PAC-12 CONFERENCE MEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP

March 10, 2021

Larry Krystkowiak

Utah Utes

Postgame Press Conference

Utah - 98, Washington - 95

LARRY KRYSTKOWIAK:

Q. Allowing 95 points probably isn't something that you're very pleased about, but just being able to claw your way into getting a win, how does it feel right now?

LARRY KRYSTKOWIAK: Well, it feels good. We gave up 60 points in the second half, so it was, it got to be a little bit of an ugly barrage at the end. But, shoot, 36 minutes of the game I thought we were pretty solid. A lot of offensive rebounds when they missed. They out-scrapped us going down the stretch. We missed free throws, had turnovers. It wasn't a good finish, but our defense was a lot better than giving up the number of points than we gave up. It was kind of a perfect Storm.

It doesn't make you feel great going into it, but this isn't the time of year that you think too much about it. We got to move on for the next ball game against the Trojans. So hopefully we can sharpen some things up prior to that.

Q. You guys made 14 threes, shot 53 percent from beyond the arc. Was a lot that have just of what the defense was giving you or were the guys really feeling it?

LARRY KRYSTKOWIAK: Well, I mean, a little bit of both. I thought in the first half we had a lot of one-pass threes. We led our conference in 2-point field goal percentage. We were ninth in the country, if -- in free throw percentage. If it weren't for Colorado, we would have led the conference in free throws and twos. So that doesn't always set up well to come down and cast off a bunch of threes, but we were making them, guys did hit shots, but I would have liked to have seen us get the ball inside. And if you can get a one-pass three early in a possession, my guess is you can get one late. But that was kind of the nature of the game, a little bit up tempo, our guys shared the basketball and this is the time of year when you want to be knocking down shots.

I was proud. To have six people in double figures is a little bit unusual in a college game, but this is the time when guys need to be using up their round of ammunition and making them.

Q. You had (No microphone.) Does that bode well for you or for them?

LARRY KRYSTKOWIAK: I'm sorry, that was a little choppy of a question. It was a little bad reception. Would you mind repeating that, please.

Q. The big run there in the first half when you guys broke it open, were you happy with the aggression from your team and the willingness to go up-and-down and maybe kind of make Washington get uncomfortable, not able to get into their two-three zone like they would like?

LARRY KRYSTKOWIAK: Well, they have changed their philosophy a little bit. It started in a two-three zone until about the first or second pass and then they were going man. So the guys found a pretty decent rhythm. I just, the Achilles Heel for us tonight I thought was some sloppy turnovers, some catching and passing, simple plays, whether they were at the end or even early in the game.

But offensively we were pretty darn efficient if we didn't turn the thing over and if we moved it multiple times. But, yeah, our guys were aggressive, as I said, and guys were feeling it a little bit. We shared it decently and we need, obviously when you give up 60 points in the second half, we needed all those buckets. But we're about to play USC, which is one of the top teams, not only in our conference but in the country at defending the 2-point line and the 3-point line and you just, there's not as much margin for error. We're going to have to be a lot more crisp and do a better job of moving the ball and certainly with their shot-blocking ability inside, it's going to pose a little different challenge.

But tonight I thought it was great. I loved the offense for 90 percent of the ball game.

Q. When you're in a situation like this tournament time where you play again tomorrow night, there's no practice time. How do you go about trying to fix things that you thought went wrong on such a short turnaround?

LARRY KRYSTKOWIAK: Yeah, well, I mentioned that in our post-game meeting. We aren't going to be able to fix turnovers. I think a lot of it is a mindset that you bring in. The classic saying of mental is the physical as four is to one, this is not a time of year that we're going to improve our skill level, we're not going to improve our shooting touch, we're not going to get any bigger in the weight room. A lot of those physical things just aren't happening and teams that advance right now become a little bit stronger mentally, and hopefully this was a little bit of a wake up call, a correction to be able to win a game, but yet not be very sharp going down the stretch.

So I think we're pleased with where we were here, but obviously moving forward we got to sharpen the saw a little bit, without a lot of practice time. I think, gentlemen from SI, one of the questions was the fact that we played USC, I just heard the USC a couple weeks ago. You know, it's not an advantage for either team, but there's not a whole lot that's changed. So the scout and the prep, turning right around is better than maybe if it's an opponent that we hadn't played in a long time that could be doing things differently. I think we know what we're going to get from USC, so there's a benefit to that.

Q. You mentioned the sloppy turnovers. There were a couple calls in the first half where they were calling traveling on that step back that we have seen Alfonso do all year. Did you get an explanation for that or was he really traveling, I guess would be my question.

LARRY KRYSTKOWIAK: Well, that's not really part of my job description. I felt like on the first one it was an obvious travel and on the second one and my discussions with the referees a little bit of an interpretation. I thought it was a pull back dribble on the second one. He hadn't picked the ball up, and I, you know, in my discussions with the officials they could see that point, and some of those plays are hard to call, bang, bang, when they're live. Fonz has got to clean it up a little bit. It's an unusual move and he's got to make sure that he's crisper and defines his pivot foot and also the point at which he picks the ball up for the step back. You can't pick the ball up and then take a two step back. If you're in the middle of a pull-back dribble when you do the step back then it becomes legal. I think, without seeing the film, I felt like the first one was obviously a travel, the second one I wasn't so sure.

Q. What benefits are there to having played the game, having gotten used to the arena, gotten used to the unusual atmosphere?

LARRY KRYSTKOWIAK: Well, you never know about that. It's gone both ways. We have been on both ends of it. I think it's going to be what -- I like the fact that we played, got our feet wet a little bit. It had been a long time since Washington had played a game. I think they were close to two weeks off without playing.

So as far as tomorrow goes, it's hard to say. I think we're looking at a USC team that's Coach of the Year, Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, all kinds of stuff. So I don't know if it's going to make much difference in their mind, them not playing, and they played recently against UCLA. So I'm just happy to be playing right now and I guess that will be a question that you guys would have some interpretation of after you watch the game tomorrow and see if a team looks rusty. I wouldn't guess that we're going to look tired. So I'm just, again, I'm just happy to be advancing and playing.

Q. T-Mobile Arena hasn't been too kind to you in conference play. Ever since you moved there you haven't won a game until tonight. Was it nice to kind of get that monkey off your back? I know you don't generally care about those types of streaks, but is it nice to kind of finally get that win, just to kind of shake it off and say that you can do it?

LARRY KRYSTKOWIAK: Yeah, most definitely. This is not an time of year that you want to be in a one-and-done situation and I thought there was a little, we got a couple of years that we got a bye and then we ran into the hottest team in the league in Oregon that got on a string. Look, you can always come up with story lines, but the one year I think we beat California by 30 points and then you end up playing them in the first round of the tournament and sometimes human nature comes into play.

But it hasn't felt good. We did get a win against Kentucky here, so it's not a building jinx, it's more of a PAC-12 conference jinx, and we certainly would like to get a, you know, feel better about it and be able to get some wins. So there's no doubt. I didn't think about it until you just mentioned it and discussed that, but, yes, certainly.

Q. Last year obviously COVID kind of hit right as you guys were playing the game. Everything was being cancelled as you were playing. You guys found out pretty much the world was shutting down after that game. What was it like to kind of come back to this environment knowing the full year that we have had, just having that as the context, especially with no fans in the stands?

LARRY KRYSTKOWIAK: Yeah, it's still a little bit eery. The casinos are fairly dead, a lot of restaurants dead, although things are opened up here once we get closer to the weekend. It was more of a Monday, Tuesday shutdown. But it was a year ago and a lot of times when you get as old as I am years fly by. It's like, wow, that was a fast year, between birthdays and different things. And this was one of those occasions, I've said it before, that if this was a year since we were here last, it seemed like it could be dog years, to the point where it was like seven years. It seems like so much has transpired. We have had a lot of adversity, ups and downs, we have had stuff going on with our family personally and different things that have just made it -- it's definitely not one of those cases where you said, man, this year flew by.

So I think there's some optimism. We got daylight savings coming up this week. We have got needles that are going in people's bodies. The days are getting longer. I think all of the medical profession and everybody's got a handle on things. And it's like my physician, my knee doctor, told me years ago when I suffered a lot of injuries. If it doesn't kill you, it's just going to make you stronger. And I think that our program and our players have gone through an awful lot, but this is going to be one of those things I think that makes us all more resilient.

I'm thankful that we have a chance to play. There's some conferences that aren't playing. There's some teams that aren't playing. So to keep it in perspective, I feel like we're fortunate to be able to keep playing this game, but it certainly has been a challenging year.

Q. Timmy with his third double double of the season. When he's impacting the game in multiple ways like that, what kind of effect does that have on your team?

LARRY KRYSTKOWIAK: Yeah, I think Timmy's really grown. I think he was the only player in the top-10 in points, rebounds, and assists in our conference. He's had a couple recent games where he's been close to double digits in assists, he's playing under control, doing a nice job finding some guys, and that's really helping our offensive efficiency and it's all about winning, in his mind. He was very physical I thought on the glass tonight. We got out-rebounded, so we need a better performance moving forward. But he's been doing a terrific job in all areas, not just on the basketball court, but one of the things that we have to keep in mind during this time is that these kids are students as well and here's a young guy with a lot of online classes and different things. All of the academic reports I'm getting on him are A's and B's, and as I told our team the other day, how you do some things are usually an indication of how you do everything.

So his habits are dialed in on and off the court. It's leading to some good performances on the court and I haven't been around anybody that's as dialed in to a game plan and desire and wanting to win as I have with Timmy. So I'm proud of him for his all-conference accolades and we're going to need to saddle him up and keep riding him to a certain extent in order to have a chance to win some games.

Q. In two games against USC you guys have defended Evan Mobley well both times. What do you think has worked there in those two games and maybe what adjustments might you expect them to make on him, for him, if any?

LARRY KRYSTKOWIAK: Well, I would have to kill you if I gave you our secret sauce. I think it's crazy to think that you're going to shut him down much. It's just important to try to impose your Will a little bit, be as physical as you can. But he's a load, evidenced by the accolades and what's done, what he's meant for their team. I don't know what they have in store. I know in the UCLA game most recently they were really adamant and focused on getting the ball inside. They pounded the ball inside. They have tried to do that against us.

But it was pretty obvious that that's where they're hanging their hat and they're getting a lot of great play from the backcourt and perimeter as well. So it's a multifaceted team, but we have got to keep our fingers crossed that we keep, that we have answers for old No. 4. I think it's No. 4. Yeah. Young No. 4.