Really fun interview to listen to. I enjoy listening to Richard. He's very honest and breaks things down well. Here's a link: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/gophers-on-demand-28275888/
Richard in particular said this game worried him due to finals being around the corner, playing four games in eight days, and he wasn’t sure the fans were going to be into it. Once shots weren’t falling, it started affecting the team defensively.
Jordan Murphy in the postgame said it felt like they were playing with the weight of the world on their shoulders. Richard responded, “We had two really good wins early, and then your ranked in the Top 15 and everyone thinks you’re all this. Last year we were a five seed and we were fourth in the Big Ten. We were ranked for like a day last year. It’s hard for our guys to deal with all these things, and then when they drop out of the Top 25 that you’re a bit out of it. I think there was a bit of fatigue mentally that set in that they had to push through.”
The team played much harder and shot better in the second half, now with five practices to get ready again before playing Oral Roberts. “Last year after 12 games, nobody thought we were any good. It was just the guys in the locker room. When we were good, when it was fun, it was about the right things. We have to get back to that.”
The loss of Akeem Springs and Eric Curry have proved to be big for this Gophers team. Richard also had an interesting comment about the team feeling like they are failing, letting down fans by not playing up to expectations. “We’re 12 games in, there’s 20 games left. We need to get the weight off our shoulders and play together.” Also gave credit to Nebraska and Arkansas as being extremely tough environments to play in.
On the bench unit, there is a lack of production from that unit. The team needs to be able to go to the bench when the starters get tired. Davonte Fitzgerald and Jamir Harris were two players Richard mentioned that need to be able to come in and not make mistakes. He credited Michael Hurt, Isaiah Washington, and Bakary as guys that can be productive without doing much.
Davonte Fitzgerald hasn’t played in two years, so he needs to string together some good stretches to get his confidence back.
Coach overall is pleased with the way the non-conference schedule has worked. The wins versus Providence and Alabama will be resume boosters, and the Arkansas was a home-and-home where they played at our arena last year, we won, and it helped our resume. The one that coach wanted back was Miami at home. “If we can continue to learn from these games, and play our best basketball in mid to late January, that’s what it’s all about.”
Pitino reiterated that this team is different than last year. “Akeem Springs and Eric Curry are very good players; our bench is very inexperienced. I thought we were great at Providence. I thought Alabama we were great for 30 minutes. Nebraska let their physical play affect us, and Arkansas is a tough place to play.”
Pick and roll defense has been an issue for this team as well as on-ball pressure. Coach believes it’s about mentality for this team right now.
“I think our fans are great. They are not a happy fan base right now. Everybody has to take a step back, deeming us already a disappointment. We’ve beaten two NCAA tournament teams. We’re sitting at 9-3, I’d like to get that Miami game back, but we’re not as big a disappointment as people think.”
On Jordan Murphy, “A lot of people were pegging him for Player of the Year eight games in, which is a bit unfair to him. He’s producing at a ridiculous rate. There’s still things I think he can improve upon. Reggie (Lynch) and him can now expect traps, so we have to continue to work on them passing out of double teams. “
An important point that Pitino wanted to address was fans booing the players throughout the game. While he doesn’t want to lecture fans, he wants to show that booing college athletes, especially during the game, has a negative impact on the players. “We’re not playing super well, we know that. During Miami we were down four on our home court, wait until after the game to boo. For college athletes, that affects those guys. College guys are going to get affected more than Jimmy Butler or Karl-Anthony Towns. Should the players be playing better? Absolutely. If the fans want to boo me after, that’s totally fine. I understand frustration, and I want the fans to help fuel us.”
Michael Hurt and Gaston are two players by name that Richard as two players that have shown some good things for the team off the bench. The best shooter on the team, per Pitino, is Jamir Harris. Once he learns the system and knows where he has to be offensively/defensively, he’ll be terrific.
Daniel Oturu rolled his ankle the other week, but it looks to be minor and shouldn’t affect him long term. Oturu, Jarvis Omersa, and Gabe Kalscheur are three recruits that Coach is extremely excited about.
Kansas, Duke, Gonzaga are a few teams Richard named that he enjoys watching from a coaching standpoint to pick from other teams.
“I thought last game Isaiah (Washington) really figured out that he doesn’t have to shoot 10 times a game. He’s starting to make better decisions. Jamir (Harris) is starting to get there, and I think Davonte (Fitzgerald) will too.”
Richard in particular said this game worried him due to finals being around the corner, playing four games in eight days, and he wasn’t sure the fans were going to be into it. Once shots weren’t falling, it started affecting the team defensively.
Jordan Murphy in the postgame said it felt like they were playing with the weight of the world on their shoulders. Richard responded, “We had two really good wins early, and then your ranked in the Top 15 and everyone thinks you’re all this. Last year we were a five seed and we were fourth in the Big Ten. We were ranked for like a day last year. It’s hard for our guys to deal with all these things, and then when they drop out of the Top 25 that you’re a bit out of it. I think there was a bit of fatigue mentally that set in that they had to push through.”
The team played much harder and shot better in the second half, now with five practices to get ready again before playing Oral Roberts. “Last year after 12 games, nobody thought we were any good. It was just the guys in the locker room. When we were good, when it was fun, it was about the right things. We have to get back to that.”
The loss of Akeem Springs and Eric Curry have proved to be big for this Gophers team. Richard also had an interesting comment about the team feeling like they are failing, letting down fans by not playing up to expectations. “We’re 12 games in, there’s 20 games left. We need to get the weight off our shoulders and play together.” Also gave credit to Nebraska and Arkansas as being extremely tough environments to play in.
On the bench unit, there is a lack of production from that unit. The team needs to be able to go to the bench when the starters get tired. Davonte Fitzgerald and Jamir Harris were two players Richard mentioned that need to be able to come in and not make mistakes. He credited Michael Hurt, Isaiah Washington, and Bakary as guys that can be productive without doing much.
Davonte Fitzgerald hasn’t played in two years, so he needs to string together some good stretches to get his confidence back.
Coach overall is pleased with the way the non-conference schedule has worked. The wins versus Providence and Alabama will be resume boosters, and the Arkansas was a home-and-home where they played at our arena last year, we won, and it helped our resume. The one that coach wanted back was Miami at home. “If we can continue to learn from these games, and play our best basketball in mid to late January, that’s what it’s all about.”
Pitino reiterated that this team is different than last year. “Akeem Springs and Eric Curry are very good players; our bench is very inexperienced. I thought we were great at Providence. I thought Alabama we were great for 30 minutes. Nebraska let their physical play affect us, and Arkansas is a tough place to play.”
Pick and roll defense has been an issue for this team as well as on-ball pressure. Coach believes it’s about mentality for this team right now.
“I think our fans are great. They are not a happy fan base right now. Everybody has to take a step back, deeming us already a disappointment. We’ve beaten two NCAA tournament teams. We’re sitting at 9-3, I’d like to get that Miami game back, but we’re not as big a disappointment as people think.”
On Jordan Murphy, “A lot of people were pegging him for Player of the Year eight games in, which is a bit unfair to him. He’s producing at a ridiculous rate. There’s still things I think he can improve upon. Reggie (Lynch) and him can now expect traps, so we have to continue to work on them passing out of double teams. “
An important point that Pitino wanted to address was fans booing the players throughout the game. While he doesn’t want to lecture fans, he wants to show that booing college athletes, especially during the game, has a negative impact on the players. “We’re not playing super well, we know that. During Miami we were down four on our home court, wait until after the game to boo. For college athletes, that affects those guys. College guys are going to get affected more than Jimmy Butler or Karl-Anthony Towns. Should the players be playing better? Absolutely. If the fans want to boo me after, that’s totally fine. I understand frustration, and I want the fans to help fuel us.”
Michael Hurt and Gaston are two players by name that Richard as two players that have shown some good things for the team off the bench. The best shooter on the team, per Pitino, is Jamir Harris. Once he learns the system and knows where he has to be offensively/defensively, he’ll be terrific.
Daniel Oturu rolled his ankle the other week, but it looks to be minor and shouldn’t affect him long term. Oturu, Jarvis Omersa, and Gabe Kalscheur are three recruits that Coach is extremely excited about.
Kansas, Duke, Gonzaga are a few teams Richard named that he enjoys watching from a coaching standpoint to pick from other teams.
“I thought last game Isaiah (Washington) really figured out that he doesn’t have to shoot 10 times a game. He’s starting to make better decisions. Jamir (Harris) is starting to get there, and I think Davonte (Fitzgerald) will too.”
