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NCAA MEN'S 1ST AND 2ND ROUNDS: RALEIGH

March 18, 2016

Chris Holtmann

Raleigh, North Carolina

THE MODERATOR: We are now ready to begin Coach Holtmann's press conference.

Q. Hey, Coach. When you look at Malcolm Brogdon and what he's been able to do for them offensively, particularly in stretches where the rest of the offense doesn't look very good, what makes him so effective?
CHRIS HOLTMANN: Well, he's an elite player on both ends. Let's kind of begin there. I think he's an elite talent on both ends. You can tell he's fully committed. He makes really big shots for them. They have a top-ten offensive efficiency. I don't know how many times their offense doesn't look very good, at least it looks very good to me most times.

He is their big shot-maker that they want to get shots for when they need baskets, and he's proven that he's capable of doing that over and over.

Q. Chris, I don't know if Barry Collier had ever spoken to you much about the origins of the Butler way and his ties to Dick Bennett. Really it sounds like the foundations of both Butler and Virginia programs are mirror images of each other.
CHRIS HOLTMANN: Yeah, I'm pretty well versed in that. And there are certainly some ties with some of our core values. Barry's quick to give Dick Bennett a lot of credit for that. And my college coach, who I remain very close to, spent some time with Dick Bennett, and quite a bit of time with Dick Bennett, and I think, you know, Coach Bennett and the Bennett family are -- if you're a coach, you really have a great appreciation for the way they do things, their brand, their style of play, and their recipe for success.

So, one of my very, very favorite coaching books of all time that I got was, kind of a Season on the Brink book similar to that, one of Dick Bennett's first couple of years at Wisconsin, and it was given to me by my college coach early in my coaching career. It was great. Unfortunately, his son's a pretty daggone good coach, too.

Q. Coach, last night you said that the players would sleep well but the coaches wouldn't. How is that quick turnaround? And obviously you did some pre-scout, but when you got to face a team like Virginia with all that they do, how was last night? How long was the night?
CHRIS HOLTMANN: Oh, man. Do I have bags under my eyes yet? Every coach is like that, right? Don't hear me say I'm complaining now. I'll lose sleep any chance I get as long as we can continue to advance. I mean, it's a great time and you're going on adrenaline. I did wake up, went to bed around midnight. Woke up at about 2:30, just eyes wide open, thinking about Brogdon and Perrantes, all of the motion that we're going have to guard. I pulled my laptop out because I couldn't get to sleep. And I was watching a couple of their ACC Tournament games and my wife looked over and said, what time is it? 2:30. So did that for a few hours.

Our players are the ones that have to sleep. They are the ones that are going to have the hard work. We're doing our best to put a game plan together for a terrific team.

Q. I guess this qualifies as maybe a note more than a lead story, but your background coaching in this state, this part of the country, could you elaborate on that a little bit?
CHRIS HOLTMANN: Sure. Love to. You know, I spent a few years in this state and spent some years as an assistant, associate head coach and then spent three years as the head coach at Gardner-Webb University in Boiling Springs, North Carolina. How many in here have been to Boiling Springs, North Carolina? Oh, wow, a lot more than I thought. That's four.

Q. I've seen the exit.
CHRIS HOLTMANN: You've seen it. I would consider you've been there as long as you've seen the exit. You've been close enough to touch it.

I had a wonderful experience there, and, as I've told people, David knows this, it was one of the hardest moves of my coaching career to leave a very secure coaching job and kids that -- young people that I loved. We had an excellent team coming back, and I just -- we had a great deal of success in turning it quickly in our three years, and then I came to Butler as an assistant.

So I love this area, love this state, and they've got a great appreciation for college basketball. I've been fortunate. I grew up in Kentucky, I went to school in Indiana, and I coached in North Carolina. Those are three pretty good basketball states.

Q. Coach, you were fortunate enough to inherit, so to speak, a program with a terrific foundation and base, but how rewarding has it been to you to sustain that and to advance in these tournaments?
CHRIS HOLTMANN: It's been really special, and it's something we want to continue to do, and as I've said over and over, you know, I get a text from Coach Stevens every Selection Sunday saying, "Don't ever take this for granted." And, I really try to follow -- heed that advice, and you're talking about a guy who went there quite a bit, came to this party quite a bit.

So I think your players appreciate every moment. We're trying to appreciate every moment and play with a great sense of gratitude. And we know it's not a given. You know, as I've told -- we're three years removed from 4-14 in the Big East, and really struggled, a losing record and a difficult year. So I think because that has been so recent in our memory, you have an appreciation for how quickly things can turn the other way.

So I'm so proud of this group and what they've been able to accomplish and hopefully we can continue to do it.

Q. Coach, you spoke about Malcolm and what he does for their offensive efficiency. I'm curious and this might be too simple, but is it more important to take away Anthony Gill and some of that inside or Perrantes and the three-point shooing? What is more important to getting them going offensively?
CHRIS HOLTMANN: I don't know if there is one. Their guard play can get them going. Gill's a load inside. His motor is outstanding. All of their bigs are good. Gill just plays with a terrific motor, and he's tough, he can score. He can go get their misses as well.

They've got good balance. You know, any elite offensive team is going to have great balance and I think they have great balance. If they're not -- they're covered up on the perimeter, they're going to find a way to get Gill and Tobey and the other guys the ball the inside, and they're effective when they get it there.

Q. I guess this is a no-brainer, you get it a lot, but just briefly what has the Big East meant for your program?
CHRIS HOLTMANN: Well, I think it's probably helped in every way. I think it was a terrific move for our university, and it was certainly a university decision. And, as I've always said, it's really a credit to those student-athletes that have, you know, that made kind of Butler what Butler is today, to put us in that position.

Now, we have some -- you know, we have some work to do to continue to compete at a high level. This three-year transition, you know, three leagues in a few years, has been -- can be one that's challenging. We've got some work to do to continue to build really solid recruiting classes. Because it's -- hey, listen, there's no question, it's a step up. The Big East is an elite league. I think it will always be a top-five league in the country. It's been that way in our three years and I think it's going to continue to be that.

Q. Coach, I was just wondering, since you have the common opponents in Villanova and Miami, were you able to look at those tapes and glean something, just because you had played those two teams?
CHRIS HOLTMANN: A little bit, yeah. A little bit. You know, when you're scouting teams, you do try to look at those teams that may be most similar to you that they're playing, similar in style. And so we've tried to, you know, look at those games that they have played again teams that would be -- that would probably fit us the most. You know, if a team's going to have -- their front line is going to be 6'9", 6'10", 6'10", that's not us.

So some of those games were earlier, and we have peeked at them but we spent more time on those games where we felt like they matched up against teams similar to us.

Q. Are those teams similar to you?
CHRIS HOLTMANN: I don't know if I want to reveal that or not. Georgia Tech, Clemson, we've watched Villanova some, and a little bit of Miami. And then we peeked at obviously a few other games, but we really focused on some of those.

Q. Chris, you mentioned who you are similar to on their schedule. Who are they similar to on your schedule?
CHRIS HOLTMANN: Their numbers are most similar to Villanova, but they play a different style. But their numbers, in terms of how they are, how complete they are as a team, and how sound they are offensively and defensively is very similar to Villanova. Villanova is top ten in efficiency in both offense and defense. So, they would come to mind first. Although, the styles are a little bit different.

You know, I think Tony has a real style and a brand that they play that is somewhat unique from a lot of other teams in the country.

Q. Coach, I'm sure you heard what happened to Tony right before the first half yesterday. He was, I think, more embarrassed about it. But do you think, being around coaching long enough, the hours you put in, the quick turnarounds, the pressure, is it a wonder that more coaches don't have physical ailments or don't get under the weather or dehydrated more or do you guys and do you hide it from us?
CHRIS HOLTMANN: No. It's almost happened to me in a game. Last year I had to take a knee. And I think some of it is just kind of -- most people, if you've ever gotten up quickly, and you've kind of gotten light-headed.

First of all, I was concerned about him. I don't know Tony well, but when we were on the bus back and one of my assistants said that and one of the guys on our staff, and you're obviously concerned, really concerned. So it's good to hear that he's doing well and it may have just been dehydration.

You know, I think the job is demanding. There's no question and the challenges to maintain some balance. I don't know that anybody has that mastered. But I think when I've been around Coach Bennett or talked to him a little bit. I think he's got a pretty good understanding. Seems like he's got a great work life-family balance and a really good perspective. And that can be really hard to do. Listen, we've been on the bubble, I think, since, what, December it seems like? So, that can wear coaches out.

And I think one of the things that's helped our group this year is we had -- we had some very difficult things happen inside our program with two deaths, that were just so tragic, and I think if that -- I can remember going back into our offices when we were going through -- when Andrew Smith was maybe weeks away from passing away, and then also dealing with the young man on our staff who's young son, infant son, had a terminal illness, and I remember our staff saying to each other, and we had a game coming up, Wow. We don't even want to think about the game right now. What matters is our guys, and them processing this in the right way, and us being as supportive as we can to those that are going through this.

So I think that has helped our entire team have some perspective and there's no question it helped me have some perspective in the midst of all of this.

THE MODERATOR: Any other questions?

All right. Coach. Thank you very much. Good luck tomorrow.

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