Basketball and Brains: HoopsHD interviews Detroit Mercy Academic All-American Antoine Davis

Posted on March 23, 2022 by Jon Teitel

March is not only a time for basketball players to start creating their legacies (Christian Koloko, everyone on St. Peter’s, etc.) but also a time to reflect on the careers of those seniors that have finally come to a close. Antoine Davis did a little of everything during the past 4 years at Detroit Mercy, from winning awards (2019 conference ROY/2022 conference co-POY) to putting up some of the best scoring/shooting stats that we have ever seen (2734 PTS/429 3PM, both of which are top-25 in the history of the sport). He did great things off the court as well, being named an Academic All-American last week with a 3.39 GPA as a Communications major. Earlier today HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Antoine about his work on the court and his work in the classroom.

You originally committed to Houston: what made you decide to switch to Detroit Mercy? I really wanted to play for my dad. He said that Houston was a great place due to Coach Kelvin Sampson and knows how good of a coach he is. I talked to Coach Sampson and he allowed me to get a waiver and play for my dad.

Your father Mike is your head coach and your brother Mike Jr. is 1 of your assistant coaches: how do you like playing for your father, and what is it like to have a brother on the coaching staff? Freshman year was a little rough but it gave us a better bond with 1 another: I really was glad that I could take advantage of the opportunity.

As a freshman you scored 48 PTS/10-15 3PM in a win over Wright State: was it just 1 of those scenarios where every shot you put up seemed to go in because you were “in the zone”? Yes. I had a really good warm-up from what I remember and then had a really good game after having a nice game the previous week at Youngstown State (27 PTS/7-14 3PM).

In 2019 you broke Steph Curry’s NCAA freshman record with 132 3PM and were named conference ROY: how were you able to come in and contribute right from the start? I just kept doing what I did to get here. I worked hard every summer and kept preparing for the moment.

Earlier this month you were named conference co-POY: what did it mean to you to receive such an outstanding honor? It is a blessing. I feel like it was long overdue/well-deserved but everything happens for a reason.

Last week you were named 2nd-team Academic All-American: how do you balance your work on the court with your work in the classroom? There are some days where I cannot hang out with my friends or do other fun stuff because of basketball/schoolwork: those were 2 things I really cared about. Everyone in college wants to have fun but I really wanted my degree and am working hard for it.

Last Wednesday in the 2022 TBC you scored 24 PTS/3-8 3PM in a loss at FGCU, finishing your career in the top-25 all-time with 2734 PTS/429 3PM: I know that you wish that your team was still playing, but how does it feel to be 1 of the best scorers/3-PT shooters in college basketball history? That sounds unreal! I never thought of it like that until you mentioned it. It shows that all of the work I have put in through the years has paid off.

This year you led the conference in FT shooting for the 3rd straight year: what is the secret to making FTs? Like everything you do, whatever you put into it is what you will get out of it. I work on my FT shooting after every practice. I try to do 20 “swishes” so if even 1 of them hits the rim then I will start over.

You have a 3.39 GPA as a Communications major: why did you pick that subject, and what is the post-graduation plan? I can do a lot with Communications. I might go into coaching or fashion so I feel I can use my degree for that but I am keeping my options open.

When people look back on your college career, how do you want to be remembered the most? Not just as a great player but also a great person off the court. I tried to be really respected and hope that people speak well about me until the day I die.

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The Hoops HD Report: Sweet Sixteen Edition

Posted on March 21, 2022 by David Griggs

Tonight we start with a quick recap of the game of musical chairs that the coaches play each year, and discuss some of the major moves that we’ve seen so far.  After that, we recap a crazy and exciting first weekend of The Tournament, which saw a #15 seed advancing to the Sweet Sixteen for the second year in a row.  Saint Peter’s win over Kentucky is in the top two for the biggest surprises in the entire history of The Tournament.  We also discuss how impressive Houston and North Carolina have looked, TCU’s exciting effort against Arizona, how Texas Tech has beaten teams with their defense, and how all four #1 seeds struggled in the Round of 32.  We also preview the upcoming Sweet Sixteen games, and re-pick our Final Four teams.  All that, and more…

And for all you radio lovers, below is an audio only version of the show…

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Puppet Ramblings: About the NCAA Tournament, and Some Other Stuff

Posted on March 20, 2022 by David Griggs

I’ve been living in a world where I’ve been with some lifelong friends, we’ve been drinking beer for 14 hours a day, and having fast food delivered to the house on a regular basis.  It has been a lifestyle that pretty much all seven of the deadly sins warned humanity against.  We do it every year, and while I pretty much prefer to live this way all year round, it does start to take a toll on some of the amateurs.  March Madness Baby!!!

SAINT PETER’S

-I’ll start with Saint Peter’s.  I don’t think I’ve ever been as surprised by a sporting event in my life as I was when they beat Kentucky.  That is saying a lot, because I have been utterly dumbfounded.  UMBC over Virginia comes to mind.  Hell, UMBC beating Vermont to even get to the NCAA Tournament was a surprise that year, and then to not just beat Virginia but blow them off the court was stupefying.  Well, if Saint Peter’s didn’t surpass that, it was certainly on that level.  They did finish second in the Metro Atlantic, but they had six conference losses, and while they went into the conference tournament on a bit of a hot streak winning five out of six, four of those five teams had losing records.  There was ZERO indication that they had what it took to beat Kentucky.  Anyone who says they saw this coming honestly probably needs to reexamine how they go about evaluating teams, because it was so out of left field that anything that accurately predicted it is probably very inaccurate in predicting and assessing other games most of the time.  Saint Peter’s never once made the Under the Radar Top Ten.  Saint Peter’s had multiple losses at home to teams way outside the top 200 of virtually all the metrics.  And on the other side, Kentucky appeared to be an absolute machine!!  They were certainly my pick to win it all, and while it wouldn’t have shocked me had they not done that, I am shocked that they lost to Saint Peter’s.

But, HUGE congrats to the Peacocks and their program!!  They followed it up with another win against a very good Murray State team.  That’s not nearly as shocking as the win over Kentucky, but Saint Peter’s controlled the game from pretty much tip to buzzer.  It has been unbelievable how well they’ve played in this tournament.

OTHER TIDBITS

-Michigan, who many didn’t want in the tournament, has played their way into the Sweet Sixteen after taking down a Colorado State team who looked good in the Mountain West, and a Tennessee team that everyone felt should be in the Final Four.  I think selecting Michigan was the right thing, but I never look to see what a team does in the tournament to verify a selection.  I would have felt that way even had they lost to Colorado State.

-Providence blasted their way through the first two rounds, and beat two pretty good teams in South Dakota State who many were picking as a first round upset (including myself), and a Richmond team that is difficult to match-up against because of how well they screen and cut.  It was two teams that aren’t overstocked with talent, but can still be very tough to play against and beat because of how they play.

-North Carolina blew a 25pt lead against Baylor in the Round of 32, and as the game went into overtime I don’t think too many people thought they’d win after having that much momentum taken away from them, but they got it done.  North Carolina did very little to impress me this year, and until they won at Duke I really hadn’t thought of them as doing anything, but they’re clearly playing well at the right time and it wouldn’t shock me if they won their next game.

-The Loyola Chicago vs Ohio State First Round game may have been one of the worst played NCAA Tournament games of all time.  Not to worry, because the Arkansas vs New Mexico State game just a day later may have been even worse!!  It was exciting, but it was also very poorly played. But, that doesn’t matter.  Arkansas held on and will go to the Sweet Sixteen.  It was nice to see New Mexico State get to the Round of 32.  I oftentimes feel that they are a very strong program that is under-appreciated and under-rewarded because of tough early tournament exits.  They finally got back to the Round of 32 this year.

-Once again a First Four team is in the Round of 32.  Notre Dame knocked off Alabama rather handily 78-64.  So, the streak is alive!

TODAY’S GAMES

-Houston v Illinois is interesting.  I keep waiting for Houston’s injuries to catch up to them, but they looked outstanding in their Round of 64 win against UAB.

-Ohio State did not look outstanding at all in their win over Loyola Chicago, and will need to play much better today if they want to stay on the court with Villanova.

-Duke and Michigan State are playing in the NCAA Tournament!!  The networks will always find a way to make that happen!!

-Iowa State has had a good year, but I think Wisconsin will be too much for them today.

-Same with Notre Dame and Texas Tech.  ND’s offense has been great in their first two games, but they will face a smothering Texas Tech team today.

-I’ve liked this Miami FL team all year long, and as good as Auburn has been, I think the Canes have a chance.

-Texas and Purdue seems to be pretty much dead even.

-Arizona will probably be too much for TCU.

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All-Access at the 1st/2nd rounds in San Diego: Saturday press conferences

Posted on March 19, 2022 by Jon Teitel

The NCAA tournament is about basketball but also so much more: the fans, bands, cheerleaders, etc. The 1st/2nd rounds are taking place in 8 cities around the country and we could not be more excited to be there in person! HoopsHD is covering all of the angles so you can look forward to a cascade of coverage in the days ahead. Jon Teitel continues our coverage from San Diego with recaps of the press conferences for all 4 teams who survived Friday and advanced to Sunday.

Texas Tech

I asked SR G Adonis Arms about the defensive plan when facing a hot shooter like Notre Dame’s Cormac Ryan (who made 7-9 3PM vs. Alabama yesterday). He said that it takes a team effort: Ryan is a great shooter so they need to force him to do other things that he is not as great at.

I asked Coach Mark Adams how SR F Kevin Obanor has been able to elevate his game in the postseason (he had his 4th double-double vs. Montana State yesterday after having 1 in each of his 3 prior NCAA tourney games last year at Oral Roberts). He said that Obanor is a great competitor who wants to keep his team alive. He has been 1 of their best offensive rebounders and his defense has really improved. He will do whatever it takes to get on the court and find a way to win.


Notre Dame

I asked SR F Nate Laszewski about being a great 3-PT shooter (his 46.1 3P% is top-15 in the country) and whether his father Jay is following him this week or just concentrating on his own alma mater (Wisconsin). He said that his dad made it out to his 2 games so far, which was awesome…but that he is also following the Badgers. 3-PT shooting will be key because his teammates try to drive and kick so when they get into the lane he spots up for open threes and they find him.

I asked Coach Mike Brey about being tied for the most NCAA tourney wins in school history with Digger Phelps and whether Digger will still get him something nice for his birthday next Tuesday if he breaks the record. He said that if he gets kidnapped tonight then the primary suspect will be Digger. He brought Digger a bottle of champagne for his 80th birthday last 4th of July. They still tease each other: he joked that similar to managing a high-maintenance player, he has had to manage a high-maintenance ex-coach for the past 22 years!


Arizona

I asked SO F Azuolas Tubelis about his team’s ability to contain several NCAA tourney teams with great PGs who they faced in the regular season (Hunter Maldonado of Wyoming/Kennedy Chandler of Tennessee/Tyger Campbell of UCLA) and how that will translate to facing Mike Miles Jr. of TCU. He said that they will do the same thing that worked before because the coaches do a good job of preparing them so the players just have to go out there and deliver.

I asked Coach Tommy Lloyd how well he knows Jamie Dixon since they have both been in the NCAA tourney at least a dozen times in the past 2 decades but never faced each other in March. He said that Jamie is friends with all of the senior coaches in his coaching tree and is a great guy who always goes out of his way to talk to him and has always been cordial.


TCU


I asked SO PG Mike Miles Jr. about facing a #1 seed for the 6TH time in the past 10 weeks (0-2 vs. Baylor and 1-2 vs. Kansas). He said that they will have to be at their best. They already beat Kansas as well as Texas Tech (who he thinks is a great team even though they are not a #1 seed). They know what it takes to beat the top teams: defense, rebounding, and limiting opportunities in transition.

I asked Coach Jamie Dixon the same question. He said he knew it was something like that but thanked me for adding it up for him! The lack of preparation/practice time during the past couple of months was a unique situation. His team has been challenged but knows what it takes to beat #1-seed-caliber teams, although the 1st Baylor game seems so far away because his guys are a much different team now. Their league prepares them well for these types of games and he thinks it is an advantage.

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All-Access at the 1st/2nd rounds in San Diego: Seton Hall vs. TCU

Posted on March 19, 2022 by Jon Teitel

The NCAA tournament is about basketball but also so much more: the fans, bands, cheerleaders, etc. The 1st/2nd rounds are taking place in 8 cities around the country and we could not be more excited to be there in person! HoopsHD is covering all of the angles so you can look forward to a cascade of coverage in the days ahead. Jon Teitel continues our coverage from San Diego with a recap of Seton Hall vs. TCU.

The last game of the day also featured the ugliest start of the day, as the 2 teams combined to miss 11 of their 1st 13 3-PT attempts. TCU only made 1 three in the 1st 20 minutes but got several 2-pointers from JR PG Mike Miles Jr. to head to halftime with a 30-21 lead.

Seton Hall coach Kevin Willard hustled to the locker room to try to figure out a good strategy for the 2nd stanza.

It did not get much prettier in the 2nd half, as TCU opened up a huge lead thanks to a great all-around performance by JR G Damion Baugh, who finished with 14 PTS/5 REB/6 AST.

The Horned Frogs won by a score of 69-42 and will face Arizona on Sunday with the winner going to the Sweet 16 next week.
In the postgame press conference I asked Mike Miles Jr. about winning a gold medal with Coach Dixon last summer and then winning the school’s 1st NCAA tourney game in 35 years tonight. He said that he trusts his coach to always put the team in a great position to win and that they are always on the same page. They previously talked about getting an NCAA tourney win but now have to remain focused on their next game this Sunday.

I asked Coach Jamie Dixon if he thought that it would take 35 years for his alma mater to win another NCAA tourney game (he scored 11 PTS in the prior win over Marshall in 1987) and whether he can admit that he is the lucky charm. He said that he has good players and the Horned Frogs won the NIT in 2017 so hopefully this is the start of more to come. The reason it has taken awhile to get it together is due to having 11 new players but they are very close and he thinks that is the reason they won the game.

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Tourney Talk: HoopsHD interviews Notre Dame pom squad member Caroline Leonard

Posted on March 18, 2022 by Jon Teitel

It has been a wild week for the Irish: sweating out Selection Sunday waiting to hear their name called, then a 2-PT 2-OT win over Rutgers in Dayton on Wednesday, followed by a 14-PT win over Alabama in San Diego earlier today. Their reward: a date with Texas Tech on Sunday afternoon to see who will go to the Sweet 16 next week! Earlier today HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to speak with Notre Dame pom squad member Caroline Leonard about being a “uniquely student-led team” and that wild win on Wednesday night.

You grew up in Tennessee: what made you choose Notre Dame? My dad actually went to Notre Dame and my mom went to Saint Mary’s so I have been a Notre Dame fan my entire life! I actually went to Saint Mary’s for two years before transferring over to ND. I loved Saint Mary’s but admired the tradition and academic excellence Notre Dame would offer me.

You have 8 siblings: what impact has having such a large family had on you? Having such a large family has always been my biggest blessing. There was always something going on when I was growing up so I never got bored! The friendships I have formed with my siblings have given me the opportunity to learn so much about myself and about being friends with and caring for other people outside of my family as well. My 5 brothers/3 sisters are all so unique that it is so much fun when we all get to be together.

You got your bachelor’s degree in Psychology last year and are now pursuing a Masters of Science in Management degree: why did you pick those subjects, and what is the post-graduation plan? I chose Psychology for undergrad because it was just the first subject that I was actually truly interested in learning about. I love the science behind what happens in people’s minds and how that prompts them to act in certain ways: it is just intriguing! For my Masters, I chose Notre Dame’s MSM program because it offered me the opportunity to take an ample amount of business classes, giving me the tools I need to succeed in my future. The MSM program is geared towards students who did not major in business in undergrad: everyone is on the same playing field and trying to learn as much as possible about business and management before we go out into the real world. I currently have no set post-graduation plan, but am applying for jobs and keeping my options open. I know that my first job is probably not going to be what I do for the rest of my life but I am excited to start this next chapter in my life.

How did you 1st get into pom, and what is the best part? I began dancing at age 12 at a dance studio in my hometown of Hendersonville, TN, and danced competitively there until I graduated high school. I also danced on my high school’s dance team, which is what made me fall in love with the “team” aspect of dance/pom. The two types of dance are similar but the dance team focuses more on cheering for your school! When I came to Notre Dame I knew that I wanted to keep dancing. Pom Squad allowed me to do that and it has been the biggest blessing being a part of such a close-knit group of dedicated and hardworking individuals the past 4 years.

Your website says you are a “uniquely student-led team”: what does that mean? Pom Squad is actually a Club Sport so we are not funded by the University at all. We raise all our own money to fund our uniforms, poms, and other team necessities. We are student led in that we do not have a coach: it is run by two co-captains that essentially do it all! They plan, schedule, market, choreograph, and run practices/the team. The captains are basically the coaches but we lead our peers, which provides challenges of course, but also is very rewarding. I have been blessed to be captain of the Pom Squad for two years now.

What do you think the role of a college pom squad is today, and how has it changed over time? The role of a college pom squad is to always promote spirit for the school you are cheering for. We are different from cheer in that we perform short dances for athletic events rather than tumble and do stunts. Over time, college pom squads/dance teams have evolved into a more competitive nature. These girls put in just as much time and effort as other athletic teams but are often not as recognized in what they do.

How frustrating has it been to be part of a spirit squad for a great basketball team during a pandemic? Extremely! It was so hard providing opportunities for the Pom Squad to perform at. During a time where everyone really needed some spirit and pep we were unable to give it to them: it was hard on everybody. All we wanted to do was be able to cheer on our teams and get everyone involved again. We were very lucky and happy to be able to get back to cheering and dancing at games this season.

Last Sunday the Irish made the NCAA tourney as an at-large selection: how excited was everybody to see them make the NCAA tourney for the 1st time since 2017? It was incredible! Our basketball team has really worked hard and everyone was so excited that they would finally get another opportunity to showcase their talent in their sport.

On Wednesday night in the 1st 4 Notre Dame had a 2-PT 2-OT win over Rutgers: where does that rank among the most exciting games that you have ever seen, and was the campus going nuts after the last-second win? That game was so exciting especially since it was ND’s first time in the NCAA tournament in a long time. It was definitely one of the most exciting games that I have seen, and yes the campus was crazy-happy!

Any predictions for Sunday vs. Texas Tech? I think that as long as we come out strong from the very start we have a good chance of getting another Irish win!

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