't just do it with one person.
09:53 You got to help on the screen.
09:54 You got to be there in the space and make her see your vision,
09:58 so I hope we can do the same job,
10:02 of course, not necessarily expecting the same results,
10:06 but make her life hard again
10:08 because I do think when she's very good, they're very good.
10:12 Yep.
10:15 Anyone else?
10:17 Great. Oh, Ethan.
10:21 Yeah. Sorry I'm late on here.
10:23 I know somebody already asked this.
10:25 My complete apologies, but you've been pleased this year
10:27 with the team's ability to bounce back after losses.
10:32 Just what have you seen?
10:33 I know it's only been really a day
10:35 since y'all have been together after the LSU loss,
10:37 but what have you seen, I guess, so far?
10:39 I know it was kind of the biggest y'all have lost all year,
10:42 so it could be tough to maybe get down.
10:45 It starts on the bus, though, Ethan.
10:46 It starts in the locker room.
10:47 It starts on the bench at the end of the game.
10:49 I will tell you this.
10:52 Our group's self-awareness is sometimes our greatest strength
10:55 and our greatest weakness, too,
10:58 but the margin sometimes -- like, we continue to play fast.
11:04 The margin will get away from people in our games
11:06 because we don't try to slow it down when we sub.
11:09 We don't try to hold the ball.
11:10 We don't try to do that.
11:12 We competed for 30 minutes of that game.
11:16 The first eight, not so much.
11:18 There was a middle two that we didn't,
11:20 but for 30 minutes of that game, it was pretty even.
11:24 So I think our group is very good at drawing upon that,
11:27 and even though the score gets away,
11:30 that's an attaboy to LSU, and they were on fire,
11:33 and they made some shots and rebounded,
11:36 and the crowd was amazing, all those factors.
11:38 I do think our group compartmentalizes,
11:41 moves past losses,
11:43 and moves away from victory very quickly.
11:46 I think -- and we were talking about it a little bit earlier.
11:49 If you were like me, you had to probably re-update Zoom,
11:52 but, like, because we've had to do it,
11:54 Ethan, in the last four years to survive in this league,
11:57 Mac and Sam can tell these other kids about it.
12:00 Hey, you're going to get beat 30 in this league.
12:03 You sign up for this league, you're going to be playing
12:05 the defending national champions probably,
12:08 or our Final Four team or whatever.
12:10 You're going to have nights you're going to be --
12:12 you got to move past it,
12:14 and you can't let LSU beat us twice.
12:17 You know, you can't let what happened at LSU
12:18 hurt us against Kentucky.
12:20 I think they tell that story in the locker room.
12:23 I think they tell it on the bus.
12:26 I think they tell these kids in, you know,
12:28 whether it's Keats or Miriam in a new role, whatever.
12:30 I think they tell that story way better than we do as coaches,
12:34 and they're going to listen to Mac and Sam and Saylor
12:37 more than they listen to us anyway.
12:39 That's a good thing.
12:40 So I think they do a great job of telling that,
12:42 and you can't get your head down.
12:43 Otherwise, if you do get down and you waller in it
12:46 or you listen to too many of the wrong people,
12:49 then all of a sudden now you might could lose a game
12:51 that you shouldn't.
12:53 Yeah, and then the last thing I wanted to ask,
12:54 I mean, you mentioned her, Sam.
12:57 She's just really stepped up for you all
12:59 since league play started, really.
13:01 I know she had seven assists the other night, too.
13:04 Kind of went unnoticed.
13:06 Yeah. What do you think about --
13:08 just what's it about her that lets her,
13:10 you know, kind of step up whenever it seems
13:12 like the spotlight gets a little bit bigger?
13:14 The spotlight doesn't change for her.
13:16 That's a kid that treats every game the same,
13:18 and as a result of that, when the spotlight does come on,
13:21 she doesn't have to feel different.
13:22 Like, she doesn't know the difference
13:23 between 13,000 and 1,300.
13:25 She really doesn't.
13:27 She's not afraid of the moment.
13:29 She accepts the responsibility.
13:32 When I call an action that's going to require her
13:35 to drive it at the basket, her eyes light up.
13:36 You know, it's not like, "Oh, no, I have to perform."
13:39 She's built for that.
13:41 I think that speaks to her,
13:44 just kind of the way she approaches life.
13:47 Like, this is an opportunity, not a challenge.
13:49 So I think as the games get bigger,
13:51 I think as the spotlight gets brighter,
13:55 it kind of stays the same for her because it's not --
13:57 it doesn't feel that way to her.
14:00 Her seven assists against them is hard to do
14:02 because they are so good at help defense,
14:05 but when she's driving it like she has been
14:08 all the way through league play,
14:09 she commands a second defender, you know?
14:12 And she's starting to make the right reads.
14:14 And then we finished a few shots behind her,
14:15 Marion hitting a couple of those threes.
14:17 I think four of her assists were to Marion,
14:20 you know, driving it and drawing Reese away
14:22 and finding her on the arc for a shot.
14:24 So that was four of them.
14:25 She had a couple of dump passes, too.
14:27 You know, us making the shot at the end of those is big,
14:31 but I think it's because she views every single moment
14:35 like it's the spotlight, you know?
14:37 And that's a cool place to live.
14:39 I don't understand it because I don't live --
14:40 I can't -- I can't -- I can't identify with that
14:44 because that's a confidence that she's developed and has.
14:47 And, I mean, I think it's what allows her to compete
14:50 in this league against the people
14:51 she has to compete against night in, night out.
14:54 -Thanks, Mike. -Yep.
14:57 -Anyone else?
15:00 Perfect. Thanks, everyone. -Thanks, everybody.
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