Utah Basketball Press Conference | 1.22.24

Utah Basketball Press Conference | 1.22.24

Great obviously Road has been a difficult place for you guys this year what what has been the difference in your mind like what you said you know coming into this game guys were ready ready to go what’s maybe the difference going into those games you know um we’re one and three on

The road certainly 0 and three in right 0 and three in league is that right is that right yeah so um you know I you know we just haven’t been as disciplined as we need I I don’t feel like we had the edge that we need I do think the

Last game we were just a little bit you know with L and getting hurt three minutes into the game and we found out that you know that morning um after pregame that Raleigh wasn’t going to play although we were kind of prepared because that could happen um but we just

Got to be better you got to I know I said this postgame we got to eliminate losing to win got to take you don’t have to play perfect but you we do got to be tighter with all of our stuff we got to rebound we got to play with more pH

Physicality got to be on edge more got to handle the crowd more got to take care of the ball more got got to make our free throws so I feel like it’s been a little bit different for each one although the Arizona State Arizona trip

I felt like um we really got exposed in transition defense I feel like we’ve gotten a lot better in that area um since then we just gave them points in that area and with turnovers both those teams we turned it over and just led to

Direct points so um but we have to play better there’s no doubt about it um and uh we got to be able to make some some improvements that way and just tighten things up you’ve already played both of these schools which is something that’s a little bit different than some of the

Other Ro tests you’ve had is there anything you can kind of take away from that to maybe help get you over there well first of all I got to apologize because I said after the game yesterday it was Game 20 and it was Game 19 uh as

My wife did tell me when I got home um but uh it is it’s kind of crazy that you know I just look these are our last two games in January I’m pretty sure that’s accurate um uh uh and so then after this weekend we’re at the halfway point so

You know you just got to watch you I watched um uh one game in Washington state and a heavy dose of Washington or excuse me one game of Washington a heavy dose of Washington state and teams play a little bit different as you go on and it’s already been almost a month since

We played these guys and and some guys’ minutes are up some guys’ minutes are down I’m sure when you watch us we look I mean in fact I know because I watched our game against Washington State this morning we look a lot different than we did a month ago just in how we’re

Playing and who we’re playing and so got to be able to adjust accordingly but at the end of the day their I think their their DNA is the same so to speak in in partic you know when you play Washington State I I say this every year but it’s

True uh it’s like a root canal it’s like you’re going to the dentist and they’re they’re prying in there and they’re digging in there and they probably feel the same and every time it feels like when we play it’s just this kind of an ugly tug-of-war um type of basketball so um

The good news for our guys I think things go a little bit quicker the second time around we have a a real genuine feel for their personnel their scheme what we try to do our guys know the strength of you know and what these guys play like and how strong they are

Because I think the first time you play somebody there’s always that you know five to eight minute stretch where it’s like a boxing match where you’re trying to kind of feel each other out well we’ve already kind of we’ve been down that road already so there’s just so

Much more familiarity um playing them the second time and um and obviously now you get to this point and of course every game matters but it I feel like it matters even that much more when you look at the standings how everything is just so jumbled up uh in the Pack 12

Don’t Know parody is the right word but do you feel it’s kind of that way this year with with the Pack 12 there’s not I mean last couple years you’ve had you know at least one or two teams that dominated yeah do you feel like it’s a

Little bit more that way where any given night type thing yeah I think the strength of the league is showing itself you know obviously last two years UCLA and Arizona been ranked and USC’s been in there uh most of the time as well so this right now for whatever reason we

Have one team ranked but I there’s no question and we’ve said this from day one the depth of this league is way way way better than it has been my first two years where you just you know expect the unexpected right and nothing is really super surprising this

Year it feels like and it seems like when you look at the scores there’s a lot of close games um throughout the league regardless of who’s playing at home or who’s on the road and I know it’s still ciche you got to take care of

Business at home and find a way to get splits on the road and if you can somehow and two you are like really jumping the competition last year I mean you had Ry and and Gabe go out for some extent of time obviously your your league play

Changed as a result of that what what’s maybe different this year that’s allowed you to be a little bit better at least early on to be able to miate some of that well way more depth I mean no question and we we’re our depth has been

Really really tested now I mean you know at the very beginning of the year we had a guy that ended up you know not being able to be here uh obviously will being out uh and and it’s easy to forget about that one like we had big expectations

For him this year um and I think he would have delivered um and then now of course with Raleigh being out in Lawson I mean those are four good players right and so uh it’s getting really really tested right now I’m really proud you know obviously the easy guy to talk

About with our bench um you know Ben Ben played outstanding um veteran Guy starts every game a year ago great Synergy with BC specifically those two guys playing together they did it so I mean they did it all year last year and Ben’s the only guy that started every game last year

For us so uh and then we just you know On Any Given night it could just depend on you know we still need more out of those guys I thought Luca gave us really good minutes the other night and it doesn’t just show up crazy in a box

Cheat but I thought he guarded well uh he did his assignments well right uh we’d like to mitigate the turnovers and get two but that was a source of an that was an issue with our whole team against Oregon and uh uh and then Hunter was

Just very very solid and you know Jaden played a couple but those guys are in a tough spot now they’re they’re going to be playing but it might be 20 minutes 25 minutes and it might be 10 or seven so he just got to be ready uh when their

Numbers called to be ready to roll and then and then we got to work hard to stay out of five trouble right you got to compete and be physical and all that stuff that was put us in some tough spots there when C got in some foul

Trouble um and we had to overextend some guys I know one of our assistant was like BC looks dead out there I’m like yeah he played the whole first I mean essentially he played the whole first I think he probably played 17 minutes but

Um um but I think no doubt the depth and then I think you add that maybe not quite as equally but just we have a lot more experience on this team right we’re just not playing I mean we have a lot more guys that I think kind of

Understand how to play heavier minutes because they are older they learn to find their spots I’d like them to find their spots and rest a little more on offense and not so much on defense um and we’ll address that but but I do think having that experience and been

Through the league with a lot of these guys uh makes a big big difference Avon’s been amazing now that he from being a bench player starter triple double anded with it again the other night is that makes him so good and so effective in that starting role well I

Think it’s a combination of two things one I mean he’s just playing and we played almost 38 minutes the other night but I but I think also it’s just um you know the more games he gets under his about like our our team is almost two

Thirds of the way through but in a lot of ways he’s only a third of the way through and I think you can really see it and feel it the last three games where he’s really um kind of figured out got into Rhythm basketball’s Rhythm and timing I

Think he’s his Synergy with our team has gotten to you know a lot higher level we as coaches um getting a real feel for his game if that makes sense and putting him in better position to succeed on both sides of the ball can he guard these

Guys can he not who can he have success with who does he struggle with where do we put him in a position of success obviously we’ve added some new things because we are a different team um without Lon and without Raleigh so but man he’s been he’s been playing out

Standing he’s really accepted the challenge uh he wants to be coached he’s embraced it um and he’s playing in attack mode right he’s he’s playing aggressive he hit some plays in that first half well the whole game the other night but I mean where you could you

Could hear that our fans just like you know with his speed um I mean he’s a dynamic player and uh I think you know when you guys came to um the practice remember we had that pra I remember specifically that day he had a really good practice that day and and you could

Tell from then you know um that he was going to bring some different things to our to our team um that we need where where does he have to take it maybe to The Next Step that you want to see that’s the exciting part I think

He’s really good right now but I think he there’s I just I really believe there’s a whole different level that he can get to um as he figures everything out I still think he’s I don’t want to say overthinking but there’s certain things um just with certain schematic

Things that we do on both sides where um it’s not like we always tell our guys the best way to learn is to overlearn right so whether you’re studying for a test you’re learning how to do it where you don’t have to think about it it’s just you just know it and

So you know I we’ve kind of taken a step backwards plus with some of the other guys that we’re playing to simplify our Playbook right and and make sure we’re really on point with our scheme because it has to be executable so just getting on point with that cuz we’re doing some

Different things now even with like Lawson being out um that we that we haven’t had to do in the past and so getting everybody on board but him specifically um and then I just think um just making the right reads making the right progressions whether it’s an outut

Of Bounce play or a set call you know what I mean I think that’s it’s not that he doesn’t know how to do it it’s just understanding our terminology to a te what play we’re running to the T what this progression and that progression and then that’s the third progression

That kind of thing and I’m going to say this for every guy everybody’s got to get better on the defensive end you know what I mean you just got to constantly and when you’re playing 37 38 minutes that’s a big load right you got to be

Able to do it all uh on both sides of the ball

Hear from Utah Basketball Head Coach Craig Smith after the Runnin’ Utes come off a big win against Oregon and prepare for their upcoming trip to Washington.
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