NCAA MEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP: SECOND ROUND - ARKANSAS VS KANSAS

March 17, 2023

Norm Roberts

Wells Fargo Arena

Kansas Jayhawks

Media Conference

THE MODERATOR: At this time we're pleased to be joined by Kansas assistant Coach, Norm Roberts.

Coach?

NORM ROBERTS: Arkansas is a terrific program. Obviously they have some of the best athletes in the country. They're very long and athletic, play extremely fast. They've got three to four potential NBA guys.

Nick Smith is terrific; Jordan Walsh is a great defender; Davis is a terrific point guard; Council is maybe as good of an athlete as you're going to see in the country. And then black is a kid that plays multiple positions.

So they've got depth, they got size, and they have great athletic ability.

Q. Norm, what's it been like for you the last few games filling in for Coach Self? How is he doing, and do you expect to be leading the team tomorrow? What's the update?

NORM ROBERTS: Coach is doing well. It's a day-to-day situation with him and everything, but he's doing good. He was in practice with our guys just a little while ago and coaching them, so we will see what happens.

Q. Norm, on Bill, could you walk us through the communication process that you guys go through with him and the players and how often you meet with him while you're here in Des Moines going over stuff, the nuts and bolts of that?

NORM ROBERTS: It's the same that we always do. We have scouting report. We meet probably two times a night and go over different scenarios and what we want to do and how he wants us to play both offensively and defensively.

So we haven't had any extra meetings and those things. As a staff we always collaborate and work together and everybody has input on what we think would be the best situation for us.

Q. Norm, can you talk about the comparison with any Big XII team that you see in Arkansas?

NORM ROBERTS: That's tough. I don't think anybody in the country has as many athletes as Arkansas has. We have had different teams in our league that are pretty athletic.

Baylor was athletic but they're not as tall, long.

West Virginia is long but they're not as fast.

So we played against a combination of those things.

Probably the closest one would be Texas. Texas probably has as many athletes in length that's similar to Arkansas.

Q. Dajuan and Kevin, two of the best defenders around, just talk about taking them to the fight against these athletes?

NORM ROBERTS: Well, it's going to be important that we play team defense. It can't just be one guy, because they are very good at putting it on the bounce and attacking the basket.

We have to be in gaps. We've got to help each other. We've got to communicate quite a bit. Then once the shot is taken, more importantly we gotta go rebound it. They do a great job of crashing the glass, and so we've got to do a great job in rotation rebounding.

Q. Coach, I'm sure you've poured over a season's worth of Arkansas tape at this point. They looked like a Final Four back in Maui in December and then they kind of hit the skids late in the season. Did you notice anything different about them the last third of the season that they weren't doing that they did do early on?

NORM ROBERTS: No, not that. Nick Smith was out with injuries. They have dealt with other injuries, just like everybody in the country has, and they play in a great league in the SEC.

So everybody is going to have ups and downs in their league. We did, too. So they're playing very good basketball right now, and I think they're extremely competitive. We're going to have to be very, very focused and competitive and aggressive throughout the whole game.

Q. Maybe just a word from a viewer's standpoint at what a treat this game is going to be with, as you allude to, all the NBA talent that's going to be on the floor on both sides?

NORM ROBERTS: Oh, yeah. Yeah, it's going to be up and down. It's going to be an up and down game, and they're always in attack mode. We want to be in that same mode throughout the game. It's going to come down to getting stops, stops and rebounding the basketball.

Q. During the games are you making decisions like your own way, how you would usually coach a game, or are you at all trying to mimic and think like Bill Self? What's the balance there?

NORM ROBERTS: We have been together for almost 25 years, so we probably do finish each other's sentences in basketball terms. But, no, I do try to think of what he would want to do. If it's a situation of getting the ball inside, if it's a situation, trapping the ball screen, where we would want to attack.

Those things we talk about a lot before the game begins, on how we want to attack, what we want to do, how we want to play the game. So I just revisit that in my head and coach that way.

Q. Coach, a question about Jalen. Off the court how much -- you have so many years as an educator and a coach and helping young men grow up. He seems to have matured as much as anybody we've seen in recent years. Can you talk about his development as a young man away from the game?

NORM ROBERTS: Yeah, he's tremendous. He has been one of the best leaders we've ever had and one of the most competitive kids we've ever had.

Everybody knows Jalen went through a situation, but I've never seen a kid handle a situation like he did and take full accountability.

We talk about when that situation happened, usually a kid addresses the team and says I'm sorry. He didn't do that. He addressed the team for 10 to 15 minutes saying, I'm taking total responsibilities. I screwed up here. This shouldn't happen. I'm not going to do that again.

He went through a whole thing on his own and he really took accountability. He has grown up so much. He cares about Kansas and about his teammates, and that's reflected every day when he comes to practice and when he's around.

Q. You compared Arkansas to Texas in your last appearance. You did not come up with the win. Does that worry you at all for tomorrow's game?

NORM ROBERTS: Well, Arkansas is quick and athletic, just like Texas. We played against that all year. We know what we need to do. We know we need to be keyed up. We know that we need to be very active in what we do.

The main thing for us is we can't let people get comfortable. When you let somebody get comfortable they're going to play very well.

So we have to make them uncomfortable, and there's ways that we can do that. Then we've got to be able to get out in transition and get easy looks for ourselves.

Q. I know you talk about Arkansas's team, but just as coach to coach, Eric Musselman, what's your impression of him, his style, philosophy, overall approach to the game?

NORM ROBERTS: Coach Muss is terrific. He's done a great job at Arkansas. He's an attack-mode guy, everybody knows that. He's a passionate guy, obviously his family history in coaching and those things. He's done a fabulous job at Arkansas.

Q. Norm, first off, obviously you guys are number one seed for a reason, just like all the others, and the number one seeds win most of the time, but they don't always win. How do you see a 1-8 matchup against a team that's as athletic as any in the country? How dangerous do you see Arkansas being?

NORM ROBERTS: I think when you get in the NCAA Tournament any team is dangerous. Howard gave us all they could early in the game and then we were able to get breathing room from them. But they're a very good basketball team.

I said this yesterday. You're playing against champions, guys that had really good seasons and know how to win. Arkansas comes from the SEC. They know how to play in big games. They know what it's like to win big.

So we knew the 8-9 game, be it Arkansas at Illinois, was going to be a tough battle. And you're going to have to beat tough teams and you're going to have tough games in order to win a national championship.

We knew that last year when we did it. Creighton was a bear of a game for us last year, and this year will be the same. You just got to go out and execute.

Q. Ricky Council you alluded to do, he's athletic the way he dunks. He had a nice bounceback game after not playing well in the SEC tournament. I wonder what you think of him, and Makhi Mitchell has had some good games in the postseason; what are your thoughts on them?

NORM ROBERTS: Ricky is an explosive athlete. His first step is ridiculously quick and he's explosive to the rim. He's a really, really good player, and he's had a great year for them.

Mitchell and his brother, they've always been good. They know how to screen. They know how to pinch post. They know how to attack the glass. They make an impact on the game defensively by walling up and blocking shots.

They've all had a great year there at Arkansas.

Q. Norm, I wanted to ask you about Gradey. Are you aware of his mom's basketball prowess from her high school and college days? Is that a topic of conversation around the team?

NORM ROBERTS: Well, not around the team, but with me and Gradey he knows his mom is the best player in the house. We know all that. His mom was a terrific player at Iowa State and I think that's helped Gradey a lot as a player.

When you are coaching Gradey and talking to him about different things, his mom knows what's going on. She knows when he's playing well and when he's not and when he's doing the things he's supposed to do.

She has been a joy to be around and she's great with him and keeping his head level as well, as his dad, Bart.

Q. You mentioned Anthony Black earlier, how he can play multiple positions. Could you expound on his game and what's jumped out in prep on him?

NORM ROBERTS: One thing about Anthony, he's always been a great passer, but now his body is stronger than it was coming out of high school.

He's explosive getting to the basket. He's become a good defender as well. There is no doubt that he has an NBA career ahead of him and he has a great basketball IQ.

Q. Coach, back to Gradey Dick. I know he opens up the floor completely for you guys offensively. Have you ever seen someone get off a jump shot as quickly as he does, consistently?

NORM ROBERTS: He's pretty good at it. I'm sure there are guys that have gotten the shot off quicker, but the thing about Gradey is he's tall, being 6'8", so he has the ball high up already and he can get it out of his not hands quickly. I'm sure Arkansas is going to run him off the line and not let him have easy looks, but he is going to have to do a good job of moving without the ball.

Gradey is as prepared of a shooter in college as a freshman as I've ever been around. He's terrific in that way.

Q. Norm, how important is Ernest for tomorrow? Where do you see his ceiling and how he's progressed?

NORM ROBERTS: Ernest is real important because of his length. He gives us size. He doesn't give us the scoring ability that KJ does, but he gives us more size there, the ability to block shots and protect the rim. He's a great rim runner, getting to the basket and catching lobs.

So we're going to need his energy and his ability to rebound and protect the rim.

Q. Your two sons know basketball. They played it. Have they talked strategy with you during this period where you've been coaching? Are they here? Have they helped you?

NORM ROBERTS: Well, they're not here. Their mom is here but they're not here. My one son is Associate Commissioner at the Mountain West so he's worried about San Diego State moving on and doing his job.

And then my youngest boy actually works for us at Kansas. He works in the McClendon Initiative, and he's working on doing his job there.

But they text me all the time and they're really excited for us and hope that we can continue.

Q. Nick Smith is pretty much listed as a lottery pick by everybody and missed a lot of games, but he was averaging I think 19.5 for six games, and then the second half against A&M he shot 1 for 10, then yesterday was 2 for 10, so even I know that's 3 for 20. Pretty uncharacteristic games. Do you worry that he's not going to keep shooting like that? He's going to be a problem tomorrow?

NORM ROBERTS: Nick is a terrific player. We recruited Nick, so I've known Nick and his family. Terrific family. Nick can score the ball, but he affects the game in other ways, too. He can get in the passing lane. He's long. He plays very, very aggressively. He can create for others as well.

He is a main focus. He is a guy we can't let get off early against us, because he could have a big night. We know that.

THE MODERATOR: Thank you Coach. Best of luck tomorrow.