Texas postgame presser (merged)

[Shorty Dee]

 

[eebmg]

Vic is a very interesting coach.

 

[Urshurak]

I’m. Okay. Harmon was out. Makes a difference in both ends of the court. I get it.

……but so was Paige. Kind of surprised Vic played the injury card, especially against UConn playing without probably
the best player in the country.

 

[SVCBeercats]

Wants competitors more than basketball players. Missed Rori Harmon! "Ya all don't give UCONN enough credit." Vic: "I don't like losing and I'm not walking out of here happy."

 

[augustaTC]

Wow, so much to be excited about. Aubrey was terrific, Azzi was outa sight, and Nika was, well, Nika. Some of those assists were so pretty. And we saw Caroline, and Lou was very good at times, Great team effort.

 

[#12in21]

Vic's a straight shooter. A player couldn't possibly be more highly praised by an opposing coach than what he had to say about Azzi. He knew exactly what she was capable of and prepared his team for it but she was able to go off anyway! With Vic at the helm, the Longhorns are going to be right in there this season and in the years to come. IMO among the best in wcbb and deserves all the respect. A rematch in the NCAA tourney will be a great game.

 

[AmeriConn]

I’m. Okay. Harmon was out. Makes a difference in both ends of the court. I get it.

……but so was Paige. Kind of surprised Vic played the injury card, especially against UConn playing without probably
the best player in the country.

I thought he owned the fact that both teams had key injured players. I like the way Vic handled himself. Before the game he went over to talk to Paige. Go UConn!!

 

[UcMiami]

I’m. Okay. Harmon was out. Makes a difference in both ends of the court. I get it.

……but so was Paige. Kind of surprised Vic played the injury card, especially against UConn playing without probably
the best player in the country.

I thought he owned the fact that both teams had key injured players. I like the way Vic handled himself. Before the game he went over to talk to Paige. Go UConn!!

There is also a difference in how a coach handles the two situations ... Geno has known since before the start of practice he did not have Paige this year and adjusted to that reality. Vic started the season with a healthy PG, and has needed to adjust on the fly for a few games - that is a harder proposition. The better comparison would be Harmon V Ice, but Ice is a freshman and would have been second off the bench behind Aubrey, not the starter at least early.

I like Vic as a coach and in his press conferences - just seems like a genuine straight up guy. Think he would be a good coach to play for - hard task master but also quick to praise and supportive to those who play with effort.

 

[HopJim]

Big fan of Vic and will be interested in how he does over time. During the past 12 years that I lived in Texas, the Longhorns brought in big name coaches for most of their teams (several for football and men's basketball) and none met expectations. Vic will be the exception if he can get the Texas women to the Final Four.

 

[Bama fan]

Big fan of Vic and will be interested in how he does over time. During the past 12 years that I lived in Texas, the Longhorns brought in big name coaches for most of their teams (several for football and men's basketball) and none met expectations. Vic will be the exception if he can get the Texas women to the Final Four.

I like Vic a lot, and I think he will be a good thing for the University of Texas. As for the other disappointments, and there were several, Texas always has outsized expectations.

 

[Plebe]

I’m. Okay. Harmon was out. Makes a difference in both ends of the court. I get it.

……but so was Paige. Kind of surprised Vic played the injury card, especially against UConn playing without probably
the best player in the country.

Paige is out for the entire season, and this has been known for months now.

Losing your best player and the engine of the team just days before a game is a completely different scenario.

Remember how we played last year in the Georgia Tech game? When Geno spoke in rather anguished tones about the state of the team in those difficult days, he wasn't making excuses or "playing the injury card"; he was just giving real talk about where the team was at. Not sure why Vic must be held to a stricter standard.

 

[Sifaka]

Not sure why Vic must be held to a stricter standard.

Homerism.

 

[Soxx]

I’m. Okay. Harmon was out. Makes a difference in both ends of the court. I get it.

……but so was Paige. Kind of surprised Vic played the injury card, especially against UConn playing without probably
the best player in the country.

He commented at the end of this session on how both teams were significantly short-handed and that other teams don’t care that they do.

 

[Soxx]

Vic on Azzi: “She’s open when she’s not.” !!!

 

[CL82]

Vic on Azzi: “She’s open when she’s not.” !!!

“When you think you are guarding her close, take a step closer.”

 

[Charliebball]

Few coaches get more out of their players than Schaefer..............his teams are always tough to play, and he's got that old-time southern charm but is still hyper-competitive.......Texas couldn't have made a better choice........

 

[JeannoCT]

I’m. Okay. Harmon was out. Makes a difference in both ends of the court. I get it.

……but so was Paige. Kind of surprised Vic played the injury card, especially against UConn playing without probably
the best player in the country.

I was waiting at the end of the game - our section is behind the Texas bench and fans. A Texas fan came up the aisle, and she looked at me, and stopped and said: "Well, you know we were without our point guard, and it would have made a difference." I said ok. And before I countered, she said "well, I guess you are missing a couple too" I said yes. She was a nice lady.
And did everyone notice Jodi Conradt, legendary Texas coach behind the bench?? CD and Geno both came over to greet her. I swear, the women doesn't age! She looked fantastic.

 

[Bone Dog]

A Texas fan came up the aisle, and she looked at me, and stopped and said: "Well, you know we were without our point guard, and it would have made a difference." I said ok. And before I countered, she said "well, I guess you are missing a couple too" I said yes. She was a nice lady.

It's self-comforting behavior everyone should be permitted, to think of what woulda coulda shoulda if everyone had been healthy. In a sense, it's a slight to the kids who actually played in a game, but it's not unkindly meant. Maybe it even helps to focus everyone on the real events later, after all the emotions of the game have washed over us.

 

[Puppy Love]

I felt incredibly sorry for Sonya Morris during the press conference. She, more than anyone, probably kept Texas in the game. Yet, her coach is very publicly asking her to take accountability for the loss. If you watch her, she looks distraught. It didn’t seem like the time or place to be discussing the accountability for the loss.

 

[Bone Dog]

I felt incredibly sorry for Sonya Morris during the press conference. She, more than anyone, probably kept Texas in the game. Yet, her coach is very publicly asking her to take accountability for the loss. If you watch her, she looks distraught. It didn’t seem like the time or place to be discussing the accountability for the loss.

I had a similar feeling. I like her game a lot and have followed her for a bit. I've seen her in these things a few times over the years and she's pretty hard to read. I think she's a tough cookie, as we used to say. At one point in the 4th quarter, she bumped Nika during a break in passing, and I think it was meant as a friendly gesture, respect even. She also a competitor and I'm sure she hated losing.

I doubt Vic's remarks felt unfair to her. She may have heard him to mean "You're the leader of this team, which means taking responsibility even in the bad times." I don't think he could have asked that much of the others at the table with him.

One moment in the game where I thought she looked dejected was when Azzi picked her pocket at mid-court and ran away for a layup. Sonya chased after her for a few steps and then kinda let up. She knew she couldn't catch her, of course, but I think getting beat like that in plain sight must have stung, and those last few strides down the court looked a little sad.

 

[faithfulfan]

There is also a difference in how a coach handles the two situations ... Geno has known since before the start of practice he did not have Paige this year and adjusted to that reality. Vic started the season with a healthy PG, and has needed to adjust on the fly for a few games - that is a harder proposition. The better comparison would be Harmon V Ice, but Ice is a freshman and would have been second off the bench behind Aubrey, not the starter at least early.

I like Vic as a coach and in his press conferences - just seems like a genuine straight up guy. Think he would be a good coach to play for - hard task master but also quick to praise and supportive to those who play with effort.

There is no adjustment, and time doesn't matter if you don't have the players.
No one lost more then UCONN this season with Paige and Ice out!
His press conference started out making excuses but he caught himself, and at the end he mentioned UCONN was without Paige!
Not easy to talk at the end of a tough loss, no one does it better then Geno!
He always gives all the credit to the winner!
But Vic is a class guy.

 

[Plebe]

Homerism.

View attachment 80720 View attachment 80720

After all, you can't spell "homerism" without "Homer"

 

[Centerstream]

I felt incredibly sorry for Sonya Morris during the press conference. She, more than anyone, probably kept Texas in the game. Yet, her coach is very publicly asking her to take accountability for the loss. If you watch her, she looks distraught. It didn’t seem like the time or place to be discussing the accountability for the loss.

In the game chat I asked why Morris was not on the court for the final minutes (I made my question when someone else asked about Vic not putting Jones in sooner in the 4th quarter). After watching the game replay, it seemed to me that her defensive effort on Azzi had disappeared. If a player can't defend against the only player that was doing almost all of the scoring, then I guess that she should be pulled.

 

[asuwish]

I’m. Okay. Harmon was out. Makes a difference in both ends of the court. I get it.

……but so was Paige. Kind of surprised Vic played the injury card, especially against UConn playing without probably
the best player in the country.

The fact is Paige is not playing this year, and Rori will be back. She was National freshman of the year, plays point and doesn't turn it over (would have handled our pressure way better), and her quickness on both ends is difficult to deal with. One thing Vic knows is that if you've never played against UConn you just don't get how hard they play. Now his transfers, highly touted freshman (looked very solid) have seen them and will understand next time what to expect. I know we will be better and our youngsters we have more experience but If the two meet on a neutral court in March this game is a toss up!

 

[Urshurak]

Paige is out for the entire season, and this has been known for months now.

Losing your best player and the engine of the team just days before a game is a completely different scenario.

Remember how we played last year in the Georgia Tech game? When Geno spoke in rather anguished tones about the state of the team in those difficult days, he wasn't making excuses or "playing the injury card"; he was just giving real talk about where the team was at. Not sure why Vic must be held to a stricter standard.

True. Fair assessment.