Arizona State Men's Basketball Head Coach Bobby Hurley
On mentality of the team…
“We had two good practices yesterday and today. I resisted the temptation of reverting back to some of my old tactics that I might have done in my youth as a coach. We didn’t perform with the appropriate energy on defense and really struggled at that end of the floor, particularly in the USC game for 36 minutes. In the last four minutes of that game, we scrambled, forced some turnovers and played with effort. Usually, when that would happen, I would flip out and it would be mentally tough on the guys with mentally grueling film. Then a physical, track style practice, but we didn’t do that. Those games were emotionally and physically draining. The team has performed well through wide margins of the season. I thought that was the best path to take and we were guarding with much better energy the last two days, and I feel good about what we’re doing.”
On Washington’s zone..
"Looking back to that game [first game against Washington] I think we did struggle early against it but once we got into a rhythm, we were able to find some cracks and figure out where our opportunities were. I think one thing we did well in that game was guard, and we got stops. The best offense is good defense to beat the zone down the floor so they can’t set up. That’s how we like to play anyway. If we can get stops, deflections and steals, and rebound the ball, then we can advance the ball quickly and get the zone set."
On film…
“We watched clips from the first game to see things that worked well against their zone and things we need to do to be successful. We gave up too many offensive rebounds in our last game with Washington, so it's something we’ve discussed internally in our practices and film sessions.”
On things the halfcourt offense needs to be successful…
“We’ve been a balanced offensive team. We have to get a lot of guys contributing and playing well. That’s been our identity at the offensive end. We’ve had the most success this year when we moved the basketball very well and get out in the open court. I think so much is going to depend on how we defend. If we allow teams to shoot 50% like the last two teams did, then we’re going to struggle to win. If we generate stops and take some pressure off of our offense because our defense is performing, then we can get into a good flow at that end of the floor.”
On tournament resume…
“I’m not [looking at it]. I’m not on Twitter anymore, I stopped doing that last week. I’m very in my head and the sand here with this, figuring out how to win one game at a time. I did do a deeper dive and maybe you guys should take a look at the blue-blood, heavyweights out there that might be 13-7 and 14-6. There’s a lot of big names that are in our wheelhouse with their record, both overall and in conference. Yeah, we have to win games and continue to win games and that’s our goal for the last 11. Go check it out. Go look at the Big 12, the ACC, the Big East and look at some of those names, then go look at their records.”
On Suits and Sneakers…
“As coaches, we try to promote it and bring awareness to it. Cancer has touched so many different people and we work directly with the NABC. I’m fully supportive of that. I watched my grandfather struggle and pass away due to lung cancer, watching him suffer. I remember him sitting at my little league games and then a few years later he was gone. I know how personal that was for me. Anytime we can bring awareness to it, that’s a cause that's certainly worthy. Any money that can be generated, we’re hoping we can do the best we can to support it.”
On communication with players post-USC...
“It’s tough to put your finger on why there’s a loss of that nature, for the most part these guys have fought, battled and played with great energy on defense. We were just a little flat in that game. I think at the under-12 in the second half we had like four deflections in that game. That’s a measure of activity. So, for whatever reason, I don’t know what the UCLA game took out of us, but we certainly didn't have our best in the USC game for sure. You could be really nasty, yell at everyone and take that approach. I chose a different direction; to be more supportive and thankful that the players have put together the season to this point. I noticed that guys were unhappy with our performance Saturday night and so there was no reason to belabor the point, other than for myself and the coaches to express to them the things we have to get back to doing in order to be successful again.”
On Warren Washington in the gameplan against WSU…
“I hope you’re going to see that same guy. Those numbers, I think he was 9-10 [from the floor] in that game. He’s going to be a focal point because of the style of defense, the zone and can we get him touches in the post? Can we go low with him? He was certainly a bright spot in the USC loss, he performed as well as anybody in that game. We need his experience and all the things he brings to the table for these two games.”
On mentality of the team…
“We had two good practices yesterday and today. I resisted the temptation of reverting back to some of my old tactics that I might have done in my youth as a coach. We didn’t perform with the appropriate energy on defense and really struggled at that end of the floor, particularly in the USC game for 36 minutes. In the last four minutes of that game, we scrambled, forced some turnovers and played with effort. Usually, when that would happen, I would flip out and it would be mentally tough on the guys with mentally grueling film. Then a physical, track style practice, but we didn’t do that. Those games were emotionally and physically draining. The team has performed well through wide margins of the season. I thought that was the best path to take and we were guarding with much better energy the last two days, and I feel good about what we’re doing.”
On Washington’s zone..
"Looking back to that game [first game against Washington] I think we did struggle early against it but once we got into a rhythm, we were able to find some cracks and figure out where our opportunities were. I think one thing we did well in that game was guard, and we got stops. The best offense is good defense to beat the zone down the floor so they can’t set up. That’s how we like to play anyway. If we can get stops, deflections and steals, and rebound the ball, then we can advance the ball quickly and get the zone set."
On film…
“We watched clips from the first game to see things that worked well against their zone and things we need to do to be successful. We gave up too many offensive rebounds in our last game with Washington, so it's something we’ve discussed internally in our practices and film sessions.”
On things the halfcourt offense needs to be successful…
“We’ve been a balanced offensive team. We have to get a lot of guys contributing and playing well. That’s been our identity at the offensive end. We’ve had the most success this year when we moved the basketball very well and get out in the open court. I think so much is going to depend on how we defend. If we allow teams to shoot 50% like the last two teams did, then we’re going to struggle to win. If we generate stops and take some pressure off of our offense because our defense is performing, then we can get into a good flow at that end of the floor.”
On tournament resume…
“I’m not [looking at it]. I’m not on Twitter anymore, I stopped doing that last week. I’m very in my head and the sand here with this, figuring out how to win one game at a time. I did do a deeper dive and maybe you guys should take a look at the blue-blood, heavyweights out there that might be 13-7 and 14-6. There’s a lot of big names that are in our wheelhouse with their record, both overall and in conference. Yeah, we have to win games and continue to win games and that’s our goal for the last 11. Go check it out. Go look at the Big 12, the ACC, the Big East and look at some of those names, then go look at their records.”
On Suits and Sneakers…
“As coaches, we try to promote it and bring awareness to it. Cancer has touched so many different people and we work directly with the NABC. I’m fully supportive of that. I watched my grandfather struggle and pass away due to lung cancer, watching him suffer. I remember him sitting at my little league games and then a few years later he was gone. I know how personal that was for me. Anytime we can bring awareness to it, that’s a cause that's certainly worthy. Any money that can be generated, we’re hoping we can do the best we can to support it.”
On communication with players post-USC...
“It’s tough to put your finger on why there’s a loss of that nature, for the most part these guys have fought, battled and played with great energy on defense. We were just a little flat in that game. I think at the under-12 in the second half we had like four deflections in that game. That’s a measure of activity. So, for whatever reason, I don’t know what the UCLA game took out of us, but we certainly didn't have our best in the USC game for sure. You could be really nasty, yell at everyone and take that approach. I chose a different direction; to be more supportive and thankful that the players have put together the season to this point. I noticed that guys were unhappy with our performance Saturday night and so there was no reason to belabor the point, other than for myself and the coaches to express to them the things we have to get back to doing in order to be successful again.”
On Warren Washington in the gameplan against WSU…
“I hope you’re going to see that same guy. Those numbers, I think he was 9-10 [from the floor] in that game. He’s going to be a focal point because of the style of defense, the zone and can we get him touches in the post? Can we go low with him? He was certainly a bright spot in the USC loss, he performed as well as anybody in that game. We need his experience and all the things he brings to the table for these two games.”