Ross Hodge press conference summary: 1-26
West Virginia head coach Ross Hodge addressed the media Monday ahead of the Kansas State match up and here is a summary of what was said.
–Hodge said the skill level of players today and the ability to shoot the ball from multiple positions is challenging on defenses. And when you don’t have a lot of collective experience and turnover on rosters the ability to make adjustments in games is strained because you’re still trying to get the baseline defensively of what you’re trying to do. But the Big 12 still has some of the best defensive teams.
–Kansas State has PJ Haggerty who is an incredible individual talent and is an extremely tough cover with good touch in the mid-range and he puts a lot of pressure on your defense. The Wildcats have battled some injuries of late and they’re still trying to find themselves but still a dangerous offensive team.
–The challenge is do you give Haggerty all the attention and allow it to open it up for other guys because like really good players there isn’t one simple answer. Great players don’t allow for simple answers.
–Hodge said there hasn’t necessarily been any discussions on postseason ramifications or big picture stuff because if you take care of the now and what’s in front of you it takes care of itself. You don’t know what’s going to happen so he hasn’t even thought about both home games yet, more just Kansas State. You’re just trying to figure out how you can beat Kansas State tomorrow. West Virginia has a mature group and is experienced so you don’t have to remind them often what it means or doesn’t mean. They are aware of it and have a great opportunity tomorrow and they need to protect their home floor.
–No issues travel wise getting back. They were able to get home and landed in Clarksburg around 11:15 Saturday night.
–The rotations have been dictated by matchups as well as some players coming into their own. You’re trying to find the best combinations to give you a chance. To go through the gauntlet of this league and the travel and quick turnarounds you’re going to need to have players ready to contribute.
–Hodge doesn’t believe it’s tougher to get players to buy into that line of thinking when you have maturity on the roster. It’s not hard for them to know that all it takes is somebody spraining an ankle or foul trouble to get on the floor. If you allow your mind to drift to a place where you’re not going to play or mentally and emotionally connected to what’s going on then you won’t be ready for that moment if it comes.
–With the injuries to Kansas State it does but also doesn’t affect the preparation. You try to get focused on their personnel and you know if they’re on the floor they’re going to be playing with a certain level of confidence and freedom. They can put a lot of pressure on you in a lot of different ways.
–Hodge said their true road games have against three of the best 10 teams in the country on their home floor. Those teams haven’t lost at home much and the margin for error is so thin you have to play really, really good basketball for an entire 40 minutes and they haven’t done that. Sometimes the problem isn’t you, it’s who you have to play and where you have to play them. But there are still instances regardless of who you’re playing there are things they could do better. Hodge said he has to do a better job of keeping the games intact because they haven’t done that. If you don’t do that you’re going to dig yourself a hole.
–Hodge said the reality is when you play in the Big 12 you’re always going to have an opportunity. If you win eight in a row, seven in a row in the Big 12 you’re going to be on the right side of the bubble. Hodge understands that they’re going to have multiple opportunities moving forward. He’s mentioned to the team that nothing is really final until it becomes painfully evident that it’s done. There’s a lot of chances but you have to care of what’s right in front of you.
–Hodge thinks they have one of the toughest places to play in the country in Hope Coliseum. As far as being a legitimate national championship contender, there is a lot of layers that factor into that with experience being big. You have to have that collective experience as a group to go through the challenges of this league. When you have great players with experience that makes for great teams to go against.
–Hodge said the money part is certainly part of it when putting a roster together. This is the time period that we’re in right now. The best resourced teams typically have the best opportunities but you still have to make really good decisions on who you want to be part of your program.
–More so than the actual number when it comes to the score, West Virginia needs to be efficient offensively. The Arizona State game they were incredibly efficient. It’s not to their benefit to get into an up and down high possession, high scoring game against Kansas State because that’s when they’re at their best but they need to be opportunistic on breaks and with turnovers.
–Hodge said you have to protect home floor, there has to be a certain level of urgency because it is hard to win on the road. There needs to be a heightened sense of awareness to protecting home court and you have to take pride in it but it doesn’t happen just because you want it to happen. And just because they’ve been good at home doesn’t mean they will continue to do that because you still have to go do it.
—Honor Huff just has to keep making the simple play and don’t press or force the issue. It’s a long game and it opens up for good players and don’t feel like you have to press to get the look and when you get a good look you kind of press and rush it a little bit. He has to stay aggressive and keep making simple plays.
–Nothing wrong with Jackson Fields but Harlan Obioha and Brenen Lorient have been playing well and because of who they’ve played they have decided to play Chance Moore at the four. Fields is still trying to get all the way back and continue to get his grip strength back. They’re trying to work him back into it while being mindful that he’s at the threshold of playing in too many games to receive a medical redshirt. They haven’t made any decisions on that and if he plays in a few more games that option is off the table. If he plays in a couple more games that’s out the window so they’re trying to see where his minutes can come and if he can get 100-percent comfortable. But if it’s two or three minutes a night is that worth burning a year of eligibility and that’s what they’re weighing right now.
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