Only 4 teams this season won 30+ games: Gonzaga/San Diego State/East Tennessee State/Liberty. On March 8th the Flames beat Lipscomb 73-57 in the Atlantic Sun tourney title game to earn an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. Liberty had never won more than 23 games in a season for the majority of its D-1 history before winning 29 games last season and 30 this season while claiming back-to-back NCAA tourney bids. Earlier this week HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to speak with Liberty SR G Caleb Homesley about upsetting Mississippi State in last year’s NCAA tourney and the impact of the coronavirus on college basketball.
You grew up in North Carolina: what made you choose Liberty? I was not heavily recruited until I grew a little bit during the summer before my senior year. Liberty made me an offer during my junior year but I put them at the bottom of my list. I tore my ACL as a senior but they were the only school who stuck with me: they felt like family.
After your high school injury you only played 8 games as a sophomore with the Flames before undergoing ACL surgery: how bad were your injuries, and how were you able to get back onto the court? I tore my other ACL as a sophomore. I knew that I would be able to come back after overcoming my 1st injury: I knew what the rehab process would be like but did not want to rush anything.
You play for Coach Ritchie McKay: what makes him such a good coach, and what is the most important thing that you ever learned from him? He is 1 of those guys who is not all about basketball. He wants us to be good players but our relationship is not based on how well I play. He is a father figure to me and is always checking up on me. I did not really believe in what he was doing until after my 2nd surgery.
In the 2019 NCAA tourney you tied a career-high with 30 PTS/5-11 3PM in a 4-PT upset of Mississippi State before a 9-PT loss to Virginia Tech: what did you learn from that postseason run that helped you this season? We were down by 10 PTS toward the end of the Mississippi State game: I remember walking to the huddle during a timeout with 6 minutes left and there was no panic. The loss to Virginia Tech was not fun but we watched the film after that game and learned how to conquer adversity.
You started the season 14-0 before a loss at LSU in late-December (you scored 10 PTS): how good are the Tigers? They were pretty good: that night we got their best shot because they were coming off of a pair of losses. We had a hard time playing at our slow tempo and they dictated the pace a little more in the 2nd half.
In the Atlantic Sun tourney title game earlier this month you scored 16 PTS in a win over Lipscomb to clinch the title: how were you able to get the win after losing at Lipscomb the previous weekend, and what was the feeling like in your locker room afterward? We knew that it would be hard with a title on the line. Our execution was good because our effort was good. The celebration in the locker room was fun: last year we won on the road but this year we got to celebrate at home with our fans.
Earlier this month you were named Atlantic Sun conference POY/conference tourney MVP: what did it mean to you to receive such outstanding honors? Without my teammates I would not have won them. It shows that all of the work I put in and the routine that I stuck to all year long worked. It was evident at the end of the year because I was dedicated to what I was doing.
Each of your top-4 scorers are seniors: how crucial is all of that veteran leadership to your team’s success? It was very crucial. Scottie James was our go-to guy last year but this year he took a step back because there were more guys who could do other things this year: I salute him for that. Myo Baxter-Bell came off the bench even though he could start for any team in the country and Georgie Pacheco-Otriz also allowed other players to do things. Ultimately we are all winners.
What kind of seed do you think that you deserved? Everyone was projecting us around an 11 or 12 seed. Last year we beat a 5 seed and showed that we can play well in big games. I would say we deserve a 12 seed due to our 3 conference losses.
Any thoughts on the impact of the coronavirus on college basketball this month? At 1st I did not take it seriously but now I have realized that it is affecting the entire world. After I heard that the NBA season was postponed I knew that something serious would happen with college basketball. Now we just need to stay safe.