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SOUTHEASTERN CONFERENCE MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENTMarch 17, 2019Bruce PearlChuma OkekeBryce BrownSt. Louis, Missouri Auburn-84, Tennessee-64 THE MODERATOR: We are ready to begin with Auburn. We'll ask Coach Pearl for some general thoughts on the game. BRUCE PEARL: I want to congratulate Tennessee on a great SEC season. I get no greater pleasure in beating Tennessee for this SEC Championship because I spent so many wonderful years as a Tennessee Vol. Got great respect for their fans and program, their tradition in basketball. You couldn't have a better coach, person or man than Rick Barnes. Happy for our team, our university. The championship means so much because it might have been the best year the SEC has had in how many? Auburn is its tournament champion? That says a lot about these guys, our coaching staff, and the program. Obviously we're very happy. We hope that we'll be able to represent the SEC in the NCAA tournament as its champion. Just want to give God all the glory for the blessing. Not sure we deserve as much as we've been blessed. THE MODERATOR: We'll take questions for Bryce or Chuma. Q. Bryce, throughout the regular season, there's been so much talk about LSU, Kentucky, Tennessee as the elite of the SEC. Do you feel today you kind of proved you're in the same class? BRYCE BROWN: Oh, definitely. Us as a team, we always felt like we were. We had some struggles, went through some adversity early in the season, early in SEC play. I can't blame them for the doubt. We knew inside what we had to change. We changed those things, we made sacrifices as a team. That just led us to this right here, I feel like. Q. Bryce, you went three years without winning an SEC tournament game. You win four in four days, tournament MVP. What does this mean for you personally? BRYCE BROWN: It means so much. First off, it's a blessing from the man upstairs, blessed us in so many ways. Even when we didn't see light at the end of the tunnel, he gave us that light at the end of the day. We still have a lot more to prove, a lot more to accomplish as a team. It just means so much, especially being a senior. I know it means a lot to Chuma. I feel like we paved the way for the foundation here at Auburn. Q. Chuma, what is the mental strength of this team now compared to last year? CHUMA OKEKE: I think we're very strong, especially our bench. Our bench doesn't drop off. We're still undersized, but we got a lot of heart. We just go out there and play hard. Q. Bryce, especially in the first half when you took control of the game, you were getting so many steals, turnovers. What was the key in getting those balls and shutting down Tennessee? BRYCE BROWN: Just trying to guard Grant Williams the best we can. I have to give our big men, Chuma as well, all the props today. They got us through ball screens, helped guard Grant Williams. They did that to the max of their ability. You got to appreciate Horace so much, as much as he's done and accomplished over these last four years. Turned out to be a great player for us. Chuma is Chuma. He's a pro. Anfernee, wasn't one of his best nights. He still came in and helped us in the post, as well. Q. Chuma, you hear Bryce say he feels like you're a pro. What happened after halftime that made you really dial in? CHUMA OKEKE: I knew my teammates had a lot of faith in me. I knew I had to step up. They kept finding me and giving open shots with the drive. I knew I had to come through for my teammates. Q. Bryce, with Austin healthy now going into the NCAA tournament, how is that going to affect y'all's team? BRYCE BROWN: It gives us that dominant inside presence. Not saying we didn't already have one, but it just gives us another one, another go to guy down low. He blocks shots, athletic. He does a lot for us. Just having him back is great. Q. How big was J'Von's impact off the bench? BRYCE BROWN: It was huge. J'Von, actually one of his best games he played for us, defensively, offensively. He chipped in there, got some steals, found his teammates on a break. With Jared being out there the whole first half, he had a lot on his shoulders to carry over. He did that very well. I just commended him after the game, during the game. I knew we were going to need him, just like we do every game. Big props to J'Von. THE MODERATOR: We'll excuse Bryce and Chuma. We'll continue with questions for Coach Pearl. Q. You guys get so much attention for your three-point shooting. In the first half, the defense is what really turned it around. Talk about your defensive philosophy, how well they operated it today. BRUCE PEARL: Yeah, the rule changes or the last couple years have really put a limit on full-court pressure, made trapping difficult. To try to stay within the framework of our defensive philosophy, we had to become more disruptive in the halfcourt than what my teams have typically been. If you let a well-coached team like Rick Barnes run their stuff and put the guys into places that he wants to put them, you're going to get isolated, you're going to give up high-percentage looks. It's one of the most efficient offenses in college basketball. We try to disrupt, extend catches. I think we do a good job with our scouting knowing tendencies. Like when we switched late, Horace stayed on Turner's left hand knowing he's a little better going with his left. What center would be locked into the scout to understand that's how you have to guard? 14 steals, 17 turnovers. We're looking to try to make plays off the ball. The camera follows the ball and the ball pressure, but it's the other four guys that need to be in position to not only help but create offense with their defense. Q. You've been saying for two years now when Jared Harper is not at his best, sometimes you guys struggle to win. For him to be out 18 minutes in the first half, how were you able to do what you did? BRUCE PEARL: The only player that I was concerned about fatigue was Jared Harper. He carried us against South Carolina and Florida. He puts forth so much energy. It may have been a blessing. I was planning on playing Jared a maximum of 32 minutes today. But he got in foul trouble, so we went with J'Von. He had to carry the ball, and he did, did a great job. It was a good matchup from that standpoint because we knew that J'Von could get downhill against Tennessee. It was going to be a problem for Tennessee's bigger guards to stay in front. Obviously we spread the floor, tried to create one-on-one matchups, get to the rim and score. The key, I felt pretty good when we were 5-20 from the three, had a 10-point lead I think at halftime, 9, whatever it was. You had to feel pretty good. I think the bench was a factor. A lot of coaches will shorten their bench come tournament time because it's a one-and-done situation. Dr. Tom Davis was my mentor. He did not teach me that. You got to trust your bench. You want a good locker room, make sure that everybody has a chance to contribute, understand what their roles are, trust each other, not be jealous of another man's success. I think that's what's happened to our basketball team this March because they really trusted the process and they bought in. I think there were some great matchups out there today. Obviously you saw Bryce with his ability to shoot the basketball, just such a dangerous player out there on the floor. He has great freedom. Chuma is a pro. He's such a versatile player. People don't recognize. He's the best defensive player in our league. It's not a knock to anybody else, but Chuma is always in the right places. He can cover anybody. He's patient. He does what's required of him. He's a great, great teammate. We're obviously very happy for our individuals, our team, and Auburn. Q. This team is on a roll now. What are your hopes for seeding in the NCAA tournament? BRUCE PEARL: The better your seed, the better your chances to advance. You're just hopeful in relationship to the competition that we get a good seed. A lot's going to have to do with the respect. We've beaten a top five team twice this week. We have wins over South Carolina, Missouri and Florida. We're healthy. Wherever they put us... The reason why everybody makes such a big deal about seeding is it doesn't come a prize with it. It just gives you the best chance to advance. We're obviously going to celebrate this tonight. We'll probably wake up in the morning feeling good about it. Then we'll try to take advantage, if we can, represent the SEC as its tournament champion in the NCAA tournament. THE MODERATOR: Thank you. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports   |
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