Photo by: Mississippi State Athletics
WATCH: Coach Jans Media Session
January 30, 2023 | Men's Basketball
STARKVILLE - Head coach Chris Jans met with the media leading into Monday's practice to preview State's midweek matchup at South Carolina.
Head Coach Chris Jans
Q: What have you seen from South Carolina especially lately?
CJ: "They're coming off a heartbreaking loss on the road. A game that could've went either way at Georgia. Obviously, like all of us when you lose a game like that, it's a gut punch. You've got to regroup, and it's a quick turnaround for the both of us."
"They have really good players, and they run good stuff. When they're playing their best, they're shooting the ball from the three and making a lot of three's. Most of their wins. it seems like the three-point total is much higher than in their losses. If they look at us and obviously they are, they know that we've struggled defending the three recently. So, it's something that we'll continue to talk about, that we'll continue to try and sure up on defense in that regard. If you don't, with them being at home, that could be a difference maker during the game."
Q: What are your thoughts on Gregory 'GG' Jackson? How do you try and slow down a player like that?
CJ: "He's a load. He does it in a variety of ways. That's what is so difficult to prepare for. He's got that size and body walking in the door. His game has a variety to it. He can shoot the three off the catch and off the bounce. He can drive the ball and go either direction. He's got a nice mid post game where he can take smaller guys that are matched up on him, and he can shoot a little fade away. He can get all the way to the rim and try to bully ball you a little bit. He plays with supreme confidence. He's their leading scorer even as a freshman. He definitely will get our full attention. It won't be one guy's responsibility, but it'll be our whole team trying to get off his sweet spots as best we can."
Q: How confident are you in the team's ability to not overlook South Carolina with your team coming off such a big win over TCU?
CJ: "I surely hope that we wouldn't do that considering where we are at and how we need to get an SEC win in the worst way. It's been addressed. We met last night to try to reset the week if you will. We certainly watched clips of the TCU game – good, bad, and ugly like we always do. We take a little break and then set the tone for the scout for South Carolina. It was more of a mental day than anything else."
"I made sure that they understood what their program is thinking about right now. They have us who doesn't have a glossy record coming into their gym, and they're in the same mode as we are just hungry to get a win. We've got to go to their place. What we can't fall into the trap of is that we played well against Alabama on the road in a game that we would've, could've, and should've [won]. We turned around and played the No. 11 ranked team at home. It's easy to get motivated when you are playing those kinds of teams. Every competitor knows that when you're playing teams that will move the needle a little bit, you should be super motivated in your preparation and in your play."
"Then, when you play a team that maybe doesn't have a ranking behind their or as glossy a record, sometimes it's human nature to just be overconfident about it. Certainly, I don't think our guys have any reason to be overconfident. We made them well-aware of having the right mindset last night with mental focus. Certainly, this afternoon before we get on the plane of having a really good practice. Just getting us all on the same page with playing the way that we need to play, of being super focused and just trying to get a win."
Q: Do you feel your team has an extra bounce in their step after the TCU win?
CJ: "They did. They were borderline giddy at times, which was cool. The [NFL] football games were going on, and we were kind of keeping tabs on that a little bit. They were also probably giddy because they knew we weren't doing anything physical [at practice]. They seem to get more excited when they know we're not taped up. They know we're not going to be physically going against one another. They enjoy those practices probably better than the other ones. So, I think it was combination of all of it. They're good. They're serious when they need to be serious and locked in when they needed to be locked in."
Q: D.J. Jeffries had a successful February last season. What are you seeing from him right now, and what's the message to him?
CJ: "Hopefully, that happens again, maybe February is his month. If you would watch us practice or watch him get extra shots up, he looks good. He's making them in practice. He's working on his game. He's not letting it frustrate him to the point where he's not defending and rebounding the ball especially on the defensive end. If he was, then his minutes would go down, but he's not doing that. He's still a valuable member obviously of our basketball team, and he does a lot of good things for us."
"Certainly, it would help all of us if the three ball would go down for him at a little bit better clip. The one thing that I've been trying to get him to buy into is to use his length, his size and his ability to get in the paint to create for others. He can get in that lane at will
So, he can get in there and create for others and be that point forward."
Head Coach Chris Jans
Q: What have you seen from South Carolina especially lately?
CJ: "They're coming off a heartbreaking loss on the road. A game that could've went either way at Georgia. Obviously, like all of us when you lose a game like that, it's a gut punch. You've got to regroup, and it's a quick turnaround for the both of us."
"They have really good players, and they run good stuff. When they're playing their best, they're shooting the ball from the three and making a lot of three's. Most of their wins. it seems like the three-point total is much higher than in their losses. If they look at us and obviously they are, they know that we've struggled defending the three recently. So, it's something that we'll continue to talk about, that we'll continue to try and sure up on defense in that regard. If you don't, with them being at home, that could be a difference maker during the game."
Q: What are your thoughts on Gregory 'GG' Jackson? How do you try and slow down a player like that?
CJ: "He's a load. He does it in a variety of ways. That's what is so difficult to prepare for. He's got that size and body walking in the door. His game has a variety to it. He can shoot the three off the catch and off the bounce. He can drive the ball and go either direction. He's got a nice mid post game where he can take smaller guys that are matched up on him, and he can shoot a little fade away. He can get all the way to the rim and try to bully ball you a little bit. He plays with supreme confidence. He's their leading scorer even as a freshman. He definitely will get our full attention. It won't be one guy's responsibility, but it'll be our whole team trying to get off his sweet spots as best we can."
Q: How confident are you in the team's ability to not overlook South Carolina with your team coming off such a big win over TCU?
CJ: "I surely hope that we wouldn't do that considering where we are at and how we need to get an SEC win in the worst way. It's been addressed. We met last night to try to reset the week if you will. We certainly watched clips of the TCU game – good, bad, and ugly like we always do. We take a little break and then set the tone for the scout for South Carolina. It was more of a mental day than anything else."
"I made sure that they understood what their program is thinking about right now. They have us who doesn't have a glossy record coming into their gym, and they're in the same mode as we are just hungry to get a win. We've got to go to their place. What we can't fall into the trap of is that we played well against Alabama on the road in a game that we would've, could've, and should've [won]. We turned around and played the No. 11 ranked team at home. It's easy to get motivated when you are playing those kinds of teams. Every competitor knows that when you're playing teams that will move the needle a little bit, you should be super motivated in your preparation and in your play."
"Then, when you play a team that maybe doesn't have a ranking behind their or as glossy a record, sometimes it's human nature to just be overconfident about it. Certainly, I don't think our guys have any reason to be overconfident. We made them well-aware of having the right mindset last night with mental focus. Certainly, this afternoon before we get on the plane of having a really good practice. Just getting us all on the same page with playing the way that we need to play, of being super focused and just trying to get a win."
Q: Do you feel your team has an extra bounce in their step after the TCU win?
CJ: "They did. They were borderline giddy at times, which was cool. The [NFL] football games were going on, and we were kind of keeping tabs on that a little bit. They were also probably giddy because they knew we weren't doing anything physical [at practice]. They seem to get more excited when they know we're not taped up. They know we're not going to be physically going against one another. They enjoy those practices probably better than the other ones. So, I think it was combination of all of it. They're good. They're serious when they need to be serious and locked in when they needed to be locked in."
Q: D.J. Jeffries had a successful February last season. What are you seeing from him right now, and what's the message to him?
CJ: "Hopefully, that happens again, maybe February is his month. If you would watch us practice or watch him get extra shots up, he looks good. He's making them in practice. He's working on his game. He's not letting it frustrate him to the point where he's not defending and rebounding the ball especially on the defensive end. If he was, then his minutes would go down, but he's not doing that. He's still a valuable member obviously of our basketball team, and he does a lot of good things for us."
"Certainly, it would help all of us if the three ball would go down for him at a little bit better clip. The one thing that I've been trying to get him to buy into is to use his length, his size and his ability to get in the paint to create for others. He can get in that lane at will
So, he can get in there and create for others and be that point forward."
Players Mentioned
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