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Georgia State got to try on Cinderella’s slipper last March after their 1-PT upset of #3-seed Baylor in the NCAA tourney, but it will not be easy to secure another invitation to the dance after losing their starting backcourt of RJ Hunter/Ryan Harrow. 1 man who showed that he is capable of shining in the spotlight is Markus Crider, who almost averaged a double-double while being named to the Sun Belt All-tourney team last year and then scored 10 PTS in each of the Panthers’ 2 NCAA tourney games. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Markus about being 1 of the best shooters in the Sun Belt and how he plans to celebrate his “Jordan” birthday next month.
In 2011 you played in the Ohio-Kentucky All-Star game: which of your teammates impressed you the most (Trey Burke/Travis Trice/Aaron White/other)? I cannot say that any 1 guy particularly impressed me more than any other. I grew up playing with those guys for years so I knew what they are capable of every day. I will say that my team impressed me because we were undersized compared to the Kentucky team. We started slowly but came together and found a way to win the game and represent for Ohio.
You play for Coach Ron Hunter: what makes him such a good coach, and what is the most important thing that you ever learned from him? His will to win: he puts us in the best possible position to come out with a victory. The most important thing that I have learned from him has nothing to do with basketball: he taught me about Samaritan’s Feet (which helps provide shoes to children in poverty) and helping others.
In the 2014 Sun Belt tourney title game you scored 4 PTS in a 1-PT OT loss to LA-Lafayette: where does that rank among the most devastating losses of your career? I do not consider it a devastating loss per se, but it was a crucial loss to me. It not only fueled me but also caused our entire team to work harder.
In the 2015 Sun Belt tourney title game you scored 8 PTS in a 38-36 win over Georgia Southern (who shot 22.9 FG%): did your team just play amazing defense, or were the Eagles ice-cold, or both? Both teams failed to shoot the ball well. You can say that we played better defense because we ended up getting stops when we needed to, along with rebounds and extra opportunities when they were needed, which turned into a victory.
In the 2015 NCAA tourney you scored 10 PTS in an 8-PT loss to Xavier: what did you learn from that game that you think can help you this year? The loss did not teach me much but rather showed me that in this game you truly need size. I played that game injured while needing surgery, and my team played their hearts out until the final second.
You lost your top-2 scorers from last year (RJ Hunter/Ryan Harrow): how much pressure is there on you to be a leader this year? Losing our top-2 scorers does not mean too much: we know that there will just be some new leading scorers this season. There is more leadership on my shoulders but I do not feel as if there is any more pressure than last year: I lead by example at all times, both on and off the court.
You have several good transfer players on your roster (including Willie Clayton/Isaiah Williams/Kevin Ware): how have you been able to integrate guys who enter your program after beginning their college careers elsewhere? Getting guys integrated to our system is not the easiest process, but it becomes easier over time. I remember how hard it was for me to learn our system, so as a senior I can help those guys leave their past accomplishments in the past and focus on our team’s goals.
Your 60 FG% was #2 in the conference last year: what is the key to being a great shooter? Being efficient is something that I have always done since I first started playing basketball. Being a good shooter is simply a matter of taking good shots and finding ways to get easy looks: that is how to shoot a high percentage.
You turn 23 next month: what are you doing for the big day? I will not do too much for my “Jordan or LeBron” year (due to their jersey #) because I will be focusing on getting in tip-top shape to start the season. I may decide to have some fried food or red meat for my birthday since I do not usually eat those things, but after that it will be back to preparing to win another championship!
What are your goals for the upcoming season, and what are your expectations for the upcoming season? My individual goals are to earn All-Sun Belt 1st-Team honors and be named conference POY. For the team, my expectations are to win the conference outright to earn a 3rd-straight regular season title, go back to the NCAA tourney, and win more than 1 game.