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two nine one nine. That's Central Garage Utah, Central Garage

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Utah dot com. Let's get out to the hot line.

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He's uh down at the Big twelve Tournament. We got

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j Drew of the Desert News. Jay, how you living.

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Speaker 4: Doing well? Best time of the year right now if

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you're a college basketball fan and uh, I'm blessed to

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be part of it, in the middle of it with

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the Big Twelve Tournament in Kansas City, So that's great.

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Speaker 1: Yeah. How would you describe the Big Twelve Tournament thus far? Uh?

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Speaker 3: You know, the the digital glass uh. Uh I guess

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the basketball court, the uh maybe some of the surprises, uh,

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the the the individual and collective efforts of these teams.

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Speaker 4: What has stood out to you, Yeah, you know all

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of the above. I think Iowa State right now, you know,

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two wins by something like an average thirty five points whatever,

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they've looked really impressive. They just just once this morning,

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earlier today, Arizona about to take the court against UCF

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for Arizona's debut. Is the number one seed in the tournament.

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There haven't been a lot of close games. We've had

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the one overtime game. UCF beat one in overtime yesterday.

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B yu's games have been really exciting, especially for BYU fans.

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They haven't been particularly close. I guess Kansas State was

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fairly close until the end. But yeah, it's been you know,

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there's just top level talent. That's just one thing that

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stands out. You know, obviously BYU fans know about aj

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Debosa and Rob Wright, but I mean every team has

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a guy and seemingly is going to be going the lottery,

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in the NBA lottery. It seems that so just this

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is the place to be if you're a college basketball

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fan right now in Kansas City. And brett Or Mark

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has set it over and over again and He's right.

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This is a fantastic basketball league. Even the bottom tier

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team so called can jump up and play well and

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win some games, as be what you learned in the

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latter half of the season. So yeah, all and all,

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it's just a great place to be.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, isn't this would break your market visions with this conference?

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Obviously football is still king, but basketball. He's a basketball guy.

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He's an East Coast guy. He was trying to go

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get Yukon, he was trying to bring in Gonzaga. He

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wants he thinks, he has stated that there is an

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undervalued market for college basketball and he wanted to create

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the greatest basketball conference in America.

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Speaker 4: Yeah, you're right. He was what was the DM or

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had something to do with the New York the New

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Jersey net and uh, he's in Brooklyn NETS now obviously.

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But yeah, he's Uh, he's just a mastermind of marketing.

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I just watched him on ESPN. They had him on

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here after the after the game that just ended, and

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he I mean, he's just phenomenal at that and innovative

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and really well spoken. I mean, I just you know,

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I think the league's in really good hands with Brett Yormark.

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The floor. H it's it's received a little bit of

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complaints from some of the players. It is a little

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bit slippery.

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Speaker 1: Uh.

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Speaker 4: Mitch Harper and I sitting courtside yesterday counted probably about

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five or six slips that we saw, not sure if

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they were captured on ESPN cameras, but it is. It

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is a tad slippery. But you know, it's just it's

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just a fun league. It's just everything is pointed towards

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entertaining the fans, making the best experience for the student athletes,

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and so far, so good. He just seems to really

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push all the right buttons to make something new and

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something exciting. It seems like every year for the Big

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Twelve Tournament.

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Speaker 3: Jay, are you buying or selling this new identity of

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BYU basketball in the Big twelve Tournament is sustainable?

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Speaker 1: They just held West Virginia forty eight points. That's their best.

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Speaker 3: Defensive effort all season long. The effort was on point,

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the execution was pristine. Are you buying or selling who

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this team is playing as they are playing right now

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in the Big twelve Tournament?

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Speaker 4: Yeah, I'm buying. I'm definitely buying. I think the usualing

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Kadi Moop and Boop and Dominique Diamande especially kind of

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as points on defense, and we saw him use Kebacada

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in the Tech Tech game, and it's kind of the

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same way. I think they're just realizing that they were

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giving up too many three pointers and that was really

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the way they were getting beat. They were letting teams

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get going early. It almost bit them against Kansas State.

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People forget after yesterday that the day before they gave

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up ninety one to Kansas State and you know, basically

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the second worst team in the league. So there is

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still some work to do. But yeah, I'm fairly optimistic now.

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I can't say I was that like a week and

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a half ago, but I'm optimistic. I think BYU can

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get to the Sweet sixteen now. I think that's the

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type of team they have. I think that's kind of

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a realistic expectation. Now, you know, final fource probably out

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the window after the Richie and Dawson Baker injuries. But

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right now, I don't see any reason why this team

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can't really get to the second weekend in March and

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in the tournament, just because of what they have and

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the guys, especially these role players that have stepped up

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and if they can get like enough a great game,

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another couple of good games out of Canard Davis. I

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think he's the wild card as far as replacing Richie.

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A lot of people thought it might be Alex Kostitch

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and who really struggled yesterday. I think it was Old

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for six from the free three point line. But I

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think the key now the more I look at it,

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is Canard Davis. I think he's got to step up

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and be that third scoring option.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, then how does Canard find you know, his groove

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a little bit like when he's played well, why is

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it that he's played well?

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Speaker 1: Do you think?

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Speaker 3: And you know, how can he create some consistency on

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that front? Reliability on that front.

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Speaker 4: I think he senses confidence in the coaching staff. They

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run some plays for him early. I can't remember what

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game was it where he missed his first five three

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pointers and they stuck with him. Yeah, Texas Tech game.

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I think I think he kind of thrives off that

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confidence that he gets from his teammates and coaches. He's

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one of those types of guys that that's important to

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him and you know, I other guys that you know,

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like like maybe Richie Richie Saunders or Rob Wright could

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kind of generate that on their own, but I think

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that's really a big deal for Raw or for Kenar Davis.

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And I think he's I think he's uh. I think

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he's one of those prime time players that when the

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spotlight is really intense that he steps up. At least

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that's what he's shown here in the tournament and in

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that game against Texas Tech. So yeah, it's it's really

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and he he just seems a lot more comfortable. I

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wrote my article last night that for the first time

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all season, uh, since the Duy incident, that d Y

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is letting him speak to the media and us. He's

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really a wealth spoken, uh, interesting young man. I've I've

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been really pleasantly surprised by that and had a good

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chat with him yesterday, and so I think I think

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he's just more up for Bill in his own skin

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right now, and it's paying dividends.

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Speaker 3: Jay Drew Live from the Big Twelfth Tournament here on

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your Utah ESPN Radio Network, a little Cougar Beat, brought

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to you by Central Garage Utah. Central Garage Utah dot Com.

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This third iteration of the team Ky has admittedly vocally

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and it just stated that this has been a struggle,

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This has been really hard for him. He had to

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look himself in the mirror and say, essentially, you got

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to figure out a way. What have they done? What

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did he say yesterday in the post game that leads

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you to believe that this is maybe replicable and that

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he has figured out what this third iteration the team

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can do and will do.

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Speaker 4: I think the key word is simplification. I think they've

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simplified everything. He called it. He dumbed it down a

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little bit. He stopped being so coachy in his words.

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I mean, you know, you look at the bench and

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they got like they got as many coaches over there

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as players. It seems like a support staff. And and

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you know, talking to Cannar Davis yesterday, he said, it's

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kind of you don't have to remember so much. It's

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it's simple, that's returning to the basics of basketball. And

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you know, I think maybe maybe they were, like Kevin said,

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they were just getting too uh, too particular and too

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into the nitty gritty or what's that word you always use,

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ben uh the grand grandule are getting too grand But yeah,

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I just think they just they're relying on their talent.

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I think Kevin's looked back and said, hey, I got

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the best player in maybe the country. Uh, on my team.

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I gotta we got to do everything we can to

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utilize that. And and if that includes playing him summit

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point guard and making sure he has the ball in

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his hands at all times, uh, so be it. And

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and it's worked so far, and uh obviously a really

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huge test coming up tonight again Houston. But you know,

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so far, it's almost like a completely different team than

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we saw eleven days ago at West Virginia.

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Speaker 1: Yes, indeed it is j Drew des red News. Jay.

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Speaker 3: You mentioned what the ceiling of this team can be.

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Is there hope that this team can be better than the.

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Speaker 1: Supposed ceiling is? Do they have enough firepower?

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Speaker 3: Do you think is there enough good players on this

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team to get past the sweet sixteenth?

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Speaker 1: Yeah?

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Speaker 4: I you know, I hate to be uh skeptical, but

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I don't think so. I think I think that's probably

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the ceiling sweet sixteen. And frankly, after what's going on

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this year, with the injuries and the mid season Lowell

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and all that, I think the YU fans out to be,

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you know, tickled pink. If this team makes the Sweet sixteen.

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So yeah, I do think that's the ceiling. You know,

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it'd be awesome, you know, to see aj debantsa because

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him like a Danny Manning from years past or a

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Cambell Walker. He just puts a team on his shoulders

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and he certainly has the talent to do that and

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carries him, you know, to the Final four. But I

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just don't think his supporting cast is good enough. After

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all that we've just said, as far as you know,

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Canar Davis and Rob Wright and Cavacada, they've all stepped

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up their games. But I yeah, I just think if

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I were talking to BYU fans, I would just say,

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just enjoy it. Just enjoy this and realize that how

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difficult it is in college basketball nowadays with all the

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powerhouse teams and all the money that's there to to

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to become a Duke or a Kentucky and and a

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blue blood and do that every year. So yeah, they

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should just enjoy a Jabot the while he's here. He's

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a generational, multi generational talent, and BYU's darn lucky to

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have him, No.

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Speaker 1: Doubt, He's been great on and off the court.

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Speaker 3: He's embraced by Ubay's embraced him, and I think that's

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impactful in so many different ways. We've heard AJ state

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in a number of interviews now that it's not a

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sure thing that he's leaving, that he's going to the NBA.

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Are you buying or selling that rhetoric right now? And

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what would lead AJ to come back truly? And he

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mentions his mom his education. He wants the degree, but

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I mean, you can't get a degree in two years,

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can you.

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Speaker 1: He'd have to be at By for three years or

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four years. Possibly give me your insights here.

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Speaker 4: Yeah, I'm not buying it. I think he's just AJ

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can tease a little bit. I don't know if that's

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the right word. He can let maybe play with the

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media a little bit, like be a little coy at times.

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You know, obviously he you know, he said that what

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he said to a Desert News podcaster last week, and

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you know, you got to watch the video kind of

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if you read between the lines. So yeah, I don't

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think anybody should get their hopes up at b YU.

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I I think, I mean, I'm almost certain that he's

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gonna go, and frankly, he'd be crazy not to. Why

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is he saying it. I you know, I think if

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you talk to most guys, very few even like your

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Cameron Boozers and you're even last year with Cooper Flag,

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I think most of them wouldn't flat out ever say

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they were one and done, you know, until the season

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was over. So yeah, take it, take it with a

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grain of salt. It's kind of fun. It's a good

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thing to talk about it. It got a few page views,

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if you know what I mean. But I yeah, I'm

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you know, I would. I would absolutely you could knock

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me over with a sailor if if AJ comes back,

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let's put it that way.

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Speaker 3: Good news possibly for b what you fans is that

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Rob Wright could be returning.

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Speaker 1: That's surprise to some.

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Speaker 3: Sometimes his body language doesn't always necessarily promote a whole

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lot of confidence. That he's happy at BYU, that he's

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bought into BYU, that he likes the b yu Wa,

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likes playing defense, likes giving superb effort. Now we've seen

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maybe a change in that demeanor, changing that engagement on

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the defensive, ending that body language recently as the Big

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Twell Tournament has has begun. But you caught up with

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him in the locker room and got some gems. Give

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us a little update on the status of Rob Wright

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the Third's return.

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Speaker 4: Yeah, I it was, you know, obviously he was in

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the locker room a little early because of the tooth

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thing and the cut lip after against State game, and I,

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you know, I flat out asked him. I said, Rob,

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are you happy at b YU Are you are you

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do you regret your decision? And he went on, oh,

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I'm totally happy. I love it. I love the way people,

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it's a family atmosphere. And then I, you know, and

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then I just happened to ask him, what, you know,

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what's your future, like, do you feel like you'll be back?

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You're going to go to the portal. And it's not

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a type of question I would have asked him in

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like a public from a podium or whatever with a

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group interview, but you know, I just kind of seized

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the moment and I, you know, basically, you just said, yeah,

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if I don't go to the NBA, if I don't

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go to pro basketball, I'll be back at BYU. And

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I said something like, you mean you're not going to

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the transfer portal and he said, oh, no, I won't

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be going to the transfer portal. So that was Yeah,

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I thought that was pretty interesting. And then he just

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reiterated that he's enjoyed his year here at BYU, that

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he's learned a lot, he feels like the coaching staff

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has helped him improve, and the fact that he gets

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to play a lot and gets to play with the

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ball in his hands within reason with the superstar on

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the court next to him and aj De Bonsa. Yeah,

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I was totally positive vibe that I got from Rob

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and his future in college basketball being at BYU or

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as opposed to nowhere else.

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Speaker 3: When Kevin Young took over this BAU basketball program, he

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stated something that was very aggressive in that introductory speech

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then introductory press conference. He said he wanted to create

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essentially an NBA pipeline through Provo, and it seems like

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he's doing such. I mean, he's got two, one and

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done's under his belt. He's he's bringing Bruce Branch the third.

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This is probably one of the most cursed teams from

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an injury standpoint that I've ever seen in college basketball history,

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and definitely in BYU basketball history. When you take it

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all in, I mean it has Ky produced in his

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first few years at BYU. Everything that he's promised.

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Speaker 4: Absolutely. Yeah, I think so.

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Speaker 2: Uh.

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Speaker 4: Obviously the people you know, Jegor Demon's been a phenomenal

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pro so far. Uh, you know, he's lottery picked, so

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he delivered on that count. Now AJ is probably number

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one or number two in the draft. He's uh, you know,

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there were obviously some skeptics when A J picked b

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Yu and people thinking that he couldn't develop as well

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00:18:25,720 --> 00:18:28,960
as b y U is maybe another school, and that's

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been debunked. He leads the country in scoring. Uh, he

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00:18:33,079 --> 00:18:37,359
leads all the highlight shows. That seems like so uh

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you know, so you're right, Kevin's two for two on

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that and you know he's now he's getting a Bruce

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Branch coming in. So yeah, I think I think k

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Why has Uh it's pretty much what's his pet pet phrase,

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something about proof of concept or something like that, and

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I think he's going to be able to point to

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that and as proof of concept as it were.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, you and you and k Y have had some

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interesting interactions.

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Speaker 1: Right.

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Speaker 3: The reason why I love Jay is because you asked

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traditionally the hard hitting questions. You know me, I'm always

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00:19:12,880 --> 00:19:16,480
soft tossing, you know, in the post game, I'm the Weekling.

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I'm the I'm the guy.

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Speaker 1: You know, I'm a b YU guy, right, it is

348
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what it is, you know.

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Speaker 3: But like you've asked some tough questions and he's pressed

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back on you, and then you gave him some valid response,

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and you know that that dance right of accountability and

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asking some hard questions.

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Speaker 1: I think it's important.

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Speaker 3: But give me your perspective on some of the questions

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00:19:36,160 --> 00:19:39,000
you've had to ask and the responses you've got from K.

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Speaker 1: Why thus sar this season?

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Speaker 4: Yeah, it kind of dates back to last season where

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00:19:47,119 --> 00:19:49,039
there were a few questions I asked him, I think

359
00:19:49,319 --> 00:19:51,720
after the Arizona State game where I thought the effort

360
00:19:51,759 --> 00:19:54,160
wasn't that great and by you kind of coasted to

361
00:19:54,200 --> 00:19:58,440
a win, and that he took a little umbradge with that,

362
00:19:58,880 --> 00:20:01,079
and you know, we had a good talk about it,

363
00:20:01,160 --> 00:20:05,039
and you know, I just think, yeah, we've got a solid, strong,

364
00:20:05,119 --> 00:20:08,400
good relationship. I think there's mutual respect and trust there.

365
00:20:09,079 --> 00:20:13,279
And you know, this year, I think I asked him

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00:20:13,279 --> 00:20:16,319
a question about taking AJ out of a game that

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00:20:16,359 --> 00:20:19,160
they ended up losing, and and whether it was a

368
00:20:19,160 --> 00:20:22,480
crucial stretch where AJ wasn't on the floor and and

369
00:20:22,799 --> 00:20:25,839
he gave me his honest assessment on that, So yeah,

370
00:20:25,880 --> 00:20:30,440
I there's no negativity in it or anything. It's just

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your typical coach, reporter or relationship. And I respect Kevin.

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He gives good answers, He thinks him through, and he

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tells you what's on his mind, and that's all you

374
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really can ask as a reporter. And you know, I'm

375
00:20:46,240 --> 00:20:48,720
not trying to antagonize him or anything like that. I'm

376
00:20:49,359 --> 00:20:52,240
way too old and been in this way too long

377
00:20:52,480 --> 00:20:54,599
to do that. I'm just trying to do my job

378
00:20:54,640 --> 00:20:57,599
and he's trying to do his and and sometimes you know,

379
00:20:57,680 --> 00:21:00,440
those two things clash a little bit, but all in all,

380
00:21:00,519 --> 00:21:03,599
it's have a lot of respect for Kevin and what

381
00:21:03,680 --> 00:21:06,480
he's done and how he's handled the media and really

382
00:21:06,559 --> 00:21:07,799
all aspects of his job.

383
00:21:09,359 --> 00:21:11,720
Speaker 3: Yes, indeed, I will have a t I do have

384
00:21:11,759 --> 00:21:14,720
a tongue in chee cheek joke because someone just sent

385
00:21:14,839 --> 00:21:19,279
this to me and it piggybacks off of this provo

386
00:21:19,440 --> 00:21:22,160
right capitol pro lowercase vo that we talked about here

387
00:21:22,160 --> 00:21:24,880
on the show and what many have talked about over

388
00:21:24,880 --> 00:21:27,799
the last couple of years. But my buddy sent this

389
00:21:27,880 --> 00:21:30,720
to me, said, Kevin Young really prepares his entire team

390
00:21:31,240 --> 00:21:35,599
for the NBA. He had them playing zero defense until

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the postseason.

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Speaker 1: Is that fair when he joke at that? I mean,

393
00:21:41,559 --> 00:21:43,279
you really do prepare like they didn't.

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Speaker 3: Really, you didn't play much defense until the post sceum

395
00:21:45,440 --> 00:21:46,240
when it really matters.

396
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Speaker 4: Yeah, you know, he's he's limited in what he has.

397
00:21:51,279 --> 00:21:54,400
I mean, you know, obviously, I think they try to

398
00:21:54,400 --> 00:21:59,039
play defense. I think, you know, sometimes these teams on

399
00:21:59,079 --> 00:22:02,400
the road, we thought at West Virginia, we saw it Cincinnati.

400
00:22:02,599 --> 00:22:05,960
You get them going early and these guys are unconscious shooters.

401
00:22:06,039 --> 00:22:08,480
It's amazing. I mean, you go back look at that

402
00:22:08,559 --> 00:22:10,880
Cincinnati game. By you've had guys on them, and these

403
00:22:10,880 --> 00:22:15,240
guys are just draining incredible shots. And you even saw

404
00:22:15,279 --> 00:22:18,839
that against Kansas State, like I said, the fifteenth team

405
00:22:19,039 --> 00:22:22,519
in the Big Twelve, that first half, those guys are

406
00:22:22,559 --> 00:22:25,680
just making some incredible shots. So sometimes you just have

407
00:22:25,799 --> 00:22:29,240
to tip your hat to the opponent and say, you know,

408
00:22:29,359 --> 00:22:31,319
these guys want to win too. These guys are on

409
00:22:31,359 --> 00:22:35,039
scholarship too, and and heck me, in this day and age,

410
00:22:35,119 --> 00:22:38,440
these guys are making a million bucks too sort of things.

411
00:22:38,480 --> 00:22:42,079
So yeah, I think sometimes you just have to credit

412
00:22:42,119 --> 00:22:44,480
your opponent and move on.

413
00:22:45,759 --> 00:22:48,240
Speaker 3: J Drew, Ladies and gentlemen, Jay Keys to the game

414
00:22:48,799 --> 00:22:50,400
BYU versus Houston tonight.

415
00:22:50,960 --> 00:22:52,960
Speaker 1: What do you make of it? Can they get a dub?

416
00:22:54,759 --> 00:22:56,119
Speaker 4: I think I can get a dub. I think a

417
00:22:56,200 --> 00:22:58,519
huge key is the start. If you go back last

418
00:22:58,599 --> 00:23:00,960
year in the semi finals, Houston got off to a

419
00:23:01,000 --> 00:23:04,000
fifteen to lead and it was over. I think by

420
00:23:04,039 --> 00:23:06,240
You've got to get off to a great start. It's

421
00:23:06,240 --> 00:23:08,799
going to be a pro BYU crowd. Houston doesn't travel

422
00:23:08,880 --> 00:23:11,960
very well. There are a lot of BYU fans here

423
00:23:11,960 --> 00:23:14,160
as we've seen the last two days. So I think

424
00:23:14,160 --> 00:23:15,680
they got to get off to a good start. And

425
00:23:15,720 --> 00:23:18,480
then I think they got to replicate that defensive effort

426
00:23:18,720 --> 00:23:22,480
and that energy, hustle and effort that they showed the

427
00:23:22,559 --> 00:23:26,160
last two games. And I think there's a shot of

428
00:23:26,240 --> 00:23:30,759
all the first round or the quarterfinal games today. I

429
00:23:30,799 --> 00:23:33,519
think BYU has the biggest chance of an upset. Let's

430
00:23:33,559 --> 00:23:34,160
put it that way.

431
00:23:34,519 --> 00:23:37,640
Speaker 3: Boom Shaka, Laca, J Drew, Desert Red News, Jay. Best

432
00:23:37,680 --> 00:23:39,319
way to support you, what you do, how you do

433
00:23:39,400 --> 00:23:41,920
it for all of our listeners. I know you have

434
00:23:41,960 --> 00:23:44,680
a couple of great articles up. One regarding Rob Right

435
00:23:44,720 --> 00:23:48,200
the third and his hopeful return and that he's happy

436
00:23:48,400 --> 00:23:52,720
and healthy and strong here in provo. Anything else that

437
00:23:52,759 --> 00:23:53,400
we can do.

438
00:23:55,440 --> 00:23:58,000
Speaker 4: Now just find me at Drew j on X or

439
00:23:59,000 --> 00:24:05,400
at Desert dot Tom black backslash by Sports or obviously

440
00:24:05,480 --> 00:24:08,279
today I'll be writing another analysis on on the game

441
00:24:08,480 --> 00:24:11,079
and uh and then go from there.

442
00:24:11,680 --> 00:24:14,160
Speaker 3: Okay, Jay, we salute you man, We appreciate it. Thanks

443
00:24:14,160 --> 00:24:15,440
for hopping on for a cougar.

444
00:24:15,200 --> 00:24:17,720
Speaker 4: Beat my pleasure.

445
00:24:18,440 --> 00:24:21,640
Speaker 3: Great guys, Yeah, thank you man. That is a cougar

446
00:24:21,680 --> 00:24:23,960
beat brought to you by Central Garage Utah. Central Garage

447
00:24:24,000 --> 00:24:26,880
Utah dot com. I love Kelly over at Central Garage, Utah.

448
00:24:26,920 --> 00:24:28,680
He's gonna take care of you. Know, we've answer about

449
00:24:28,720 --> 00:24:30,759
you about it. Give them a call, cent up an appointment.

450
00:24:30,799 --> 00:24:33,400
If you have a garage door that he's giving you issues.

451
00:24:33,440 --> 00:24:36,400
It's not uh, it's not going up, it's not going

452
00:24:36,440 --> 00:24:39,839
down or what have you. It's just malfunctioning. Give me

453
00:24:39,839 --> 00:24:41,759
a call centipal APPOINTM shoeing, but text get a quote

454
00:24:41,759 --> 00:24:43,680
eight O one six O four two nine one nine

455
00:24:43,759 --> 00:24:46,640
VP products, VP service, VP discounts. He's gonna take care

456
00:24:46,680 --> 00:24:48,799
of you. Let him know I sent him uh sent

457
00:24:48,920 --> 00:24:49,200
you you