Creighton University
23-12
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Kansas
30-6
Short-Handed Men's Basketball Falls to #3 Kansas, 79-72
3/19/2022 2:36:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Bluejays Close Season 23-12
With the win, Kansas (30-6) advances to next Friday's Regional semifinal in Chicago against the winner of tonight's Providence/Richmond game. A start time and television network for that contest will be announced on Sunday evening.
The Bluejays soared out of the gates, quickly building a 13-7 lead. After going back-to-back games without a first half three-pointer, the Bluejays connected on three triples in the first five minutes on Saturday. Ryan Hawkins drained a trey on the game's opening possession, while Kaluma followed a short time later as part of a strong start that saw him collect five points and four rebounds before the first media timeout.
KU countered with a 14-3 run that included a pair of Remy Martin three-pointers to build a 21-16 lead, forcing Greg McDermott to take a timeout. CU continued its shooting barrage from long-range, getting three-pointers from Hawkins, a pair from Alex O'Connell and another by Kaluma to take a 32-31 lead with five minutes left in the half. The teams would trade nine lead changes before Kansas took a 39-38 edge into the break.
An Arizona State transfer, Martin had 16 points in 14 minutes off the bench in the first half, as Kansas owned a 25-15 rebound lead. CU was paced by 13 points from Kaluma and 11 more from Hawkins, while O'Connell had nine of CU's final 20 points. The Jays shot 8-for-15 from three-point range before the break, tying a season-high for triples before halftime.
Kansas made four of its first six shots coming out of halftime to take a 49-43 lead but the Bluejays battled back on a dunk in transition by Kaluma. Minutes later Kaluma snared his 11th rebound of the game and kicked it out for an O'Connell trey, pulling CU within one at 51-50 with 13:02 to play. Kaluma's fourth three-pointer of the game brought CU within 58-55, only to have KU pull away with an 8-2 run to brought about a timeout and the Jayhawks in front 66-57.
To the surprise of no one, Creighton had one last push in it. Trailing 71-64 with 4:48 remaining, the Bluejays closed within one point at 73-72 (1:44). A traditional three-point play from Hawkins ignited the final burst. After Kansas answered with a bucket to make it 73-67, Alexander countered with a trey from the left wing and KeyShawn Feazell delivered a layup on the following possession to force a Kansas timeout.
After a defensive stop the Bluejays had the ball down one, but a costly turnover led to a Kansas dunk. Down three (75-72) with under one minute left Creighton misfired on a pair of treys and had to foul.
Freshmen Kaluma and Trey Alexander shined in the bright lights. Kaluma closed with a career-high 24 points and 12 rebounds for his first double-double and also become the first freshman in Bluejay history with 20 or more point in an NCAA Tournament game. Alexander, meanwhile, posted 14 points and a career-best nine assists. O'Connell and Hawkins closed their Creighton careers with 16 and 14 points respectively. Creighton shot 35.6 percent for the game overall but did make 12-of-28 three-pointers and 18-of-21 free throws. CU also had 18 assists on 21 baskets against just eight turnovers.
Kansas got 20 points from Martin to lead the Jayhawks, while Ochai Agbaji finished with 15 points. Jalen Wilson notched 14 points and 14 rebounds in the victory. The Jayhawks won the rebound battle 47-21 and made 19-of-20 free throws in the contest.
NOTES: Creighton and Kansas are two of six schools nationally with 20 or more wins in each of the last seven seasons, joining Belmont, Gonzaga, Houston and Oregon ...Today was the 21st birthday for Creighton guard Rati Andronikashvili, who wears No. 21 for the Bluejays ... Keyshawn Feazell made his first start of the season in place of an injured Ryan Kalkbrenner, while Ryan Hawkins made his 135th consecutive start ... Excluding the 2020-21 season impacted by COVID-19, Creighton and Kansas have both been in the top-10 in the country in average home attendance each of the past 10 seasons ... Creighton made a three-pointer in its 948th straight games ...Ryan Hawkins has played 36 minutes or more in each of Creighton's last 14 games, never leaving the floor today until the final seconds ... Ryan Hawkins has 272 rebounds. In the last 30 seasons, only Doug McDermott (in 2011-12 (288), 2010-11 (280) and 2012-13 (276) has had more ... Creighton ends the 2021-22 season with a 23-12 record, far exceeding expectations from last year's 22-win team that lost all five starters ... Kansas leads the all-time series 11-6, including six straight wins since CU's last victory in 1949 against the Jayhawks.
NCAA Men's Basketball Championship: Second Round - Creighton vs Kansas
Saturday, March 19, 2022
Fort Worth, Texas, USA
Dickies Arena
Creighton Bluejays
Head Coach Greg McDermott
Keyshawn Feazell
Ryan Hawkins
Alex O'Connell
Arthur Kaluma
Trey Alexander
Media Conference
Kansas - 79, Creighton - 72
THE MODERATOR: Welcome the Creighton Bluejays. Head Coach Greg McDermott sitting next to me, followed by Mr. Feazell, Mr. O'Connell, Mr. Alexander, Mr. Kaluma and Mr. Hawkins.
We'll start with an opening statement from Coach McDermott, then take questions in the room and from Zoom.
Coach McDermott.
GREG MCDERMOTT: Just really proud of our team. As I told them in the locker room, there's a part of me that would like to cry. But that's for selfish reasons, because I'm not quite ready for this to be over.
But I'm also really glad it took place. It has been an incredible journey with this group. And I think today embodied what they've been about all season long.
We've had more adversity than any team I've ever coached. And when I say adversity, and we talked about this yesterday with the team, it's not life-and-death stuff, it's not that kind of adversity. But teammates getting hurt, and next guy having to be ready to step up. And it's just happened time after time after time after time. And today was another example.
Keyshawn was ready when his number was called. Rati has been ready when his number's called. And they fought one of the best programs in college basketball tooth and nail for 40 minutes. And we got the ball inside of two minutes with a chance to take the lead. And I think that's all you can ask for. And then you hope you can execute a little bit and maybe they hopefully won't.
But we lost to a championship program today, but we certainly have nothing to be ashamed of. I'm really, really proud of this basketball team and what they've accomplished this season.
THE MODERATOR: Questions for Coach or the student-athletes? We'll start in the front on the far right side, please.
Q. For Greg, Kansas' different lineups, they can go big and small a lot of different ways. How difficult are they to face with those different lineups?
GREG MCDERMOTT: Well, he tried to avoid it as long as he could. And I had a feeling that it was coming at some point. And, you know, we were able to take advantage with our small lineup. You know, pulling McCormack away from the basket and Arthur was really functioning at a high level, both off the dribble and from the three-point line against that matchup.
And I thought their small lineup made a game changing run in the middle of that. And that's when we decided to go back with Keyshawn, because he has the ability to keep guys in front because he's quick enough. Yet, you know, we can throw it down in the block, which we did a few times and he made some really nice plays.
It was a bit of a chess match in that regard. The only difference is he had, you know, nine or 10 guys down there to choose from and we had seven.
Q. For Hawk. After everything you guys have been through these last couple weeks, what were the emotions like in the locker room?
RYAN HAWKINS: I mean, emotional. It's a lot of our last guys. But I think the future is bright for this group and I think they realize it.
You know, you look at all the bodies we lost. You lose Shereef, you lose John Christofilis, then you lose Nembhard and Kalkbrenner, you lose four guys, most of which played big minutes for you.
Just to be resilient enough to come back and keep getting up every time you get knocked down. It's just a silly little game, but I think it teaches you a lot about life in that regard. I think this group has got a lot of fire in them. I couldn't be prouder of how we finished this season out.
Q. Arthur, I know it's still probably processing. But moving forward, is performances like this in the postseason, the way you guys were undermanned, something to build on heading into next season knowing what you have coming back?
ARTHUR KALUMA: I mean, yeah, the goal is to always like continue to get better and improve every single game I step out. It was clicking today. Unfortunately, we didn't get a win. But I couldn't be more proud of my guys and what we did out there.
Q. Yeah, Trey, I wondered what did you think of Remy Martin out there for them?
TREY ALEXANDER: I think he's a pretty good player. Obviously, it was his night. We kind of had it set up as a personnel game to where we could kind of help off of him a little bit. I mean, when you have a good player like that and he gets going, then you know -- when you see any player in college, when you see the ball fall a couple times and you get in your rhythm, it's kind of hard to stop you.
So, I mean, that's kind of what happened tonight. But I feel like our game plan is what kept us in the game. And a part of that was trying to keep Agbaji and Braun getting going, and have them other guys beat us. And I feel like that's what put us in a position to win, was to keep those guys from scoring.
Q. And Greg, Bill talked about you putting Hawkins on -- their point guard, putting in the lane. Can you just speak through what you were thinking with that?
GREG MCDERMOTT: Well, we didn't -- we had to come up with something. Obviously, asking Keyshawn to guard McCormack for 40 minutes and stay out of foul trouble, you know, most teams in the Big 12 have a couple guys they can throw at a guy like McCormack. And I thought he was really effective against us when we played us in Lawrence, and that was fresh in my mind still. So we wanted to kind of pick somebody that we felt we could help off of.
And, you know, I'm not a huge analytics guys, but we chose Harris and tried to plug up the lane and make some of those driving lanes and passing lanes a little more difficult.
I had decided before the game that we were going to stick with it temporarily when Martin came in. Obviously, a mistake on my part, in hindsight, to Trey's point.
But, you know, because of our -- because of the shortness of our bench, you know, we couldn't have them have quick possessions where they just come and go, click, click, click, and do whatever they want. Then it becomes a track meet. And, you know, the team with more players at their disposal was probably going to win a track meet.
So that's why we did it. We tried to plug some things up, do something unconventional when you're playing a team as good as Kansas and you're shorthanded and you have no time to prepare without a guy you thought was going to be there, you have to take some desperate measures sometimes. And that's what we chose to do, and our guys really executed the plan extremely well.
Q. Greg, real quick on Remy. I wondered: He's been hurt so much this year, there's not a lot of tape on him. How hard is it especially with a quick turnaround to scout a guy like that and kind of know what he is at Kansas?
GREG MCDERMOTT: Yeah, we played him while he was at Arizona State. And we were actually -- I was just talking to my coaching staff in the locker room, you know, his growth and improvement from the guy that was at Arizona State to the guy that's playing now is night and day.
Like, his engagement defensively compared to how he defended at Arizona State and the unselfish nature of the way he's playing is totally different than the guy we played against when he was at Arizona State.
Obviously, Coach Self and his staff have done a great job of getting him to understand how he can best help this team. And if you look at the stat sheet, there's one thing that jumps out at you today and, you know, he was a big difference in this game.
Q. Also for Alex: Your coach has talked about having the ball inside a minute or whatever it was late, a chance to go ahead, make a winning play and the pass to you gets behind you a little bit and you see Ochai go down and dunk it. Just talk about the thought process there while you're watching him run free the other way and how close that was to you guys making that play.
ALEX O'CONNELL: I mean, it was unfortunate. You know, the -- Trey's made incredible plays all season. These guys have stepped up. And, you know, just the pass was behind me. It was what it was. And, you know, he got an open look and that kind of was what it was. Now until the next play, that's kind of been our mentality all year. So when that happened, it was just, What's next? What are we're going to run next?
Q. AO and Keyshawn, what does it mean for you guys to end it, as Mac said, you know, putting up a good fight against one of the best programs in the country?
KEYSHAWN FEAZELL: You know, I mean, I felt like we had put up a good fight. You know, battling through adversity all year with these guys and stepping up and making plays today was you fun and good, but, you know -- like, I don't know. I'm emotional right now. I'm sorry.
But I just want to -- you know, shout out to these guys, shout out to just Creighton in whole. Like, I'm a different person now. You know, since coming here -- like, coming in, I felt, like, I was doing this, doing that.
But just being around these guys, you know, I've changed, become a different person. And I just wanted to thank them. But yeah.
ALEX O'CONNELL: Yeah, you know, kind of to Key's point, it's kind of emotional right now. It still hasn't been fully processed. It doesn't feel quite real yet.
You know, just the fight we've put up all year, all the adversity that we've handled, and, you know, for all these guys to step up and contribute to this team, what we've done all year has just meant the world to me.
And the pride that I feel wearing this uniform is totally unmatched. And I hope that can continue down the line for these young guys. I mean, I was playing today for the name on this uniform. You know, it wasn't about me, it wasn't about anybody in the stands. You know, it was about us and it was about Creighton.
And, you know, I'm so proud of these guys. And like I said, the pride that I feel playing for this program and being a part of the Creighton family is unmatched. And I will never forget it.
THE MODERATOR: Time for a couple more.
Q. Hey, Alex. Sorry, going back to that play with about a minute left with the pass behind you. Like, if you catch that cleanly, do you think you're taking a three there? And just with how you guys were shooting threes in this game, do you feel like -- or just how confident were you that that might go down?
ALEX O'CONNELL: I mean, yeah, if I catch it cleanly, I'm going to shoot it. That was our goal, that was our game plan. You know, take the open looks. They pressure a lot, so we were taking the open shots.
So if I caught it cleanly, it was going to go up or I was either going to swing it one more to Hawk to get another -- a better look. So that's kind of what was going through on my head.
Q. Mac, are you encouraged about the future of this team? And how much will experiences like this help some of the younger guys moving forward?
GREG MCDERMOTT: Well, if they can't learn from Keyshawn and Alex and Hawk, because they've all played significant leadership roles in their own way, and I think have had a tremendous impact on the growth of our young guys, and they might not even know that yet, but they will someday.
You know, we live in a world of excuses. You know, this is why I got a bad test grade, it's somebody else's fault, this is why I was late.
We had a lot of opportunities to have excuses this year as to why the season wasn't going to continue to progress the way that it was. Because Shereef got hurt, or R2 got hurt, or John got hurt, or Ryan got hurt. And we didn't do it.
And in this day and age, that's pretty impressive. They had an out. And they chose, you know what, we're going to fight a little harder together and we're going to become a little bit more together, and we'll listen to see if Coach has got some other crazy plan that he thinks might work for us to try to win this next one.
And they have been so much fun to coach. And I speak for myself. And my coaching staff has done a tremendous job this year, my support staff has been awesome.
But to a man, we have really enjoyed this group. And part of it is you watch guys grow and change. And watching Keyshawn's approach to the role that I asked him to play.
Watching Alex from, you know, a guy that was one year ago really disappointed about not playing as much as he would have liked in Indianapolis, to turning into a guy that doesn't care about himself anymore, he's all about the team. And Hawk never having a bad day. And being so selfless and such an energy giver.
But all those examples have rubbed off on Art, and Trey, R2, and Mason, and John, and all the young -- Rati, Mo, all the young guys in our program. And we're going to forever be indebted to them.
And as I told them in the locker room, there will be a time later in life, I'm not sure I'll still be around, but Art or Trey or one of those other freshmen are going to use something that they learned from these three guys as an example when they're trying to raise their own children.
Because these three have been a model as to what this particular team needed. You know, we didn't have anybody in the middle. We had young guys and we had these three old guys and nothing in the middle. So that put a lot of pressure on those three to do things right.
And we weren't always perfect. And we probably weren't where we needed to be in November, December all the time. But when we figured it out, boy, did we figure it out.
And the train has been rolling forward at a hefty pace since then. And it's the buy-in by the young guys, and it was a leadership of the three older guys sitting up here with me.
THE MODERATOR: Men, thank you for being here.
GREG MCDERMOTT: Thank you.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports118414-1-1839 2022-03-19 22:45:00 GMT
NCAA Men's Basketball Championship: Second Round - Creighton vs Kansas
Saturday, March 19, 2022
Fort Worth, Texas, USA
Dickies Arena
Kansas Jayhawks
Bill Self
Ochai Agbaji
Remy Martin
Jalen Wilson
Media Conference
Kansas University - 79, Creighton - 72
THE MODERATOR: We'll be joined by the Kansas Jayhawks shortly, Mr. Wilson, Mr. Martin, and Mr. Agbaji will be the student-athletes joining Coach Self.
Remember, no video here in the room, other than our friends at Hammond in the back. It's a hybrid press conference, so we'll have questions from the room and from Zoom. If you're watching on Zoom, raise your sure to raise your hand virtually so we know to call on you.
We welcome the Kansas Jayhawks, Head Coach Bill Self, Mr. Wilson, Mr. Martin, and Mr. Agbaji joining us here in the room. We'll start with an opening statement, followed by questions from media here in Fort Worth and those on ZOOM.
Coach Self.
BILL SELF: Well, it was a great game. Creighton played great. Shot unbelievable from the arc. And we didn't do a very good job defending it the first half.
But, you know, you got to win games when it's kind of ugly. And I don't know that we could have won this game two months ago playing this way. So I'm proud of our guys. I thought we defended and rebounded, for the most part, most of tonight. And then we had some guys step up and make some big free-throws and some plays late.
THE MODERATOR: Questions will start on the left-hand side, second row.
Q. Hey, Coach, when you're playing a team that's missing some guys like they were and hitting shots like they were, does it add more pressure? I mean, does it feel more of a relief than, I don't know, a win?
BILL SELF: I would say it's probably both. I'm a little relieved. I don't know how you guys feel. But I'm also very happy. You know, we've won some games in the NCAA tournament that were a lot like this, and we've also lost some games that were a lot like this. So we'll take it.
They played -- you know, I heard Max say before the game they're going to let it fly and they did. You know, even though Hawkins and O'Connell are, obviously, capable of doing what they did, you know, Kaluma shot the ball so well. He was shooting like 25 for the year.
But they had -- and I thought Trey played a terrific game and controlled it. And we did our best to sit on his right hand, but he still got right several times.
But it's a relief, but it also feels great. You can't apologize for winning games in this tournament.
Q. Bill, with Kaluma hitting the way he was, it made it tough because there's not a traditional big, right, for Dave defensively. How did you think he handled that? And also his block late that he switches on. What did you think of that?
BILL SELF: I actually thought that Kaluma made two to start the game, if I'm not mistaken. I don't know how many he ended with. I think he ended with three or four for the game.
But I thought David did a better job on ball screen getting back to him in the second half. It's a hard game for Dave. And Mitch isn't quite 100 percent yet. So that was a hard matchup.
But, you know, inside the arc, I'm not great at math, but nine of 31 inside the arc. And so we just let them shoot too many.
And then the play that David made late, too, when we were trying to take away the three and they drove it, and he blocked -- was it Alexander's shot? Yeah, that was a play that -- he didn't ice the game, but that basically put it out of reach right there.
Q. Another play kind of like that, Agbaji, you get the steal off the deflection and the dunk to put you guys back up three. What did you see on that and how big was that? And following up on that: It seemed like you guys had a lot of those moments where it was three-six, and then they keep coming and keep coming and keep coming, and how hard was it to push it back every time like that?
OCHAI AGBAJI: Yeah, no, they were battling hard the whole game. Credit to them. But we just knew -- there was just those possessions that we knew we had to get, even late in the stretch, whether it was a rebound or executing a play, just to break away from getting in that range of them being close.
But, no, I'm just proud of my team for today's performance.
Q. It's kind of a popular thing this week. Can Ochai and Jalen talk about Remy tonight, 20 most as a Jayhawk. It really got cooking in the first half again. What did he bring tonight and how important was it?
JALEN WILSON: I mean, he was the player of the game, you know, with his energy. Him being able to creating his own shot, especially when we needed a shot late in the clock. For him to be so much of a good teammate throughout the year and show leadership throughout the year, no matter what going on. And now for him to step up like this is huge. He makes our team go farther than what we could without him.
OCHAI AGBAJI: No, just same. Basically what J Will said. You know, his attitude the entire year I think is what has gotten him prepared for this moment. For him to shine, you know, for him to go on out there and just be Remy. It was really nice to see and, you know, I'm just so proud of him, too.
Q. A couple things. First, Bill, you said in your opening statement you don't know if this is a type of game you win a couple months ago. Could you just expand on that?
BILL SELF: Well, I think we have been a team that has scored easier than we've actually defended. And tonight, we -- I mean, we didn't defend great, don't get me wrong. They still got over 70.
But when the offense was bad, we defended and we did some toughness things, especially late-game possessions, which I thought was very positive.
They played us different than anybody's played us all year long defensively. And we never really figured it out. But we had enough guys make shots and make enough plays that we were able to overcome it.
Q. Ochai, what just this past few weeks been like for you as you're trying to figure out your shot and get back to what it was over the season?
OCHAI AGBAJI: I wouldn't say anything different. I'm not stressing or, you know, pressing or anything as far as my shot. But my teammates they're telling me to shoot every time I'm open. They have full confidence in me, so I'm going to keep shooting it.
BILL SELF: He did -- not to interrupt. But, you know, he didn't shoot it well the first half, but he made some big-time shots off of two feet the second half that really -- the three he made behind, the dribble handoff and a couple of plays off of pindowns that were huge for us.
Q. Hey, Ochai, just wondering: You're up one late and you do get the steal and dunk. What's going on in your mind? Do you see it or are you thinking next possession? What exactly is going through your head at that point?
OCHAI AGBAJI: Before or after the dunk?
Q. Before, during the net.
OCHAI AGBAJI: Yeah, I think we caught a break there. They were running that same play where it was a ball screen and they were lifting the guy. It was just a bad pass, but he mishandled it there. And then, obviously, we got a break there and got the steal and the dunk.
But after that, just that's a momentum changer in games like this. So it was just a big play.
Q. For whoever the players want to answer it. Y'all talked about shifting the mindset after the Big 12. What was kind of the mindset in the locker room after this?
JALEN WILSON: I mean, coming into this tournament, you know, you never know who we're going to play, you never know the style. Like Coach said today, the way they guard us was pretty different than what we've seen before.
So just coming in and having to play our same type of game and even though teams adjust, we still got to stick to what we do best.
REMY MARTIN: I would say just being ourselves and tightening up on the little things. You know, the little things down the stretch are magnified. So I think just being ourselves, play freely and just, you know, on the defensive end, just lock in a little bit. Everything just needs to get tightened up. So that was just the mindset shift.
OCHAI AGBAJI: And I would say just being present in the moment, not regretting anything when we're out there on the court. Knowing that it is on us to make these plays and to -- you know, we want to be successful to make those plays to be successful.
So just being present in the moment, not getting too ahead of ourselves.
Q. A couple things about pregame for Remy and Ochai. Second game in a row, you guys had to wait for overtime before you. I saw you go back to the locker room. Take us through how challenging that is, what's the process and how much is it that affect you?
And then also pregame, the one seeds in this tournament are kind of a fraternity, right, everybody's keeping an eye on what the ones are doing. And right out there, one of them you know really well, went down. Are you aware of that? Does that get in your heads at all? Do you even realize that that happened?
OCHAI AGBAJI: I would say that's when you really have to be focused, even more focused. You know, usually you go into games and everything is on schedule, everything's on time, you warm up and then you go and take the court, and then you have a situation where the game is going into overtime.
So you just got to stay focused, keep your body ready, keep your mind ready. Just your approach to the games.
Q. Remy, is it as easy as --
REMY MARTIN: Yeah, it's been simple, man. You know, we're here to play basketball. It's just tough when you want to go out there and it gets pushed back. But the mindset still stays the same, keep getting ready, make sure your body is warm.
But we're here to hoop. So once we get on the court, everything's forgotten.
Q. Yeah, Remy, can you describe and put into words this run that you're on? And was there a point maybe at some point in the season where you didn't think you'd be able to be back at this form?
REMY MARTIN: No, I mean, the guys and my family, the group, I have a pretty tightknit group. So they keep my confidence going, they keep my mental going. So I always felt like, you know, I had something in me.
But there's nothing to it. I just keep it simple. I just go out there and try to give it my all and play. I wasn't going out there and trying to do anything different. They were giving me shots and I just had to knock it in in the first half.
So I just like wearing this uniform. I love everything about it. I just love playing the game itself. So I'm just happy.
THE MODERATOR: We have time for a few more for the Jayhawks.
Q. Bill, this is the round you lost in a year ago. And after that game you said, you know, you felt like you needed to go add a couple of things, needed to get more athletic. Do you feel like what you added and the way this roster could kind of -- you can be a chameleon, like play different styles, you had to adjust to Creighton. Where do you feel like you are there and just having different pitches than you had a year ago?
BILL SELF: I think we're, obviously, a better team than we were a year ago. Of course, last year in the tournament, we also had two starters get COVID, too. So that didn't -- and one of them had a broken foot. So that didn't help a lot.
But we needed to add a couple of pieces and we were able to. But the biggest piece we added, obviously, was Remy. I think -- I still think this, that we're still yet to be our best yet.
I mean, I still believe we got another gear or another step we can take. And even though teams can defend us a certain way and give us problems, I've said many times in the NCAA tournament, and it happened with Creighton tonight, you've got to have some guys take some marginal shots and make them.
And Remy, obviously, took good shots. But, you know, you don't expect a guy -- I don't know what he was from the field the first half, six of eight, or six of nine, and you don't expect point guards to do that. But that kept us in the game. And then second half we kind of spread the wealth a little bit.
But we're a different team with him. And certainly, if they're going to put their four man on Juan and back all the way up underneath the basket, we're not going to throw it inside much that way. So we've got to have some guys make some shots and he bailed us out, you know, once again.
Q. Bill, do you have an idea of how you guys will handle this next handful of days ahead of making your next trip out?
BILL SELF: Yeah, I think so. I would think that we'll definitely take tomorrow off. I would think that -- I'll ask the guys what they want to do, if they want to have Monday off, or we could do a walk-through on Monday and then just, you know, practice Tuesday, Wednesday or whatever. But I'm going to find a way to get them off their feet two days.
I think that -- even though they didn't earn it today, I think that would be something that would probably benefit us right now with our tired bodies.
Q. This question is for Ochai. Your first field goal didn't come until the second half. Did your teammates or coach say anything to you at halftime that helped you kind of turn it on?
OCHAI AGBAJI: It was really, really progressive throughout the first game. Even in the first half, everyone was like keep taking those shots. They're all good looks. Even Coach Self was saying those were good looks.
So when I know they have that confidence in me, you know, it makes it a lot more easier to step up and make those shots and not a lot of pressure. So...
THE MODERATOR: All right. Men, congratulations. Good luck next weekend.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports118411-1-2275 2022-03-19 22:23:00 GMT
