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Author
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Topic: Q&A: Arkansas coach Mike Anderson
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eleem
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Member # 884
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posted 02-26-2015 07:00 PM
Mike Anderson has Arkansas on an upward trajectory. The former assistant under Nolan Richardson has the Razorbacks at 23-5 overall and 12-3 in SEC play heading into Saturday's game at undefeated Kentucky (4 PM ET, CBS). CBS Sports Network and CBSSports.com's Jon Rothstein sat down with Anderson to discuss Arkansas' breakthrough season, Bobby Portis and his early impressions of the top-ranked Wildcats.
Jon Rothstein, CBSSports.com: Did you anticipate that your team had these types of capabilities when you started practice in the fall?
Mike Anderson: I thought we were going to have a special year, I really did. I thought we had all the pieces in place and we had some maturity that took place through last year. We had a lot of games that were close games --- a possession here, a possession there --- that we were a few plays away. Now you get some maturity in there and you also get some new talent. You have an infusion of new talent --- Anton Beard, Jabril Durham --- those guys coming in and hopefully impacting that players that we already had here in place.
CBSSports.com: One of the consistent themes surrounding your team this year is that you've possessed an uncanny ability to win close games. Why has this particular group played its best when things mattered most?
Anderson: We went through it last year and it's the same guys going through it now. Ky Madden --- some of the shots he took last year he missed, but guess what --- this year he's making those same shots. We have guys who can make plays. Michael Qualls is a year older. Bobby Portis was a guy that people pushed around last year. That's not the case anymore. We're getting in those situations where we're playing with poise and we're trusting each other. A classic example of that Ky Madden being a facilitator at the end of the game at Ole Miss. He made a key drive late in the game and last year he would have shot the ball. This year he passed the ball to Manuale Watkins, who made the game winning shot. Now Manuale is the unsung hero. We're making plays not just offensively, but defensively as well and I think our guys are starting to get it. They're starting to figure things out.
CBSSports.com: You were an assistant under Nolan Richardson when Arkansas won a national title 21 years ago in 1994. As much as you enjoyed your success at your prior stops --- UAB and Missouri --- does the success you're having this year mean more because you're having it at Arkansas?
Anderson: All of the success that I've had has been good. Especially for me, just because I'm the head coach. UAB was a very special place and we had some great times there. It was back home for me and all my family and friends were there. The city was just energized by the style of basketball that they hadn't seen before. And then to go to Missouri and do the things we did there, especially when the program was down. We had a big time surge there. And now to come here, the uniqueness of here is that I was here before and I knew what it took when we won a national championship. So that's the thing that really gives me that great motivation to come in each and every day and bring my hard hat to really come to work. Some great things have happened here before and I know how it was done.
CBSSports.com: What's the biggest things that you learned from Coach Richardson that you apply with your team on a daily basis?
Anderson: I think the most important thing is to be who you are. I don't want to be Nolan Richardson, I want to be better than him. Just be who you are. From the standpoint of style of play, not many people play that way. I'm one of the few guys that can do it. I think it's the ultimate compliment when people say “man, they look like Coach Richardson's team from the 90's.” All those teams played a fun style of basketball and they won. I can get my team to play that same way because not only did I coach it, but I played that way as well. That gives me an advantage.
CBSSports.com: Bobby Portis isn't always mentioned immediately when people talk about the best players in the SEC or the country, but he's clearly one of the more productive players in the conference. Why do you think his value sometimes falls under the radar at times?
Anderson: I think you need to look at the statistical categories in terms of what our basketball team is doing. People have seen how good he is. They might not want to say, but they know. This kid isn't just one of the best players in our league --- he's one of the best players in the country. I'm sure that the people that know basketball --- the scouts and people like that --- they're on top of it. You don't have many 6-11 guys that have the versatility of a Bobby Portis. This guy is one of the top scorers in our league and he's the top field-goal percentage guy in our league. He's one of the top shot blockers in our league and he's one of the top rebounders in our league. He's even one of the top free-throw shooters in our league. And we're winning. A big reason why we're doing what we're doing is because of Bobby Portis.
CBSSports.com: One guy who isn't as well known as Portis is freshman point guard Anton Beard. Why has he been the unsung presence this year for Arkansas?
Anderson: When I inserted him into the lineup, he gave us a real calming influence out there. He really helped a guy like Ky Madden shore up our ball handling. And not only that, he guards some of the better guards that other teams have. It gives Ky the luxury now to do other things. Whether it be playing the off-guard or playing with two point guards on the floor. Anton brings a toughness that we need, especially at the guard position. When he goes out and plays the way he plays, it gets contagious with our basketball team. It's like it becomes an infection. Other guys then start diving on the floor for loose balls, taking charges, stuff like that. He's just a winner and that's big for us.
CBSSports.com: You beat Kentucky two times last season and will face the undefeated Wildcats Saturday at Rupp Arena. You've coached against John Calipari for a long time, where do you rank this squad among the best he's ever had?
Anderson: The first squad I played here with Anthony Davis, Marquis Teague, and Darius Miller --- I thought that was an unbelievable team. That was one of the best teams I've seen in terms of size, athletic ability and then of course you have Davis there in the middle. This team is very, very talented. It's one of the more talented teams you're going to see from a depth standpoint. Obviously, the numbers speak for themselves. Kentucky is undefeated right now and they're a very good basketball team. They've got size, a few 7-footers, the Harrison twins are playing very well, Devin Booker --- they've got McDonald's All-Americans. The Tyler Ulis kid is a guy that I think is a really good basketball player. They're one of the best teams in the country and it gives us the ultimate challenge of playing them at their place. It's a great opportunity.
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Posts: 13248 | From: flatwoods,ky. | Registered: Oct 2000
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catmandoo
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Member # 1284
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posted 02-26-2015 11:28 PM
Arkansas will not be a easy out and we better have our track shoes on as they will be motoring up and down the court!
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Posts: 186359 | From: st. augustine florida 32092 | Registered: Mar 2001
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Green-Bean
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Member # 13551
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posted 02-26-2015 11:31 PM
MY QUESTION HERE IS IS THIS THE ONE TIME WE TRY AND SLOW THE TEMPO, CAUSE I DONT THINK WE CAN RUN WITH THESE GUYS.
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I was Born A Wildcat!
That's All I'll Ever Be!
Posts: 2290 | From: Newport Ky. | Registered: Mar 2014
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m hamilton
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Member # 127
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posted 02-27-2015 06:06 AM
I do think we can run with these guys!
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The potus is planning 1st major tax hike since '93 in next economic package!
I still can't believe some people believed that LIAR!!!
Your whole life is determined(by) 10% what happens to you, and 90% how you handle it!!!
Posts: 123995 | From: vevay, IN USA | Registered: Sep 1999
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m hamilton
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Member # 127
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posted 02-27-2015 06:07 AM
Arkansas can't be any better condition team than UL!
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The potus is planning 1st major tax hike since '93 in next economic package!
I still can't believe some people believed that LIAR!!!
Your whole life is determined(by) 10% what happens to you, and 90% how you handle it!!!
Posts: 123995 | From: vevay, IN USA | Registered: Sep 1999
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catmandoo
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Member # 1284
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posted 02-27-2015 10:50 AM
Cal has coached against Richardson 6 times since he has coached the Cats and has won only twice losing the last the last 3 in a row. You can bet Cal will be up for this game and will have our Cats ready as the last 2 games were lost in overtime.
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Posts: 186359 | From: st. augustine florida 32092 | Registered: Mar 2001
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catmandoo
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Member # 1284
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posted 02-27-2015 10:55 AM
This years team is so talented that even Richardson won't be able to come close to staying with Cal's talented crew.
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Posts: 186359 | From: st. augustine florida 32092 | Registered: Mar 2001
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Old Norm
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Member # 1482
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posted 02-27-2015 11:38 AM
You guys keep talking about Richardson. I don't think he has been the coach there for several years. Are y'all living in the past?
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Pray For Our Country!
Posts: 36272 | From: Western KY | Registered: Aug 2001
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catmandoo
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Member # 1284
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posted 02-27-2015 11:59 AM
That is true but they are so close and so much alike it's hard to tell them apart. Here is what Anderson said of Richardson.
“Being on his staff as a coach working with him I got a chance to see how intimate he is with his players and that’s how he gets his players to play so hard,” said Anderson. “I think the respect they have for him and the respect he has for them that they go out and really fight. I think some of those have kind of transpired into my program.”
Anderson says Richardson is still held in high regard around campus and continues to have a close relationship with the 73-year old.
“He’s big here at the University he still is here,” said Anderson. “To me he’s like a treasure, I get a chance to talk to him every other day.”
Anderson says the ultimate testament to Richardson’s impact on his players became clear when the University honored the star of his 1994 National Championship team, “The Big Nasty.”
“We raised the banner for Corliss Williamson last night and that’s part of his family,” Anderson said of Richardson. “I think that’s one of the greatest achievements for a coach is to bring in a kid as a young boy, and you see him grow up to be a man, a productive citizen, and now one of his own has raised a banner for him. To me the wins are good, but I think the ultimate victory is seeing him with his family his wife his kids and the man he’s grown into.”
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Posts: 186359 | From: st. augustine florida 32092 | Registered: Mar 2001
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