Keith Davis speaks to post play, improvement & more

Jordan Kirkland: Let's first talk about the tough home-court loss against Texas on Monday. Evaluate your performance in that game.

Keith Davis: "The first half, I think I played very well, especially going to the offensive board. In the second half I kind of struggled trying to get the flow back, but ... it was a very tough loss. Especially for our fans. Pretty tough."

JK: Texas has a lot of big guys, and you're the tallest player on the A&M roster. So did you feel added pressure to make sure that, with your length, you'd be able to help out the defense?

Davis: "Of course, because in the first game (against Texas) I didn't play as well as I should have, defensively, so in practice I prepared myself to play against bigger guys. Usually in-conference, except against teams like Baylor and Kansas (with big guys), the taller guy is usually me. So of course I had to come with the flow this game."

JK: Going back to the Baylor game, they had a lot of big guys as well. But you, specifically, were all over the floor on defense and actually picked up two balls that were rolling around on the ground and called two timeouts to give you guys two extra possessions. Talk about your performance in that game and how you were able to do that.

Davis: "In practice we have this drill where we dive on the floor each time the ball rolls. You have to dive or you get in trouble. So I just remember diving to save the extra possession, and then I remember (Coach Kennedy) saying, 'If it's a 50-50 ball and you've got it, call timeout.' So I just did what he told me to do."

JK: The team actually played three games in six days. How did y'all physically handle playing three hard-fought, physical games in six days?

Davis: "It's actually from the offseason when the coaches came here and said they were going to get us ready for games like that, back-to-back games, physically and mentally ready challenges like that. So, we were ready."

JK: You're a sophomore, so last year you had the privilege of having Mark Turgeon as your coach and this year you have Billy Kennedy. Talk about the differences in coaching styles and the way they work the floor.

Davis: "Coach Turgeon was more of a complacent coach. He made sure you did one thing, like set screens. Coach Kennedy is more, 'Keith, set screens, get rebounds and help your teammates on defense,' because he knows that's where I'm good. Both of them are very good coaches, but I think I like Coach Kennedy more (laughs)."

JK: You're the only center on the roster, currently. What are some of the goals that you have this season?

Davis: "Getting better for my teammates and myself, and for the fans."

JK: You went to DeSoto High School. Texas A&M has quite a pipeline when it comes to DeSoto. Are you proud to be a part of that, and are you trying to get more DeSoto athletes to come?

Davis: "I'm very proud to be a part of that ... Sydney Carter, Von Miller, (etc.). DeSoto is a great place to be and coming here as an alumni from DeSoto is very good. Hopefully I can get more of them here."

JK: Finally, preparation, y'all are going up to Iowa State. They're a 17-7 team but not currently ranked. What's the preparation like right now?

Davis: "The preparation is: Play more defense. The last game, they exposed us, beating us off the dribble and finding open shooters. These couple days we're going to be practicing more on guarding our man and staying between the ball and our man."