Jan. 14, 2008
Audio: Listen to the entire teleconference at SECsports.com
Vanderbilt basketball head coach Kevin Stallings and Tennessee head coach Bruce Pearl discussed Thursday’s game with the national media during Monday’s SEC Teleconference. Find out what each coach had to say about the matchup.
Vanderbilt Head Coach Kevin Stallings:
Opening statement: “We’re obviously disappointed in the outcome of Saturday’s game (at Kentucky). We’re disappointed in how we played. We’ve got a lot of progress to make if we’re going to compete well at Tennessee. We need to make improvement in every area. We were dominated (at Kentucky) on the boards. We turned the ball over too much. We did not run effective offense. Our defense was all right at times, but we have a lot of progress to make if we’re going to be the team we want to be. Hopefully, we can use these days to get better in practice and make a game of it on Thursday (at Tennessee).”
What are your thoughts on the play of Chris Lofton? “I think what’s happened is that their balance this year is much greater than a year ago. I think that’s the only difference. I think Chris is obviously the threat he’s always been. He’s as dangerous as any player in the league, if not the country. I think they’ve got more guys contributing this year than a year ago. Even if his stats are down, their team appears to be better. I think it’s more of a case of balance than Chris having any kind of off year or slump. I think everybody takes that for being off his game.”
Why is Tennessee better offensively this season than last season? “I think they certainly have more weapons this year. I think the more weapons you have the better team you can be. They’ve got maybe as many weapons as anybody in the country.”
With three excellent basketball programs right now in the state of Tennessee (Memphis, Vanderbilt, and Tennessee), does interest in one program dominate the others? “I would say there is a great deal of interest in all three programs throughout the state. I think there are Memphis, Tennessee, and Vanderbilt fans all over the state. There’s tremendous interest in all three programs everywhere you go. Certainly, Tennessee’s (interest) would be more intense in eastern Tennessee. Memphis’ (interest) would be more intense in western Tennessee. Ours would more intense in the midstate, but I still think that all three programs have a terrific following throughout this state.”
Tennessee Head Coach Bruce Pearl:
Is Chris Lofton having an off year, or has the team simply become more balanced? “I think we are better. Chris receives a great deal of attention. Every scouting report, he has to be accounted for. We do a lot of things to try and get him the ball, and folks do a lot of things to try to keep it out of his hands, limit his touches. When he does have the ball, they pay close attention to him. Secondly, we have a little bit more offensive balance now. If you look at the shots attempted by our team overall, there’s more balance. Chris is shooting the ball less than he shot it a year ago, so hopefully, it does make us a little bit more dangerous. He’s not shot it as well from three (point range). I think for years, Chris had to create space to get his shot off. Because he is only 6’1″, he’s had to step back and create space, and he’s done it very well. He is getting a few more open shots this year than in the past, and in those shots, he doesn’t have to drop back. Mechanically, we’re trying to get him to go straight up on those shots and jump back when he’s coming off the bounce. Those are different kinds of shots, but we’re working hard to get him able to make both kinds.”
What are your impressions of Andrew Ogilvy? “Ogilvy is a dominant big man in our league, only as a freshman. He’s an Olympian. He’s going to be a professional basketball player some day. His size, athleticism, ability to use his body and seal, great hands, and high basketball IQ makes him the real deal, but Kevin Stallings is not surprised one bit. Kevin told me this summer how pleased they were with him. They made a great effort to go get him. It wasn’t like Ogilvy was an unknown commodity. They won a very strong recruiting battle against some very strong teams, and he’s as big a reason why they’re going to battle for the championship this year as any.”
Do you look outside the United States to recruit players? “We don’t look outside enough. I think it’s an area that we’d like to try to improve on.”
What are your impressions of Shan Foster? “Foster’s the best three point shooter in the league. His size and length make him an incredible difficult cover because he can shoot over you. You’ve got to cover him before the catch. I don’t see anything changing. He’s going to keep shooting the three ball. Shan Foster is a terrific player and has been for a couple of years.”
