We are still a couple of months away from the tip-off of the college basketball season, which means that we have plenty of time to prepare for the action ahead. We will do so via a series of season previews featuring the best players/coaches in the country. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel commences our coverage with UNC Asheville F Drew Pember, who talked about being named conference POY/DPOY and his expectations for this season.
You were born/raised in Knoxville and began your college career at Tennessee: why did you decide to transfer, and what made you choose UNC Asheville? 1 of the biggest reasons was playing style but I also wanted to get some more playing time. My former high school teammate Trent Stephney loved it here and convinced me that I would be a good fit in their system.
You play for Coach Mike Morrell: what makes him such a good coach, and what is the most important thing that you have learned from him so far? The biggest takeaway is “growth”. Even if we make turnovers or have questionable shot selection it is not “bad” but just a chance to grow. Off the court he is kind of a bro and just 1 of the guys, but on the court he demands our respect and we have all bought into that. He is good at teaching and being lenient with different concepts/scenarios: he has been phenomenal.
Last January you scored a school-record 48 PTS/8-10 3PM in an 8-PT OT win over Presbyterian: was it just 1 of those situations where every shot you put up seemed to go in because you were “in the zone”? Yeah: it was a surreal feeling. I do not remember a lot about that game except the 1st 5-7 minutes. My teammates did an unbelievable job of finding me for good looks so I just had to make open shots. I took what the defense gave me: there was nothing planned but my teammates believed in me.
You finished the season by being named conference POY/DPOY and were the 1st Big South player to ever lead the league in PPG/RPG/BPG in the same season: how do you balance your offense with your defense? It is hard because I am not a big individual stat guy: I know that I would not have won any of those awards without getting some shots and having others sacrifice some minutes. I get a lot of rebounds due to my teammates blocking out so it is kind of skewed: I am a by-product of the team and just play my role. I plan to take a bigger leadership role this year but we will have a bigger target on our backs. I am not focused on individual accolades and have never been like that.
You led the nation with 266 FTM/318 FTA: what is the secret to getting to the line and then making your FTs after doing so (career 84.2 FT%)? Just not settling. With my height I can take a shot whenever I want, which opens up driving lanes/opportunities for my teammates. Free throws are free points: I did not realize how many I had made until about halfway through the season. I put a lot of emphasis on my FTs and will continue to do that and convince my teammates to do the same.
In the 2023 Big South tourney you had 3 single-digit wins in 3 days en route to clinching the title and being named tourney MVP: how were you able to play your best when it mattered the most, and what was the feeling like in your locker room afterward? Just having your teammates believe in you. Even back in June of 2022 we thought that we could win it. Coach Morrell harps on being 1% better tomorrow than you were today. It was surreal in the locker room: it did not hit me until a few days later. I was so happy for Tay (Tajion Jones), who had been here for like 18 years! He worked his tail off and you could see him in the gym every day, which translated to his hot stretch vs. Campbell in the tourney title game (he finished with 24 PTS). Now we know what it takes to win games like that and we will keep pushing this year.
In the 2023 NCAA tourney you scored 13 PTS/4-8 FG in an 86-53 loss to UCLA: what did you learn from that game that you think will help you this year? I am really thankful that they beat us like that: it was kind of a shock and the moment was bigger than I had prepared for. When you get punched in the mouth like that it makes you want to get better. Our team learned a lot about ourselves: we have not really looked at the film but eventually we will go back to watch it and learn from it.
How close did you come to going pro last spring, and why did you decide to return to Asheville? I was not as close to going pro as people thought. I had good numbers last year but losing to UCLA left a really bad taste in my mouth and I did not want to go out like that. I knew I had to get stronger and that has been my primary focus: I have lived in the weight room since that loss. I still need to work on reducing my turnovers and continuing to get shots up. It would have been nice to go pro but hopefully I can bring the Asheville community another banner this year. The physical aspect is where I needed to grow the most.
Your mother Allison played college volleyball and your father Donny played college basketball: who is the best athlete in the family? It is me, for sure! My dad could not really jump a lick but I got a little bit of bounce from my mom. I think they would agree that it is me…but my dad and I would bicker back and forth.
What are your goals for this season, and what are your expectations for this season? Win games, be a good teammate, and be a good leader. I feel there is still a lot that I can do for my team: I do not care if they want me to get the water bottles/towels during timeouts!