This is I on the Ball with Steve Rivera on Fox Sports fourteen fifty powered by Nova Insurance Services. Ensure your most prized possessed yets.
Big.
Good to do it, everybody.
This is Steve Rivera, I on the Ball, Fox fourteen fifty. I guess today, I guess host. Let's co host chickens Awas Change.
We missed you.
I miss you, guys, man, I really do. No matter what you hear out there, I do miss you, guys. I don't hear any I choose to be no attention to the outside noise. Now, I'm glad to be here Friday afternoon, man, getting ready for a weekend, you.
Hear, And it's most likely you'll be here most Fridays.
Yeah, I'm gonna try to be here on every Friday.
Don't tell your brothers.
Yeah, my other.
Jobs, you know, but kind of trying to keep my calendar clear as much as I can to be able to come in on Fridays and you know, get us ready for a weekend.
Yeah, and this weekend they don't come any bigger than in basketball then this one, outside of maybe the Duke game, you know how that went.
Well, And that was a nonconference game.
This is way bigger, right, Yeah, if you beat Duke, it's all it's all cool.
We saw what happened last year.
They beat him and then but you know this time, you know this is a this is a huge game, right, It's got a lot of national attention. It's at noon our time, two o'clock Eastern time, means in the middle of the day. It's made a lot of conversation about it. It means a lot. You know, whoever wins this game has got in inside track to the to the league championship.
Right right, which of course you never would have thought that with Arizona a couple of months ago. Maybe you're thinking maybe fifth, lucky, maybe fourth, But now they have a chance to win it, win it all with let me tell you this, Jay, and you you would agree the Gauntlet has yet to happen, and it begins now, right right, Well.
Maybe it begin Tuesday. Well yeah, but you.
Know it's funny because you know the people that I that I talked to you, and you know you know who.
The suspects are. Now I want you to change those people.
You know, people are upset to got beat for Tuesday night, And I'm like, why are we upset.
Well, you know, they played like they played terrible.
They should well, they played bad because the other team made them play bad.
They lost a road game.
Think about it, they played you know, they did a bunch of dumb things. If they did, as I put it, they did about seventy dumb things, and if they had done sixty seven dumb things, they win the game.
I said.
On top of it, Okay, just think back four and five coming out of conference play. If I said, okay, they're going to be eleven and two in the conference, do you sign up for that? And I'm like and they're like, yeah, I said, you would have signed up for nine and four, nine and three. You know, they're eleven and two in the league and they're playing Houston this weekend for to take the lead in the conference.
I said, what are you upset about?
First of all, those guys aren't realistic, and I'm surprised aren't. Oh no, they're not. That was not a surprise that they lost. Both teams played horribly, but actually both teams shot poorly. Uh, Kansas State was lucky to win the game. Arizona had a chance, but they could have easily lost the game, and they did.
Yeah, well, full disclosure. Okay, I was pissed off Tuesday night at the end of the game too, because because I thought, just make about three fewer mistakes and you win this game.
Well, right, Kansas is probably saying Kansas State is probably saying the same thing. H you go one for nineteen Yeah, well for nineteen, two for twenty two.
Make one three pointer? Right, well, two three pointers and you win the game.
Oh hit more for Kansas States. I hit some tree throws and you're not even in the or worried about or.
Don't let that little guy with the headband go off for twenty four?
When is when is it? Coverage is ten? You know?
And then I said, I said exactly what I just said to myself.
Wait, why are you pissed off.
When they're you know, they're in second place in the league and there's a huge game coming up this week.
Yeah, with a chance to get up there.
It's understandable from the from the crowd that you're with, and uh, they had an opportunity. They're right there. It didn't happen, and you're kind of not resting on you. You hope that it continues. Yeah, we've seen this game un a thousand You've seen in a thousand games, a thousand thousand times. I have to now here comes the funny thing that was little Basketball. Lose that game Saturday, turn around. Play a team that you don't shouldn't beat at home, but.
You probably will be but you could and you and you have you beat them pretty good here, you know. So at the bottom line, Steve, and this is you know, goes back to when we found out that they were for sure going into the Big twelve. There's a lot of games, yeah, that aren't gimmes unlike the PAC twelve. Sure, sure, you know, think about think about how much fun we're having at Michale this year. Yeah, how many good how many good Pac twelve home games were there each year?
Three?
One, maybe two?
Yeah, you know, if Oregon was good and if U see La was good, and then maybe one other team was good occasionally, but generally of two really good games.
And at the end of the day, those didn't really prepare you for what was ahead.
Right and here, every game, yeah is a fun game. Yeah, it's a great game game, even.
From the teams that look Texas Tech, who would issue almost beat Texas Tech and Texas Tate came here, gave Arizona a hell of a game, and it was a fun game to watch, probably the fun most fun game until Iowa State or you know whatever, all those games. So, but now moving forward, they play Houston tomorrow. Uh, let me just kind of go through the schedule before we start the day. Tommy spoke today. We might have some
some of his stuff from his press conference. Later at the three seventeen, three eighteen hour, we're gonna have Joseph Dwarte from the Houston Chronicle. He covers the Houston Cougars for that paper. And then at three four seventeen, we're gonna have our buddy friand Forschila, who was on the show about three weeks ago talking about the game. He's in town to do the game, and he's the big Big twelve kind of like he follows it. He follows it, he covers it, and he's here for the big game.
And I you know, he'll give us a national perspective. Right, what do people think of Arizona.
I still think that they're undervalued right now because of that four and five.
I totally agree with you. They well going into the game. And Henry might may may not agree with this, but they are what thirteen and one? Yeah, conservative the hottest team in the country at the time. Setback as the setback, right, yeah, but still what thirteen and two in the least thirteen.
So we'll see, Yeah, I mean, one of the hottest teams in the country. Still it's Arizona. You're thirteen and one, you had won thirteen of your last fourteen games, and you still couldn't get into the top ten in a great conference.
Right, Well, they moved up. The funny thing, Lonardi has him a three. Right.
I would have never thought them being the three, maybe four or five tops. But guess what, there's still a month left in this crazy, crazy tough schedule.
Well there is.
And looking at the schedule they got as you mentioned, I mean talk about they got to jump on the pointy probably going to jump on a plane tomorrow, right and go to go to uh Waco for Baylor today Saturday. Maybe they'll maybe they'll fly in flying Sunday. You know, they got Bay They got Baylor on Monday, which is gonna be a that's gonna be a war because Baylor's pissed off it.
They came here and got there.
There's tough. Right.
Then you got b Yu coming here. Okay, right, you know you think you should win that because of how you handled them over there. You got Utah coming here, all right, you should take that.
Let's go, let's go three, let's go two and one or three, you know, yeah.
Then you got to go.
Then you've got to go to Iowa State. Okay, folks, if you count that as.
A loss right now, yes, and if they get a win out of that, great, but be ready, be ready.
For them to lose that game. Sure, and it may not even be pretty. Right.
Then they got a s U gear and then they go to Kansas.
So I think that's five and two, four and two, uh, could be four and three. Yeah, with those it's tough. And then and then you have the pack then you have to be.
Then you have a big tough turn. But look, you know again you mentioned what a SU did. The Texas Tech they took, they took them to overtime. Now you knew, you know, the people I was talking to on our thread, we knew they were gonna blow the game. We knew, and she was going to lose that game. There was no doubt. It was just a matter of you know, when when right. But you know, a sun, don't underestimate Asu. They've got guys who if they all play together, they'll play well.
At the same time, they can be too.
In fact, they gave Arizona a tough run for like thirty eight minutes until they didn't you, until they umploded.
Yeah, so there's a lot left, there's a lot left to go, a lot of season left, and there's some losses out there left.
See here's the issue. And you're a fan, and I'm gonna get on you guys who are fans. So they go four and five, people were, oh the world is ending, right, Oh the world is ending. Week suck and we're not even gonna make the tournament. Then they go thirteen and one, Oh, we're the stuff. And then if I could cuss, I would. We're the stuff because Arizona fans can't handle prosperity because either there's total misery or no one's going to beat us.
Well, they got to the point where they think they should never lose.
Well, that's and that's the problem. Thank you for my point, because that's what that's how they feel. They should have never lost to Kansas State because well, we're Arizona and we you know, have we done this?
Were better than them? Well, you weren't.
You know, all of.
These teams again, shape shake away, all those Pac twelve cobwebs.
You know, that's what they're thinking.
In any given season, there were maybe two teams who could beat Arizona that if Arizona lost, it's because Arizona played or and we saw that and the other team played great.
We saw that, and there were some of those.
But in terms of two teams that were kind of in Arizona's neighborhood, there were only.
A couple each year. There's like eight of them in the Big twelve. Especially, the only.
Ones that really aren't are the three that came from the Pac twelve and then maybe Cincinnati. But Cincinnati has been ranked this year. TCU is not horrible, you know, b YU is not horrible. So there's a bunch of really good teams that you have to face up again.
You know, West virgin good.
I mean, they might make the tournament. Yeah, so we'll see what happens. It all begins tomorrow for the rest of these.
I'm excited, Steve. This has been fun.
You know, this has been really fun, and we don't get to see Kansas here. Yeah, but even you know, going through the football season and you know, playing all these different teams, the football programs in the Big twelve don't get you.
Jumping up and done right. You know, they're kind of they're good.
I'm not saying they're not any good, but they don't light you up in football.
You got into this league for. But you get into basketball.
And when you've got Kansas, Baylor, Houston, Texas Tech, Kansas State, even West Virginia this year. You know, Oklahoma State, which isn't great this year, but they've been good in the past. There are so many teams that every game is fun because you just don't know.
So let me talk to you. We had Dave silver in yesterday. We had a call about dolor Or, so I will talk about some of that with Tommy. Let me say this to you, Okay, so we we nor only have like a seven to eight man rotation, right, he's no more and maybe if you're pushing in with Martinez. Okay, so you're playing with with I said yesterday with almost a hand behind.
No, Well it's eight with with kJ kJ Henry and townsend back.
So you're playing with them. But delarso you're not getting very much from Townson. You're not getting much from him. You're getting sporadic play from kleb Kg at times, you know what I'm saying. So you're playing with one hand behind your back on a couple of dudes, and they're still doing this right. The problem is as we get to the nitty gritty, you can't do that anymore. You can't afford that anymore. And the problem is they've done it through twenty games. How is it going to change?
I don't know, because you look at this and you think about the grind once once the once the conference tournament starts, and then the pressure and the grind of the NCAA tournament, and you don't see a team that has the pieces to go, oh, you know, really far.
You know people who have asked me, he said, how far do you think to get in the nc double A. Well, first of all, it's going to depend on how they look coming out of the out of the out of the conference tournament, and then if they don't have any more injuries and stuff like that. I said, But to me today, they're a sweet sixteen team. I think they should win the first.
Team at the minimum. The thing is who knows who they're going to show up.
But right, you know, do you run up in the second round, do you're not up against somebody that has something that you don't and they beat you, or do you get a run where you just got you know, maybe a high seed gets beat and now you're playing fifteen in the second round instead of I mean in the third round or whatever.
Right, so it all depends. But if you go just you know how things should go with.
Seeds and stuff like that, I think there's still no better than a sweet sixteen team right now. I just don't see that the level in terms of good because we're going to go up to this question in terms of good and you can say very good, blah blah.
Blah, how good are they? Out of ten? There's seven and half. I'm at seven. I'm not sold yet. And I and people ask me how good are they? I said, they're not They're not that great. What do you mean look at them? I said, there's still issues.
Yeah, because on any day, Caleb Love can go two for twenty, KJJ Lewis can turn the ball over ten times.
Orso can hit a shot.
I mean, you we keep seeing Tobyo Waka doing all these great things. But what if there's a game that he can't he runs up against it in a matchup that he can't do the things he's been doing.
How many times have we seen all three happen at that same right? Right? And it could happen March twenty first.
Right, And on the other hand, they could they could all come out and get on a tear and make a run.
Yeah yeah, maybe maybe not right, maybe not.
No, we gotta go.
We're gonna get a hold of Joseph dwart it from the Houston creditle, get the Houston side of it and see what's going on.
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Streamy Li.
I'm on the Ihearts Radio while this is Eye on the Ball with Steve Rivera on Fox Sports fourteen fifty.
Hey, welcome back to the ball here on Fox Sports fourteen fifty. I'm Steve Rivera. In with me today is Jay Gonzales. Now on the phone.
We have Joseph Dwarte from the Houston Critical Covers The Cougar's Joseph.
How you doing good?
Steve? How you doing?
We're doing? Okay?
It's Rivera, Gonzales and Dwarte. Like an infield infield for the Astros.
I know that's like a six four three.
Yeah, we'd be out six four three. Right, yeah, thank hey, good to hear from you.
Men.
Let me ask you first, because I think it's an obvious question that we probably know the answer to.
How is it covering Kelvin?
Oh, it's a it's a blast. It's so good that after eleven years, I'm coming out with the book in a few months. And I know you and I have.
Kind of briefly talked about.
It's just he's such a quote machine that I just said, I've been compiling quote for over a decade of his best lines and I'm putting a kind of a fun book together. But that that's sort of what what he is. He's he's just a great mind and and and you know, future Hall of Famer to cover and it's it's never a dull moment. And of course you know they they don't lose very often, and they went a lot and uh, this year has been no different.
Well, when you when you first met him, what was your first impression, because you know, I had a chance to meet him when you first got the job at Washington State that that dates me. But he he was the nicest guy from the moment I met him, and stayed that way, you know, every time I ever ate into him.
And if I could also answer that what he bought his team here too. He was the most popular opposing coach from opposing teams in the Pac twelve.
Yeah, and you know, you know I didn't I didn't really have any idea maybe what what what he was like. You know, I think it's a little different because he was coming off of five years out of the game because of the the NCAA, the show cause penalty that he had to serve, so uh, you know, he kind of he kind of took the the uh getting back into the college game as a fresh start. So maybe we got a different Kelvin. The first couple of years were you know, by his standards a little a little rough.
But since they've gotten rolling.
Uh you know, he's been Uh.
He's telling you could tell he's at the.
The end of his career.
He's he's laid back, he's mellowed. He's got his kids that work in the office down the hall from.
Him, and he's got the grand kids.
So, uh, maybe it's a different Kelvin from that some people knew at Oklahoma, and certainly the Kelvin from Indiana. Uh days, So but you know he's been about what you'd expect. And Uh, one thing that that is true of what we had heard is you know, he's won everywhere he's been and you know, to do what he's done at Houston with the resources that he inherited and and sort of put their the school on notice of what they needed to do and what they had to change. Uh, it's it's a remarkable turnaround.
So so we know the Houston's mega market, the Astros and the football and the NFL and basketball with the Rockets who are surging, how do you find time or the paper find time to get you some coverage because there's so much things going on.
But also these guys are good.
Yeah, and you know Texas is different. You know, the the Longhorns down in Austin are considered kind of a pro team in terms of how the media covers them.
Same thing about thirty ninety minutes down the road in College Station with Texas A and M. So there's a there's a lot, uh to compete for if you're Houston, and you know Texas is a is a football state and Houston hadn't done well in football, so that's sort of Uh, there's been an opening for for Kelvin and his program to do what they've done in the last decade where they treated you know, like, you know, one of the one of the premiere programs in the region
as far as we're concerned, and you know, we travel with them and uh, you know wherever they go that we go pretty much.
And and it's but that's it.
You're right, it's a tough it's a tough situation because you're having to fight for for eyeballs and readers and and and just to to kind of find your little piece of the newspaper that you can you know, get out there. But they're you know, they're on the front page well pretty much every day or close to it. And uh, you know a lot of that has to
do with what Kilvin. When you win thirty three and thirty four games a year and you make the Sweet sixteen and the Elite eight, uh, you're you're gonna get covered and you're gonna get noticed. And then I think people by now are used to, uh what Houston puts out puts out every year.
So let me ask you about his team, because as we just a minute ago, to say, the nicest guy on the planet right as great a guy, always a smile on his face, always accomplished. But yet if you at least in Tucson, if you ask somebody give me one word for Houston, they're gonna say tough or are they gonna say physical?
How does he get that out of.
His team when he's you know, as we say, one of the nicest guys you'd ever want to meet.
Well, it's non negotiable. And the nice guy that we may see, that's not that's not what they get in practice. You know, I've snuck in a few times and gotten the season practices, and they're tough. And the funny story a couple of days ago, some of his former players were just you know, remembering things, and they talked about a game practice after they lost the Temple a few years ago.
I think they had.
Won thirty three games a year, but they lost the Temple. And the next day Calvin Sampson brings him into practice. There's no balls on the court or anything, and all the staff members and all the managers and the training zepp are lined up at mid court and he made every single player go up to every single staffer and a apologize for wasting their time and losing that game, So that kind of shows you the demand that's there.
You know, he emphasizes rebounds, he emphasizes the defense. He you know, every little part of their program he's got his hands on and it demands perfection. And even though we see the almost the jolly, grand polish you know, smile on his faith and that's the persona publicly, he he's hard. He's hard on them, and it trinkles down
to his staff. You know, his son is the head coach in the waiting, Kellen Sampson, And you know he's got a couple of his former OBAMA players that are on staff, and Quantis White and Hollis Price, every single one of them has a job and at the end, they all report to the big guy. And he he is a perfectionist and he wants it done his way. And you know you'll see him up twenty sometimes and he's not happy and he's kicking on the on the on the bench and is upset and the camera will
catch him. So don't don't let.
The smiles fool you all the time.
Yeah, no question.
You know, if you ask a lot of his players, they'll they'll say that they don't some other practices. They wish that practices to them are tougher sometimes.
In the games.
So before we get into the team for the game tomorrow, let me ask you. Last year I had Houston winning at all. I thought they were fantastic. Then the guard goes down. How did he take that that defeat?
Well, it was tough because you know, he he doesn't have many years left coaching, at least that's the plan. You know, he's he's got two years left on his current contract, and many think that, you know, this is this is.
It coming up.
So there aren't a lot of opportunities left. And you know, the years that they beat Arizona and the Sweet sixteen, they were you know they I think they went one for nineteen, one for twenty on threes and it was like a forty eight forty five loss to Vilenova in the Elite eight. That team could have won it. So they've they've been really close a couple of times. The year that they got to the Final four, Baylor was
the better team and Baylor ends up winning the title. Uh, he looked at that one as hey, you know, it was great to get to the final four, but we we ran into a really good team these last two trips. With Jamal Ship getting hurt last year, I thought that that was a final four team. So, you know, he's they know that it's just been a string.
Of bad luck.
It's been injuries that have happened at the worst time. But uh, you know, every year they're replacing four starters most of the time, and and they're still getting back to the second weekend of the tournament. So uh, in that regard, you know, I think that that there's very pleased with the consistency there, and it's just they got to get over that hump eventually.
So have you how much time have you spent studying this matchup and what does it look like to you?
Well, you know, a lot of it starts with the guards and that's a lot of what Houston talked about this week, especially you know Caleb Love and uh Kelvin described him as fearless and and a beast and and sort of how they do things. You know, this is a game of you got the the NASCAR version of how Arizona runs the offense, and then you sort of have the well it's the hair of the tortoise.
Uh.
You know, Houston typically runs a very slower uh style of offense, but you know, they can push it when when they want. It's not necessarily their game, but you know, that's one of the things that I think is a big matchup. And then you know, just looking at Houston is all about, uh, the unscripted type points. They like to force you into mistakes that they can converb whether it's second chance points, fast break points, you know, those
kind of things. They really played well against Baylor in those areas and ended up winning easily.
On on Monday nights.
So uh, it's it's Houston can can work things inside like they'd like to do. They go through j One Roberts a lot.
I think.
I think that that's their formula for success lately. And it's also a matter of the two guards and Crier and Sharp, both of them been dealing with uh little injuries a hand and an ankle, So it'll be interesting to see how those guys can sort of stay with a team that that might have them, you know, on the run quite a bit in the in the game.
So, Jane, I have been covering Arizona basketball since my late eighties.
We've seen a lot of games.
What was the reaction when when you guys, the Big Twelve saw Arizona coming into the league because if it's a basketball conference, why not have Arizona in there?
Right?
Oh? Absolutely? And and you look at what the Big Twelve before they added the four corner schools. You know, they had talked about Yukon, you had heard about Gonzaga, and you know, and they that with Gonzaga, you know, they they've always wanted to kind of go westward and and and add their their imprint. But to get get a team like Arizona that I think that was a perfect situation just because they're a name program, They're they're
a blue blood. I don't know if you saw Tolbyn's comments this week just about his history with the program and loud Olsen and the respect that he has. You know, he said, look, Ucla had the name, but Arizona had the program. And that's no knock on Tommy Lloyd now, but it's just going back that far. People remember those Arizona teams. You know, I growing up, I was a teenager during those times that I remember watching those games and watching Arizona make those deep tournament runs every March.
So you know, the Big Twelve to go and add the schools that they added, but specifically to get a in Arizona that that was huge and it just added to you know, the Kansas that they had the Baylor you know, I always say he've played well last year's and you know, I don't think anybody thought Houston would come in last year and go I think it was fit team and three and really run away with the thing. Uh So that was that was a big surprise. But then you throw Houston in now and look at the league.
You got the two new then two of the newest teams in the in the in the conference going one too right now in a battle for first place this weekend in Kansas, which has been the kind of the torch bearer, is sitting at five.
Or six losses.
So I mean, it's a different kind of league right now. Uh and and Houston and Canada, Houston and Arizona have fit in really nicely in their first couple of years, or in Arizona's case, their first year.
Do you want to bring it to or Steve.
And I have been having an argument for two or three years, four years on whether or not Arizona is a blue blood. I'm the fan in the room so I've said they are. But you know, it just depends on what you consider a blue blood. If you go beyond the Duke Michigan State, uh.
North Carolina, Kentucky.
Right, if you stretch it to a next level where you're thrown in a Michigan state and Michigan U c l A. You know, I don't know who else. I think Arizona's in that group. So we have this argument all the times. He says they're not, I say they are. You just said, you know, you considered them.
He spoke.
Yukon the fit that you know description.
Oh yes, yeah, they're newer to the neighborhood. But yes, here's my here's my theory, Joseph. They haven't been to a Final four since two thousand and one, they've only won one title, ninety seven, and they've been a pretty good program, pretty consistent.
But that doesn't make you blue blood.
Well I'll solve the argument for you. They're just a different shade of blue. We're not saying what. We're not saying what type of blue they are. They're blue. Maybe it's a light blue, darker blue.
So let's just go with that.
You just created more problems.
I love you.
I don't even know you, but I love you. Uh, you were right. He was.
He waxed poetic on loot. You know, like I said, he came down here, people loved him. I think he's Native American Party American, right, and so he lumby. The culture loved him when he'd come in. They love beating him, but they also cheered him on.
Well, I'll tell you what.
And you just mentioned you were a teenager back in when he but you know that My last memory of Calvin was when he can't.
He was at Washington State.
I think it was in maybe his second year, first or second year, and they played Arizona, host of the Pack Puff Tournament, and they played U c l A and they beat him.
Washington State beat U c l A.
And Calvin ran off the court, tearing his jacket off as he's running, and he was incredibly excited. But more than anything, the place was packed and at the time, Walt Hazard was the coach of U c l A, who's probably one of the top three villains for Arizona. You have thought Arizona was playing U c l A in that game, and the fans always loved Calvin. It's gonna be interesting to see. I think that they're not gonna boo him tomorrow. They're gonna like now they may boot his team.
But the older people, but people they.
Would go Oklahoma last year and they he got a stand in ovation. Yeah, it was that. It was that type of perception. I think the only place that he would be well received is Indiana, but that's neither.
Here or there.
But no, you I mean, you're right. I mean he's he's got a rivalry with Oklahoma State, went back from the OU days and they it's a respect I mean, you don't have to necessarily clap and and cheer form, but but there's that respect factor and uh that goes
a long way. And I think there's you know, and he's also been around the game so long that you know, he's got friendships that stretch from you know, Rick Barnes to uh Iso to Mark you the CALIPERI I mean the guy, the guy you know has has been around and you know, he's a he's approaching eight hundred wins next year early in the year, and you know, I don't think there're you know, people are gonna say he's never won a championship, but everything else he's done, uh merits being a Hall of Famer.
So before we leave here, I want to get everybody's prediction because I had a mind on Tuesday.
I think I'm gonna change.
So Jay, you go first, and Will, Joseph, and then myself.
It pains my heart.
I think Houston comes in and wins a very close game, A very close game. I think Houston will impose their will and keep it a low scoring game. They're physical, they're tough. I don't know that Arizona is quite there yet. I may think differently if they meet in the Big TOF Tournament. I think I think Houston comes in and wins tomorrow. Arizona's been great at home, but it's time they lost one.
Do we know the line? Could you check, Henry? Go ahead, Joseph.
Yeah, I think it's like a sixty eight sixty four or maybe sixty five to sixty.
One, a poll point game. I'm going with Houston.
Yeah, okay, So if you say that score to me. I've covered this team for a long long time, and you were talking about if they go in the half court. There's one thing that Arizona cannot do well, and that's go slow and Houston's gonna be tough physical, tough physical, and if they make him play in the fifties lower sixties, this is a Houston game because Arizona's still not ready.
For y you know, I mean sad one and a half. They get Houston giving one and a half. So Arizona is an underdog at home.
And that here's another thing. Justph they lost Tuesday to Kansas State. We've seen this a thousand times, we read that book a few times. That's not a shock to us. But here's another shock. Give them Houston and make them an underdog. Arizona shows up for these games, right, one hundred percent?
Right.
Well, hey, I'll tell you this real quick, guys. And it was told to me a few weeks ago. Houston got Kansas State when they didn't even look like they were interested to be on the court. It was almost like somebody was holding their nil checks and had paid or something. They just and and every contender that's behind Houston has one or two games left against Kansas State and they have all lost to Kansas State in this
stretch that Kansas State's playing their their minds out. So that's that's huge because because Houston's done with them and everybody's having trouble case that sort of that put Houston in this position that they're in where you know, they could have a two game lead in the in the league if they were.
To win tomorrow and you have won.
Five left or six left, Yeah, that's that's a lot because everybody else has three, four or five losses.
Well, have a good time when you're visiting. Plenty of Mexican restaurants for you.
We'll see tomorrow, all right, guys, thanks for having me on.
Thank you.
Joseph Dwarta from the Houston Chronicle, I agree with I think we all agree that if that's the scenario.
It's based on higher zone. You know, Arizona can't have the stretches that they that they have. They can't give up a thirteen ohero run like they did against Kansas State because of turnovers and stuff like that. They've got to make some shots. Now, do I think Arizona can win absolutely thing? It's like a but it's like a sixty forty kids.
So let me say this.
Don't you feel more comfortable going to do this game knowing that Arizona can play physical because you've seen it in the past.
We had never seen it.
Right now, they played in Iowa State tough physically, tax physically tough, So they have that in them. Forget about the Kansastate game because they didn't have that. But they have it in them sure, especially and the home crowd is going to make a difference.
It is going to make a difference.
I think they can touch this game because this is not a touchable game.
Well no, because I'm not because I don't bet against Arizona, so I'm not.
Going to do it.
And they're getting one in half, they're getting one in might as well get Yeah, that's not I mean, I don't you know what I'm saying.
Yeah, I mean, yeah, I'm not. I'm I'm just not. I just think that Houston is just really really good. And like I said, you know, they may meet meet again down the road and it could be a different story on a neutral court somewhere in Arizona's you know, play Arizona's just not playing as well as you think they need to be playing to win this game.
Right, Okay, we thought we're going to take off. Henry's gonna get us to the next break and maybe maybe we hear from Tommy if you're an Arizona men's basketball fan, you know it's been successful for newly forty years. Now take a look back at the Ludelsen era in my new book, Let's From Lut. It was a labor of love through the eyes of twenty five former players, coaches, and friends to give insight to the coach and the man who led them, competed against them, and inspired them.
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Down all the axes and os. This is I on the Ball with Steve Rivera on Box Sports fourteen fifty.
Hey, welcome back to the ball here on Fox Sports fourteen fifty. I'm Steve Rivera, and today with me is Jay Gonzalez Henri at the booth.
Let's go. We're gonna listen to Tom maybe a couple of minutes.
Yeah, you had a couple of good points to make today about just some things that you know, we've been seeing the last couple of time haven't been seen or I haven't been saying well, well, One of the things is the turnovers that they you have had a lot of that stuff. They I mean, they were able to get past Texas Tech with that, but not past Kansas State.
Okay, you've got a player like him that's giving you some aggressiveness of the offensive end.
But at the same time.
He's got to play better.
He's got to play better and and and Deli knows that We've talked about it. We need Deli shooting. We need Deli to be a catch and shoot player. You know, I don't need Deli playmaking as much I need Deli. I think one of the best things he can give us is an influx of shooting. And and he has done that in stretches. And now you know, he's at a pivotal moment in his career as a developing player. You know, you're you're at a higher level. You know
the stakes are high. You got to figure out what you got to do to be effective and thrive.
At this level. And Delhi can really shoot the ball.
And obviously, you know, shooting isn't one of our strengths overall as a team, it's one of his Please give us more shooting. Real Wisconsin last year, you downplayed significantly what happened ten years ago, but then.
After the game, players were like, no, it really kind of had ufit.
So I understand, I mean you even want to make that public, But does what happened againt Houston three years ago and anything.
Through none today?
None other than that.
I know, you know what it feels like to play against him, and I know it's tough, So there's no extra motivation this morning on take.
It off today.
An incredible transformation on tiptom.
You got to got a commercial on the YouTube feed nation Now, I mean, what's so different than now?
And then then you're in the SPEE sixteen playing to the Elite eight and all as if now you're in the same conference, you're gonna be button heads all the time.
And you know what, we want to be.
At Houston's level consistently and uh and we know we got to earn that right, so you know we look, I'm looking forward to this game, you know, no matter what the outcome, I'm looking forward to this game.
I mean looking obviously kJ and all that he gives the defensive league but at times has turned it over in some unusual situations. Is that just a matter of a young guy. Maybe the game speeds up at times too much for him, and he makes those times.
I mean, you know, you know, we we probably could look at every turnover independently and try to assess it. kJ is a really good player. And listen, guys make mistakes. One thing kJ consistently does, he outperforms his mistakes, and and so there's no such thing as a perfect basketball player.
It doesn't exist.
It's not a perfect coach, not a perfect person, definitely not a perfect basket player. But when you have somebody who plays with great effort and impacts the game in so many ways, they're gonna and they make a few mistakes, you know, you're living and you know, obviously we're coaching him and trying to help him with some of those mistakes. He's listening to us, trying to fix some of those mistakes.
But kJ outperforms any negative thing he does here and there, He outperforms it every game, even before the you.
Know, things like that. From that is I'm glad he's the coach.
He's very honest and very straightforward and a good quote, and he's telling you how he feels.
Well.
He again, what we don't as fans, as journalists, we're not.
We don't.
We in a lot of ways don't even understand the coaching aspect of this.
We think we do.
Later on in the in the press conference, he he he talked about how he said, there's a lot of gray area in the basketball game.
He goes, you guys.
Talking to the media, goes, you guys wanted to be black or white? You know, he said, you analyze the game, he said, well, it should have been this, or it should have been that. He said, that's not how it is in a basketball game. And he said it's all gray. He said, we as coaches work in the gray area and.
It's you know, did he explain what that gray area is?
Well, I can't remember exactly what he said, but basically talking about how and when. When you're talking about kJ, right, he's going to make mistakes and then he's gonna play well. You guys want him to always play well and never make a mistake. You want this or that, and it's everything is pretty much in between.
Did you say it that way? Almost?
So, he didn't say it like that as it relates to kJ, But that's what I interpret is that we want them to always be good and never be bad when he's understanding that sometimes we're going to be good and sometimes we're going to be bad.
Sure, so I we got to call this this second. Hello, you're on the air and nine on the ball.
Who's this Brian?
Brian Way? We got a new guy here.
I thought he had new interna.
He's an older, old one.
Yeah.
All the money he makes now he can do.
This for free.
He was, what do you got, Brian? What do you got?
Well, you know, it's what we talked about the other day. It's just you know, whether we win thirteen out of fourteen.
Or something like that.
I mean, it did really, really well, but we still didn't really believe in the team even winning thirteen or fourteen.
Who's the week that there's just who's the week?
I was, okay, okay, it's just not enough consistency. Yeah, I mean it's like, okay, if Caleb Love, I mean, sure, how bad it was the other night that we can shoot.
Nine percent of whatever it is from three.
And only lose by two. And I'm sitting there going this team has so much potential, but the problem is we have no idea if they will or they can.
Put it together in a run. You know for maybe, yeah, six seven games.
In a tournament. We don't know. Every game to.
Us is going to be a toss up in the tournament if we get there.
I'm assuming we are, but never can't tell.
But we you know, every game the rest of the season in the regular schedule is a toss up.
It is.
I mean, there's just no such statement.
There's no gimmeis anymore?
Is it better? Good for you as a fan?
Though?
Brian too, I feel like we could lose every We could lose every day, but we can also win every day, as opposed to going.
Into a game thinking we really should win this game.
You know, we're gonna win this game unless we do something stupid.
And how much fun is that?
Yeah, it's kind of like it's kind of like you got it is.
It is fun. But what's happened is we're so used to the pack, yes, and what it was like there, you know, I mean, like you guys talked about earlier, we had our two or three really tough games on the schedule and everything else we should have won easily or.
Should have won I don't know about easily, but.
We weren't, you know, and we did, you know, we we would get our you know twenty you know, have thirty games in the season winning. Well, that's not gonna happen too much more in the big twelve, you know, we get twenty two wins, they should be very happy. Ye I mean our next seven eight games, whatever it is. I I just you know, I think four and three would I would be satisfied.
Well guess what, that's probably what you're gonna have to be satisfied with.
Right, yeah, you know, we.
Don't allow pragmatic, pragmatic, practical.
People to call the show.
What the hell is going on?
How did you get through?
I told him, I I told him I was Nico.
All right, thank you, bro, we got to go already, He's right, four to three. My whole thing is they played this okay, not so tough, but not so easy schedule. Uh all right, wait give me a second year.
But all these games are are madder down the road. Oh yeah, yeah, right, As you mentioned, they seem and look a lot more physical and prepared than in past years.
If anything that came up to me, the last ten games wins lose, they are ready for what's ahead. Because I never thought they would play like that. You know, they might do it without being physical. No, they did it with being physical.
Okay. Are we ready to go? Okay, let's go.