Season preview: HoopsHD interviews new Middle Tennessee head coach Nick McDevitt

Posted on September 17, 2018 by Jon Teitel

CLICK HERE for all of Jon Teitel’s Season Previews and Interviews

We continue our season preview coverage with new Middle Tennessee head coach Nick McDevitt. I do not know if it is harder to start a new job or have a new addition to your family but I assume that it cannot be easy to do them both simultaneously. Coach McDevitt had quite an eventful March: a 5-PT home loss to Liberty in the Big South tourney with UNC Asheville, a 2-OT road loss at USC in the NIT, the birth of his daughter Kathryn, and 1 day later the birth of his new career as head coach at Middle Tennessee. He has big shoes to fill after Kermit Davis won 332 games in 16 years in Murfreesboro before taking over at Mississippi last spring, but with 3 straight postseason appearances under his belt he will do his best to make it 4 in a row. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Coach McDevitt about his new job and his new team.

You were a player/assistant to Eddie Biedenbach at UNC Asheville: what made him such a good coach, and what was the most important thing that you ever learned from him? He was very good at understanding young people and was involved in college athletics for 4 decades. To adapt to the game, the rule changes, and how young people have changed over that stretch was great. He got his kids to play hard and I learned a lot from him.

In the 2016 NCAA tourney as head coach at Asheville you lost to Villanova: what is it like to face Coach Jay Wright in March? It is fun to watch him on film…but not quite as fun to face him in person because his teams are very well-schooled. They were 1 of the better passing teams that I have ever seen. They are talented and do things the right way thanks to his leadership. They run a great program and he does a phenomenal job.

In 2017 you were named conference COY: what did it mean to you to receive such an outstanding honor? It just speaks to the help that I had around me from both assistant coaches/players. Anybody who runs a team/business will only be successful if they have talented people around them. Everyone was all-in and it was great for all of us to get that recognition.

In the 2018 NIT Jonathan Baehre set a bunch of career-highs with 28 PTS/14 REB/5 BLK in a 5-PT/2-OT loss at USC: how much do you think Brad Brownell is going to enjoy his new Clemson transfer? Jon is a very talented young man: his best basketball is still in front of him as he is just scratching the surface of how good he can be. Coach Brownell is a good friend of mine and I know that he will get the most out of Jon.

Last March you were hired to be the new head coach at Middle Tennessee: how difficult was the decision to walk away from your alma mater after spending the past 2 decades there, and how is it going so far in Murfreesboro as you try to balance a new job with your new daughter? There were a lot of things that my family and I really enjoyed about Asheville. It is a great place to raise a family and has a great university so if we were to leave we needed to be running toward something since we had nothing to run from. When the new opportunity came about I was fortunate enough to get the job the day after our daughter was born. Being in a new state and coaching a new team with a new addition to our family is a lot, but we are very fortunate to be here and are loving it so far. At times you feel like you are drinking out of a firehose but things are good.

It took you 3 years to make the postseason with the Bulldogs, which you did during each of the past 3 years: what is the key to building a successful program in only a few years? You need to establish an identity of who you want to be day in and day out. You have to lean on your core values to guide your program whether things are going well or not (both on and off the court). We will not win every game so you have to manage the highs and lows. If my players are hurt or have to redshirt or struggle with a class that is not clicking for you, I tell them to remain grounded so they can handle being a young student-athlete. It does not happen overnight so it is key to establish what you care about early and then stay true to that.

The Blue Raiders lost each of their top-3 scorers from last year (Nick King/Giddy Potts/Brandon Walters): does that make your job that much harder or have you already found some new leaders for this season? Any time you lose 3 players of that caliber (including a 3rd-team All-American in Nick) that is a lot of production that you do not have going forward so we will just try to continue to build the program. Ed Simpson also did a lot for this program as a leader and they will all be difficult to replace. Everyone needs to step up as they take on new roles: we have 12 scholarship players and only 3 have ever played a game here. 7 are newcomers and 2 were redshirts so during the early part of the year we will be trying to figure out a rotation while the new players try to figure out what it takes to play at this level.

Last year’s team was top-20 in the nation by allowing only 31.4 3P%: how crucial is that going to be to your own defensive philosophy? Very much so. It was a key factor for them last year and I think we led the league in that stat as well as Asheville a few years ago. Many teams use the 3-PT shot as a weapon and not just with their guards: there are even some stretch-5s shooting from out there! You have to be able to defend the 3-PT line so it is important.

Your non-conference schedule includes games against Virginia/Vanderbilt/Mississippi: which of these games do you feel will present your biggest test? If you look at the preseason prognostications you have to say that Virginia will be a tall task. Anytime you play Tony Bennett’s group you know that you will have to be great because he has done a fantastic job there.

What are your goals for the upcoming season, and what are your expectations for the upcoming season? Our goal is no different than any other year: get the most out of what we are capable of doing. 3 things that we mention all the time are toughness/effort/attitude: we stress that we should try to control those things and just let everything else play out. We might play really well against Virginia in the Bahamas but still lose because they are a good team too!

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Season preview: HoopsHD interviews Louisville G Asia Durr

Posted on September 15, 2018 by Jon Teitel

CLICK HERE for all of Jon Teitel’s Season Previews and Interviews

We continue our season preview coverage with Louisville G Asia Durr. Another year =  another award for the Cardinal superstar: 2015 McDonald’s All-American, 2016 ACC All-Freshman team, 2017 All-American, 2018 ACC POY. There are few better shooters in the country: her 115 3PM last year was best in the ACC and her 84.8 FT% was not too shabby either. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Asia about almost making the NCAA title game last spring and her close relationship with 1 of her team managers.

In the 2015 McDonald’s All-American Game you scored 14 PTS for the East in a 2-PT win over the West: which of your fellow honorees impressed you the most (Napheesa Collier/Arike Ogunbowale/Katie Lou Samuelson/other)? To be honest everybody stood out. It was such a great opportunity to get to know those girls even better. Some of us had played together for USA Basketball and now I get to face some of them again during college. We were just trying to soak it all up and have fun.

You grew up in Georgia: what made you choose Louisville? I 1st came here before my senior year of high school on my 1st official visit. It was just over the top: every piece just clicked for me and it was great to meet some of the best players in college basketball. They made me feel like it was home and they felt like part of my family. The fans here are just amazing: they are so committed/dedicated and the coaching staff was very straightforward/truthful.

In 2016 you averaged 11 PPG and were named to the ACC All-Freshman team: how were you able to make such a smooth transition from high school to college? My parents did a good job of helping me adjust to college. The schoolwork at my high school was very challenging and they pushed me to get my work done so that I could make time for basketball. I knew that if I wanted to play basketball in college then I would have to finish my schoolwork.

As a sophomore your 119 3PM was #2 in the nation, and as a junor you led the ACC with 44.5 3P%: what is the secret to making shots from behind the arc? Practice! If you put your mind to something then you can do anything. My dad and I would practice together in the gym ever since I was in junior high school: my trainer has also been a big help.

Last November you scored a school-record 47 PTS (2 more than Wes Unseld had in a game against Georgetown in 1967)/9-15 3PM in a 5-PT OT win at Ohio State: was it just 1 of those scenarios where every shot you put up seemed to go in because you were “in the zone”? I was very focused and that game was amazing. I wanted to win because we had never beaten a ranked team on TV so I was very excited. We were going up against my good friend Kelsey Mitchell and I knew that she would put on a good show. It came down to who was playing harder and could execute their game plan better. Kelsey missed some FTs toward the end but it was still a great game. I credit my teammates for finding me in good spots on the court.

In the 2018 Final 4 you scored 18 PTS in a 10-PT OT loss to Mississippi State: how close did you come to winning the game, and how unstoppable was 6’7” Teaira McCowan (21 PTS/Final 4-record 25 REB)? We were 1 possession away from making the title game. Their whole team was unbelievable but McCowan was a monster: even if we had a body on her and were boxing her out she still found a way to get the ball. She just did what she does all the time: that is what big-time players do.

You are a 2-time All-American and the 2018 ACC POY: what did it mean to you to receive such outstanding honors? It means a lot: anytime you win an award while doing something you love it makes you feel good. It shows that my hard work is paying off: you remember why you are getting up at 5AM to prepare and making so many sacrifices.

Your younger brother TJ is 1 of your team managers: what kind of relationship do you 2 have? We are very close: he is like my best friend. We are only 14 months apart so we have been side-by-side all the time: we always went to the same school  as kids so I am used to it…but I will never take it for granted. Some of my teammates never get to see their own brothers so I am very thankful for mine.

You have several relatives who served in the military: what impact has their service had on you (if any)? A lot. Anytime you have someone fighting for your country you realize all of the hard work that it takes. My aunt/grandfather are the 2 that stand out: I thank them all the time and it shows me that you can be brave even when things get shaky.

What are your goals for the upcoming season, and are we going to see you spending your 22nd birthday at the Final 4 in Tampa? That is my goal and the team’s goal. I came here to win a championship so I do not care how well I play this year: it is team-1st not me-1st. As a captain, the coach will look to put the ball in my hands when the game gets close and I am ready for whatever comes my way. We have been working/training hard and we are striving for a title.

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Season preview: HoopsHD interviews Penn coach Steve Donahue

Posted on September 14, 2018 by Jon Teitel

CLICK HERE for all of Jon Teitel’s Season Previews and Interviews

We continue our season preview coverage with Penn coach Steve Donahue. If you need someone to turn around your Ivy League program, Coach Donahue is your man. After Cornell had 3 straight losing seasons from 1998-2000, he took over and became the 1st Big Red coach to ever go to 3 straight NCAA tourneys (including the 2010 Sweet 16). After Penn had 3 straight losing seasons from 2013-2015, he took over and last year led the Quakers to 24 wins, an Ivy tourney title, and their 1st trip to the NCAA tourney in 11 years. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Coach Donahue about being named Ivy COY and trying to take down Kansas in Wichita.

You were captain of the basketball team at Ursinus: how good a player were you back in the day, and how did you 1st get into coaching? I was an average player even by D-3 standards. I fell in love with coaching early: going to Big 5 doubleheaders at the Palestra made me enamored of the whole circus. I thought that I would be a high school coach.

You spent the 1990s as an assistant to Fran Dunphy at Penn: what makes Dunphy such a great coach, and how did you enjoy the glory days of winning 48 straight conference games/being ranked in the coaches poll/beating Nebraska in the NCAA tourney? We coached 3 NBA players as well. At the time I probably did not appreciate it as much as I should have but I did realize how great a person Fran was. He treated everyone well and that has stuck with me. He allowed his assistants so much latitude to coach whatever we were good at: he was egoless and put the team before himself.

Take me through the magical 2010 NCAA tourney as coach at Cornell:
As a #12 seed you beat Temple by 13 PTS and Wisconsin by 18 PTS: how on earth did a good Ivy League team beat a pair of top-5 seeds by double-digits, and what was it like to face your old boss Dunphy in the postseason? We had the culmination of a perfect storm: a veteran team of 7 seniors who were prepared for the postseason by playing a very difficult non-conference schedule. We played 2 really good teams at a neutral site and were an incredible offensive team that could compete against high-majors. Playing Dunph was the worst part of it: he had 1 of his best teams ever and could have made a deep run but we had a loose attitude and things went our way.

In the Sweet 16 you lost to #1 seed Kentucky: how did you prepare to face a team with so much future NBA talent? I think that was 1 of the most talented college basketball teams in the past 20 years with future All-Stars like John Wall/DeMarcus Cousins. If we had played them on 1 day’s notice and somehow beaten them then I think we could have made it all the way to the Final 4.

In February 2014 Olivier Hanlan scored 20 PTS as your 6-19 BC team had a 3-PT OT upset of 25-0 Syracuse in the Carrier Dome: where does that rank among the highlights of your career? I think it was the 1st time a 25-0 team that was ranked #1 had ever lost a home game. It was a thrill for me even though we had just lost our school’s SID guy the previous week (Dick Kelley). We played with a patch on our jersey and it was 1 of the most emotional games I have ever coached.

After only winning 13 games in 2017 you went 24-9 in 2018 and were named conference COY: how were you been able to turn things around in just 1 year, and what did it mean to you to receive such an outstanding honor? It is always great when your peers vote for you: it means a lot to me because I have so much respect for all of those guys. It is a collaborative effort: excellent assistant coaches, great players, an administration that does everything you could ask for to help us compete. It had nothing to do with me being a special coach: this is a great place with an incredible history of success.

In the 2018 NCAA tourney as a #16-seed you led Kansas by double-digits in the 1st half before losing by 16 PTS: how big a deal was it for the Quakers to make the NCAA tourney for the 1st time in 11 years, and how much of a home-court advantage did the Jayhawks have in Wichita? Getting back to the tourney means a lot to a lot of people here. Fans do not realize that only a very few number of players across the country actually make it to the NCAA tourney. Kansas definitely had a home-court advantage but it made the experience that much more special: our shoot-around the day before was sold out! I think the NCAA should continue to give #1 seeds the chance to play in front of their home fans.

You return 4 of your 5 starters from the defending Ivy champs: how crucial will all of that experience be to your team’s success this year? It is critical to have a bunch of players back but it is not necessarily a formula for success. A lot of other teams last year in the Ivy League brought back a lot of their own players but we found a way to figure it out. You have to focus on the task at hand and realize that it is a new year.

Your non-conference schedule in December includes back-to-back games against Miami/Villanova: how do you prepare for what could be the toughest home schedule in Ivy League history? I have been in this league for almost 30 years: we can do a home-and-home series with great teams and it will be a daunting task but what an exciting time for our guys to play against talented teams. This is what our program is about: challenging ourselves. In November 1998 we played Kansas/Temple back-to-back to start the season when they were both in the top-10 (Penn beat the Owls by 3 PTS in OT), which is what it reminds me of.

The Ivy tourney moves from the Palestra to New Haven next March: any thoughts? I think it was a great success at the Palestra but the fair thing is to try and move it around to figure out what is best for the league. I am all for it but the fact that Yale has a small arena (Lee Amphitheater, which has room for 2,532 spectators) might make it even more special. It shows on TV great and if we can grow the league and get better players then it makes sense.

What are your goals for the upcoming season, and what are your expectations for the upcoming season? I do not talk about goals too much: I am actually kind of anti-goals. We want to be in the NCAA tourney but I try to control the controllables: how hard we play, how efficient we can be in everything we can do.  In March we just want to be the best possible team that we can be.

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Season preview: HoopsHD interviews Stephen F. Austin assistant coach Jeremy Cox

Posted on September 13, 2018 by Jon Teitel

CLICK HERE for all of Jon Teitel’s Season Previews and Interviews

We continue our season preview coverage with Stephen F. Austin assistant coach Jeremy Cox. Head coach Kyle Keller has known Coach Cox for more than 2 decades, and their combined efforts have served the Lumberjacks well in their short time together in Nacogdoches: last year they led the nation in both SPG and turnovers forced/game while making the NCAA tourney and holding their own against #3-seed Texas Tech. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Coach Cox about winning a national title and being named national COY.

You are a coaching lifer who has worked at 14 different schools over the past 3 decades: what has been the best part, and what has been the not-so-best part? The best part by far is the relationships I built with the players/coaches that will last a lifetime. I do not know how many bad things there are but I suppose the worst part is that you care so much about the team’s success that it can define you as a person at times.  When you live it 24/7/365, it can torment you at times.

In 2006 as head coach at Arkansas-Fort Smith you won the NJCAA title and were named national COY: what did it mean to you to win a title and receive such an outstanding honor? It gives you some validation that we did things in a good way: recruiting, playing, etc. To be at the top of your profession at any level is very meaningful. I was at a place that allowed us to compete for a national title and it was great to accomplish that: I cherish it each and every day.

You are known as 1 of the best coaches in the country when it comes to interior players: what is the secret to success in the paint? Stay lower than your opponent and make him uncomfortable.

You currently work for Coach Kyle Keller: what was he like 2 decades ago when you 2 were assistants to Tim Carter at Texas-San Antonio, and could you have ever imagined that you would eventually work for him? He had the same qualities back then that make him a great coach now: he was a relentless recruiter/competitor who always did the right things for the right reasons. Those characteristics have not wavered in the past 25 years and I still enjoy learning from him. When you have great partnerships you work “with” people rather than “for” them and it has been really good to be back with him.

Last year your team led the nation with 10.8 SPG and 19.8 turnovers forced/game: what sort of defensive philosophy has allowed your team to dominate on that end of the floor? We just try to disrupt whatever our opponents are trying to do by contesting every pass.

In the 2018 NCAA tourney your team had a 10-PT loss to Texas Tech: what do you think your team learned from that game that will help them this year? We learned that we belong. We led the game for a long time and everyone felt that we belonged in the building.

Your non-conference schedule includes games against Miami/Baylor/Alabama: which of these games do you feel will present your biggest test? Each game is a test and I honestly do not know if any 1 is bigger than another. Alabama at home will be big for our fans but we just have to build our habits and play the next possession as best we can. The maturation of this team from now to March is about getting better each day.

You return each of your top-3 scorers from last season (TJ Holyfield/Shannon Bogues/Kevon Harris): how crucial will all of that experience be to your team’s success this year? Those kids led us in scoring last year and they are all fantastic players…but they had the luxury of knowing that several of our now-graduated seniors were all-conference-caliber players. Now they have the nightly responsibility of having to score/lead: it is on their shoulders. Ty Charles was a great leader in the locker room and Ivan Canete made a ton of big plays so now the returning guys have to go out and get it done. They have proven that they are capable: they have the arms but they need the spine as well.

You played college basketball and your daughter Kaili plays high school volleyball: who is the best athlete in the family? I do not think that any of us are good athletes but we all work really hard: I hope she ends up better than I was!

What are your goals for the upcoming season, and what are your expectations for the upcoming season? My goal is to win the last game that we play this year! I think our expectations are, as always, to play in the NCAA tourney. It is not arrogance: it is just what has been done by the prior teams who came before us: that is the expectation here at SFA.

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Season preview: HoopsHD interviews new FGCU head coach Michael Fly

Posted on September 12, 2018 by Jon Teitel

CLICK HERE for all of Jon Teitel’s Season Previews and Interviews

We continue our season preview coverage with new Florida Gulf Coast head coach Michael Fly. There are plenty of new head coaches in college basketball this year but there is only 1 who worked for a #15-seed that made it to the Sweet 16 (which Fly did as an assistant to Andy Enfield at Dunk City 5 years ago). He has all the abbreviations covered: he worked in the NBA, worked for the NCAA, and even worked for an NAIA team while still in college himself. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Coach Fly about being a new coach and overcoming the loss of 2 great guards.

You grew up in Kentucky and went to college in Lexington: what is your favorite memory of those old Tubby Smith teams? It is funny how your career goes: Coach Dooley used to be on the coaching staff with Tubby at South Carolina (under George Felton in the late-1980s)! I have gotten to know Coach Smith at little as I have gotten older. In Kentucky basketball is religion so I tell my players all the time that if you would not go as hard as you could while playing at Kentucky, then do not do that here. I saw great players like Rajon Rondo/Tayshaun Prince at Rupp Arena and the grit they played with: they did not have a ton of 1st round picks back then but they defended like none other. All the different things they did (such as Midnight Madness) are stuff that I have tried to bring to FGCU. You learn the culture by being around it and watching it.

While you were still a student you became an assistant at NAIA Georgetown College for 1 season: did the players just look at you and wonder how someone their age was qualified to be coaching them?! I was a glorified manager for lack of a better word but due to the rules in place at the time I was allowed to go on the road and scout/recruit. I was a good high school player but some of the Georgetown guys who were on scholarship had been my teammates at high school all-star games: they did not like it when I would tell them to run sprints! Coach Happy Osborne won a national title in 1998 and is as good a coach as any guy that I have ever been around.

After graduation you spent 1 year as a video coordinator assistant for the Charlotte Bobcats and then 1 year as an interns in the NCAA’s corporate office: how did either of those jobs prepare you to be a head coach? They were both really valuable experiences. I tell our young guys that if you do not have a wife/kids then you should try as many things as you can until you find out what you really like. It was a lot of work at Charlotte but a tremendous experience to learn how to review video, do draft prep, etc. I was in the business world at the NCAA so I would work with corporate clients, act as a liaison to ESPN at championship events, etc. Some of my really good friends were in the NCAA enforcement office so I understand that aspect of the athletic department as well as interacting with the championship committee. It is funny: some of the people I met at meetings back in the day are now running the NCAA tourney!

You worked with Andy Enfield as a part of Leonard Hamilton’s staff at Florida State, then followed him to FGCU when he became head coach in 2011: what makes Andy such a great coach, and what is the most important thing that you ever learned from him? It is twofold: he was similar to me in that he spent some time in the business world so he always treated people the right way whether he was in a team huddle or a board room. Everything we did was from a business perspective: we felt that if we looked good then we would play good. He is a little reserved on the sidelines (like Steve Kerr/Brad Stevens) and is not a yeller. The players felt that they could relate to him, which has been so valuable to me. He did not stick to the coaching norms: he was just himself and people really respected that. He would always say that you “play” basketball rather than “work” it because it is a game: we held the team accountable but we tried to make it a good experience.

In 2013 you won 3 straight conference tourney games by double-digits, then upset Georgetown/San Diego State by double-digits to become the 1st #15 seed to ever make the Sweet 16 before losing to Florida: where does that March rank among the greatest months of your life? It is 2nd only to the month I got married. We had tremendous success with Coach Hamilton at Florida State but nobody saw it coming at FGCU besides us. If you look back at our non-conference schedule we beat Miami and lost to a bunch of good teams (including VCU/Duke/St. John’s/Iowa State) but we had zero fear factor. If we could beat Miami by double-figures then we knew that we could beat any team on any given night. Coach Enfield did a great job of letting our guys enjoy the moment: dancing on the court, jumping around the locker room, etc. We were national celebrities for a week…and then tried to figure out how to beat Florida. Some people steer away from such things and try to stay on point the entire time but I do not: that is what we did before and that is what we want to do again.

After Joe Dooley was hired as head coach at East Carolina last April you were promoted to head coach at FGCU: why did you take the job, and how is it going so far? Any time you have a chance to be a head coach you say so immediately, but it helped that this is such a special place to me. In our 1st year we went 15-17 and almost beat Belmont to go to the NCAA tourney. The guys who became stars a year later really learned what it takes to get to the next level. I was here when there were not a lot of fans in the stands: now we sell out our home games. This is not just a job for me: it is a family atmosphere and is kind of like our baby because there was no D-1 program before we got here. I am just honored to take the baton from Andy/Joe and try to raise that bar even higher. I was just in a local restaurant and everyone was coming up to say how excited they were for our season to start: it is a community wide social experiment and has gone really well.

2 of your new players are transfers Schadrac Casimir (2015 MAAC ROY at Iona)/Haanif Cheatham (2016 Big East All-Freshman team at Marquette): how do you expect them to fit into the backcourt after you graduated 2 great seniors guards in Brandon Goodwin/Christian Terrell? Schadrac was a great get for us because he was 1 of the best grad transfers out there. We were so fortunate to have those great guards but we actually lost all 5 starters and a ton of talent. We also have guys like Troy Baxter/Ricky Doyle and some good incoming freshmen who played for major AAU programs in Florida. We have an older team that just has not had a chance to play together. We were so used to having 3-4 year starters that it is kind of a new experience for all of us. It will be a fun growth period and I have scheduled some extremely hard teams but I think it will help prepare us: I really like our roster.

Your non-conference schedule includes games against Michigan State/Mississippi: which of these games do you feel will present your biggest test? Most years you look at the schedule and can say that if you play well then you will win this game or that 1…but there are not too many of those on our schedule this year. South Dakota State has Mike Daum, Toledo won 23 games last year, UMBC did some amazing things last year, etc. I think that each game is important but we try to prepare our guys for down the road.

Last year your team’s 81.3 PPG was top-30 in the nation and their 49.4 FG% was top-10: is your offensive philosophy to just keep doing what works or are you installing some different plays this year? I am really fortunate to have worked for really good coaches. As you go through your career you take what you like and discard what you do not like. Coach Dooley did what he believed in and was pretty successful in molding the program to fit him. I will not get away from recruiting high-level guards, and at “Dunk City” you need to roll out some good athletes. Everyone is doing the 4-out/1-in offense now (which we have played for a while) and we will try to get up and down in transition. I think less is more so I do not want guys to play like robots. We give them some rules but for the most part we tell them to take good open shots and play as hard as they can on every possession. There will be a lot of spacing/freedom of movement.

What are your goals for the upcoming season, and what are your expectations for the upcoming season? When you lose 5 starters from a championship team and bring in a brand-new coaching staff it takes some time so I do not look at it as a 1-year plan. I just want us to play to the standard that we have set for this program: if we conduct ourselves the right way on and off the court and care about each other then I will not be worried about the wins/losses. This is about more than just 1 person: it is an entire program. We will play harder than anyone and play unselfish.

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Season preview: HoopsHD interviews Kentucky SG Maci Morris

Posted on September 11, 2018 by Jon Teitel

CLICK HERE for all of Jon Teitel’s Season Previews and Interviews

We continue our season preview coverage with Kentucky SG Maci Morris. When you hear the phrase “Big Blue Nation” you probably think of John Calipari and a bunch of super-frosh…but Maci Morris might end up changing that. After starting all 33 games in 2016 and being named to the SEC All-Freshman Team, she led her team with 88.1 FT% as a sophomore, and was #2 in the nation last year with 47.5 3P%. Her 1209 career PTS is already #20 in school history and if she has a great senior season then she might just make the all-conference 1st team in 1 of the toughest leagues in the country. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Maci about becoming a Wildcat and being a great shooter.

You grew up in Kentucky, were named after former Kentucky player Kyle Macy, and wear his uniform number (4): have you ever had the chance to meet him, and was it inevitable that you would become a Wildcat? That is true. I have met him a couple of times: we usually talk about basketball whenever I see him. When you are born in Kentucky you are raised as either a Kentucky or Louisville fan and my household is UK. My dad was a big fan of Kyle’s so that is where they got the inspiration.

In 2016 you started all 33 games and were named to the SEC All-Freshman team: how were you able to come in and contribute right from the start? My parents/coaches really pushed me to work my hardest every day and just compete. I earned myself a spot in the starting lineup and tried to help the team in any way I could.

Last February you scored a career-high 35 PTS/5-9 3PM in a loss to South Carolina: was it just 1 of those scenarios where every shot you put up seemed to go in because you were “in the zone”? Kind of. I wanted to win every game and the best way I could help our team do that was to score. I was more open than usual in that game and I was getting a lot of good looks. It was a fun game even though we lost and their fans were very respectful toward me.

Last year you ranked #2 in the country with 47.5 3P%: what is the secret to making shots from behind the arc? Just practicing: getting into the gym and getting shots up. Your shot/form needs to be consistent and you need a good quick release: when people are chasing you around the court you cannot be hesitant.

You are a career 86.3 FT% shooter: what is the key to making FTs? I have had the same routine for as long as I can remember. My consistency helps me focus on my shot: I get in a rhythm and it makes it easier for me to shoot FTs.

The final women’s basketball rankings last year had 6 SEC teams in the top-25 (Mississippi State/South Carolina/Texas A&M/Tennessee/Georgia/Missouri): is it slowly changing from a football conference to a women’s basketball conference?! For sure! I think the SEC is the toughest league in almost every sport. Tennessee used to be the big powerhouse and now it is South Carolina/Mississippi State: it is a very competitive league.

You are 1 of 4 seniors on the roster: how crucial will all of that experience be to your team’s success this year? It will be very crucial: 1 of our coaches told me that Pat Summitt always said a team is only as good as its seniors. We have to set the tone for the younger players and give our best effort.

What was the best part of your team’s trip to Italy in August? The history/beauty of the country. The gelato was also amazing: I think I ate it every day I was there! It was an awesome experience.

It seems like everyone in your family played 1 or more sports in college: who is the best athlete in the family? I would say my dad: he was named Kentucky athlete of the year. He played baseball/basketball so to play 2 sports in college is pretty impressive to me.

What are your goals for the upcoming season, and what are your expectations for the upcoming season? I want to finish my senior year with a winning season, win an SEC title, and make a good run in the NCAA tourney.

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