By Wendell Barnhouse
Big 12 Sports.com Correspondent

Conference play kicks off for 10 of the Big 12 Conference men's teams on Saturday (Kansas and Colorado get started next week).  On Thursday's conference call, each coach was asked these questions:

1. What are some of the things you learned about your team during non-conference play?
2. What are some of the things you hope to learn or need to improve?

Below are the reactions from each head coach.

Baylor Head Coach Scott Drew (opens vs. Texas Tech):
Question One: "I think the biggest thing I've learned is that we can hurt you with different weapons. We've had different people step up from game to game. At the same time, when we go into home courts or big games, we're not in awe. We've played a tougher non-conference schedule so we've got more confidence in those situations."

Question Two: "Defensively we'd like to get better. We've improved statistically in that area and hopefull that will continue in conference play. We need to get better on the boards because we play a smaller lineup. We've seen improvement in both areas. When you're not on offensively, those are two areas you need to be good at."
 
Colorado Associate Head Coach Steve McClain (opens at Missouri on Wednesday):
Question One: "As a young team, we've had a lot of ups and downs. That comes with starting two freshmen. Our major concern is rebounding. We struggle to rebound the basketball. We're focusing on that every day and we've got to get better at that. Offensively, we've come a long way.  Defensively we're doing a nice job but we're not finishing possessions by getting the rebound."

Question Two: "We have to learn to take care of the basketball. There are good turnovers and bad turnovers. If you throw a back-door pass out of bounds, it lets your defense gets set. You throw a pass intercepted that leads to a dunk, that's a bad turnover. We're still learning to handle defensive pressure and when to deliver the basketball at the right time and place."
 
Iowa State Head Coach Greg McDermott (opens at Texas Saturday):
Question One: "Defenisvely we've given ourselves a chance to be successful, even though we don't overwhelm anybody with pressure. We've got to do it with positioning and we've done a good job of that. Offensively we're still a work in progress because we're spending a lot of time working on individual development of our younger players."

Question Two: "I just hope we become more efficient on the offensive end of the floor. We're gradually getting an understanding of where our shots need to come from and what a good shot is for each player. The bests way to learn that is when you're successful and you have a level of success when you're hitting shots. We've made some great strides but we've still got a long way to go."
 
Kansas Head Coach Bill Self (opens Big 12 play vs. Kansas State on Tuesday):
Question One: "When we play with great engery I think we're a much better team in terms of rebounding and intangibles. We're not quite as gifted physically as teams we've had in the past.  We've got to be turned up all the time. That's hard to do but that's become very evident to our players. We haven't played our best ball and I've learned I need to enjoy the process and be a little more patient."

Question Two: "Toughness and poise away from home, no doubt about it. Once conference play starts, those are two things any team needs. The intensity increases. The Tennessee game was good for us because it was intense. We open against Kansas State at home and they play play as hard as anybody in the country. That's one thing we have to understand - we have to play even harder than what we've been playing."
 
Kansas State Head Coach Frank Martin (opens Big 12 play vs. Oklahoma):
Question One: "We're extremely resilient, we embrace work, we embrace growth. We've got guys who really believe in each other. We started off okay, then stubbed our toe and lost three straight.  Instead of hanging our heads, whining and making excuses, they went back to work and worked harder."

Question Two: "Because we're a young team, our daily growth and how we defend is very important.  Our attention to detail - incorporating the scouting report into the game. One aspect that allows our defense to get set and allows us to rebound - we lead the Big 12 in four rebounding categories - is our offense. Our decision making and taking good shots, avoiding silly turnovers all those things help us play better defense."
 
Missouri Head Coach Mike Anderson (opens Big 12 play at Nebraska):
Question One: "There's a certain level of toughness you need to play at this level and we've got some young guys still learning how to get to that level. We've got guys who want to get better.   We've got a chance to be very good team. We're headed in the right direction. Two big things are going to be leadership and ownership and that's starting to come together."

Question Two: "We need more consistency. In the second half against Georgia, I saw the mindset offensively and defensively, we were in the attack mode both ways. We brought that into the next game against Coppin State. I think our team is feeling pretty good but when you get into the family, conference play, you've got to get that sense of urgency, play every play like is your last."
 
Nebraska Head Coach Doc Sadler (opens Big 12 play against Missouri:
Question One: "I thought the character of this team was extremely high and I wouldn't need to be concerned about effort on a daily basis. That's been the case. We've won some games because of that. We have to continue to take care of the basketball and at the end of the game we've got to control the boards at the end of games. We've got to get defensive stops and get rebounds in those situations."

Question Two: "Our bench players need to step up. We've got to get just a few points a game from our reserves. Offense is my biggest concern. We've got to improve our free throw shooting and we've got to find ways to get eight to 10 to 12 points a game in unconvential ways - out of bounds plays, for instance."
 
Oklahoma Head Coach Jeff Capel (opens Big 12 play at Kansas State):
Question One: We showed some toughness, we've won five games by five points or less. We won some games on neutral sites. Beating Purdue in overtime in the NIT Tipoff, that's something we're really proud of. I think we're getting better. We have to be a little tougher rebounding the basketball, not have as many lapses on the boards. I like where we are."

Question Two: "We want to win. As far as the rebounding, we have such a great, dynamic rebounder in Blake Griffin that the other guys you tend to rely on him. We have to do a better job rebounding collectively as a team."
 
Oklahoma State Head Coach Travis Ford (opens Big 12 play versus Texas A&M):
Question One: "From Day One and through the season so far, I've been impressed with the great attitudes the players have. I've enjoyed coaching this team. They've got a great work ethic, they're very receptive to what we're trying to do. Xs and Os wise, we've got a point guard (Byron Eaton) who can be as good as anybody in the country, he just needs to be consistent. We've got some guys who can make some shots. Overall, these guys are hungry for success."

Question Two: "We've got to play hard without fouling. We get in foul trouble a lot early and we're not deep, we're just playing six, seven guys. We've got a small margin for error. Hopefully we can learn to do that and understand how important rebounding is. We've got some limitations but that doens't mean we can't be competitive on the boards. They're starting to understand that. We've made some strides in that area."
 
Texas Head Coach Rick Barnes (hosts Iowa State in Big 12 opener):
Question One: "We can play a lot of different ways - big, small, in between. As a group, when we've asked them to concentrate and do something, they've done it. But we're still searching for answers and typically it takes us through January to find those answers. One thing that has been bothersome is that we start concentrating on one aspect like rebounding then we lose focus on something else like transition defense."

Question Two: "That we don't ever get satisfied, that we never think that we've arrived. We came out of exams and mentally we let up against Texas State, Texas Southern and it carried over to Michigan State. We took a hard lesson and we lost that game. Sometimes players don't even realize it that they're not playing as hard as they need to play. This timeof year, you can't let down, you gotta stay sharp in practices and in games."
 
Texas A&M Head Coach Mark Turgeon (opens Big 12 play at Oklahoma State):
Question One: "We have a chance to be pretty good defensively. It's come and gone at times, but when the game has been on the line, we've been pretty good. They've shown toughness when their backs have been against the wall. We've got more versatility defensively, we're able to press more."

Question Two: "Offensively we've got to become more efficient. We're missing a lot of open shots, to be quite honest. Hopefully, we'll start to shoot a little better. We've got to be more consistent handling the ball. One game we'll have six turnovers and the next game we'll have eight. Rebounding, we're plus six but with the schedule we've played we should be plus six or better. We need to rebound to be successful in the Big 12."

Texas Tech Head Coach Pat Knight (begins Big 12 play at Baylor):
Question One: "I really like our offense. We're playing at a good pac and score in a variety of ways. We're playing faster. We like to call it speed and screen. We get off to a fast start, then get back to slowing it down with cuts, screens, movement. Also, we've got more scoring balance, four guys in double figures and some guys coming off the bench who are scoring some."

Question Two: "We've only had one game - Stephen F. Austin - where we played defense for the entire game. Other games, we've played defense for a half or for just five minutes here, five minutes there. Defense is competing and I hope they can compete. They're young and I think they need to believe they can compete defensively in this league."