OTF Premium Men's Hoops: Postgame news conference after a 101-98 overtime loss to Mississippi State

[Jeff Howe]

Texas had a seven-point lead with 2:17 remaining in regulation, but it didn't last. Mississippi State ended the second half on a 7-0 run, Jordan Pope's shot in the closing seconds didn't fall.

The Longhorns never led in overtime, losing to the Bulldogs on Saturday at Moody Center, 101-98.

Dailyn Swain carried Texas (9-5, 0-1 SEC) with 34 points and 14 rebounds before fouling out at the 1:42 mark of the second half. Tramon Mark (20 points, three rebounds, two steals and a blocked shot) and Matas Vokietaitis (19 points and four rebounds) were the other Longhorns who scored in double figures.

Mississippi State (9-5, 1-0) was led by the backcourt duo of Josh Hubbard (38 points, 6-for-17 from 3-point range) and Jayden Epps (27 points, five assists, three rebounds and a steal). Achor Achor (10 points, 13 rebounds and three blocked shots) was the only other player in double figures for Chris Janz's team.

The loss in Sean Miller's first conference game as Texas coach was a game the Longhorns needed to win in their quest to make the NCAA Tournament. Texas is about to go through a brutal three-game stretch with consecutive SEC road games against No. 19 Tennessee on Tuesday and No. 14 Alabama next Saturday before returning home to face No. 11 Vanderbilt on Jan. 14.

[Jeff Howe]

Dailyn Swain said he didn't think anything about his fifth foul other than that he was disappointed he couldn't finish the game.

[Jeff Howe]

Mark, who missed a couple of critical free throws down the stretch, about what happened at the foul line: "I've just gotta make 'em."

[Jeff Howe]

Swain: "We're not going to dwell on it too long. It's a long season."

[Jeff Howe]

Swain felt like he should've rebounded the ball better, especially defensively. He said he picked up some fouls he shouldn't have in rebounding situations.

[Jeff Howe]

Swain hopes Mark's missed foul shots don't linger. He said the free throws he missed in Maui against Arizona State bothered him for a while.

[Jeff Howe]

On the perimeter defense, Swain said Texas fought, but they can be better. He said he didn't pressure the ball enough or well enough and he has to set the tone.

[Jeff Howe]

That's all from the players.

Chris Janz is next, followed by Sean Miller.

[Jeff Howe]

Josh Hubbard said he's still friends with Texas women's hoops star Madison Booker. He said she's a best friend from back home in Mississippi (both are from Madison County).

[Jeff Howe]

Janz credits his team for staying together and being resilient when Mississippi State was down by seven with 2:17 to go.

[Jeff Howe]

Janz said he can't remember a time in his coaching career when he had two players combine for 65 points in a game the way Hubbard and Epps did.

[Jeff Howe]

Texas lost the rebounding battle, 47-39, including a 25-14 edge in favor of Mississippi State in the second half.

[Jeff Howe]

Some hard truths from Sean Miller:

— He didn't feel like his team was the tougher, hungrier team and led to losing the battle for loose balls. Texas went smaller because they needed offense, but Miller said it came at the expense of rebounding.

— The team's energy to open the game, Miller said, reminded him of the Virginia game. There was no juice. He mentioned the early turnovers and only six first-half deflections reflected a team that wasn't ready to go from the jump.

— He's talked a lot to the team about fouling late in the shot clock and he's frustrated that it's still a problem. This team has to find a way, he said, to play defense without fouling. They can contest shots and play good defense without reaching in and committing a foul late in a defensive possession.

[Jeff Howe]

Miller on whether or not he'll submit any calls to the SEC for clarification: "I'm not that guy. I don't do that."

With that said, he admitted that Swain's fifth foul was "a tough call."

[Jeff Howe]

Miller thought the team had a good week leading up to the game after not playing well against Maryland Eastern Shore. Unfortunately, he said Texas was "very much on our heels" heading into halftime.

"Guys have to be more confident, tougher," he said.

[Jeff Howe]

Miller: "We're really struggling at the four position. It is what it is. This is big-time college basketball. We're getting nothing."

@Jordan91, to your point about what Heide does when he's on the court.

[Jeff Howe]

Miller called it "a stupid basketball play" with how Texas defended Hubbard late in regulation at the top of the key. The player who made the mistake isn't stupid, he said, but "for him to sideways dribble — that was one of the best shots he had all night."

Miller said that falls into the category of letting guys off the hook with fouls on shots that we're clean and/or contested looks.

[Jordan91]

1 minute ago, Jeff Howe said:

Miller: "We're really struggling at the four position. It is what it is. This is big-time college basketball. We're getting nothing."

@Jordan91, to your point about what Heide does when he's on the court.

Thank you he does nothing. Codie does nothing. Why in the world was Heide out there over Wilcher?

[Jeff Howe]

When Swain fouled out, Miller said the Longhorns lost some key size and the bigs didn't do as good of a job as they did rebounding tonight.

[Jeff Howe]

Miller on the defensive issues: "We have to coach guys better in those areas."

[Jeff Howe]

Miller said the Texas defensive issues can be summed up as such: It's like a parent telling your kid over and over not to cross the street. When the kid crosses the street and gets hit by a bus, you take responsibility as the parent, "but dammit," he said, "how many times did I tell you not to cross the street?

"We've got some of that going on," he said.

[Jeff Howe]

Miller said this is the best game he's seen Swain play across the three years he's coached him.

"It's a shame it didn't result in a win," he said.

[Jeff Howe]

On the upcoming road trips to Tennessee and Alabama, Miller went back to the first half of tonight's game and the Virginia game, when he saw a team that didn't have much confidence. The Longhorns were better in the second half, "but we have to be able to capture that for 40 (minutes)."

[Jeff Howe]

That's it for Sean Miller and tonight's postgame press conference.

[Jordan91]

7 minutes ago, Jeff Howe said:

Miller on the defensive issues: "We have to coach guys better in those areas."

He’s been saying that for a while now. It means they can’t do it, or they won’t do it.