Tourney Talk: HoopsHD interviews Loyola Chicago dancer Grace McClain

Posted on March 15, 2022 by Jon Teitel

On March 6 Loyola Chicago beat Drake 64-58 in the MVC tourney title game to earn an automatic bid to this week’s NCAA tournament. The Ramblers were swept by the Bulldogs during the regular season but showed that the 3rd time is the charm as they made the NCAA tourney for the 3rd time since 2018. Earlier today HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to speak with Loyola Chicago dancer Grace McClain about dealing with COVID protocols and winning the conference tourney.

You grew up in Phoenix and later moved to San Diego: what made you choose Loyola Chicago? I had an aunt who went to Loyola and she told me all about the culture. My mom is from Chicago and I love the city. This is a great school and it invests so much in its students.

How did you 1st get into dancing, and what is the best part? I have been dancing since I was 10 years old and was on the dance team in both high school/college. My favorite part is the team aspect: bonding with everyone and feeling proud of myself and my teammates about what we accomplish every day.

What do you think the role of a college dancer is today, and how has it changed over time? It has definitely changed. In the past it was more stereotypical of just cheering on your team at games (which is something we focus on), but the dance world has changed so much and become more advanced. We are invested in winning a national title every year and are working toward that while growing Loyola spirit. We try to get more recognition for the hard work we put in.

You are majoring in Psychology: why did you pick that subject, and what do you hope to do after graduating? I have always been interested in it, especially social psychology: how people react to/think about certain situations. I have a job set up at a supply chain company so I will be working in customer service, where psychology will definitely help. I will also take some dance classes and keep training.

What does the dance team do at basketball games during the season? We are cheering on the guys the entire time and staying sharp/clean while engaging the crowd because they are just as important as us. We do routines during timeouts/halftime and work with the band/cheer team.

How frustrating has it been to be a dancer for a great basketball team during a pandemic? It was definitely frustrating. We would like to engage as much as we can but COVID protocols do not always allow us to do that. We are trying to stay positive and things are looking up and hopefully we can engage this weekend.

Last Sunday the Ramblers had a 6-PT win over Drake in the MVC tourney title game: how excited was everybody to win the conference tourney for the 2nd straight year? It was the most exciting win that I have ever experienced: I definitely cried! People were not really expecting it but I knew that we would pull it off. The energy was electric and we all believed in the team.

Does your squad have anything extra-special planned for the NCAA tournament? Our itinerary is not finalized but we will do a send-off for the team, which will be super-fun.

How does your school decide who gets to go to the tournament, and what will it mean to you to see your group doing its thing in front of a national TV audience? It is based on a point system as well as seniority: did you do extra workouts, extra volunteering, etc. It will be a once-in-a-lifetime experience and we will take in every second of it. I am excited: whether we win or lose it will be a great weekend.

How do you feel about going to Pittsburgh to face Ohio State, and any predictions? I think that we can beat the Buckeyes. Everyone is really excited/hopeful. We feel really prepared on the band/cheer/dance team and the basketball team treats every game like the Super Bowl.

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Tourney Talk: HoopsHD interviews Longwood cheerleader Makayla Whittaker

Posted on March 15, 2022 by Jon Teitel

On March 6 Longwood beat Winthrop 79-58 in the Big South tourney title game to earn an automatic bid to this week’s NCAA tournament. The Lancers finished December 7-5 before winning 19 of their last 20 games to make the NCAA tourney, where they will face #3 seed Tennessee in Indianapolis on Thursday. Earlier today HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to speak with Longwood cheerleader Makayla Whittaker about being a captain and winning the conference tourney.

You grew up in Virginia: what made you choose Longwood? It was my backup school because I wanted to go out of state, but once I got here it felt like home. The community is so close and the class sizes are smaller.

How did you 1st get into cheerleading, and what is the best part? I did gymnastics/dance when I was younger but in high school I tried out for the cheer team. I wanted to get more involved after coming to college and I ended up making the team as a freshman. I have loved every second of it and the best part is that I have grown so much in terms of my skills.

You have been on the cheer team for 3 years and are now a captain: what is the key to being a good leader? You need to be a role model and act how you would want others to act toward you. There are 4 people in a stunt group and everyone has a job to do so you need to work together and understand each other to make sure that nothing goes wrong. Communication is key so that we are all on the same page and you need to want the best for everyone. I set a high standard for myself and want to elevate the entire team and make sure we are hitting our goals. We have big dreams and want to accomplish them. It does take a lot of time but is totally worth it.

What do you think the role of a college cheerleader is today, and how has it changed over time? Our school is very small so we have been able to show our faces at a lot of events like a send-off or a ribbon-cutting. It is a big duty to represent the school at games so we plan our routines/practice/lift. We are there to support the team as well as get the fans loud so we did more crowd-involvement this season. We got a new coach this year and her key word is “elevate”: we are trying to grow bigger and become more competitive with the bigger schools. Our stunting this year has been more complex.

How frustrating has it been to be a cheerleader for a great basketball team during a pandemic? Last year we could not attend games so it was just a building year to grow stronger as a team. It was a downer to not support our team in person and was very frustrating, but we still did everything we could to show our spirit around campus.

You are majoring in Kinesiology/Exercise Science: why did you pick those subjects, and what do you hope to do after graduating? I was originally a special education major because I love being around children, but deep down I wanted to be in the medical field. There are so many opportunities I will have with this major but I would like to do sports medicine for children. My mom is in the medical field so I guess I got my passion from her: I am very excited about the future. I would love to move out of Virginia: maybe somewhere like Georgia that has a hospital that does sports medicine. I have some big dreams and am very determined to reach them.

Last Sunday the Lancers had a 21-PT win over Winthrop in the Big South tourney title game: how excited was everybody to win the conference tourney for the very 1st time? It was so exciting! I am so grateful that we got to be there to see it in person. It shows you how important our small community is: a lot of fans were there and we helped get them rowdy. There was also a nice welcome-back as the buses rolled back into campus.

How does your school decide who gets to go to the NCAA tournament, and what will it mean to you to see your group doing its thing in front of a national TV audience? Since our men AND women both made it we had to divide our own team in half. We would love to all be at both but we want to support both teams: half of us leave today for the men’s tourney in Indianapolis and the other half (including me) leave tomorrow for Raleigh. We will have 2 full stunt groups at each tourney with a couple of floaters. We have been practicing our routines/chants/signs to get the crowd involved.

Your women’s team also won its own conference tourney: is this the greatest week in the history of your school?! We definitely made some history with both teams winning their respective Big South tourneys. It is something you dream of happening and set as a goal, but never thought you would be the one to accomplish this amazing achievement and actually be part of the NCAA tournament. I cannot wait to see how they both do this week!

Any predictions? I think that both teams will win! I would love to see them keep going and see how far they can get: anything is possible so Go Lancers!!

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Tourney Talk: HoopsHD interviews Texas A&M-Corpus Christi dancer Lissa Hoelscher

Posted on March 15, 2022 by Jon Teitel

Last Saturday Texas A&M-Corpus Christi beat Southeastern Louisiana 73-65 in the Southland tourney title game to earn an automatic bid to this week’s NCAA tournament. The Islanders started conference play 3-6 before winning 7 of their last 8 games to make the NCAA tourney, where they will face fellow #16 seed Texas Southern in Dayton tonight. Earlier today HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to speak with Texas A&M-Corpus Christi dancer Lissa Hoelscher about winning the conference tourney and her prediction for tonight.

What made you choose Texas A&M-Corpus Christi? I love the beach and chose the school because I love the professional style of the dance team.

How did you 1st get into dancing, and what is the best part? I watched my older sister take ballet lessons when I was about 2 years old, then took my 1st class soon after that. The best part is the growing process: no matter what level you are at there is always an opportunity to get better as a dancer/person. Performing is an amazing adrenaline rush.

You are captain of the dance team: what is the key to being a good leader? Your confidence and being sure of yourself. If you are unsure then the team will feel the same way, which is the last thing you want as a performer.

What do you think the role of a college dancer is today, and how has it changed over time? I think the world of college dancing: everything is bigger and is becoming more athletic. We look at what dancers for pro teams are doing and trying to mimic their style.

What are you majoring in Biology with a concentration in Education: why did you pick those subjects, and what is the post-graduation plan? If you want to teach anatomy/physiology then that is what you need to major in. I would also like to teach dance classes and become a drill-team director.

How frustrating has it been to be a dancer for a great basketball team during a pandemic? I am always grateful for the opportunities that we have, but the most frustrating part was the amount of COVID testing: it requires us to allocate a lot of extra time. Dancing with a mask on has also been a huge challenge. We like to be on top of everything during practice but sometimes we do not know how certain events will run due to different guidelines.

Last Saturday in the Southland tourney title game the Islanders had an 8-PT win over Southeastern Louisiana: how excited was everybody to see them make the NCAA tourney for the 1st time since 2007? I was so excited: I even cried a little bit! It was really cool to see Coach Lutz utilize his players and see them build such great chemistry: it was an incredible feeling.

How does your school decide who gets to go to the NCAA tournament, and what will it mean to you to see your group doing its thing in front of a national TV audience? It depends on who has midterms and where we are as dancers. To perform on such a large stage is amazing: I have been dreaming of doing something like this my entire life and it is indescribable. I would like to become an NBA/NFL dancer someday.

Does your squad have anything extra-special planned for the NCAA Tournament? We are just going to do our normal gameday thing. We give it our all at every game and will cheer the team on like there is no tomorrow. We will yell loud and dance big and have a very crowd-interactive routine.

How do you feel about going to Dayton to face Texas Southern, and any predictions? I feel amazing because it is a dream come true and I am extremely grateful that the basketball team has allowed us to go this far. My prediction is that we will leave it all out on the floor. I think we will win and have a lot of faith in our team.

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Tourney Talk: HoopsHD interviews Iowa SR Filip Rebraca

Posted on March 15, 2022 by Jon Teitel

Last Sunday Iowa beat Purdue 75-66 in the Big 10 tourney title game to earn an automatic bid to this week’s NCAA tournament. The Hawkeyes lost 4 of their final 7 games in January but have been near-unstoppable since then by winning 12 of their last 14 games to make the NCAA tourney yet again, where they will face #12 seed Richmond on Thursday in Buffalo. Earlier today HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to speak with Iowa SR Filip Rebraca about the reigning NBA MVP and winning the conference tourney.

You were born in Italy/raised in Serbia: how big is basketball overseas? I sepnt time living in the US/Greece as well. Basketball is pretty huge, especially in Serbia. They have a rich history and the country leans toward the sport during hard times such as during war/hardship.

You are from the same hometown as NBA MVP Nikola Jokic: what is he like, and are we going to see you 2 as Olympic teammates anytime soon? Every time I see him I definitely say hi. He is down to earth and a humble guy who keeps to his own hobbies such as horse racing. It would be a dream come true to be his teammate but 1st I have to make the Olympic team! My dad actually won a silver medal at the 1996 Olympics.

You began your college career at North Dakota, where you set a school record with 20 double-doubles: how do you balance your scoring with your rebounding? I focus on both. Rebounding is a key part of the game but not a lot of people understand how important it is. I had teammates who ran a lot of plays for me and they trusted me to score.

Why did you decide to transfer, and what made you choose Iowa? I had to leave because my masters’ program was online and coming from a foreign country I needed to take an in-person program instead. I also wanted to win games and make the NCAA tourney…and here we are as Big 10 champs! It is great to play in a system where I can develop my game.

You play for Coach Fran McCaffery: what makes him such a good coach, and what is the most important thing that you learned from him this year? His experience/knowledge and the confidence he instills in his players. He talks to me every day about being more aggressive and not being hard on myself. He taught me how to stay positive.

Last Sunday in the Big 10 tourney title game you scored 3 PTS in a 9-PT win over Purdue: what did it mean to you to win a title, and what was the feeling like in your locker room afterward? We lost to them twice during the regular season so it felt really good to get some revenge at the most important time of the season. The locker room was surreal: it is all a blur so I do not think I fully processed it until today.

Your teammate Keegan Murray finished 4th in the nation in scoring with 23.6 PPG, and your teammate Jordan Bohannon has played more games than anyone in the history of the sport (178): how crucial have both of them been to your team’s success? They have been very crucial. Keegan is our leader and we lean on him in crucial moments. He is also 1 of our best rebounders/defenders. Jordan has so much experience that he is our “voice of reason”: he has been through a lot of big-time moments and succeeded so we follow him. Do not forget about Connor McCaffery: he is our unsung hero.

You already have a degree in economics and are now pursuing a masters’ degree in finance: why did you pick those subjects, and what is the post-graduation plan? Growing up my dad got into business after retiring from basketball, which made me want to learn more about managing money wisely. I was pretty good at it and just stuck with it. I want to play basketball as long as I can because there are only so many years that players are able to do so.

Your father Zeljko is 7’ tall and played pro basketball in the NBA and overseas: who is the best athlete in the family? Definitely him! His success at the club level/national level is great so the younger generation has a lot of work to do to catch up to him.

How do you feel about being a #5 seed, and what do you know about Richmond? Richmond is 1 of the most experienced teams in the country so I know they will give us a battle. I feel that we could have received a higher seed but we won our title about 30 minutes before the Selection Show. We just need to be prepared.

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Bracket Tactics: HoopsHD provides some tips for surviving and advancing

Posted on March 15, 2022 by Jon Teitel

The best week of the year is finally here! This is the time when we ponder the impact of McDonald’s All-Americans, the importance of having a veteran coach, and exactly how many different “Wildcats” can make the Final 4. For those of you who need some last-minute bracket advice grounded in historical facts/trends, please see below for our Sweetest 16 Suggestions. For the rest of you, enjoy the Madness!!

TIP #1: No team that lost its opening game in its conference tournament has ever gone on to win the NCAA title that same year.
STRATEGY: The extra few days of rest have not proven helpful in the past so take a long hard look at Baylor (lost to Oklahoma in the Big 12 tourney quarterfinals) before penciling them in as your champ.

TIP #2: Since 1979 only 3 national champions did not have a McDonald’s All-American on their roster (2002 Maryland/2014 UConn/2021 Baylor).
STRATEGY: A coach who cannot recruit the best high school players usually fails to win it all so beware of picking Arizona to go all the way.

TIP #3: The last coach to win a title in his very 1st year as coach at a school was Tubby Smith at Kentucky in 1998.
STRATEGY: History is not on the side of Texas Tech coach Mark Adams.

TIP #4: Since UNLV from the Big West won it all in 1990, 29 of the past 30 champs have come from a power-conference (except for UConn from the AAC in 2014): ACC (11), SEC (6), Big East (7), Pac-12 (2), Big 12 (2), Big 10 (1).
STRATEGY: You might want to think twice before picking anyone from the MWC/WCC to win it all.

TIP #5: Only 3 coaches with 4 or fewer prior tournament appearances have won the title since 1985 (Steve Fisher/Tom Izzo/Kevin Ollie).
STRATEGY: Teams like Arkansas (Eric Musselman has 4 prior tourney appearances)/Connecticut (Dan Hurley has 3 prior tourney appearances) might need a little more seasoning before they can win it all.

TIP #6: Each champ since 2002 had a strength of schedule that was among the top-75 in the nation.
STRATEGY: You have to play the best to learn how to beat the best you might want to stay away from Boise State (SOS of 82)/Colorado State (SOS of 85).

TIP #7: There are 5 active coaches who have won at least 70% of their NCAA tournament games (minimum 5 wins).
STRATEGY: Do not expect Chris Beard of Texas (71.4%)/Tom Izzo of Michigan State (70.3%) to be catching an early flight home.

TIP #8: There are 5 schools who have won at least 90% of their games in the round of 64 (minimum 5 games).
STRATEGY: Auburn (9-1)/Duke (30-4) are near-automatic in their opening games.

TIP #9: There are 9 schools who have won at least 75% of their games in the round of 32 (minimum 5 games).
STRATEGY: Arizona (18-4) is looking good vs. the Seton Hall-TCU winner if they can win their 1st round game, and if not then Kentucky (28-7) is not a bad alternative.

TIP #10: There are 7 schools who have won at least 75% of their Sweet 16 games (minimum 5 games).
STRATEGY: Michigan (14-3) Providence (4-1) have played great in their Sweet 16 games so Tennessee/Iowa should beware.

TIP #11: There are 10 schools who have won at least 70% of their Elite 8 games (minimum 5 games).
STRATEGY: Keep an eye out for some upsets in case either Houston (6-0)/Ohio State (11-4) can make it to the 2nd Sunday.

TIP #12: There are 5 schools who have won at least 70% of their Final 4 games (minimum 5 games).
STRATEGY: Kentucky is 12-5 in the Final 4 so if you pick them to survive the East Region then you might want to pick them to get all the way to the title game.

TIP #13: There are 13 schools who are undefeated in their NCAA tournament games in a specific state (minimum 5 games).
STRATEGY: Wisconsin must be thrilled with their trip to Milwaukee because they are 5-1 all-time in the state of Wisconsin.

TIP #14: There are 7 schools who have won at least 70% of their NCAA tournament games as an at-large team (minimum 5 games).
STRATEGY: Do not sleep on San Francisco because even though they did not win the WCC tourney they still have a terrific track record when they do not get an automatic bid (5-1).

TIP #15: Only 3 teams have won an NCAA title after not being in the tournament the previous year it was held (1986 Louisville/2003 Syracuse/2014 UConn).
STRATEGY: Arizona (no postseason in 2021)/Duke (no postseason in 2021) are certainly ready for primetime…but might not be ready to go all the way.

TIP #16: Murray State has played in the most NCAA tournaments (17) without ever making the Sweet 16.
STRATEGY: The Racers have also not been a single-digit seed in a decade so maybe this is the year they break the streak?

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Tourney Talk: HoopsHD interviews Delaware SR Jasmine Dickey

Posted on March 15, 2022 by Jon Teitel

Last Sunday Delaware beat Drexel 63-59 in the CAA women’s tourney title game to earn an automatic bid to this week’s NCAA tournament. The Dragons did not win a single game in December and lost their regular season finale at JMU but won 3 games in 3 days to make the NCAA tourney, where they will face #4 seed Maryland in College Park on Friday. Earlier today HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to speak with Delaware SR Jasmine Dickey about being a great scorer and winning the conference tourney.

You were born/raised in Baltimore: what made you choose Delaware? It is close to home and I got attached to the coaches and their family-oriented group.

You play for Coach Natasha Adair: what makes her such a good coach, and what is the most important thing that you ever learned from her? She is very loyal and works very hard. She taught me not to give up and keep working hard everyday because our time is coming.

You are majoring in sports health: why did you pick that subject, and what is the post-graduation plan? I got into it in high school and stuck with it in college. I have a minor in strength/conditioning and would like to get into personal training som.

Last year you were named conference POY: what did it mean to you to receive such an outstanding honor? It was pretty cool! I was working hard to get that.

You did not win a single game in December: how were you able to turn things around in January? Staying in the gym and fixing things that we had to work on (both offensively/defensively) to improve.

Last year you led the conference with 67 STL and were top-10 in the nation with 4.5 offensive RPG, and this year your 25.1 PPG is #2 in the nation: how do you balance all of the different aspects of your game? Just staying positive/humble and feeding off of the energy of my teammates. The biggest key is to put in the work because that is how I got to where I am at today.

Last month you scored a career-high 52 PTS/18-33 FG/13-14 FT in a win over Charleston: was it just 1 of those scenarios where every shot you put up seemed to go in because you were “in the zone”? Yes: the basket seemed wide open and my teammates fed off of that.

Last Sunday in the CAA tourney title game you had 27 PTS/18 REB in a 4-PT win over Drexel: how were you able to play your best when it mattered the most, and what did it mean to you to win a title? I just had that winning mindset. Earlier this year we watched Kevin Garnett’s documentary “Anything Is Possible” and it taught me the mentality you need to be a champion.

Your men’s team won its own conference tourney last week: where does this rank among the greatest weeks in school history? It was a pretty cool week. The guys were having their watch party for the Selection Show: when we walked in with our own trophy they gave us a standing ovation!

How do you feel about being a #13 seed, and how many family/friends will you have cheering you on in person at Maryland on Friday? It feels good and is another opportunity for me and my teammates to keep playing. I am excited for everybody to be there and am ready to work hard: I hope we have a really good crowd.

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