-Dennis Gates said he thought they gave themselves a chance to win the game and put themselves in good position defensively. Said they have to regroup for this weekend against South Carolina. Gates thinks Lamont Paris should be SEC Coach of the Year.
-Gates said they've got to keep building off that defensive performance against Texas A&M. He thought the hybrid zone looks they threw out disrupted the Aggies' guards. Said they did a good job of holding Texas A&M off the boards in the first half but didn't do as well in the second.
-Gates said Jordan Butler was their highest-graded defender against Florida, which led to him getting a big bump in minutes last game. Trent Pierce was supposed to play more but was under the weather, Gates said he was shocked he was able to play at all.
-Gates said he thought they did a good job shutting down Meechie Johnson in their last matchup with South Carolina. He expects Johnson and the Gamecocks to make some adjustments this time around, so they'll need to be prepared for it. He said the biggest factors in this game will come down to assist-to-turnover ratio, rebounding and getting to the free throw line.
-Gates said he has to meet with Caleb Grill's doctors to establish a new timeline for his return but thinks it'll be about two weeks. Said he'll need some time to ramp back up into basketball shape even after he gets fully cleared.
-Jordan Butler said the team's defensive concepts were something he struggled with when he first got on campus, so he feels like he's come a long way since then. He was really excited when he graded out as the top defender.
-Butler said he feels like he's gotten a lot stronger, faster and more physical. (On Tiger Talk last night, Gates said Butler was pretty timid earlier in the season. But after getting into the game against Georgia and feeling that type of physicality from SEC bigs, he started understanding the assignment better.)
-Butler feels like him and the team's other freshmen have all been improving. He thinks they're on the incline.
-Gates said they've got to keep building off that defensive performance against Texas A&M. He thought the hybrid zone looks they threw out disrupted the Aggies' guards. Said they did a good job of holding Texas A&M off the boards in the first half but didn't do as well in the second.
-Gates said Jordan Butler was their highest-graded defender against Florida, which led to him getting a big bump in minutes last game. Trent Pierce was supposed to play more but was under the weather, Gates said he was shocked he was able to play at all.
-Gates said he thought they did a good job shutting down Meechie Johnson in their last matchup with South Carolina. He expects Johnson and the Gamecocks to make some adjustments this time around, so they'll need to be prepared for it. He said the biggest factors in this game will come down to assist-to-turnover ratio, rebounding and getting to the free throw line.
-Gates said he has to meet with Caleb Grill's doctors to establish a new timeline for his return but thinks it'll be about two weeks. Said he'll need some time to ramp back up into basketball shape even after he gets fully cleared.
-Jordan Butler said the team's defensive concepts were something he struggled with when he first got on campus, so he feels like he's come a long way since then. He was really excited when he graded out as the top defender.
-Butler said he feels like he's gotten a lot stronger, faster and more physical. (On Tiger Talk last night, Gates said Butler was pretty timid earlier in the season. But after getting into the game against Georgia and feeling that type of physicality from SEC bigs, he started understanding the assignment better.)
-Butler feels like him and the team's other freshmen have all been improving. He thinks they're on the incline.
