OTF Premium Men's Hoops: Sean Miller's press conference ahead of taking on Florida

[Jeff Howe]

Coming off a 91-80 road loss to Georgia on Saturday, Texas returns to action against No. 7 Florida at Moody Center on Wednesday (6 p.m., ESPN2).

Sean Miller is holding a media availability today to discuss the loss to the Bulldogs, tomorrow’s game against the Gators and the state of affairs as the Longhorns look to improve their standing for an at-large bid in the NCAA Tournament. As of Monday, Texas (17-10, 8-6 SEC) remained on the right side of the bubble, with the Longhorns one of 11 SEC clubs projected to be in the field of 68, according to ESPN's Joe Lunardi.

While the loss to Georgia snapped a five-game winning streak, Texas will attempt to get back on track against arguably its toughest stretch of games this season. After facing Florida (21-6, 12-2), the Longhorns travel to Texas A&M (19-8, 9-5) on Saturday (3 p.m., ESPN2), looking to avoid a season sweep at the hands of the Aggies, who won a 74-70 decision in Austin on Jan. 17.

The Longhorns will then take on No. 20 Arkansas (20-7, 10-4) in Fayetteville on Wednesday, March 4, before wrapping up the regular season schedule at home against Oklahoma (13-14, 3-11) on Saturday, March 7.

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[Jeff Howe]

We're scheduled to get the press conference going via Zoom at 11:30.

[Jeff Howe]

A few notes from the program ahead of the Florida game:

— SUCCESS IN THE MOOD AGAINST THE BEST

The Longhorns are 5-4 all-time against AP Top 10 foes (1-0 this year) and 12-6 against AP Top 25 opponents (2-0 this season) in Moody Center. Texas has won its last three games overall this year against AP-ranked opponents (at No. 13 Alabama, vs. No. 10 Vanderbilt, vs. No. 21 Georgia).

— DAILYN DOING IT ALL

Per ESPN Research, junior G/F Dailyn Swain is one of TWO players in Major Conferences to lead his team in FIVE major statistical categories, joining Caleb Wilson (North Carolina). Swain, who needs just 13 points to reach the 1,000-point mark for his collegiate career, leads the Longhorns in scoring, rebounding, assists, steals AND minutes.

— MATAS IMPROVING BY THE DAY

Sophomore C Matas Vokietaitis is averaging 17.1 ppg and 7.9 rpg in 28.4 mpg, while hitting 65.3 percent (62-95) from the floor and 74.4 percent (64-86) from the free-throw line over his last 11 games. He has reached double figures in scoring in all 11 contests, including three 20-point efforts.

[Jeff Howe]

"Any time you host the national champion from a year ago," Sean Miller said of facing Florida, it has a special meaning.

[Jeff Howe]

Miller said there's a lot to learn about how Florida has assembled and developed a roster in the transfer portal/NIL era.

[Jeff Howe]

"We know we have our hands full tomorrow," Miller said. "We have to be at our very, very best." 

[Jeff Howe]

Miller knows it's tough to make it to a 6 p.m. tip in Austin, but he's asking the fans to be in their seats as early as possible tomorrow.

[Jeff Howe]

"Dailyn is a throwback story, in every sense of the way," Miller said, referring to the fact that they recruited him early in high school and still have him. "You could always see his talent."

[Jeff Howe]

Miller points out that Swain is a year younger than everyone else in his class. That's part of why he's such an intriguing draft prospect.

[Jeff Howe]

Miller said Swain has embodied everything a coach could want in a player as he's worked to develop his body, mind and game.

[Jeff Howe]

Miller on Swain: "It's really a three-year, four-year process that we've watched."

He said being in the same system/program for multiple years has really helped Swain's development.

[Jeff Howe]

Miller again states his belief that Swain means more to his team than any other player in the SEC.

[Jeff Howe]

Teams that aren't great defensively can improve, Miller said. There were segments in the games leading up to the Georgia game where he felt the team played as well defensively as they were capable of playing.

[Jeff Howe]

Just now, Jeff Howe said:

Teams that aren't great defensively can improve, Miller said. There were segments in the games leading up to the Georgia game where he felt the team played as well defensively as they were capable of playing.

He knows the team can play well defensively at times. Now, Miller said, it's about doing it consistently.

[Jeff Howe]

Miller: "When you get this deep in the year, we're only going to go as far as our defense will take us. Our guys know that."

[Jeff Howe]

Miller said it's disappointing that this is one of the worst defensive teams he's ever coached because this is one of the best offensive teams he's ever coached (based on efficiency rankings/ratings).

[Jeff Howe]

Miller said he's "looking forward to the future to making some changes here" when it comes to Texas playing better defense.

[Jeff Howe]

Miller said Florida, like Tennessee, is one of the best rebounding teams in the country. One of the keys to this game, he said, is playing it with 10 or fewer turnovers because the Gators won't give up much on the boards.

[Jeff Howe]

Just now, Jeff Howe said:

Miller said Florida, like Tennessee, is one of the best rebounding teams in the country. One of the keys to this game, he said, is playing it with 10 or fewer turnovers because the Gators won't give up much on the boards.

"It's tough to get second shots" against Florida, Miller said.

Second-chance opportunities and points, Miller said, will be a major factor in who wins the game tomorrow.

[Jeff Howe]

Miller was asked if a win over Florida should guarantee Texas a spot in the NCAA Tournament. He chuckled before saying yes.

[Jeff Howe]

Lassina Traore (knee) is getting closer to coming back, but Miller said they're not going rush him back. They want to be certain that he's going to be good to go before he returns.

[Jeff Howe]

Regarding the Traore injury and how it impacts front-court depth, Miller said the Longhorns have to make their eight-man rotation work.

"We are who we are at this point," he said.

[Jeff Howe]

Miller isn't ready to change the starting lineup. However, he'll change it if he sees "guys who are incapable of fighting that fight early on."

He wasn't happy at all with the defensive start against Georgia.

[Jeff Howe]

Miller said he was disappointed in his starters at the first media timeout against Georgia because of "how it felt."

He's challenged the starters to be better in the first four-plus minutes of the game.

[Jeff Howe]

Miller: "We've had a difficult time getting stops... Against Georgia, we just could not guard their perimeter players."