We are still about 5 weeks 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 continues our coverage with GCU head coach Bryce Drew, who talked about his famous shot and his expectations for this season.
During high school you required 3 surgeries to repair a rapid heartbeat but were eventually named Mr. Basketball in Indiana after helping lead your 28-0 Valparaiso High School team all the way to the state title game before an OT loss to South Bend Clay High School: how close did you come to never playing basketball again, and how close did you come to going undefeated? A lot of it was just the blessing of having the doctor fix my heart. I was young/naive at the time but there was a risk that I would never play again. We were about 1 second away: Jaraan Cornell hit a shot at the end of regulation to send it to OT.
In the 1997 NCAA tourney as a player at Valparaiso you set a tourney school-record with 27 PTS/8-12 3PM in a 7-PT loss to BC: was it just 1 of those scenarios where every shot you put up seemed to go in because you were “in the zone”? Yes: during that 1st half for sure. They switched to a box-and-1 and I did not get as many shots in the 2nd half.
Take me through the magical 1998 NCAA tourney:
You had 22 PTS/8 AST in a 1-PT win over Mississippi including your famous game-winning/ESPY-winning 23-footer at the buzzer on a play called “Pacer” (named after the NBA team that your father/coach Homer learned it from): how did that shot change your life (if at all)? At the time we were just excited that we won the game. We never thought it would have the magnitude that it did. I do not think it changed who I was but a LOT more people became aware of our school after seeing it on TV. Many people tell me that they remember exactly where they were when the shot went in.
You scored 22 PTS in a 6-PT OT win over Florida State after Bill Jenkins made the 2nd of 2 FTs at the end of regulation to send it to OT: did you think that Bill was going to make his FT, and what is the key to winning close games in March? You definitely need to get some breaks and have the ball bounce your way. Bill was not a great FT shooter (64%) but all of the hard work he put in showed during that big moment.
You finished your college career as the school’s all-time leader in several categories (PPG/APG/3PM) and were later nominated as 1 of the 150 most influential people in school history: did you realize at the time how prolific a player you were, and do you think you belong above or below Orville Redenbacher?! I think Orville is definitely the most famous guy from Valpo: a LOT of people eat his popcorn. I even took a photo with his statue downtown. I was always striving to be better and achieve my goal of making the NBA and was able to pass some guys who were ranked higher than me.
In 1998 you became the 1st-ever 1st round pick in school history when you were drafted 16th overall by Houston (6 spots behind Paul Pierce): did you see that as a validation of your college career, or the realization of a lifelong dream of reaching the NBA, or other? It was definitely something that I had been working towards for a long time and was pretty surreal.
You were a 3-time conference tourney MVP as a player, and in the past 11 years as a coach at Valparaiso/Vanderbilt/GCU you have made 5 NCAA tourneys and were NIT runner-up in 2016: what is the biggest difference between regular season vs. postseason? The level of play goes up so you need to reach the next level of focus/determination. It is really hard to turn it on/off so it depends on the habits that you have already created.
Your father Homer won 600+ games during his college career, your brother Scott won the 2021 NCAA title as coach at Baylor, and your brother-in-law Casey Shaw is 1 of your assistant coaches: who is the best coach in the family? I will go with my dad, who has been a mentor for all of us and is the only 1 of us in the Hall of Fame.
You have 5 seniors and 1 redshirt senior on the roster: how crucial will all of that experience be to your team’s success? We are hoping that it plays a big part with the maturity of understanding what it takes to win. The veterans are further along in life and will play better on the court together.
You had a birthday last week: what did you do for the big day? Not much: we had practice and a family dinner cooked by my wife/son.
What are your goals for this season, and what are your expectations for this season? Like most coaches I really like my team as it is coming together. Staying healthy is a big thing and then making sure we get/stay on the same page.