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SOUTHEASTERN CONFERENCE MEN'S TOURNAMENTMarch 10, 2006John BradyGlen DavisDarnell LazareTasmin MitchellNASHVILLE, TENNESSEE THE MODERATOR: Alright. We're ready to continue on with LSU. We'll ask Coach Brady if he'll give us just some opening remarks on the game, then we'll go to questions for the three student athletes. Coach. COACH JOHN BRADY: That's Tasmin Mitchell, not Darrel Mitchell. They knew who you have.I thought that was as well as we could play without Tyrus Thomas. That was really an outstanding game for our team to play you know, considering Tyrus's status with our team right now. I can't tell you how proud I am of what they were able to do tonight. Does that mean it's going to happen again tomorrow? Who knows. But I think certainly -- you know, our team has a nice confident way about it right now. The execution we showed tonight and the way we shot the ball was -- and rebounded the ball was quite good. You know, I can't pay enough compliments to these three guys here and the rest of our team that's back there in the locker room about the way they played tonight and how they responded. Darrel Mitchell's ankle is a day-to-day thing. We'll see what happens to him tomorrow. What I thought, to start that game defensively we played extremely well. I thought Glen Davis was outstanding, even though I don't like to say that with him sitting here, but what the heck. But I thought he was outstanding throughout the game. You know, evidently other people thought Darnell -- Darnell played extremely well. I told Darnell yesterday at the practice I really need him to play better. He's had a couple starts without Tyrus. He's an experienced guy, extremely intelligent player, and I said, "I just need you to play better tomorrow." I said, "I believe you can do that," and I don't think Darnell remembers he shook my hand. He said, "Coach, I appreciate that. I am." And that's great coaching there, I guess, just ask a guy to play better and he does. It's kind of easy. Tasmin, I thought, played well. I was so happy for Tasmin Mitchell to be selected when the coaches voted on the All-freshman Team because I remember talking to our coaches in a staff meeting that Tasmin Mitchell has been as consistent a player as we've had all year, and sometimes his play has been overshadowed a little bit by the spectacular plays that Tyrus Thomas can make, and for him to get voted on the all-freshmen team I thought was really -- -- I'm happy that our coaches did that for him because he showed tonight and he showed at South Carolina without Tyrus when he had his career high of 20, he showed tonight what kind of player he is in terms of scoring baskets with Tyrus not there tonight up there. It also shows you what kind of team player Tasmin Mitchell is when Tyrus Thomas is there, because he doesn't need to score baskets in order to feel like he's important to our team and knows that I have a lot of respect for him as a young player. Two other guys I need to mention I thought played really well night. Ben Voogd had 25 really good minutes. I thought this was Garrett Temple's best game. You know, Garrett Temple the first of the year was shooting about 18 percent from the three, and since as he's improved, he's gotten more confident with his shooting, and Vanderbilt was determined to leave him open a little bit night and he really made some big baskets for us throughout the game, and I was proud of him. I think now as we go back to the hotel and eat a meal together, watch the game on TV, have a little scouting tonight about 10:30 or 11:30, depending on the time before we go to bed, and then we'll convene in the morning about 9:30. We're going to get back to the hotel, get some rest, and we're excited about whoever we play tomorrow. THE MODERATOR: We'll take questions for Glen, Darnell or Tasmin. If you have one for any of those, please raise your hand. Q. For Tasmin and Darnell, can you guys talk about doing some different things offensively both before and after Darrell came up a little bit lame.THE MODERATOR: Tasmin, you go first, please. TASMIN MITCHELL: When Darrel Mitchell got hurt, we had to step it up a little bit. That was our second scoring threat on the team. Me and Darnell had to dish the ball a lot. Got the ball into the middle, and when it was passed out to me, I hit the wide open shot.THE MODERATOR: Same for Darnell. DARNELL LAZARE: We knew Mitch was down a little bit. We still had Glen inside. We still had Tasmin on the outside, myself inside, Garrett. I think all of us did a good job of scoring as at some point in the game. So we wanted to keep our intensity up and keep playing hard.THE MODERATOR: Other questions, raise your hand. Alright. Right here. Q. This is for Glen. Just talk about your night tonight. Have you had a night outside shooting like that before?GLEN DAVIS: I think when we said when we played Southern Lab in high school. That's about the last time I remember shooting like that. Just felt like a big ole just ocean, you know. Just -- I just felt it tonight, you know. One of those nights. What can I say? I made it. THE MODERATOR: Got a question on the left side? Q. Glen, obviously this team has earned the respect of the rest of this league but not really mentioned as a top two, three seed. You haven't cracked the top 15. Is that disturbing at all as a player?GLEN DAVIS: You know what, we don't worry about that. You know, we just play day-to-day. You know, we take -- we look at it and we look at our critics. Whatever they say, they say it, but, you know, when we step on the court, you know, that's all that matters that we're one at one. So, you know, it really doesn't matter, you know, what's said to me because you got to go win. Anybody can beat you any day. We just keep the intensity that we have. We're going to deserve -- we're going to get the respect that we deserve. THE MODERATOR: Hands up, other questions? Go ahead and take it in the back. Q. Glen, "Big Baby" really doesn't fit your game or your size anymore. Have you thought of another nickname perhaps that would be more fitting?GLEN DAVIS: You know, what, I haven't thought of that yet. You know, I'm a nice guy, you know, but you step on the court, you know, it's a different thing. I don't mind. You know, if you use it in a right way, you know. I don't mind. If you use it in the wrong way, I might have to pound you or something like that. But, you know, it's grown on me and, you know, you got -- if you can't beat them, you know, join them, you know? THE MODERATOR: Question down front. Q. Glen, can you talk about that poor photographer you crushed in the first half?GLEN DAVIS: You know, I just wanted to show Coach Brady how hard I was hustling, you know? So I just dove and I was just like I got to call timeout, you know. Like slow motion. I seen the referee, and then I seen cameraman. I was just praying to God I didn't paralyze nobody or hurt anybody, you know. I was just glad the referee was alright so we could continue the game. I love my refs even though they don't work with me sometimes, but, you know, I'm just glad everybody was okay. THE MODERATOR: Alright. Couple more down here in the front, I believe. Q. Darnell, how much more open was the inside after Glen's first half?DARNELL LAZARE: It was real open, man. The way Glen was scoring, the way Tas was shooting the ball, you know, I just wanted to get myself in the right spot so I could make some baskets if we need it. So since Glen was so hot and everybody else was so hot, it was kind of easy for me. I just wanted to be in the right spot at the right time. THE MODERATOR: One or two more for players, anybody? Alright. Go back to the middle, Scott. Q. First of all, Tasmin, sounded like you had a suggestions for the a nickname or if you want to share for everyone. Glen, you sat on the bench to start the second half. You came out in a little while. Were you feeling a little bad at some point yourself or something like that?GLEN DAVIS: What? Q. Started the second half you didn't shoot and you came out, Magnum came in for you. GLEN DAVIS: I sat out for several minutes? Q. I was wondering if something was bothering you. GLEN DAVIS: You know, well, it was time for a break, I feel, you know. Coach Brady made the right decision, get me out and sit me down for a little while because I don't remember the last time I played a whole half. So I didn't feel down on myself, you know? We was winning, so it really doesn't matter to me. If we're winning, I'm good, you know. So I don't know. I was fine. I was okay. I'm good. THE MODERATOR: All right. Last question right over here for the three players. Q. Again, how good was your game against Southern Lab?GLEN DAVIS: This is a good story. Let me tell you. It was the week me and my girlfriend broke up. Love bird thing. She came to the game with another boy, and so I was just kind of upset. I'm going to make every shot tonight, and I just went crazy, berserk. I think I had like 40 points. TASMIN MITCHELL: 45. GLEN DAVIS: 45 points. I was just shooting from just throwing it up, just blindfolded. Like I'm so serious. Every time I make a shot, I'll look at her and be like yeah. I still loved her. We're still together. Hey baby, how are you doing? TASMIN MITCHELL: Oh, my God. Oh my God. GLEN DAVIS: Come on, man. COACH JOHN BRADY: It's a wonder we can get serious and play a game with this group. THE MODERATOR: Unfortunately, it's time to excuse the players back to the locker room. Thank you for coming. We'll continue on with questions for Coach Brady. If you have any, please raise your hand. Let's start over here on the left. Q. John, keeping with that tune, what went through your mind when Glen bailed over the baseline there and the refs went down with him?COACH JOHN BRADY: I was just hoping LSU had its liability insurance paid up because I saw a lawsuit coming. I was hoping he wasn't injured. You know, I didn't know -- was there an official under him? THE MODERATOR: Official -- yeah. COACH JOHN BRADY: Oh, me. I couldn't see him. When Glen went down, all I saw was Glen. It would be hard to picture who was under him because you couldn't see anything but Glen's back.THE MODERATOR: Let's take a question on the aisle. Q. Coach Glen said in the locker room the coaching staff has been encouraging him to shoot a little bit more from the outside. Talk about that a little bit.COACH JOHN BRADY: What coach? Who are you talking about? Q. His coaches. COACH JOHN BRADY: You know, honestly that's a good point there because really the last couple of weeks in practice, Glen has really looked good shooting the ball, and we have told him those are good shots for him to take, and tonight they just happened to go in. Glen is a smart enough guy that if he doesn't make the first couple, he's not going to force them. But he made his first three, four, and he got in a nice rhythm, and his confidence was up, and he started making some baskets. On the other end, if Glen would have shot two, three, they hadn't gone in, he wouldn't force it. But really the last couple of weeks he's really been shooting the 12 to 15, 16-foot jump shot quite well and it looked like Vanderbilt early in the game, they weren't going to come out and guard our post, and they were going to back off. And, you know, Glen made a couple and really kind of opened it up, as Darnell said, for him. And you know Magnum got a couple easy baskets around the goal. Also opened up some driving opportunities for us, too. THE MODERATOR: Go right to the front. Q. Could you tell us a little bit more about Darrel's ankle, and, regardless of how his ankle is, how concerned are you about kind of getting him on track here in the next couple of games?COACH JOHN BRADY: Well, I don't know. Darrell -- I think it's a compounding little problem there with him. Since he's been hurt, he hasn't shot the ball as well and he's forced a few shots because he wants to get back in his old rhythm of making baskets, which I understand. So that's what we're working with him tonight. And, you know, Vanderbilt and everybody is trying to really take Darrel Mitchell out of the game, but one positive thing for our team is we've been able -- we scored 92 points tonight without Darrel Mitchell really being a factor for us offensively except drawing a crowd every time he drove to the goal. I think the second half he had a few kickouts for baskets as opposed to trying to turn the court, then maybe forcing a shot that he shouldn't have. But his ankles, we'll just see. It's the same ankle. I think the doctor told me at halftime when he tweeked it tonight, it scared him more than it actually hurt him. Now, I haven't talked to Darrel since after the game. I haven't had time to sit down and speak with him, but I'm sure the doctor that's here and Sean, our trainer, you know, are with Darrell right now. And we get back to the hotel and settle down, I'll know more about what we want to do with him tomorrow and through Saturday. But, you know Darrell wanted to play and he wants to play, and if it's not going to injure him anymore, then that will be something I'll let Darrel Mitchell decide on what he wants to do. But Tyrus Thomas will not play here, and he will certainly be ready, and we think he'll probably be almost a hundred percent for either Thursday or Friday depending on what day we play in the NCAA. THE MODERATOR: Other questions. Alright. Q. John, what's it say about you guys that he did get hurt right before halftime? You pick it back up, come out in the the second half, you play the way did you, and also if he can't play tomorrow, does today give you a little bit more confidence without him?COACH JOHN BRADY: I think we can play some good basketball without Darrel Mitchell in the game, but the problem we have or the problem we will have if he doesn't play is that it's a 40-minute game. To sustain the play we're going to need, whichever opponent we play, Arkansas or Florida, will be very difficult for us to manufacture. I don't know. What was the other part you wanted to know? Well, I'll tell you, when you look at our team, we scored 92 points tonight, and Darrel Mitchell scores six points, and Tyrus Thomas doesn't even hit the floor, and we put 92 points on the board. You know, I complimented Darnell Lazare for his play already. I complimented Garrett Temple for having his best game overall. Not only did he score some baskets, he really defended Shan Foster quite well. And in Ben Voogd stabilized us a little bit and gave us some positive minutes. I think it says a lot about our team. You know, again, I go back to what I said about Tasmin in the opening, Tasmin Mitchell. I had someone say to me, "Tasmin Mitchell really hadn't done as well as you may have thought." I said, "What are you talking about?" You know, Tasmin Mitchell is the most consistent freshman in the Southeastern Conference this year, bar none. I wouldn't trade him for anybody. When Tyrus Thomas is not there, he's picked up his game offensively. He knows he has to do that. When Tyrus Thomas is there, it's a tribute to Tasmin, the kind of team player that he is. And for us to be able to score 92 points with Darrel Mitchell getting six and Tyrus Thomas not playing, I think it speaks volumes about some of our other guys and how they're developing and that they're getting better. Q. Will Ben start if Darrell can't go? COACH JOHN BRADY: It will be he or Magnum at the point. I think I'll go with Ben. THE MODERATOR: Maybe one more. Anybody? Alright. Thank you.
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