Hear What Arizona’s Tommy Lloyd, Kylan Boswell, and Jaden Bradley Said After Arizona’s 85-67 Victory Over ASU

Tommy Lloyd on the ebbs and flows of the game:

For sure, we knew it was going to be a hard game. I’m happy we got out to a quick start. I knew they were going to respond in the second half, but you’re always thinking that as a coach. I was just hoping we could come out and hit first in the second half, and maybe extend our lead a little bit and really test them. It didn’t happen that way, and I thought our guys did an incredible job managing a little bit of chaos in the second half.

Tommy Lloyd on the importance of Kylan Boswell strong play tonight:

It was awesome. Kylan is a really good player. I know he’s been under the microscope a little bit, and that’s what happens when you’re the point guard at Arizona. I thought he played exceptional today. To have 17 points in this atmosphere for an 18 year [old] is pretty awesome.

Tommy Lloyd on if Kylan Boswell responded to his tough love after Sunday’s game:

I mean, could be. Kylan and I have great conversations. It’s definitely love, I don’t know if it’s always tough. But to see him come out and respond like that, I think that’s a great sign for our team.

Tommy Lloyd on Caleb Love’s timely scoring against ASU:

Caleb’s clutch. He’s clutch, and he’s not afraid of that moment. I thought he did a good job, maybe he pressed a little bit there when they made a little bit of a run, maybe mishandled a ball or two, and then he kind of settled in, and opportunistically hit a couple of big shots…for him to knock that down, that wide open three right in front of our bench was awesome.

Tommy Lloyd on Arizona playing in close games at this point of the season:

It felt like a close game for sure, and we need to be comfortable doing that, and you’ve got to be able to find a way. Sometimes it’s a play call from me that works, and a lot of times that doesn’t work. It’s players finding solutions, and our guys did a good job finding solutions in a tough second half.

Tommy Lloyd on his technical foul:

I didn’t swear at anything, I just thought the guy just grabbed the rim with his left hand. I think he did, I haven’t seen the replay, but that comes with the deal. Mike Reed is one of the best officials in the game, and I guy I have a ton of respect for. He has the right if he wants to T me up, that’s his right.

Tommy Lloyd on Arizona’s transition defense against ASU:

We always talk about transition defense. You don’t want to turn the ball over, but that happens, and when that happens, you have to have a response. I thought we had a big one when we went down there and made a strip…it was a big turn of events for sure.

Tommy Lloyd on Jaden Bradley’s performance:

JB was great today. Him and Kylan, the combination of those two was exceptional. They both had foul trouble, so we were “ying and yanging” them a little bit throughout the game. JB ended up out there in that finishing lineup; that’s something I’m totally comfortable with. JB’s a winner. He makes big plays, and I always know he’s going to, and he’s not scared of the moment.

Tommy Lloyd on Jaden Bradley’s development as a passer:

He’s getting there, he’s getting there for sure. Playing in our system is a little bit different, it just takes time, for all of our guys. Passing to me is a premium skill, and something we work on and talk about a lot. I also understand it takes some time to develop, and I’ve got to continue to coach it and pay attention to the detail and help them out.

Tommy Lloyd on Kylan Boswell’s balance as a shooter and downhill scorer:

I always want Kylan to be aggressive. I think Kylan’s playing with two of the best play-making wings in the country in Caleb and Pelle. When Kylan’s out there, he doesn’t necessarily need to dominate the ball. Kylan can get off the ball and give it one of those guys, and play in the actions. Kylan’s a great floor spacer, and when he’s hunting catch-and-shoot shots, he’s a really good player.

Tommy Lloyd on Caleb Love’s development since arriving in Tucson:

He was good when he showed up, he really was. What’s been so cool is how coachable he’s been. You coach him, and not one time has he ever given me any indication with body language or a reaction to [make me] think he’s not absorbing what I’m telling him. But, you know what the great ones do? The great ones still have enough conviction to have confidence within themselves to do it their way. It’s a little bit of a ying and yang between a coach and a player, and it’s been a fun dance. I’m really proud of him, and he’s a really special player.

Tommy Lloyd on five players in double-figures and Arizona’s ability to share the ball:

That’s something we take pride in. We want to be able to not be a team that you can load up and focus on one guy. To have different guys be able to score, it’s really special. We talk about ‘our basketball, our shots, our effort’, and it’s always far superior than ‘my shot’ or ‘your shot. Collectively we’re better together.

Tommy Lloyd ahead of Arizona’s senior day on Saturday against Oregon:

Whether I recruited guys or not, I coached them, and they’re part of Arizona Basketball. I love those guys like they’re my own, and would treat them no different whether I recruited them or someone else recruited them.

Tommy Lloyd on what Arizona’s seniors have mean to the program:

They’ve meant a lot, but it’s hard for me to be emotional or sentimental, because we have so much work we’re still trying to do. I think our group understands that, and we’re locked in on the pursuit of greatness. But, they’ve been awesome. I remind myself all the time how much I love coaching this team, and how much I love these guys.

Tommy Lloyd on if Arizona’s seniors with a remaining year of eligibility will return next season:

We haven’t even had those conversations. We’re so focused on now that we’re not there. That’s their right at that time to explore it, and I’ll be here to support them with whatever decision they want.

Tommy Lloyd on the turnout of Arizona fans in Tempe:

We always say, some programs have followers, we have fans. Our fans are one of us, and no matter where we go, they’re going to be there. To hear those “U-of-A” chants fired up, it’s something special. I’m proud to be the head coach at Arizona Basketball, and there’s not a day that goes by that I don’t remind myself how fortunate I am.

Kylan Boswell on his 17-point bounce back performance:

I felt like I was a little more aggressive than usual. Shots came my way. When I was open, I took them. I feel like I didn’t force anything tonight.

Kylan Boswell on Arizona’s game plan and jumping out to an early lead:

I feel like we had a great game plan going into the game. We knew what the tendencies were. We knew what we wanted to stop for them. I thought we executed that really well. They were missing shots, and we were hitting, so flow of the game is just how it went.

Kylan Boswell on feeding off of Jaden Bradley when they are on the court together:

I always feel like I play my best running the court with him. Me and him have great chemistry, just building throughout the year. Watching him work out, he already knows the stuff I like, I know the stuff he likes.

Kylan Boswell on his exchange with Tommy Lloyd after the Washington game on Saturday:

A lot of people have their own opinions about the moment. Nobody on the outside knows me and Coach Lloyd’s real relationship. I was upset at myself, you know, sometimes you don’t want to hear the truth. After reflecting on it, I realized he’s always going to be trying to get on me, he’s always going to support me for sure, and he always wants what’s best for me. After the game, I texted and apologized.

Kylan Boswell on what Arizona’s seniors mean to him ahead of Senior Day against Oregon:

I love each and every one of them. Been working out with Caleb every single day. Me and Keshad have gotten closer and closer. And of course, me, and Oumar, and Pelle, we played last year, our bond has grown. And especially Grant [Weitman], actually me and him have gotten way closer since last year.

Jaden Bradley on Arizona staying poised when ASU closed the gap in the second half:

We stayed poised, stayed calm, stayed together. We like games like that, close games, kind of get us ready for the tournament.

Jaden Bradley on him and Kylan Boswell battling foul trouble in the second half:

Just staying aggressive, knowing we got a deep bench. The next man’s going to pick up the slack, and pick up the intensity that you just played with.

Jaden Bradley on Tommy Lloyd getting T’d up in the first half:

You know, Coach is pretty amped up and excited. That kind of got the guys going. We had to group up as a team. He has high expectations for us. I’m going to get on him for that technical, make him run.

Jaden Bradley on Arizona building some momentum to round out the regular season:

We’re just trying to stay together, stay calm, and do whatever it takes to close out the regular season championship. We’ve got to do that game by game.

Jaden Bradley on how Caleb Love and Keshad Johnson have impacted Arizona in their lone season in Tucson:

Excited for those guys. Great leaders, you know they came from great programs. They have been to the highest of the highest games and played in tough games. Bringing that energy, that intensity, into everybody helps.

Jaden Bradley on Oumar Ballo’s consistency and impact after posting his eighth consecutive double-double:

Big O is a beast and a monster down there. We’ve got high expectations for him, and night out, he delivers. Having his back and giving him that confidence; probably the best big in the country, so he’s showing it right now.