Yesterday Oakland beat Milwaukee 83-76 in the Horizon tourney title game to earn an automatic bid to next week’s NCAA tournament. The Golden Grizzlies made the NCAA tourney 3 times in a 7-year stretch from 2005-2011 but are finally heading back there after a 13-year absence. Earlier today HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to speak with Oakland SR F Trey Townsend about what it means to be in the same sentence as Kevin Durant.
You were born/raised in Michigan: what made you choose Oakland? I grew up about 25 minutes from here and my parents played basketball here so I have always been around the university and always wanted to come here.
You play for Coach Greg Kampe: what makes him such a good coach, and what is the most important thing that you have learned from him so far? He has been coaching at this level for 40 years at 1 spot, which is a crazy stat to have. He has had such great success and motivates us to lead each other because he knows what it takes to be the best.
You are 1 of the team captains this year: what is the key to being a good leader? My co-captain Blake Lampman is more of a vocal leader but I like to lead by example. We are a perfect combination in that it gives the other guys a chance to pick and choose how they connect with us.
You led the conference this year with 159 FTM: how much of your offensive strategy is focused on getting to the FT line? I play a pretty phsyical game and am in the post a lot so taller guys will always try to block my shots and let me draw fouls. I worked on my FTs in the offseason and it has paid off. You started this season 6-8 but have won 17 of your past 20 games: how was your team able to flip the switch starting on New Year’s Eve? We always knew that this group was really talented based on our performance against power conference teams (like Ohio State/Illinois/Xavier/Michigan State). It took a while for the new guys to get comfortable in our system because we play a complicated zone defense but eventually it worked out.
Last week you were named conference POY: what did it mean to you to receive such an oustanding honor? It was such a surreal feeling. Growing up I always wanted to be part of this program. It was such a competitive conference this year but since we finished as the 1-seed I have to give a lot of credit to my teammates.
Last night in the Horizon tourney title game you scored a career-high 38 PTS in a 7-PT win over Milwaukee, becoming the 2nd player in the past 25 years to have 35+ PTS/10+ REB/40+ minutes in a conference championship game (along with Kevin Durant for Texas in 2007): how were you able to play your best when it mattered the most, and what is it like to join such legendary company? Coach likes to say that big-time players make big-time plays, and I have a great supporting cast that always gives me confidence. I am a senior and the title game is a situation of “win or go home” so I had a lot more adrenaline than normal but fortunately my shot was falling. It is crazy for me to even be in the same sentence as a superstar like Durant!
You were able to get the win despite playing without Isaiah Jones/Rocket Watts: any idea if either of them will be back in the lineup next week? They are both dealing with some ankle injuries and will rehab all week and take it day by day. Hopefully we will have them both back next week but if not they will still be cheering us on from the bench.
Your mother Nicole/father Skip both played basketball at Oakland and you brother Zach will play soccer at Oakland: who is the best athlete in the family? My mom was the best basketball player back in the day but I think I have finally received enough accolades to pass her. All my siblings are athletic so it is definitely a competitive houshold.
What kind of seed do you think you deserve, and what kind of seed do you think you will get? I think we are capable of being a 13-seed based on how we played againt the Power 5 teams in non-conference play, and maybe even a 12-seed? Whatever see we end up with, I would hate to have to play against us in the tourney because we will be prepared and play like it is the last game of our career.
Last Sunday Longwood beat UNC-Asheville 85-59 in the Big South tourney title game to earn an automatic bid to next week’s NCAA tournament. The Lancers now have 3 straight 20+ win seasons and made the NCAA tourney for the 2nd time in the past 3 years. Earlier today HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to speak with Longwood SR F Michael Christmas about what it means to have both his former team and his current team going dancing this month.
You began your college career at JMU: are you still friends with anyone on their team, and how did you feel when they won their own conference tourney the other day? There are 2 guys who were on the team with me who I still talk to (Julien Wooden/Terrence Edwards) and it was good to see them get a championship. Their assistant coach Xavier Joyner also hit me up after my own game to give me some encouragement.
Why did you decide to transfer, and what made you choose Longwood? I just felt that it was time for me to move on from JMU. I had a good relationship with Coach Griff (Aldrich) when he recruited me as a high school senior so it was easy to get back on track. It felt like home here and he challenged me to be my best. What makes Aldrich such a good coach, and what is the most important thing that you have learned from him so far? His desire to win and to make us better and his love for us. He pushes us to our limits (even if we do not like it!), but it is just to make us better as young men. It has great to see his own growth and he had made me a better man.
You missed all of 2022 with an injury: how bad was it, and how were you able to get back onto the court? I broke my arm during a pickup game the day before classes started. I was only supposed to miss 6-8 weeks but due to a bone infection I had to undergo 4(!) other surgeries.
You started this season 12-1 and then lost 10 of your next 12: what the heck happened, and how did you turn things around over the past 4 weeks? We started the year very strong but were struggling with a lot of things in conference play. What helped us push through was trusting in our principles and believing in ourselves: we knew we were better than what our record was.
In the 2023 Big South tourney title game you scored 18 PTS in a win over UNC-Asheville: how were you able to play your best when it mattered the most, and what was the reaction like in your locker room afterward? I have always played well in big moments throughout my career. I knew that it was a big game and I was very emotional beforehand, which helped me play the way I did. There was both relief/excitement in the locker room. We went through a lot of adversity in conference play but it was nice to see that all the work paid off.
You shot 41.1 3P% this year: what is the secret to making shots from behind the arc? Just getting up reps every day and being consistent with workouts. Do not stray off your path if you get in a slump: keep working on it and it will come back to you.
You are 1 of 4 seniors on the roster: what is the key to being a veteran leader? My experience helps me guide the young guys. I have seen a lot in college so I can give them some good feedback and help them navigate the game.
Your brother Sean played college basketball: who is the best athlete in the family? Me, for sure! He ended up leaving after 2 years to help me get into college, which will always mean a lot to me.
What kind of seed do you think you deserve, and what kind of seed do you think you will get? I feel like we deserve a 14/15 seed…but I think they will put us at a 15/16.
Conference tournaments are about basketball but also so much more: the fans, parents, bands, cheerleaders, etc. The ACC Tournament tips off this week in Washington, DC, and we could not be more excited to be there in person! HoopsHD will be covering all the angles so you can look forward to an abundance of articles in the week ahead. Jon Teitel continues our coverage with an interview of Notre Dame basketball father Mike Zona about his son Matt.
In the 1984 NCAA tourney as a player at Iona you had a 1-PT loss to Virginia after your team made 9-17 FTs, and in the 1985 NCAA tourney you had a 1-PT loss to Loyola Chicago after your team made 12-22 FTs: how crucial is FT shooting to pulling off an upset in March? It is huge and is something that I stressed with my son from the time he began playing basketball. Had we not missed the back end of some 1-and-1s…
In 2020 your son Matt was named North Jersey Basketball POY after leading Bergen Catholic to a 22-7 record and averaging a double-double: what did it mean to you to see him receive such an outstanding honor? After all his hard work and all the hours in the driveway trying to get better it was the proper payoff.
What made him choose Notre Dame? He fell in love with it instantly: it was a place he wanted to go and had hoped to get an offer from. Not only would they offer him an amazing education but a tremendous campus life as well, so he felt he would get the full college experience.
What is your favorite memory of the Irish’s NCAA tourney run during his sophomore year (2-PT 2-OT win over Rutgers, upset of Alabama, then a 6-PT loss to Texas Tech)? I remember the Alabama game: it seemed like everything they put up went in that day! Coming off the barnburner with Rutgers and the hectic travel to get from Dayton to San Diego, it was nice to see things break their way.
After spending his 1st 3 years with Mike Brey he got a new coach this year in Micah Shrewsberry: was it a big adjustment to play for a new guy who was brought in from another program to replace a legend? It was an adjustment…but a good adjustment. He realized his position within the team and what he needed to do as a senior to accommodate not just the new players but also the coaches.
Notre Dame has played a tough schedule this year including Auburn/South Carolina/Marquette as well as several ACC schools who will make the NCAA tourney: which opponent impressed you the most? Probably Marquette: they were a very scary version of a team. Now North Carolina is that scary team. Despite coming out on the short end those are games that these kids will benefit from: when you take a licking you need to learn/mature from it.
He got his Bachelor of Business Administration in Management Consulting last year and will be getting his Master’s in Nonprofit Administration this spring: what is his post-graduation plan? We have not had any conversations yet: I just want him to get through the season and then we will address the next step.
He had a birthday last month: what did you get him for the big day? They were up in Syracuse, so we drove up there and had some cupcakes with the team in the lobby of the hotel. He did not really want anything fancy: he is easy!
You played both baseball/basketball in college: who is the best athlete in the family? Probably my daughter Emily: she plays soccer/lacrosse at Salisbury University in Maryland.
Matt scored 7 PTS in 7 minutes in the 4-PT win over Georgia Tech yesterday: do you think the Irish can keep it rolling today? It was a fantastic win for a young team: to beat any team 3 times in 1 year is an accomplishment. They have already beaten Wake Forest in their only matchup of the season 2 weeks ago so if they stick to the plan then they might just beat them again!
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We are only 4 days away from Selection Sunday as we continue to make our NCAA tourney predictions. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel correctly picked 67 of the 68 teams that made the 2023 tourney with 65 of his 67 within 1 spot of their actual seed, including 53 right on the money. He will spend the upcoming days predicting which 68 teams will hear their names called on March 17th. See below for his list of who would make the cut if they picked the field today and if you agree or disagree then feel free to tweet us. To see how he stacks up with other websites (ranked 11th out of 174 entries over the past 5 years), check out: www.bracketmatrix.com
Five more automatic bids were given out tonight as Saint Mary’s beat their rivals Gonzaga in a thrilling WCC championship game, Oakland is back in the NCAAs after winning the Horizon League, South Dakota State locked up the Summit League, Wagner beat the top 3 seeds all on the road to win the NEC, and Charleston repeated as CAA Champs. We discuss all of that, as well as all of the other conference tournament action…
