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NCAA MEN'S REGIONALS SEMIFINALS & FINALS: LOS ANGELESMarch 25, 2015Rondae Hollis-JeffersonStanley JohnsonT.J. McConnellSean MillerLOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA THE MODERATOR: Questions for the student-athletes. RONDAE HOLLIS-JEFFERSON: Well, we're here today, me, Stanley and T.J. As you know this is obviously our third Sweet Sixteen. T.J. has been here not playing the first year, but played last year. He's playing this year. It's pretty big for us as far as coming into this and playing Xavier. They're a great team. They're solid. They do the things they do well, and we've just got to do what we do well and do what we do best from start to finish, and I think we'll be good. That being said, we'll open it up to you guys with questions. STANLEY JOHNSON: It's T.J.'s birthday today, so say happy birthday to T.J. He's 23 now. Q. Happy birthday, T.J. How did you spend your birthday today other than the obvious practice? Anything special? Any interesting messages? T.J. McCONNELL: No, I've just gotten texts from family and my teammates. You know, spending your birthday in a gym, that's not really how you picture it, but I wouldn't have it any other way. We're trying to do something special here. Getting this win tomorrow would be a birthday present enough. Q. What do you want for your birthday? T.J. McCONNELL: Getting a win tomorrow would be the best birthday present I could ask for. Q. I'd like to know how this feels to represent your conference right now and how you guys overall as a conference are doing to this point where a lot of people doubted before this? T.J. McCONNELL: I think being here in the Sweet Sixteen it's an honor. To represent the Pac-12 is also an honor. I don't think the Pac-12 gets the respect it deserves. Other than Oregon, I don't think a Pac-12 team has lost in the NCAA tournament. So that kind of shows you how good the Pac-12 really is. And even the Big East with Villanova being a 1 seed and Xavier, I don't think that conference gets enough credit for how good it is too. I think both conferences get overlooked. But there is a Big East in the Pac-12 team in the Sweet Sixteen, so I don't know what else people could say about us. STANLEY JOHNSON: Yeah, just what he said. We're not the only team in the Pac-12 in the Sweet Sixteen. You have Utah, which is a really good team in the same region as Duke right now and going to Houston. So I think Pac-12 is a really good conference. I don't think we get the respect we deserve. But I think if teams just go out and play, we'll eventually get the respect we deserve. RONDAE HOLLIS-JEFFERSON: Yeah, like they said. To add on, I think the Pac-12 doesn't get the credit, but at the end of the day we're just here to play basketball and represent our school, our team, the Pac-12, our families, and I think we're doing a really good job of it. So kudos to my guys. Q. T.J., you might be the only guy with some familiarity with Xavier having played at Duquesne and faced them. A lot of players have come and gone during that time since then. Does that give you any familiarity more with their team heading into this game, and what are your thoughts on Xavier? T.J. McCONNELL: Well, my experience playing against Xavier hasn't been good. I'm 0-2, and I think the second time I played them we lost by about 45 points. I know what kind of team they are. They play really hard and they play with a chip on their shoulder. Something I kind of had to do at Duquesne. I know what kind of game it's going to be tomorrow. They're going to come out ready and they're going to play really hard. If we don't come out ready, Xavier will beat us. Q. For Rondae and Stanley, what is unique about T.J.? What makes him so valuable? STANLEY JOHNSON: I think what's unique about T.J. is his personality. I would say his overall -- he's able to comply with a lot of situations. He does a lot of stuff. He's like a second coach on the court. He can manage personalities on the court, he can lead, and he knows how to talk to everybody. Sometimes even when you get mad at him or he's mad at you, it's always constructive. You always kind of build from it. There are negative moments, but there are no negative moments as in we don't learn from stuff. It's always a learning process. Especially for a guy like me, coming in as a freshman, having somebody like him to lead me and being able to be there and do the right things for me to follow him, that was really constructive for me for my freshman year. RONDAE HOLLIS-JEFFERSON: For me, T.J. has been a brother for me since I got here. I remember my first visit, getting close with him was big for me because I value relationships, and that just translated on the court to him being a big brother off the court. I can listen to him. We can talk. We can argue. We can fight. We can make up. And those things you want with a basketball team. You want that brotherhood. You want that bond that you don't always find, and that is the big thing for me. So I value that. Q. Rondae and T.J., it's another West Region. Another trip to Los Angeles. You're here. Wisconsin's also here. Are we going to have another earthquake? What do you guys remember about that earthquake? T.J. McCONNELL: Well, I was rooming with Elliott Pitts, and Elliott was like running around. I didn't know what his deal was. He was like shaking the bed. I was like, Elliott, can you stop doing that? And he put his hands up and the room was still shaking. So I got up and ran to the door and put my hands. I heard that's what you're supposed to do, put your hands on the -- I don't even know what that is -- on the door, and I just stood there. I didn't know what else to do until it stopped. Yeah, it was crazy. I've never experienced an earthquake, and I hope I don't have to experience it ever again. RONDAE HOLLIS-JEFFERSON: Yeah, I would say the same. I was laying down, and I thought something was going on in the other room because my bed started shaking. I got up so fast and ran down stairs. I don't know. I didn't know what else to do. But I ran really fast, and my mom was here, so I was looking for her. Q. T.J., both you and Coach Miller come from pretty prestigious Pittsburgh basketball families. I was wondering if you guys really identify with each other well, and if you guys have a really strong bond? T.J. McCONNELL: Yeah, me and Coach Miller probably have as good a relationship for a coach-player as you can have. And coming from the same area, that obvious helps. But I didn't really know him when I first came to Arizona, and the relationship that me and him built is better than anything I could have asked for. I love playing for him. Q. You guys seem loose going into this one. I know you've been here before. But how much pressure is there to finally get Coach Miller, and finally get the program, to win the weekend and finally get to the Final Four? T.J. McCONNELL: It's obviously we want to get to a Final Four for Arizona and for the city of Tucson. But we can't overlook this game because if you do, that is the team that will beat you. Xavier is going to be very ready tomorrow, and they're going to be ready to play. I mean, if we're looking already towards the Elite Eight or the Final Four, that's how you get beat. So we're not really looking ahead right now. We're just trying to focus on Xavier. Q. Stanley, first off, have you ever played in Staples before? STANLEY JOHNSON: I played in Staples when I was younger. I was like eighth grade. Little tourneys or something like that. Q. So a little bigger stage now. What's it mean to be here in this arena having grown up in Southern California? STANLEY JOHNSON: I think it means a lot. It's always a goal of mine to play in the Sweet Sixteen. It's always a goal of mine to play in a tournament like this and be on a stage like this. So for it to happen and be at home. I was at the game last year in Anaheim when the guys had to come home again and play one of the biggest games of the season in California which is home for me. So I was like, I want to get back to here. When I saw the schedule in Los Angeles, it was obviously a goal of mine to get back. But now it's about Xavier. It would really be bad to come here and take a loss. We're trying to win games. So it's not about being at home or anything like that. It's about winning games. Q. Stanley, a lot of players that came out of your high school haven't really adjusted as quickly to the college game. A lot of them end up transferring. What was it about your experience? How were you able to adjust so quickly and how much of that has to do with Coach McKnight? STANLEY JOHNSON: In my opinion, Coach McKnight prepares you, I think, probably the best for college. But it's different when you get to college and you have to be able to conform to what is around you. I think I came here with an open mind and I asked to be coached. Having guys like these two guys next to me that are always there for me in my baddest days and able to be there and lead me. Rondae, people always say Rondae was similar to how I was coming in as a freshman, so I learned a lot from him as well as T.J. But I think at the end of the day, it was Coach Miller. When we talked and we said stuff on the court, like I really believed in what he had to say and that's what it's about. If you can do that, you can succeed anywhere. Q. I wanted to follow up on my question earlier about T.J. and Coach Miller. I heard you say they're like father and son. Could you expand on that, please? RONDAE HOLLIS-JEFFERSON: Well, I'm sure everyone that's watching or whoever has tuned into the game, you can tell when we're playing and they point at each other, or T.J. does something or the team does something, the first person Coach Miller looks at is T.J. McConnell, and that is just something they build throughout practice and throughout the years of getting to know each other. As a point guard and as a former point guard, they have that bond where Coach Miller knows the game and he knows what a point guard should do, and he expects the world of T.J., and I think he should. And I expect the world of him too. And I'm sure people can see that. THE MODERATOR: T.J., you shook your head there a little bit. T.J. McCONNELL: Yeah, Rondae just gets jealous that Coach Miller doesn't come off the floor and give him a handshake first. That's all it is (laughing). Q. T.J., is there someone you kind of followed when you were younger, or do you take stuff from a lot of different guys? T.J. McCONNELL: I wouldn't say I try to focus my game around one person. But I watch guys like John Stockton, and Steve Nash play growing up. But I've started to watch Tony Parker a lot too. But I obviously can't be as good as those guys. But I kind of just try to focus my game around them. But realistically I'm just going out and doing what the team needs me to do, and not much else can be said really. THE MODERATOR: Questions coach, an opening statement, please. COACH MILLER: Well, we're obviously very excited to be here. I think anytime that you make the NCAA tournament, you don't take it for granted. The only thing you have to do is look around this year's NCAA tournament and you'll see that a number of programs that are traditionally here aren't, and it's just not as easy, parity. So being here is one thing, and I think having opportunity to be here in the Sweet Sixteen is a great accomplishment in and of itself. For us, being here in LA, which is in the footprint of our conference, is great. Obviously, for me, seeing a lot of friendly faces from a place that is very dear to my heart and unbelievably fond memories, and that is competing against Xavier University. So I know that's part of the story line, but welcome any questions certainly about that. But we're excited to be here, and I think it's going to be a heck of a basketball game as is usually the case at this level. Q. Curious about, you mentioned the Pac-12, a lot of people didn't feel that you as a total conference was going to do much. And all of a sudden look where you're at. What does this mean to you guys separate from just your school itself? COACH MILLER: Well, you're right. So much is made of March and who is in the tournament and do you advance, but we probably didn't get as much credit, maybe, as we deserved as a whole when you look at our conference. I think we had a lot of teams really improved as the year went on. Oregon is a great example. Where they ended and where they began are two different places. Obviously, UCLA, because of their youth, and if you think about all the great players they had lost from a year earlier, it makes sense that it took some time to put it together. Then, obviously, you have us. I know Stanford has made the NITs, Final Four in New York City, so that is great for them. So, yeah, we're proud of our conference, and certainly glad to represent it. Q. Coach, Stanley talked about how receptive he's been to your coaching. What was that like early on when he first stepped on campus as opposed to how it's developed today? COACH MILLER: Stanley, the one thing about him is almost from the very second he stepped on campus, he was so decorated. Four State Championships in the state of California, playing at Mater Dei, and all of the accolades were deservedly so when you look at everything he has done before he got here. But you forget when these guys are in college basketball that they're still 18. If we had the opportunity to be around Stanley for three or four years, a lot of the things that you watch him deal with as a freshman, you almost come to say, Well, of course, he's a freshman. But because you know his time in college won't be as long, you judge him by a different standard. I think Stanley has made all of us better, as coaches, I think he's made his teammates better. But I think the thing that we're the most proud of him is what you asked about. That is that he has listened, and he's tried his best to do what we've asked, and I think that's one of the reasons that our team has been so successful this year. Q. When you look at T.J., could you just describe why he's so valuable to your team and why he's been so essential to your success? COACH MILLER: You know, T.J.'s birthday is today, and to answer that question on the heels of the last one, he's 23. I think he looked at it as, Man, I may be the oldest player that's in the tournament. But it's his experience, that is number one. He knows what to do and how to do it. He does it every day. To me, his talent is as much on defense as it is on offense. Because of that it's hard when that point guard gives so much of himself on that side of the ball for others not to follow. I think what he brings to the table is just comprehensive in its ability to make his team win. That's what we love about him. To me that will be his legacy at Arizona really. From the moment he stepped on our campus, a lot of great things happened in large part because he's on our team. Q. Chris talked about how this is difficult for him going against you because of your relationship in the past. Can you speak to that as well, and do you have any good Chris Mack stories? COACH MILLER: Well, it is difficult in some ways. I think it would be more difficult if maybe we were playing in a regular season. But part of it is I'm just so proud of just watching Xavier and Chris. I mean, this is their third Sweet Sixteen since I left. They're now in the Big East Conference. And if anybody thought that trajectory was going to stop in terms of Xavier continuing to elevate itself in the world of college basketball they're obviously wrong. I'm proud of just looking at where their program is. It's done nothing but just increase and get better. Chris has done just a great, great job. The hardest part for me, and I try not to think about it, is I coached a lot of players at Xavier. Joe and Byron were with me the whole time as the two radio guys. Eight years, not five, and in eight years, there are a lot of players that you grow to love that perform, play in big games, give everything like Stanley Johnson gives to me in Arizona. There are so many guys that I watched through four years give their heart and soul to make that program what it is. When I think of that, that is the hardest part. But for me, I've tried to stay focused on our team and getting our team ready for this game. Because forget the name of the team we're playing, they're a very, very good team, and they're playing their best basketball of the year right now. We're going to have to really be ready to have an opportunity to win, which is I think all of our goals when we're here. You don't want it to stop. We're going to have to keep it going. Q. Both you and T.J. are coming from prestigious Pittsburgh basketball families and you're both point guards. I was wondering if you really identify with him, and if you see a little of yourself in him back when you were playing? COACH MILLER: Yes. I think the common thread we have is what you said, we played for our dads. I think they were both very hard on us, and I mean that in a good way. But I don't think we ever walked in the gym and had a day off because of that. We look at the game the same way and that is to compete every day and work hard. He's the extension, because he plays the point guard, of our coaching staff. And you like to think he represents the qualities that we want to instill in everybody. In T.J.'s case, he really does. There are a lot of players when they walk out the door you miss. I don't know if I'll miss anybody more than him, and that is part of when you're at a place like we're at here, you want to keep it going. You want to keep it going for a lot of reasons. Some of which is those players that you know won't ever have this chance again. But he's appreciated everything that he's gotten at Arizona, and because of that, I think everybody appreciates him. Q. You spoke about the trajectory of Xavier basketball. Thinking back on your time there, what factors lent itself to success then during your eight years, and what continues to keep it going? COACH MILLER: Well, at Xavier, and it's easy for me to say now because I'm not biased. I'm no longer the coach there. Everybody is aligned, and their basketball program is very important. And because it's very important, there are people that have given their heart and soul to make it the best it can be, whether it be the Cintas Center, and if you haven't been there, in my opinion it's one of the great arenas in the game that's built right on campus. It's a quest to be better every year. Never be satisfied. That's why when you look at seven Sweet Sixteens, when you look at the tournament history, I was actually looking at our history at Arizona, which you could make the case is second to none, when you put up Xavier's history, especially in the NCAA tournament, it's amazing that there are some comparisons. The last level is the only thing that's missing, and clearly they're here to make that happen. It's just, I think, amazing when everybody cooperates and thinks the same, you have some really intelligent people at the top, how great things happen. The benefit in so many cases is the student-athletes, watching their experience and what they become when they leave the school. Q. Two-parter, how agonizing was that decision reading from the press conferences when you came to Arizona, making that decision? If you wouldn't mind also commenting on Herb Sendek, I know you had a relationship for a long time, and just your feelings and what happened? COACH MILLER: Yeah, it's been a long time in many ways. One of the things that makes this somewhat easier is I don't have as many ties to the team at Xavier. It's been six years. So Chris and his staff have recruited everybody. No longer are those any of my players that I either recruited or coached. But it was a very difficult decision only because of how great of a program Xavier had. I recognized how lucky I was to be the coach there, and I recognized that the best was yet to come. Not to give up on it, but to make a change at that point isn't easy, especially when you're at a place for eight years that you loved, Cincinnati, Ohio, and we still have great friends that are there. We don't get back there as much now because Tucson and Cincinnati are worlds apart, but some of the best friends that we have as a family still live in Cincinnati, so that makes it hard. It's not just the job, it's everything. The kids, the community makes it hard. On the second note, I don't know if there is more of a gentleman combination, better coach, than Herb Sendek. And our conference lost a really, really good person and a great coach. He'll do fine though. Q. I'm wondering in light of what you said about Xavier, you said when you left, the tradition of Arizona was something you were attracted to. Looking back on that, how much has your recruiting changed over the years, and have you maybe been able to get into other doors now that you might not have back then? COACH MILLER: It's just much different recruiting at Arizona. First of all, you recruit a different area of the country, 100%. So that's first and foremost. What a lot of people in the west don't understand is how many great programs are close together in the midwest. When you're at Xavier, you don't to recruit a McDonald's All-American to say we landed a good player. That state and that area it's amazing the population and terrific talent. But there's unbelievable competition in recruiting. Just in the city of Cincinnati, you have UC, you have Xavier up the road. Xavier, Ohio State. Keep going. Go down south, Louisville, Kentucky. You move over to Indiana. Indiana, Purdue, Butler. So it's just very, very competitive. To me, one of the things that prepared me to be here at Arizona is that incredible competition that you deal with day-in and day-out at a program like Xavier. Q. I know the last two years have not ended like you wanted and you mentioned the incredible competition. I'm just wondering is there any added pressure to get to a Final Four this year given the way the last two years have ended? COACH MILLER: You know, there really isn't. Do we want to get to a Final Four? Of course. But I'm very proud of the fact that this is the third consecutive year that we've been here. I think that in itself is something for us to be proud of. I think anybody who has done it will reflect back on their journey. I think unless Kevin Ollie could be the exception in how UCONN did last year. But usually you have to knock at the door a few times before you break it down. We'll see if this is our year. But we have that opportunity. We're one of the last 16 that are remaining, and I think that in and of itself makes us proud. What we're trying to do is play our best right now. If we do that, based on our season and the team we have, I think we have a chance to advance. But the thing about the tournament, it's not a seven-game series. In 40 minutes and two and a half hours, a lot of different things can happen, and the best overall team doesn't always win. So we have to play the best tomorrow night, and that is our focus. Hopefully that experience you talked about will help us do that. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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