Snyder won't let Oklahoma victory go to Tigers' heads
By R.B. FALLSTROM\AP Sports Writer
Feb 16, 2005 - 11:31:47 CST
COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) -- Quin Snyder knows from experience not to get carried away with one nice game.
Missouri's coach said he'll keep asking more and more from his underachieving team in Wednesday night's game against Baylor, even if the Tigers are coming off an upset of then 16th-ranked Oklahoma.
"I'm not saying we should hold our arms up and say 'Hurray, hurray, we won a game!"' Snyder said. "I'm not letting up on them.
"I think it's a constant thing with these guys to keep pounding it in to them."
Missouri (11-13, 3-7 Big 12) twice rallied from a double-digit deficit to beat Oklahoma 68-65 in overtime on Saturday. Before that, the Tigers had lost five in a row and eight of nine.
During that disquieting slump, athletic director Mike Alden felt it necessary to confirm that Snyder's job was not in danger. But the coach knows the pressure is still on, and at halftime and with Missouri trailing by 11 he called out his team.
"There was a few choice words," Snyder said. "I just think some of our guys needed to be called out to the mat.
"Don't tell me about it, show me, and they did."
Players said the message hit home.
"I think it hit everybody," center Kevin Young said. "I think we showed that we're men, and we came together and fought together."
After the game, Snyder wanted the players to savor what they had done. And realize they could do it again.
"I asked them, 'How do you feel? Do you like this feeling?" Snyder said. "I got some smiles. You could see the satisfaction they felt."
Missouri was much more aggressive on defense and on competing for offensive rebounds than most of the season. As a result, the Tigers hounded Oklahoma into submission.
"You have to fight," guard Jason Conley said. "I mean, that's the truth. When a shot goes up you have to put a body on somebody, and I think that's what we did."
The Tigers didn't let a zone defense flummox them like it has most of the season, either.
"Every time we've seen zone, we think too much," Conley said. "At times there are too many passes and before we look up there's two seconds on the shot clock so we have to throw up something.
"We just have to be aggressive, get in the gaps."
But again from experience, Snyder knows success can be fleeting. So he knows that even though Baylor is 9-12 overall and 1-9 in the Big 12 the Tigers can't afford to relax against anyone.
He equated the typical team that's beaten Missouri this season to a 50-year-old savvy open gym player that just knows how to get the job done, even against a much more talented opponent.
"We get drilled by that old man a lot," Snyder said. "But we're learning gamesmanship. If you miss a shot, you're not out of the play, and we actually moved the ball a couple of times, too.
"If you're thinking about winning more than anything else, you tend to make those plays."
In the three games prior to the Oklahoma game, Missouri had collapsed in the second half, getting outscored 146-87. Against Oklahoma, they had a 39-28 advantage after the break.
"I don't think we can forget," Young said. "But I think this win will build a lot of confidence in our guys, and we'll know we can beat good teams.
"I think this is a start."
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Missouri's coach said he'll keep asking more and more from his underachieving team in Wednesday night's game against Baylor, even if the Tigers are coming off an upset of then 16th-ranked Oklahoma.
"I'm not saying we should hold our arms up and say 'Hurray, hurray, we won a game!"' Snyder said. "I'm not letting up on them.
"I think it's a constant thing with these guys to keep pounding it in to them."
Missouri (11-13, 3-7 Big 12) twice rallied from a double-digit deficit to beat Oklahoma 68-65 in overtime on Saturday. Before that, the Tigers had lost five in a row and eight of nine.
During that disquieting slump, athletic director Mike Alden felt it necessary to confirm that Snyder's job was not in danger. But the coach knows the pressure is still on, and at halftime and with Missouri trailing by 11 he called out his team.
"There was a few choice words," Snyder said. "I just think some of our guys needed to be called out to the mat.
"Don't tell me about it, show me, and they did."
Players said the message hit home.
"I think it hit everybody," center Kevin Young said. "I think we showed that we're men, and we came together and fought together."
After the game, Snyder wanted the players to savor what they had done. And realize they could do it again.
"I asked them, 'How do you feel? Do you like this feeling?" Snyder said. "I got some smiles. You could see the satisfaction they felt."
Missouri was much more aggressive on defense and on competing for offensive rebounds than most of the season. As a result, the Tigers hounded Oklahoma into submission.
"You have to fight," guard Jason Conley said. "I mean, that's the truth. When a shot goes up you have to put a body on somebody, and I think that's what we did."
The Tigers didn't let a zone defense flummox them like it has most of the season, either.
"Every time we've seen zone, we think too much," Conley said. "At times there are too many passes and before we look up there's two seconds on the shot clock so we have to throw up something.
"We just have to be aggressive, get in the gaps."
But again from experience, Snyder knows success can be fleeting. So he knows that even though Baylor is 9-12 overall and 1-9 in the Big 12 the Tigers can't afford to relax against anyone.
He equated the typical team that's beaten Missouri this season to a 50-year-old savvy open gym player that just knows how to get the job done, even against a much more talented opponent.
"We get drilled by that old man a lot," Snyder said. "But we're learning gamesmanship. If you miss a shot, you're not out of the play, and we actually moved the ball a couple of times, too.
"If you're thinking about winning more than anything else, you tend to make those plays."
In the three games prior to the Oklahoma game, Missouri had collapsed in the second half, getting outscored 146-87. Against Oklahoma, they had a 39-28 advantage after the break.
"I don't think we can forget," Young said. "But I think this win will build a lot of confidence in our guys, and we'll know we can beat good teams.
"I think this is a start."