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BIG TEN CONFERENCE BASKETBALL MEDIA DAYS

October 19, 2017

Chris Holtmann

Madison Square Garden - New York, New York

THE MODERATOR: We're joined by Chris Holtmann.

COACH HOLTMANN: Great to be here, great to be with everybody. It has certainly been an exciting and whirlwind last few months. This is a terrific time of year for all of us as coaches. I'm sure you've heard that echoed. It's an exciting time.

I feel very grateful to be coaching the group we're coaching led by some outstanding upperclassmen. And we're excited to get started. Cannot wait to get started.

I think this league -- I left a league of outstanding coaches. And one of the things I know for certain, with this league, is it has some incredible coaching and terrific talent, terrific players. This league has led attendance in the nation, the last 41 years, and I think that speaks to the quality of play and the excitement in the Big Ten. Can't wait to get started and looking forward to it.

Q. Can you just talk about the experience you take away from being in the Big East with Butler and bringing it to Ohio State?
COACH HOLTMANN: Sure. Well, obviously got great respect for the Big East. It's an outstanding league. I think it's proven that over time in the new formation of that league.

I will say I have not had the best success in the Big East Tournament here. So maybe I've got to change the leagues to see if I can change that dynamic a little bit there.

But I think anytime you're a part of a power league, it prepares you for what is coming. And this is -- we were talking to a couple of coaches here as we're passing through the halls here, there are no easy nights, as is the case in most leagues, but certainly in the Big Ten, there are no easy nights.

And I think our guys understand that having been through what we've been through the last couple of years.

Q. You were a coach in the Big East at the time when the Big Ten negotiated to have their conference tournament here. Were Big East coaches concerned about the presence of the Big Ten in their building? Should they be?
COACH HOLTMANN: Well, it certainly came up. And I'm not sure we had a tremendous -- we didn't have a tremendous role in that process, but it certainly came up. I think at that time what we were concerned about was we didn't want the dates to change for our league, for the Big East.

I think that was the biggest concern there. I think this is certainly a big enough city. It's one of the most iconic venues in all of sports. And I think to play here, this city can certainly handle both leagues.

And I expect our conference tournament here will be an outstanding one. And I think our fan base is really going to enjoy coming to this city and playing.

Q. Columbus has a tremendous fan base in Ohio State. And the uncomfortable of expectations for you this year, particularly what can help also having the experience of being in the Big East and understanding the recruiting base that you possibly can get here?
COACH HOLTMANN: Can you repeat that question?

Q. First, the uncomfortable expectations of Big Ten fans particular at Ohio State, they want something very quickly. But also being in the Big East, knowing that the expectation of recruiting that you know already that can be attracted to the Big Ten?
COACH HOLTMANN: Yeah, we'll want to recruit certainly nationally, but this area obviously, our home state is really important to us as well in recruiting. That's going to be paramount for us.

But I think anytime -- listen, we all have expectations. And as we talked to our players, we're defining what we're going to be on a day-to-day basis.

So we don't concern ourselves really with what people expect of us right now, good or bad. We think we're in control of defining that on a day-to-day basis. And that's our goal.

I'm excited to be at a place that wants to be really good and wants to be really good in basketball. And that's exciting for me.

Q. You're a couple weeks in now to the preseason, you've talked about trying to get to know your team. Where do you think you are in that process, and how much more settled do you feel on guys and having a feel for them than maybe you did when you started the preseason?
COACH HOLTMANN: We're getting there. I think we're slowly but surely getting there. They're getting a chance to know us. It's a little bit unique because during the summer, when you typically have your team and have a chance to work out with your full team, we weren't able to do that, because we had, at that time, seven or eight healthy guys.

So it's been a little bit unique in that we've gotten to know each other quicker here. And I've started earlier this year than any other year as a head coach for that reason just to have a chance to spend more time with our guys.

But as I said, Jae'Sean Tate is here, Kam Williams is here, Keita Bates-Diop. Those are guys that have been part of our program for a number of years. Coach Matta and his staff did an outstanding job recruiting impressive people, and I'm excited about this group, and I'm excited about the fact that those three are going to be leading this group.

Q. You've talked about the point guard position. And who do you see and how far along is maybe Jae'Sean coming in playing that point and maybe getting some relief to C.J., and who else might factor in that position for you this season?
COACH HOLTMANN: I think it's an evolving position that we continue to kind of learn about. It's going to be really -- as is our back court. We're obviously really thin in the back court. I think C.J. has done some really good things in practice.

I felt really good about his growth in this short amount of time. And I'm excited about what he can grow into. He had a limited role last year. But he's going to need to be really good for us.

JT, Jae'Sean, he's been learning what we expect from that position. He's never played it before. He's going to need to play it this year and he's going to need to play it effectively for us. I think he'll slide more on the perimeter than he has maybe at any point in his career.

And Andrew Dakich will be asked to help as well in that. And he's obviously got experience playing. And we brought him in with the expectation that he's going to have to give us some depth at that position. He's elevated our competitiveness in practice, which has been a good thing.

THE MODERATOR: Thank you.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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