Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Men's Basketball Saturday press conference transcript
03/17/2007 | 12:00:00 | Men's Basketball
March 17, 2007
COLUMBUS, Ohio - Southern Illinois Press Conference Transcript
REPORTER: What do you guys remember about that win over the Hokies in Orlando in November, what do you need to do just as well that you did in that game to get a win?
TATUM: I think the whole team needs to understand that this is a completely different Virginia Tech team and we've got to go out and prepare for them and go out and execute. That's about it, we have to go out and execute our game.
YOUNG: I think we all know how hard they play. They've got a lot of athletes on their team and a bunch of big guys. We've got to go out and match their intensity, match their physicality and just play hard.
MULLINS: What Tony said, they played really hard and obviously have got a lot of athletes and they're a completely different team, they're in one of the top conferences in the country so we know we have to match their intensity from the start of the game.
REPORTER: You've got four guys in double figures, you forced 18 turnovers, what was clicking with you guys that you need to capture that tomorrow? You had four guys in double figures, they shot 50%, what was really working for you guys to get that victory that you want to do just as well tomorrow.
YOUNG: I think we just played hard that game. It was one of those games we come out and leave it all out on the court and I think from here on out that's how we've got to play. They're a different team than they were in Orlando. They may not have seen the pressure or whatever it was, it was a totally different team when they went through conference play and played against a bunch of different teams, so they're going to come out and be ready to play.
REPORTER: When you guys played them down in Orlando, that was really your first sort of tough win of the of the year, the first one you pulled out at the end of the game, how much do you feel that sort of set the tone for the rest of you guys at the end of the year.
YOUNG: I think it just boosted our confidence that much to realize that we could win those kind of games. Last year we lost so many close games, that when they won a close game, we actually saw that we could do it, saw how to do it, it just boosted our confidence so much more that we could go out there and play with confidence and win games and try to put teams away.
TATUM: I think the same, it does help our confidence knowing we can win tight games, because last year, it was one of those things that came down to the wire that, okay, we can win it, but after being with Virginia Tech in that close game and beating self other teams in close games, we know we'll win tight games. And if it goes down to the wire, we'll fight to the end. We know they'll do the same thing so it's definitely helped us.
REPORTER: Are there more similarities between you two teams than perhaps differences?
YOUNG: I think we're similar in certain ways, for the fact that they come out and they play hard. I mean, that kind of team is not going to give up regardless of what's going on. They play a lot of defense, they pressure the ball, they're just a real hard-nosed team, a tough team to play against, I think those are the similarities between the two of us, but there's a lot of difference too, but we are similar in certain ways.
REPORTER: How important is it to get the program back, it seems like teams are different once you get to the second week of the tournament?
YOUNG: I don't know how to answer that question, but it feels important to us to get back there, but I'm going to say to get to the Sweet 16 all around, we just want to win. Wherever we go, we just want to keep winning. As far as we can take, I mean, that's how far we're going to try to go.
REPORTER: You all mentioned how Virginia Tech is different, how are they different and how will that change what you guys do, if at all.
TATUM: I think they're different in that they're a lot more mature of a team just like we are. The more games you play, obviously you're going to be more experienced, have more maturity and they've beaten some great teams so that shows they can overcome adversity in hostile situations. Same with us, we've beaten teams like Creighton at Creighton with 17,000 there so we're a lot more mature as well. Tomorrow that's going to help us because we've been in that situation before.
YOUNG: I don't think it will be any different as far as what we do when we play basketball, it's pretty much as the same thing, go out and play hard, play defense and just let it carry on from there.
REPORTER: You guys are one of the best defensive teams in the country, can you talk about your style of defense and what makes you guys so good defensively?
YOUNG: I think it's just constant pressure on the ball. We study our scouting reports so we know what people like to do and we know people's strengths an we try and play against that. Our biggest thing is just pressure the ball and just guard. It's hard to do, it sounds real simple when you say it, that's the biggest thing, you've got to guard the ball and pressure a lot.
REPORTER: Tony Boyle last night, the second half that he had, had you guys seen him do that at all in practice and gave you an inkling he had that in him and now he has more confidence in going forward?
MULLINS: At practices, sometimes he'll just be the best player on that drill or a couple drills, when he gets clicking on offense and defense, he's a real force for us and obviously with Matt going down, we needed him to step up. He played huge for us and I think that gave us more confidence in him too knowing that he can play that well in one of the biggest games of his life so I think we're looking forward to seeing what he can do on Sunday too.
REPORTER: You guys have been able to avoid injuries, everyone's been relatively healthy, how important has that been for your success, and with Matt being sort of uncertain for tomorrow and his ankle not a hundred percent, how does that change what you guys do?
MULLINS: Obviously it's always great when you can go through a whole season without losing a player. Last year we lost some players, but for the most part we've been pretty healthy. We're not going to change what we do. We're going to see what Matt feels like tomorrow. We are still going to go out there and other guys will step up. Every time someone's had a bad game this year, when we need someone to step up, somebody has, so we're looking forward to seeing who's going to step up tomorrow.
REPORTER: Jamaal, are you any better player than you were last season? Do you see any improvement in you or the other guys and how would you characterize your season this year as compared to last year?
TATUM: I think just like our team, I'm a lot more mature player now and Coach has really been on me a lot throughout the year about making better decisions on the court as far as shot selection and when to take over and when to push the ball, when to pull it out, how to make plays for my teammates without the ball and I try to get better and I still have plenty of things to work on. Just what I said about the team, it comes with game experience and the more games I play, the better off I'll be.
MULLINS: Jamaal has always been a great player obviously. I think last year with Jamaal and Tony being juniors and not having any seniors, it's been a learning process and we've really done a good job of leading. J. T. has made how many huge plays for us throughout the year and that has helped us a lot.
YOUNG: I think he's grown as a player in a lot of different ways. He's a lot more mature. He goes out and does a lot more than score points for us now. He talks to everyone, he knows what's going on on the court defensively and offensively, he trusts his teammates and it's just a bunch of little things that people probably wouldn't notice that we notice as teammates, but he's grown a lot as a player.
REPORTER: Are there comparisons that Virginia Tech can draw, the fact they played Illinois and the common denominator with the former coach, do you consider that you play a little bit like Illinois?
YOUNG: Illinois is Illinois, Southern Illinois is Southern Illinois. Two totally different teams. We play defense similar, but we think we're two totally different teams.
REPORTER: The way you guys play points sort of have a different value. Like when you guys were upset, it kind of feels like a 12, 14-point lead, does it feel that way for you and is that any different than other teams you've played for like AAU or high school?
YOUNG: I think the biggest difference is, on a collegiate level, you can never be comfortable with a lead, you can have a 15-point lead with three minutes to go and teams playing against you always know that your lead is never safe. That's why we play defense the hardest. If we can't score, we can at least try to stop somebody from scoring. You can never be comfortable or be safe with any kind of lead.
MULLINS: If you look at all of our scores, we really don't blow a lot of people out, so we play close games and when we win by 10 or 12, that's a pretty good margin for us. A lot of games are close throughout the whole entire game so I think that's really helped us as a team. When we're down, we don't feel like we're out. When we're up, we always know the other team can come back. We know we have a lot of confidence in our abilities.
REPORTER: As you get ready to leave here, can you tell the story, how did you wind up at Southern in the first place and how do you want to be remembered as you leave?
TATUM: Basically I just happened to be recruited from the Eagles AAU team and a lot of guys who already played on the Eagles previously were coming to Southern Illinois. I kind of heard of them, didn't know much about them and Sweet 16 in 2001 or 2002 kind of opened my eyes up to them and I kind of realized they were a winning program and that's what I wanted to be a part of. And I came on campus, got to see everything, got to talk to a couple academic people, the business department. I really liked them, and was really happy to know the coaches were there, Coach Lowery was there and then he actually left, but I just like the coaching staff and familiarity with the people that were already there so I decided to come. As far as leaving here, it's going to be tough for me. I have a lot of great memories here and I definitely want to be remembered. So right now we're just concentrating on winning the games and that's one of the main ways you can remembered.
REPORTER: How much do you judge the success of a season by how you guys are doing in this tournament?
TATUM: It weighs very heavily. It's no pressure for us, but it does weigh very heavily because if we would have lost yesterday, we'd have a pretty good season, people remember our record but they don't remember what we do in the post season. So I think what you do at the end has a lot to say about what you did throughout, so like I say, we need to go out and win some games and keep winning.
REPORTER: Chris, everybody's talking in here about playing Virginia Tech early in the season. Does that game by now really mean anything in terms of what you're going to expect to see from them or what they'll see about you?
COACH LOWERY: It doesn't really mean that much now. Obviously it meant a lot to our program then. They're totally different and they're much better. Obviously we're different too, so the only thing that matters is that we see each other before we know their personnel and they know our personnel.
REPORTER: Can you talk about Shaw, what his injury is, his availability and how if he plays or doesn't play affects you guys?
COACH LOWERY: If we had to play today, he probably wouldn't play. He needs some more time. I'm saying that meaning that we don't have a sense of urgency for him right now because obviously he's a junior, he's not a senior. So right now we're just going to kind of see how he does and judge that tomorrow and tomorrow when we play, we'll go forward and act like he wasn't there and I think that's the best thing to do. He's going to be the biggest cheerleader on the bench and our kids will continue to play hard.
REPORTER: What is the nature of his injury and how does that affect things?
COACH LOWERY: He has an ankle sprain. We have several different people that are leading scorers, they're different than they were then, I don't think that game has anything to do with it right now, he has a high ankle sprain, that's what he has.
REPORTER: Tony Young won a high school state championship, how do you think that kind of team success in high school benefits a kid when he gets to college?
COACH LOWERY: The number one thing, it helps you to be a part of a winner. And understanding how to be a part of a team concept, because they were huge underdogs in the game that they won, obviously there were some other guys on that team that they beat, it shows he can overcome adversity and do whatever it takes to win. I think he's brought that toughness and that willingness to win to our program. So I think it was very huge in developing him as a player and as a person.
REPORTER: For the most part this year, other than maybe now with Matt, you guys have been able to avoid injuries and sicknesses, how important has that been for the success you guys have had this year?
COACH LOWERY: We've got a lot of small things, a lot of sicknesses, but our kids have fought through it. We just don't announce and talk about it because we don't want anybody to have an advantage mentally over us. We had a kid with a broken foot, a kid with a torn ACL, we've had things, but we don't talk about them because it takes away from the kids that are healthy and what they're trying to do when they're consistently being asked, like we're being asked now, I think it takes away from the concentration level. Injuries are part of sports so we learn to deal with them in a positive way and that's something we've done all year.
REPORTER: Going back to that game in Florida, that was really sort of the first tough one, the first one you called a gut check, how much did that set the tone for the rest of the season?
COACH LOWERY: I think it set the tone, but I think playing Arkansas set the tone, knowing we could compete at the highest level. We didn't execute, the difference is after we played Arkansas, we executed at the end and did the things we needed to to win the game. So playing Arkansas was really the first thing that got us over the hump. But it showed our kids that they had confidence in each other and they really trusted each other and that was the start of that.
REPORTER: Chris, what did you like about how you played offensively and defensively the first time you played the Hokies? Was there anything, you weren't too thrilled about you wanted to improve upon?
COACH LOWERY: I didn't remember that game. I mean, it's three months ago. For us to go back and think they're going to do the same thing would be stupid on our part, so we really focused on now with them and focused on now.
REPORTER: You haven't looked at the tape from the November game when you played them?
COACH LOWERY: We watched it after we played them. We're focused on them now. We know what we did when we played them. We understand what we did then, yeah, we understand what we did, but our biggest thing is now.
REPORTER: What did you understand that you did well in that game then?
COACH LOWERY: I thought we attacked them. I thought we really got a chance to get some things on them offensively by being patient and slowing down a little bit and not trying to get a track meet with them.
REPORTER: Chris, I notice your philosophy seems to be to run a lot of guys in, give them even just a couple minutes, like Tony Boyle last year didn't play a lot of minutes but played a little bit in every game. Is that part of your philosophy to get guys in situations like that so that when a situation like that last night comes up, that everybody's got confidence in game situations that they didn't before?
COACH LOWERY: That's true, but it starts in practice too, we never play our first five minutes until the following day, so he's always playing with different mix-ups in practice and learning to play with Jamaal on a more consistent basis, so we'll do a whole two-hour practice where he's with one group and the next day he might not be with that same five guys until a week, two weeks later. What it does, they will have confidence and our other guys have confidence in him playing that way and I think that's the best way and that's usually why most of our guys develop in a manner that's beneficial to our program when they're a four or fifth year senior, they become more role players.
REPORTER: If Tony is forced to start, who are you going to have to move up on the bench to take Tony's role?
COACH LOWERY: I think it's difficult with Virginia Tech because they have really played four guards, two guards and two forwards that are skilled enough to be a three. I think it's different, we didn't want to play Tyrone Green as much as we did because Holy Cross is so big, so we moved foster into that rotation and played him about a minute or two in the second half. He'll be the likely candidate, but probably you'll see more of Tyrone Green and Josh Bone than yesterday.
REPORTER: How important is it to get to the Sweet 16 in terms of getting your name out there and people recognizing you, do you think they do that now? Or do you think this is a much bigger step to get it out there?
COACH LOWERY: We were ranked for seven or eight weeks, so I think that has gotten our name out there. Being a 4 seed has really gotten us known. Sweet 16 is not about putting our name out there, that's about our program, about our future, about getting more recruits to be visible in their eyes. We want to be visible in the midwest but we want to reach out even further than that. Getting past the first round helps, obviously going even further than that makes it even better.
REPORTER: Can you talk about what makes you guys one of the best defensive teams in the country, what's kind of your approach to defense and is it similar to Illinois from last night or different?
COACH LOWERY: I think what makes us good is that we trust each other. I think that's the biggest thing when you come into our program learning to go all out and guard your man when he has the ball and just be a helper when your man doesn't have the ball. So many kids don't trust their own feet enough to get up on somebody and guard them, because maybe in high school or wherever they came from, they didn't play a defense like we do, so getting to trust the person behind them that they can't see is really the biggest thing with us and once they do that with us, we really try to take away so many different things and getting our people to focus and believe in each other.
REPORTER: Along the lines of building your program, you talked the other day about nonconference scheduling, I believe, is that still a struggle for your program or is it something you want to improve upon a little more.
COACH LOWERY: I don't know how we can improve upon it. We would love to schedule at homes with a lot of people but I think it will get worse with what our league did as a whole nonconference on the road in hostile environments, it will be tougher because our league is not an easy out in nonconference especially when you see somebody early in the year when you're trying to figure out who's playing, who's not going to play.
REPORTER: Looking back on that last game in November what do you need to do differently?
REPORTER: Everybody was talking about last night's game being ugly. For those of us who weren't there in Orlando in November, was the Southern Illinois game equally unattractive at least from your perspective?
GORDON: Yeah, that was a hard game, especially for us, but it was at the beginning of the season so you can't judge that game with what will happen tomorrow, but it will be a great game, they have great defense, they play with the same type of style, so I expect the game to be the same type of game it was yesterday.
REPORTER: What do you guys want to do better or differently than you did down in Orlando than you did against them to get a win this time around?
COLLINS: We've got to take care of the ball a little better. I think last time we had something like 18 or 20 turnovers. Also we've got to stay in front of the post a little better because they kind of killed us in the first half with high-lows, so we need to work on that.
REPORTER: Does it help to play a team you've faced once already? It doesn't usually happen in the NCAA Tournament.
GORDON: It kind of helps a little bit. But the teams are totally different at the end of the season, a lot of players we will play against didn't even get in the game the first time, so we're two different teams at this point in the season.
REPORTER: Jamon addressed how they might be different from November, how are you guys different from November?
DOWDELL: I think a lot of guys have stepped up and just are major contributors on the team, obviously to be in this position, but other than that, A. D. has become a major factor, they've switched line-ups, so definitely doing a lot of things differently.
REPORTER: You've been playing next to Jamon for four years now, what makes him so good defensively? I think he had seven steals last night, some in the ACC tournament against Wake.
DOWDELL: That's what he loves to do. A lot of guys don't like playing defense. A lot of guys rest up on defense and use all their energy on offense, but that's what he likes doing, that's all he talks about and to win the defensive player of the year, that probably made him happier than anything, so he's just one of those guys that takes pride in stopping his man and being aggressive on the defensive end.
REPORTER: Coleman, I'm sure when you look back at the Southern Illinois game, I'm sure it's one of the highlights of the year, how is your mindset now different coming off the big game you had last night?
COLLINS: I only played 10, 15 minutes that game, so I'm definitely going to try to get some payback because we kind of lost it down on the post. So we're looking forward to this game and kind of get some retribution for that loss we had because we felt like we had it down the stretch and they hit a couple of big shots in the last minute or so that put them over the edge, so we felt like we were right there and this is a good opportunity to get another tournament.
REPORTER: Just looking back on last night, now that you're away from it a little bit, what sort of sticks out, I know you feel like it's a game you probably should have lost and how does that help you tomorrow?
DOWDELL: It's definitely hard to believe that we won that game, but just looking at how I played and how some other guys played on the team and how things were going throughout the game, but I mean some games are going to be like that, you're going to have to grind out some wins. We're a regular team, guys have been in hostile situations, we've been in tough games all year, so we just have to keep playing, we'll play until the time runs out.
REPORTER: For Zabian and whoever else wants to answer this, after yesterday, who has offensive confidence on this team? Obviously it's been a couple rough games for you guys shooting-wise, who feels like they're ready to take the shot?
DOWDELL: I think the problem offensively is guys were just standing around and every game that we do that, we have trouble scoring the ball, but I mean, we walked through a couple of things today and hopefully we'll have better movement on offense, better rhythm, and guys will be able to get some wide open opportunities and we'll be able to get the ball into the post.
REPORTER: One or two of you guys I hope can take a crack at answering this one, I just wonder if your mental approach to the tournament changes at all now that you've won, do you think you're more relaxed because you have a win under your belt, do you feel more pressure because the game's bigger? Never having been in that situation, I don't know how most people would feel about it, but what does it seem like to you today?
GORDON: Me and A. D. was walking back into the locker room right before the game and I told him, this don't even feel like a regular game, it don't feel like a regular basketball game, it feels like something crazy is going to happen at any time, more pressure. Like Coach told us, the hardest win to get is the first game, first round, and we're still trying to figure out how we got that one in. We've just got to come out hard against Southern Illinois. I think Illinois prepared us to play against Southern Illinois, kind of sharpen up our penetration. I think we need to do a better job of getting it to the post to make baskets.
COLLINS: I think maybe we're a little more relaxed than we were coming into a league game because now at least with it being in the same arena and the same floor and everything, there's kind of a familiarity with that and the team we're playing is a team we're a little more familiar with than we were last game. Before everything was brand new, brand new team, brand new court, new tournament, now I think we'll play a little more relaxed early on in the game and be able to play with a little bit more confidence than we were where we were hesitant in the first game.
REPORTER: Coleman, did Southern Illinois, when you look back at that game, did they do certain things that kind of took you out of the game and neutralized you at all? How do you kind of become more forceful in the rematch?
COLLINS: They did a good job of Xing out and running through passing lanes, as I said before, and especially early on in the season, third game, we stood 21 line-ups and figuring out where our scoring was in our offenses, we're running more sets, a lot more sets than we were earlier on in the season, so I don't think that will be a factor as much, but at the same time just their overall defensive effort and the pressure they put on was pretty much evident every game they played, they're known for their defense in their conference, they're one of the best defensive teams in the conference. I think they had the best few defensive players of the year in the conference they're in. So it's just something that they're noted for. They place a lot of emphasis on defense and defensive pressure and they're a lot like Illinois in that respect.
REPORTER: I know you had some misses last night, but the free throws you made and the defense, does that give you any kind of a good boost going into this one?
COLLINS: Yeah, I feel good. It was good to knock some free throws down, it was good for our team to win a game on late game free throws as far as getting the confidence back after we kind of let one slip away with NC State free-throw-wise that will pay dividends in this game and whatever games we play after this.
REPORTER: Did you ever remember a game where you hit three big shots like that down on the stretch, including a game winner? I know you weren't real thrilled with the aesthetics of your last shot, but does it look any better now that you look at it on tape?
WASHINGTON: It was pretty exciting. In the past I've never done nothing like that, but I like to throw up a shot at the end of the game. It was a pretty good experience. I've watched it a couple times. It was a pretty fun experience.
GORDON: You watched it all night long.
REPORTER: Zabian, you mentioned that one of the differences between this team now, you've referenced that A. D. and Deron have emerged as major factors, how much better are you guys offensively when one or both of those guys are clicking?
DOWDELL: Much better, because that takes the pressure off me and Jamon. We don't have to do as much. With A. D. being able to spread the defense, that just gives us more room to drive the ball. It just opens everything up. Deron is a guy who can be all over the court, so it just does a lot for our team and makes things a lot easier offensively.
REPORTER: I was just wondering how important it was for you to become more of a transition player, you're sort of known as a guy known in the game as wide open. You can really do some things, but yesterday was kind of a sticky game and you still managed to get the flow, is that something you've been sort of working on?
WASHINGTON: I've been trying to work on the half court game because in past years I've always been a transition player, getting up and down the court, just playing as hard as I can and just running as fast as I can, so that game yesterday showed me that I can actually help out in half court setting knocking out shots.
REPORTER: Did you guys hang around here much last night and watch Southern Illinois-Holy Cross or did you go back to the hotel?
COLLINS: We stayed for the first half of it. We had a lot of different things we needed to do so we ended up staying until halftime. I don't think they were showing -- they were kind of cutting it on the CBS feed at the hotel, but the coach stayed up and watched it and taped it and we got the edit ready this morning, so we're pretty familiar with the style of play. It's kind of like, I guess, the equivalent would be kind of like smash-mouth football, you know what they're going to do but they're going to do it every time and do it well and it's just on you to stop it.
REPORTER: Zabian and Jamon, I think you guys had five baskets between you guys last night, what are you going to do to kind of reassert yourselves offensively, to do make more shots tomorrow, and do you expect it to be a half court offense?
GORDON: I didn't take that many shots. I think I shot like six shots. I don't think Zabian shot over eight shots. They just take us away, somebody's got to step up, Coleman's got to step up, so somebody on our team has to step up. That's the main thing. You don't want to get T'd because of bad shots, but if they free us up, we'll take more shots.
DOWDELL: Somebody's got to step up, whether it's A. D., Deron, Coleman, somebody. If they're giving us so much attention, one of those guys should have an easy time scoring baskets, but we have we just try to go out and play hard, we don't worry about how much we score and things like that, we just want to go out there and play hard and do whatever we can to help the team.
REPORTER: As far as the last time you played them, Jamon and A. D. kind of had rough shooting games, not so much for Zabian, Deron had a rough shooting game, what do you remember was clicking for you or not clicking for you as the case may be in that game that you want to kind of have the same thing not happen again or improve upon?
GORDON: You can't use too much of the stuff that happened in the first game, like I said, we're two different teams. The first game we pressured the ball up the court and we just sat back in gaps. They run a different offense. They run assist. Like Zabian said, we switched positions. So it will be kind of different. We've just got to take care of the ball, that's the main thing. Last time we had so many turnovers, they got easy baskets, and you just want to keep your opponent to low scoring. So if we take care of the ball, everything will go great.
REPORTER: Jamon, Zabian was saying all you talk about is defense. Where did that mentality come from for you and what do you consider your strengths defensively? Is it anticipation, quickness?
GORDON: It comes from like probably the basketball part, somebody score on you, they talk about it the whole way home, is probably the main thing. Zabian is probably the toughest guard since I've been in college, but I probably anticipate a lot of things. I kind of take in the scout report, what players like to do, their strengths, weaknesses. I just play hard on the defensive end. I don't give it my all on the offensive end because I count on Zabian to score, but on defense I am the leader on that and I just get the job done it seems like at the basket and play good D and we've got a good chance at winning.
COACH GREENBERG: It was a one possession game, I hope we screen better. Cain made a huge three. That game was a game of runs. We turned it over first five of our seven possessions which is very uncharacteristic for us, but they do that to you. We've got to take care of the basketball, the game's probably going to be ugly, if you thought the game was ugly yesterday, it's going to be doubly ugly. That's the way they play. They're extremely aggressive, they're tough. Hopefully we'll be rested and tough. I think we've got to do a good job just in general we've got to do a better job in terms of containing their guards and defending the post early. I think they do a very good job of isolating their post people. The post people are quick. I think Shaw has the ability to stretch out, step out, makes it that much more effective. Tatum is not afraid to take and make big shots. Their three perimeter guys are as good defensively on the ball as anybody is. Mullins and Tatum and Young can all really guard. I mean, they're tough, they're physical, they're aggressive, they're up under you. And like Young has the ability to guard anyone. He can guard a small forward, he's powerful. They're just a very well coached tough team that plays to win.
REPORTER: Is their defense similar to what you faced last night or different? Obviously it's again one of the best defensive teams in the country?
COACH GREENBERG: A little bit different. They put great pressure on the basketball. Falker's a one-man human press. He gets one pick a game. He deflects three, four passes in terms of scoring opportunities. Tatum is similar, and Young the same. That's who they are. That's who they've been since, quite honestly, Bruce was there and created that culture. And I think that Coach Lowery has done the same thing. They're more athletic on the perimeter. I think the front court people may not be quite as big, but they're strong. When you look at those guys coming on the court, those guys are cut. I'd have to go on a hell of a diet to look like that, I'll tell you that much.
REPORTER: What is it besides mindset that makes Jamon so good defensively?
COACH GREENBERG: He's got long arms. He does a good job of tracing the ball. He's got great instinct. He sees plays before they happen. I think Jamon sees plays defensively before they happen. He reads and anticipates the next pass and the guy's relentless, he's like a junkyard dog. He's relentless. He's a winning player.
REPORTER: In the November game, Coleman didn't do too much so you didn't play him too much. It was kind of one of, I guess, his low points. How do you think he'll be more of a factor this time around or does the fact he was a factor last night help in that regard?
COACH GREENBERG: The first time we played, Coleman wasn't really healthy, he was coming off a preseason injury. In a game like last night where he kind of imposed his will on the game on the defensive end at the end of the game was positive. He's got a tough match-up. The big rascal is good now. He's quick, he goes over his shoulder. Cheick played well in that game, he had nine points. He was very effective, but again, Coleman has the ability and I think last night would help his mindset to play at a high level. But he's going to have a tough match-up. Falker is a tough match-up because of his toughness and he plays low to the ground.
REPORTER: Last night you used the word resilient to talk about your team. I'm just wondering, having played these guys and lost to them before, if you can kind of put that in the context of when you lost games and then you had a second meeting with the team during the regular season, is this something that kind of steps right into what you're talking about with resiliency?
COACH GREENBERG: We were really resilient against NC State. Not only did we lose to them a second time, we lost to them a third time. I think our guys, we bounce back, we drilled that BC and found a way to win, so I guess we were resilient there. Coleman, his thesaurus well exceeds mine, believe me. But when I think of our team as being resilient, I think of our team as a team that nothing's ever been handed to them. They've kind of earned the respect. They've earned everything they've received, whether it's making the NCAA Tournament, they were a group of guys that were under-recruited. When they went into the Big East, no one thought they'd win any games. When they went into the ACC, no one thought they'd win any games. They're a bunch of guys that like to play hard and work at their game and are not afraid to go in the gym, and they have learned to trust each other. And they're just -- they are who they are. Offensively we're challenged at times, but they find a way to -- they found a way to create a culture and a winning mindset and I think they created that culture because they have been resilient.
REPORTER: Just to follow up on that, does that also kind of describe SIU? Everybody thinks of them as being a poster child for mid majors.
COACH GREENBERG: They're a high major team in a very good league. I think Southern Illinois, those guys possess a lot of the same traits that our players possess. They've got a little chip. Truth be told, as good as those guys are, without a doubt, they all could be very successful if they all could have gone and played in the Big Ten, they probably would have, and they can, but somehow, some way, they ended up at Southern Illinois and they've been to the NCAA Tournament five or six years and they've advanced in the NCAA Tournament. They're superbly coached and they have a little chip. And I admire -- I really admire their team. I admire their mindset. I admire their approach. I admire their toughness. Sometimes you watch a team and you sometimes watch a team and you go, you know what, I like the way they play. I like tough kids that just play the game and don't really get caught up in what other people think. They know they're good and they play, they play that way.
REPORTER: Seth, speaking of advancing in the NCAA Tournament, Virginia Tech hasn't won two games in this event in 40 years.
COACH GREENBERG: I think it would mean that this is a special group and this is a group that maybe has to be thought of as maybe one of the best this year in this moment in time, one of the best teams that it's played in Virginia Tech, and that'd be a nice thing for this group to be thought of that way. And also, obviously it would be a great accomplishment because we're representing something bigger than ourselves now, let's face it. Everyone's got a score card when it comes to the NCAA Tournament. You're an individual score card representing your league. So I think it would be obviously flattering for our league if Virginia Tech, the school that was kind of like the throw-in to expansion, ended up advancing. So we're playing for a lot of different things, but I think it's something that would be very special.
REPORTER: You had a lot of veteran players who watched the tournament on TV for years.
COACH GREENBERG: Drinking pina-coladas I found out.
REPORTER: Never played until last night.
COACH GREENBERG: Virgin pina-coladas.
REPORTER: Were you worried about stage fright and maybe having played a game and won that you might get a more relaxed performance out of them tomorrow?
COACH GREENBERG: I'm not sure about that. I did tell our guys in our meeting in the film session, if you look at the history of the NCAA Tournament, obviously Ohio State had one today where there's always a team that makes a run in the tournament that at some time during that first round game, people have them written off and they find a way somehow, some way to win that game. When I was in Virginia, we barely got by Oden, and we barely got by Arkansas and we barely got by Indiana. I try to remind those guys and plant that seed that the first one is always the toughest and when it hasn't been in 11 and it 12 years, it's really tough, and when it was a goal that you set and now all of a sudden you've achieved that goal and you're really not sure where you're going with that goal, what you're going to do next, so I think that's kind of something that our guys better understand, hopefully we can paint the picture. That team tomorrow is really good, they've got goals too.
REPORTER: Seth, you mentioned about yesterday's game being ugly, tomorrow being doubly ugly. Prior to last night's game, did you feel confident about your team in ugly games or double ugly games?
COACH GREENBERG: I don't know about double ugly. Ugly games we're pretty good. Double ugly, I have to still evaluate. We haven't played too many. I think we're -- again, in the tournament, you have to have guards who make plays and if you play ugly down the stretch, the ball's probably going to be in the guard's hands and he's going to make a play. We've won close games this year, not as many as Southern Illinois. I told the coaches, they're the best I've seen in finding a way to win close games, finding a rebound, getting a good shot. They've had a magical year when it comes to making a play when they need to make a play. It's been good for the guys. It's been Tatum. It's been Shaun. They've had a lot of different guys step up and make good plays for them. I believe our kids. I like our team. I think they believe in each other. I think they trust each other. This year, you think about it, we've won three overtime games. The only game we lost down the stretch where we didn't make a play that we really had a chance to win was the Clemson game the last home game of the season. We've won close games all season. If you're going to have a run, especially in our league, you're going to play a lot of close games and we are if we're going to play close games, I don't mind playing them with my guards.
REPORTER: After yesterday, after last Saturday, who do you have confidence offensively in out of your team now? Where does the scoring come from tomorrow? How does it get better?
COACH GREENBERG: Who do I have confidence in? I have four guys in double figures. Coleman is a double figure scorer. Someone will step up and make a bucket. We missed some shots. If all of a sudden I say, Zabian, by the way, I have no confidence in you, in fact, don't shoot the ball -- I have confidence in our guys. They're going to make shots. They're going to make winning plays. This time of the year, look at all the scores. It's not like anyone is flowing offensively. These games are won by competing at a high level. And when you have -- especially when you have five days to prepare, you have five days to prepare for a game, all right? You're going to be able to take something away from your opponent, if not, you're struggling a little bit, so they had five days to prepare for us. I think, Southern Illinois, that's who they are. But I have great confidence in our guys. The thing I like about it is we have a number of different guys that in a given moment in time can make a play. I'm not sure in your fantasy you had Deron Washington going three from the three. If one guy is not making a play, hopefully A. D. will step up or Jamon will make a shot or Coleman will get it going. Cheick stepped up and made some plays. We didn't trust each other for a few minutes. When we started making the extra pass and looking to probe a little bit more, it wasn't beautiful, but we got good shots. I look at the NC State game, eight for 19 from the free throw line. We got good shots, but didn't make them. You want to make them.
REPORTER: Does Zabian need to do anything to improve?
COACH GREENBERG: We're going to trust the guys that have played at a high level for us and believe in them and power them and put our arms around them, so let's play some ball, 40 minutes.
REPORTER: Seth, do you have to fight any kind of notion that you're playing with house money now, you've advanced in the tournament, no matter what happens, it's a hell of a year, that kind of thing?
COACH GREENBERG: You know me well enough, if you guys think they can walk around -- whatever that would mean, that's far from how I live my life. We're going to challenge them tonight. We're going to challenge them tomorrow morning. We're not satisfied, nor is Southern Illinois satisfied. One of these two teams is going to go to the Sweet 16. That's an accomplishment. That's something special. If you can't get fired up about that, then you're not a very competitive individual. I noticed kids on Southern Illinois, they're competitive, and rest assured our guys are going to be competitive. Going into the tournament, it was a concern just in the first round game coming up so quickly how we were going to respond. Now they've got a little taste. Once you've got a little taste, it's like everything else, you want a little more. This tournament, it can become addictive. So I think our guys want to stick around as long as they can. We'll work towards that goal.
