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AMERICAN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE MEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIPMarch 15, 2019Tim JankovichJarrey FosterJahmal McMurrayMemphis, Tennessee Cincinnati - 82, SMU, 74 COACH TIM JANKOVICH: Just that the last game of the year is always the hardest, you know, unless you happen to be that one team that is really, really happy at the end of the year. It's hard, the season ends, but probably hardest because you have to say goodbye to people that you spent a lot of time with and that you love and that you respect and you don't get to be around on a daily basis anymore. So, for me, last games of the season are really very sad. That's the long and the short of it. I could dig into how many rebounds, free throws and this and that, but right now I'm not all that interested in that. The feeling of the disappointment for our team, for our seniors and I don't know -- I think if we got in a contest of a team that was faced with the most adversity in history, I think we could be a player in that, and that's why I respect these guys so much. Nobody on the outside has any idea what they went through, what we went through on a daily basis and for them to keep fighting and fighting and fighting and never giving in, I really respect them. Q. It's been a tough two seasons for you. Now it's finally over, can you put things into perspective? JARREY FOSTER: I've been blessed to have this opportunity. My four years here have been amazing with amazing people, amazing coaching staff, amazing teammates, amazing support. I couldn't ask to be anywhere else. The past two years were really hard for me. But, I mean, you've got to run with the punches, you know. And I tried to do my best to make the best out of it. I didn't ask for the past two seasons to happen. I didn't ask to have no post-season in my freshman year. I didn't ask for these things to happen. But as a man and growing up into a man, you have to learn how to find the best route to get through these things and to continue to push forward, and that's all I pretty much did. So it's been a blessing. I'm just glad that I finished, that was the hardest thing. In the middle of all of it, you don't know what you want to do, confused -- it's a hard time. I've finished the race and I've finished it for my teammates and coaches and for everybody that's supported me. Q. Now the season's over, can you go into more detail about your injury? JARREY FOSTER: Not too much. I can't go into too much detail. But moving forward, I know I do want to continue to play basketball. Just going to see where it takes me. I'm blessed to still be moving and playing, so I'm going to take it and run with it. Q. Coach, you stayed up with them until the final few minutes, and had done a good job with the game plan. What worked and what changed in those last few minutes? COACH TIM JANKOVICH: I'm not sure. They hit a lot of shots they normally wouldn't make. I give them credit for that. But they continued to shoot the ball. We did a fantastic job the first half, rebounding. They had four offensive rebounds, four or five the first half, which we would take in every half against Cincinnati. I think we wore down. They bring waves, particularly their front line, they bring guys in waves, they keep them fresh. We are leaving our guys out there an awful long time and I totally understand that. They got a lot of offensive rebounds the second half and Cumberland played great down the stretch. He was tough to score, he made baskets, he made fouls. But I don't fault anything that we did. They're a great team. There's nothing negative in my mind. It just -- the last three or four minutes -- what sticks with me, they stretched the lead on us. We had, you know, a lot going against us at that time and we fought our way back. I want to say, what, down one, if I'm not mistaken. I'm not sure if we tied or took the lead, but we fought right back to down one and gave ourself another chance and we couldn't finish. Not as an excuse, but I know that we got some guys on fumes out there, and, again, I don't mean that as an excuse. It's tough, it's tough to have the same bounce you do in the last three or four minutes when some guys are playing as many as they are. And I want to say in case I don't get a chance that Jarrey has been through -- I have coached over 30-some years, Jarrey has been through more than anybody I have ever coached by 100 times. His freshman year, he finds out there's no post-season, there's a probation, we are not going post-season. Can you imagine -- for nothing he did, he just happened in September to find that out. His next year goes great, he was great, we win a ton of games, it's fantastic, lots of great things happen. The next year starts, we are right back in it, we in position February 1, we're another NCAA team, we're going to make a run at another Championship. Boom, he tears his ACL. Shake goes down, Everett goes down, others go down, the season goes down. And now he's up in a second rehab, second ACL of his life, his senior year of high school. So now he's staring down that barrel. This season starts, we have optimism but he can't play at the beginning. And so he doesn't practice all through the beginning, finally getting back. You saw what happened when he came back to our team. I think we won eight out of ten. We started the league great, we looked like a contender. And then he gets hurt in the Houston game. I don't know anybody that's gone through all of that. And I look at Jahmal, he chooses another school early on, you know. There's firings, there's allegations, there's all kinds of a mess that he didn't sign up for. So he leaves the school and he works like crazy, and he does a lot of academic work and he comes to us with hopes of playing in a great team. Sure enough, the year starts out fantastic and he gets eligible and he helps us and we are winning like crazy. We have 3 top-15 wins and it's rolling, and the next thing you know, he looks beside him and Jarrey is out, Shake's out, and Everett is out. We are down two scholarships -- or three -- for sanctions and that's -- he didn't do anything, you know. He was just hoping to play on a great team. And then again this year, we're down to begin with with the sanctions and we get injuries and a bunch of injuries. And what I feel -- for him, what bothers me is he, for me, has turned into a winner, you know. And he deserves to win. I wanted him to play in a NCAA tournament, I wanted him to experience that. He should have played in three or four of them, you know. And that's a lot of stuff, you know. You don't get 17 careers. A coach gets many more years. I have been doing this a long time. I've had a lot of great things happen to me. I don't need that like they need that. They just get one and I'm just -- that's what hurts me so much that they are going to be leaving, and we don't have another chance together to do all the things that I believe that could have been done had it not been for a lot of circumstances that none of us had any control over. Q. After a big win last night, and a really close competitive game tonight, can you describe what that experience was like for you? JAHMAL MCMURRAY: It was a great experience. I'm just blessed to be a part of a great team. I still think we are a great team. Like Coach said, we went through a lot of stuff this year, But we never made excuses. We fought and fought and fought, and a lot of people counted us out, especially in the first round, I'm sure. And we came out and fought again and got a win against Tulsa, against a very great team. And we came out tonight and really fought hard and put ourselves in position to win a game. And a few things happened in the game that didn't go our way. But at the end of the day, I'm a really blessed individual to be a part of basketball, college basketball, period. And I want to thank Coach Jankovich for giving me the opportunity and giving me the chance to play basketball. I'm thankful as a whole to be a part of what we were able to be a part of. And we got one win and we tried to get another one and we fought hard, that's all you can ask for. Q. Coach, you have talked a lot about your future, but have you been told anything regarding your job status for next year? COACH TIM JANKOVICH: It's all good, yeah. Thank you for asking. It's all good. Appreciate the question. How's your status for next year? Pretty good? So, we are both in good shape. Thank you. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports   |
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