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NCAA MEN'S 1ST AND 2ND ROUNDS: SAN DIEGO

March 15, 2018

San Diego, California

THE MODERATOR: We will welcome Wichita State. Start out with it is student-athletes, Landry Shamet and Shaquille Morris.

Q. Shaq, what's it like to be here in this moment? Your senior year with everything that you've gone through, ups and downs to be the senior leader on this team, going into NCAA Tournament, what's that like for you?
SHAQUILLE MORRIS: To be here for my last year and making it to the NCAA Tournament every year that I've been here is a huge accomplishment. Now we just, you know, gotta lock in and go in and make it a special one.

Q. Shaquille, the experience factor on this team, probably the most experienced team Gregg has had. Talk about what it means for you to have that much experience here at the tournament?
SHAQUILLE MORRIS: Yeah, you know, it's March time. Got six guys who have been around and been through a lot, seniors, and then you got really mature guys, redshirt juniors like Landry Shamet and other guys that can contribute, redshirt sophomore? Gave him too many years.

We are just ready to come in and try to be as good as we can and try to advance. It's a huge accomplishment being here right now and it's just exciting.

Q. Landry, talk about the disappointment of getting hurt your first year and then how things have developed since then for you?
LANDRY SHAMET: Yeah, unfortunately, I've had to feel that a couple of times. But the first year obviously that was a big reason why I came here to play with Ron and Fred and that group. Not being able to play with them I've told people has been a blessing in disguise, getting to watch and learn. I didn't realize how much you could take in and use for your own gain just by watching. I think that was a turning point in my personal career, getting to watch that.

And now fast forward two years, here we are, and, you know, just -- I think that the experiences and the knowledge I gained from that experience, from being hurt and being out have really catapulted me in this situation where I'm at and grateful to be here.

Q. Landry, how much has Shaq evolved the three years that you've known him to where he was today? Probably one of best players in the American this year as a senior. How much has he grown?
LANDRY SHAMET: I've been lucky to always feel kind of close to Shaq. I remember on my visit he was the main one telling me he wanted me to come play with them and he wanted to play with me and all that stuff.

Obviously he's matured a ton from that point. Year-by-year, even this year, throughout the year you can see the changes that he's made and gone through. It's been really cool to see his progression and how much more dominant he's gotten. He's always been a dominant player, but the fact that he's put together a very complete season this year where he's been very consistent for us, gives us the same thing every night. Just really cool to see that. He's a giant part of our team and one of the best players in our conference, for sure.

Q. Curious about what San Diegans have to look forward to if they come to watch the game?
LANDRY SHAMET: Unselfish group, as far as sharing the ball with each other, guys aren't selfish, which is fun to watch, the ball is pinning around moving, getting the right shots. We're pretty deep, play a lot of guys. You're going to see different faces on the floor at any given time and a brand of basketball that it's not your typical Wichita State style as people in the media have been talking about. We might not defend like we used to, and this and that.

But we feel like we're a talented group and we have a lot of weapons offensively. Defensively we feel like we are a team where we can put together a game where we can be effective on the defensive end and play a good, all-around game of basketball.

Q. You guys have played against two of the quickest teams in the nation, Savannah State and Oklahoma. How important is that pace that you've played against going to pay off in this game?
SHAQUILLE MORRIS: They're a great scoring team. They've got great guards who can do whatever they want with the ball and bigs who can shoot the ball well. It's going to be us having to lock in defensively and try to slow 'em down a little bit and make 'em uncomfortable, if we can. But, you know, they're good what the they do and we gotta try to come in and execute defensively. That's the mindset we have.

Q. Y'all have partially just answered the question, but Landry, talk about the pace. Y'all like to throw up the three-pointer, too, and been successful about it and you mentioned your pace is very good. How much pacewise does this compare to Marshall?
LANDRY SHAMET: I'm not sure we play as fast as them. In film we have seen them come down and take the first semi-open look they get. They play a unique style of basketball which is not very identical to ours. We like to try to play fast but not nearly as fast as they like to get out and play.

Obviously, it's two separate brands, unique brands and not one that is better than the other, really, in my opinion. But we're just different in the fact that we may not come down and take a quick one. Coach stresses you're looking for, that's why we are amongst the top in the country in assist totals because we like to share the ball and pass up a good shot for a great shot.

Q. Shaquille, can you give us a sense, Landry's style of play, what makes him effective and how he's evolved this year? And he's appeared on some NBA projected draft boards. Any thoughts on that?
SHAQUILLE MORRIS: On part one, he's a great, mature player. He just let us the game come to him. When the ball is in his hands he slows down and sees stuff before it happens. We love the ball being in his hands where he can make reads. He's a player of the game. He got a great outside shot, can attack the rim, is explosive. When he draws defense he knows exactly where the ball needs to be. High IQ.

For the second part, yeah, that's amazing for one of our younger guys to be on a high draft board. He got the potential to do, you know, whatever he needs to do whenever he want to do it. Right now we just want to lock in and try to advance as far as we can in March.

Q. Shaq, tell us how important it's been for all of the big men for the Shockers to be able to pass Rashard Kelly as second on the team in assists and you pass the ball well, too, and to shoot the three-point shot.
SHAQUILLE MORRIS: That's part of our game plan, always playing inside/out. When you catch the ball this high you don't want to be selfish with it. You can't be selfish with it. I always want to make the right play especially when you want to get the ball inside first. So always having that vision to be able to read the defense as a big, even as guards, as he said, our assist totals, you gotta be able to read the defense and make great plays and get the ball where it needs to be.

Q. What is one way you can get San Diego fans to rally behind your team? Is there something we not may not know about your team, whether it's a fight song, a hand sign, something fun to get 'em pumped for you?
SHAQUILLE MORRIS: Our motto has always been to play angry. So it's part of our effort that can get the San Diego fans into it and they see our effort and how hard we play and how bad we want it. Then that should do it right there.

Q. Could you sing part of your fight song for me?
SHAQUILLE MORRIS: He got it.

LANDRY SHAMET: You know you're the singer, man.

SHAQUILLE MORRIS: I'm no -- (Chuckles.)

LANDRY SHAMET: Yeah, sure, forgot about that.

THE MODERATOR: Thank you, gentlemen.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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