Jan. 28, 2008
Audio: Listen to the entire teleconference at SECsports.com
Vanderbilt basketball head coach Kevin Stallings and Ole Miss head coach Andy Kennedy discussed Wednesday’s matchup with the national media during Monday’s SEC Teleconference. Find out what each coach had to say about the upcoming game.
Vanderbilt Head Coach Kevin Stallings:
Opening statement:
“We’re not a very good basketball team at the moment. We were embarrassed yesterday (at Florida). It was a disappointing performance and game. Florida played great. Hopefully, we can get a little better in the next two days and play a little more competitively on Wednesday (at Mississippi) than we did yesterday.”
What has been the biggest difference for your team since conference play began?
“It’s tough to say. I think that some of it has to do with the competition. We’ve probably played in three of arguably the toughest road environments in the country in our first three league road games. I’m sure if you took many teams and sent them to those venues, they would struggle. We certainly haven’t scored as well in the conference season. We haven’t rebounded well. Those two things jump off the page. I think there’s been slippage in many areas. Some of our key guys aren’t playing with the same aggressiveness and confidence as they were early on.”
Comment on playing at Mississippi, which so far is unbeaten at home.
“We certainly drew the short end of the stick on the schedule early in the season, but you have to play them where they show up on the schedule. It doesn’t get any easier because they’ve been an outstanding team at home and on the road.”
Does home court advantage dictate standings?
“There are road wins to be had out there, but they’re going to be difficult. Some of that has to deal with luck of the draw when playing teams from the other division. It’s obviously a difficult league to win in on the road. Most leagues are difficult to win in on the road, but this year, it seems more so in our league.”
Do you think the second half of the SEC schedule falls in your favor with so many games at home?
“There’s one stretch in the second part of the (SEC) schedule where we have four consecutive home games. Six of our first nine are on the road. It comes back to you at some point, but what we hope is that we can weather the storm. We have to get wins on the road and keep the team’s confidence up so that when it does come back to us, we can still have some success with it. It’s a pretty interesting proposition as far as the way our schedule is broken down.”
What is the toughest place to play in the SEC, discounting Memorial Gymnasium?
“I think that has to do with the teams in any given year because if you catch a team when they’re having a bad year, then the place isn’t quite as difficult to play. Generally speaking, Kentucky, Florida, and Arkansas have probably been the three most difficult places to play since I came into the league to right now.”
Ole Miss Head Coach Andy Kennedy:
Opening statement:
“(Vanderbilt is) another huge challenge. Kevin (Stallings) has done another great job with that team. They’ve certainly had an outstanding year to this point. Both of us were taken to the woodshed a bit in our last game, us in Starkville, and they didn’t have their best night in Gainesville. I’m anxious to see who can get up off the mat.”
Is there a reason why Ole Miss is undefeated at home but winless on the road in SEC play?
“We had the same issue last year. I think last year we were 7-1 at home but 1-7 on the road. It’s very difficult (to play) on the road. I think everyone suffers from that. Obviously, we’ve got to find a way to be mentally and physically tough enough to go and break through on the road. We haven’t been able to do so to this point.”
Where does lack of attention to detail show itself within a game for your team?
“Unfortunately for me, and it’s the reason I’m losing what little hair I have left, it transcends all areas. That’s where it bothers me a bit. We break down in our offensive execution. It’s showed itself late in the games on the road. I think we have guys breaking down in their execution. Defensively, we have a lack of communication. A lot of that is playing young guys that have never really been forced to communicate defensively. At this level, if you don’t do so, then you end up breaking down as well. Those are just a couple of instances where we have to get better.”
