Aug. 26, 2008

COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina head basketball coach Darrin Horn joined senior guard Branden Conrad and junior forward Dominique Archie in the media room at Colonial Life Arena on Tuesday for a session with the media to comment on the team’s recent European Tour.

Head Coach Darrin Horn
On what he learned about his team during the time in Europe…
Playing four games gave us the opportunity to see how our guys respond to different situations and what kinds of things they can bring to the table on both ends of the floor. We got a lot of feedback. We had a couple of games where it got tough and we got down against some pretty good competition and could’ve easily folded, but we continued to fight and we found a way to win. So I thought that was a real positive

It was big in a lot of ways. The practice time was huge for us to start implementing some terminology and some things that happen in transition. Just spending time together on the trip was really good. We got some game experience as well. So all the way around it’s been really beneficial.

On what surprised him about his team during the trip…
We played a little harder and with greater purpose than I thought we would because we didn’t have that much time to work before we left. The response to some adversity was good to see and something that we can hopefully build on.

What he feels the team will have to work on the most heading into the season…
We’ve got a lot to work on. You name it, we need to work on it. But I think defense and rebounding are going to be the two things that keep coming up.

On the difference between basketball played in the United States and Europe…
It’s not that big of a difference. The styles and the ways of officiating are different but it’s more of a feel thing. When calling time outs, you can’t just jump up and call a time out anytime you want, there are only certain times that you can. Sometimes if you think that you might need one, you’ve got to call it before that because you can’t do it after your own made basket. So it’s more of a feel thing and how the game flows and is called. It wasn’t a drastic change.

On how the players are adjusting to his style of play…
It’s August and we are trying to be our best in March. So there is a lot of work to be done. But we didn’t put a whole lot in because we wanted to focus on a few things, mainly playing really hard defensively and trying to be unselfish offensively. Also we want them to play with a certain level of intensity and speed on both ends. We were pleasantly surprised at how well they did adjust to it. Are we anywhere where we need it to be, to play the way we want to play to be successful in this league? No, it’s not anywhere close but I think we’ve made strides.

Senior Guard Branden Conrad
On the competition of the opposing teams during European Tour…
We played two games that we won by a pretty good margin. The second game (against Pezinok BK) was probably the most talked about game going into the trip, and that was a very close game until the end when we pulled away. The third game (against Nitra Basketball Klub) was probably our toughest competition. They led the majority of the game and we were able to come back at the very end. That was probably the most exciting game.

On playing for first-year head coach Darrin Horn…
The intensity is the main thing. Playing that hard for the entire time and trusting in your teammates on the bench that come in for you and on the defensive end.

On comparing the style of play with college teams and the four European teams…
There was a big difference. We saw a lot more up-and-down. We were averaging almost 100 points per game, which was on a smaller shot clock, but the pace was a lot more up-tempo.

Junior Forward Dominique Archie
On the progress the team made during the offseason and on if the defense has improved…
Everyone on the team made a lot of progress. And I wouldn’t say our defense has really improved, we’ve just changed our mindset.