KENTUCKY HC MARK POPE Q&A:
* Begins by praising Buzz Williams. He's a 1-of-1, a real culture guy. They're playing really hard. They fought tonight.
* I love winning a game where we never felt great, like we really got into a flow. Showed our guys they can win different ways.
* Jaxson Robinson missed his first three or four and just stayed focused. Glad to see that growth from him. Loved seeing him hit the glass. Big efforts from him and Otega on the glass the last two games. We need that.
* Starting 1-for-11 from 3.... "That's not very fun." But that's why we do a drill every day where you have to keep shooting it, and next thing you know you wind up with good numbers.
* Shows how potent you can be where you feel you never could get going and you still get 81. Fun to coach that kind of team.
* Epic effort on the glass by our guys. I say that because I have so much respect for what Texas A&M does on the glass. They put up insane numbers on the offensive glass.
* TP was terrific, hitting a couple of big shots in a huge Top 10-type of game.
* On the rebounding focus... It's complicated. We've placed a huge emphasis on it. One of their staffers records during a drill not only if you got a rebound, but did you get a "hit" on the missed shots. We pick out the plays that are right on video and show it to them so they can see what successful rebounding looks like. They even have a "Hit Champion."
* Asked if this is the best he's seen Jaxson play in back to back games, Pope says it probably was when you consider the rankings of the opponents and what JR gave them on the glass and defensively.
* Amari Williams was a man among men tonight. Ginormous on the boards. Loving the way he can play with physicality in this league.
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TEXAS A&M HC BUZZ WILLIAMS:
* On the UK offense, challenge of slowing it down for 40 minutes... I enjoyed studying it for this game. Really good players. A lot of variety to the skill. The utilization, considering the newness of the coach and the staff and the players, is really difficult to do. The teaching that's going on, for them to have the kind of execution that they have, remarkable. There's three versions of stress that they put on you.
* Jaxson Robinson is a great kid, a lot of spirit. Think he's always had that in him.
* UK played with some physicality within the concept tonight.
* On dealing with the atmosphere... It's an invisible margin, dealing with it. This is the best job in college basketball and the arena that comes along with it. The margins that can make a difference are invisible, but add up.
* Amari Williams is a unique talent in regard to his skillset. His offensive use rate is so high for a 7-footer. You won't find one higher at center. When 1 gives it up, 22 becomes their point guard. And when he gives it up, he goes into the paint and becomes the most physical guy down there. Very unique talent. Love watching him play.
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UK PLAYERS Q&A:
