Hoops HD

Last Monday Iona beat Siena in the MAAC title game to earn an automatic bid to this week’s NCAA tournament. The Gaels lost to Iowa State in the 2016 NCAA tourney and get another big-time matchup this March as they will face #3-seed Oregon on Friday afternoon in a Midwest Region matchup in Sacramento. Earlier today HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to speak with FR SG EJ Crawford about the dynasty that he is helping to extend in New Rochelle.

You grew up in Connecticut: what made you choose Iona? During my visit they made me feel like I was at home. I liked the campus and their playing style.

You play for Coach Tim Cluess: what makes him such a good coach, and what it the most important thing that you have learned from him so far? I like that he is a players’ coach: he lets us play and does not force anything. He has taught me to play defense: I am still working on it but am getting there.

You are 1 of only 2 freshmen on the roster: how have you been able to bond with all the older guys? It was pretty easy because I have been around older people all of my life.

Your 1st game of the year was against your most difficult opponent of the year: is Florida State they the tallest team that you have ever faced, and what makes them so good? Yes: by far! They have 6’10”/6’11″/7′ guys everywhere, which we do not see a lot of in the MAAC. They are so versatile with a lot of guys who can do a lot of different things.

You finished the season as a unanimous pick to the All-MAAC Rookie Team: how have you been able to make such a smooth transition from high school to college? My teammates know that I am a scorer so they just keep giving me the ball in the right spots and I have been able to hit some shots.

After losing 4 of your final 7 regular season games (including home games against Rider/Siena) you won 3 games in 3 days in Albany (including wins over Rider/Siena) to clinch the MAAC title: what is the key to winning games in March? We came together as a unit: we knew that we just had to play our best basketball and that is what we did.

In the title game you scored 12 PTS including the game-winning layup with 28 seconds left in a 1-PT OT win over Siena: what was the reaction like when you got back to campus? It was crazy on campus: there were fans/students who were really happy that we won and are going back to the NCAA tourney.

Your school has now played in 5 straight MAAC tourney title games (winning 3 of them) and will be making its 4th NCAA Tourney apeparance since 2012: is it fair to call your program a “dynasty”? I think so: when a program has that much success it is only right to call them that.

Your team made the tourney last year before losing to Iowa State: what have your teammates shared with you about the lessons they learned? They told me that the feeling of losing is not a good 1. Iowa State is a good team and our team made some mistakes toward the end of the game, but they learned from it.

How do you feel about getting a #14-seed, and what do you know about Oregon? It feels good because we could have been a #16-seed. Oregon is athletic and has some good players but we will go out there, compete, and have fun.

Last Monday UNC-Wilmington beat Charleston in the CAA title game to earn an automatic bid to this week’s NCAA tournament. The Seahawks lost to Duke by 8 PTS in the 2016 NCAA tourney and get another ACC matchup this March as they will face #5-seed Virginia on Thursday afternoon in an East Region matchup in Orlando. Earlier tonight HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to speak with SR SG Chris Flemmings about what it feels like to make the tourney for the 2nd straight year.

You grew up in Tennessee and went to high school in North Carolina: what made you choose the Seahawks? I was looking at a couple of different schools and once they hired Coach Keatts that made my decision much easier…plus I love the beach!

You play for Coach Kevin Keatts: what makes him such a good coach, and what is the most important thing that you have learned from him so far? His confidence/composure: he knows what he wants to do and how to get there. When I first met him he told me that he wants to win championships, and I could tell that he truly meant it. He taught me to stay confident even if I am not shooting well: just worry about the next play.

Last year you were named CAA tourney MVP: how were you able to play your best when it mattered the most? I felt that I was playing my best basketball late in the season and just peaked at the right time.

In the 2016 NCAA tourney you scored 18 PTS in an 8-PT loss to Duke: how close did you come to winning the game, and what did you learn from that game that you think will help you this time around? We were definitely within a couple of possessions of winning if the ball had bounced our way. I learned that the name on the front of your opponent’s jersey does not matter: you still have to hit shots.

In December you scored 34 PTS/6-9 3PM in a win over Pfeiffer: was it just 1 of those scenarios where every shot you put up seemed to go in because you were “in the zone”? Every shot I took that night felt good: I had some extra shooting practice that week and it helped me get going a little bit.

2 of your sophmores have played a huge role this year as SG CJ Bryce was named 2017 conference tourney MVP and PF Devontae Cacok was named conference DPOY: how nice is it as a senior to be able to rely on the younger guys to contribute? It is a big help but we do not put any extra pressure on them: they can hold their own.

Your non-conference schedule included games against Clemson/East Tennessee State/Middle Tennessee State: which of these teams impressed you the most? None stood out the most but we had a chance to compete with all 3 of those teams.

Last Monday you scored 8 PTS in a win over Charleston to clinch an NCAA tourney bid: what kind of a home-court advantage did the Cougars have in North Charleston, and what did it mean to you to win another conference title? I actually thought they would have a bigger advantage but we had so many fans show up that it felt like a home game. It was special last year to win it all, and to do it again knowing that we would get every team’s best shot throughout this season just showed how well we are playing.

You did not need to worry about making the tourney after beating Charleston, but do you think that you would have received an at-large bid if you had lost to them? I think that we would have received an at-large bid if we had lost due to our great record/tough schedule.

How do you feel about getting a #12-seed, and what do you know about Virginia? I feel good about our seed. Virginia is a great team who is well-coached so it will be an exciting game.