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NCAA MEN'S 1ST AND 2ND ROUNDS: TULSAMarch 21, 2019Bobby HurleyZylan CheathamRemy MartinTulsa, Oklahoma THE MODERATOR: The student-athletes up here are Remy Martin and Zylan Cheatham. We are ready for questions at anytime. Q. Either of you guys, just talk about how crazy the last 24 hours have been, you know, emotional win against Saint John's landing here at 4:00 in the morning and 12 hours after you land out to practice. REMY MARTIN: It's been very exciting, I mean, just to experience this my sophomore year as well. Been a great experience, man, winning and advancing. Just the satisfaction of winning and knowing that your season is still going is a great feeling, great accomplishment, and obviously that our eyes are on the prize. We're definitely trying to continue to win. We're also absorbing everything that comes with it. ZYLAN CHEATHAM: I mean, to obviously accomplish a win like that, to celebrate it with your guys, but I was happier to get back on the plane and lock into the next task. I'd say it's pretty much been an emotional rollercoaster. But you have to embrace your wins, you have to enjoy it, live in the moment, but, at the same time, you got to stay focused on the task ahead. Q. To kind of dovetail off that, how -- what was the most difficult part of that quick turnaround, like 16-to-20 hour turnaround. What was the most difficult part of this? ZYLAN CHEATHAM: I didn't get into my hotel bed until about, I want to say like 5:00 in the morning. But I say the most tough part about it was just leaving straight from the game, your bags are already packed, go straight to the airport, and you get straight back on the road. On the flip side of that is like our fans and are dancing and cheer team and our band, they did such a good job of keeping us in a positive spirits, keeping us happy. When we got to the airport, they're there and cheering for us. It's stuff like that that you just have to embrace and look at it as part of the process. Q. When you're scouting Buffalo and looking at Buffalo, what jumps out at them that -- what do they do that can really pose challenges for you guys? REMY MARTIN: We haven't got to that yet, but we know that they're going to go out and play hard as they can. They're a great team, we know that. We know their record speaks for itself. They're a winning team. We know that they're going to come out and play hard. It's going to be a fun game. ZYLAN CHEATHAM: I'd say aside from the X and Os part of it, they're considered a mid major conference and they're coming off of 12 straight wins. Stuff like that. I've actually been are part of that mid major conference. You want to be considered the top of the top, so we know they're going to come out extremely hungry. To get to the Xs and Os part, they're a really disciplined team. They don't make many mistakes. They capitalize off of mistakes. We got to clean up some turnovers. Like I said, we know we're going to get their best shot, but we got to make sure we match their intensity. Q. This is for you Remy. It seems like with this team on any given night, somebody different might step up and have a fantastic game. For you personally, kind of in and out of the game last night, does it make you -- I don't know if "comfort" is the right word, maybe more confidence, knowing if you do have to sit down with your health condition, that your guys have it? REMY MARTIN: Yeah. I mean our guys, we've been through so much adversity, you know, on and off the court. We're so close knit. I know even when I'm not playing my best game that somebody like Lu, Rob and Mello,, anybody can step up. That's the great thing about our team is that there's no individuals. We're all together. When one falls, the other one is there to pick them up. That's the greatness of our team. I'm just happy to be a part of the team and have guys like that that, you know, are players and they pick me up when I'm not having my best game and, who knows, I might have a good game tomorrow. Q. Just going off that, I guess for either one of you, can you talk about what Lu did last night. And I think really this morning he kind of got some more national recognition finally not just people in Arizona recognizing it. ZYLAN CHEATHAM: At this point nothing he does really surprises me. I've seen the work that he put in, I mean -- I remember the first workout I ever worked out with him, he was just doing things that you don't really see freshmen. Do. I've been around for what, this is my fifth year. It's just things you never really see freshmen do. Not that I was expecting him to have a game like that but the fact that he did just compliments the work he put in, the confidence he has in himself and the confidence Bobby gives us as players. REMY MARTIN: He's a beast. Q. Obviously a big story line with this game is Bobby going against his former assistant with Nate Oats. Has he talked about that at all or do you see him, you know, maybe little extra emotional, anything like that? REMY MARTIN: No. It's all about the team. This is about us and our future and it's just all about the team, what we need to do to be successful, and it's not about him. He's never been a me guy. Everything that he says or does is for all of us. ZYLAN CHEATHAM: He's done a really good job. Kind of making it our journey as opposed to his. That was his message, don't really get too far into the whole emotional impact this game could have on me or something like that. I want you guys to stay focused. I've already did what I did in college and I've made my journey. It's you guy's turn. He's doing a good job of not making it about himself. THE MODERATOR: Anything else for the student-athletes of Arizona State? All right, gentlemen. Thank you very much. Best of luck. BOBBY HURLEY: I was just -- it was just an electric night last night, kind of doesn't feel like ended in some ways. Considering all the media after, then the travel and getting in here at four in the morning but the alternative is far worse. We're very excited to be here. The guys were able to get a lot of rest today. It's just about recovery and trying to get freshmen mentally and physically and that's really -- that's what it's about today for us. Q. Bobby, what was your reaction -- I know you and Nate spoke Sunday, but what was your reaction knowing this is now a reality facing Nate and your former team? BOBBY HURLEY: It is intense for us going in that Sunday leading into Selection Sunday and just a lot of conversations. You know, our administrators, my wife, my brother, talking to my brother on the phone he was like I have a feeling that they're -- Buffalo is in that 6 range and I see you as an 11 seed. I don't think Dan thought we would be in the playing game, but he thought there could be a chance that this might happen. So, I gave it some thought then, but then as the show proceeded I knew that what we had done this year and the wins we had and our record in the league and that we'd be in the field and spots were limited at that moment. So I knew that something might be in the works there when I saw that. Q. Bobby, last night you mentioned maybe aside from your brother's games, you watched more Buffalo games than any other teams. How well do you feel like you know this team and is it sort of an advantage because it's a team you keep your eye on? BOBBY HURLEY: I've watched and again, so it's like I'm in the blind as far as not watching Buffalo. It's helpful in that regard. But when the ball goes up, they have a lot of winners in their locker room. They're a team that's won 31 games. they're a mid major that doesn't play like it. They don't look like it. You know, they have all the ingredients of a top team, and so we're going to have our hands full. It's going to be -- we're going to have to -- they're not going to back out of a game, man. You got to beat Buffalo. They won't give in to you at any point. Q. Bobby, the tournament has a history of pairing coaches against their former assistants. They obviously seem to like that. Obviously they feel fans like that. I get the sense, though, over time coaches really don't care for that. Could you kind of address why that's difficult for a coach to go up against his former team or maybe more specifically a former assistant? Why is that hard? Why don't coaches enjoy that so much? BOBBY HURLEY: I have such great memories at Buffalo, my two years. I still vividly remember the confetti falling in Cleveland for the first time there and doing it with people, you know, that I respect and like, like Nate Oats and to have an opportunity to go to a tournament and then it's the personal relationship. Nate and I, you know, we were on the road recruiting. We hoped we're in the same city so we could get together. We speak frequently and we root for each other. So, anytime you have to go against that team, it's not the greatest scenario, but then as a coach you think about all the work you put in and how hard your players work, July through the fall and all these battles you're in during the season, to even get yourself in a position to be in in this tournament, and once you're here, everything goes out the window and you're just trying to compete like heck to advance and make your season more special. So, that's where my thoughts are. My thoughts are only with like Remy Martin, Lu Dort, Zylan Cheatham, and the guys that I'm bringing to battle tomorrow. Q. When you hired Nate, he was a high school coach. What did you see in him when you hired him that you thought this guy could do something some day? BOBBY HURLEY: I'm a talent evaluator administrator. Nate, it's immediate his passion for basketball was something I was drawn to and it's genuine and when we were recruiting EC Matthews and I was an assistant at Rhode Island, I got to go visit Nate and watch how he conducted his practices. He had a practice plan and it was organized and he's coaching tough kids from the inner city of Detroit, and you could visually see the respect that he got from all those players. So, I mean, I instantly knew that he was a really good coach, and me going into Buffalo, couple of years assistant coaching experience, I had a lifetime of basketball experience, but Nate also had ten years as a high school coach, and my dad being a high school coach for 45 years, it was something that I respected what he was doing and I thought he deserved an opportunity and he was hungry to do it. He really recruited. He got after it, he developed a relationships with kids we were recruiting. He was great tactically, always great ideas and he was good on the floor. So, you know, I couldn't have done any better than to hire Nate Oats. Q. Bobby, when you left for Arizona State, did you recommend Nate as your replacement? And if he had not been the replacement, would you have wanted him on your staff at Arizona State? BOBBY HURLEY: When I decided to take the Arizona State job, I told Nate that I think that he should aggressively try and get the job; that he deserved the job; that he would do phenomenal and to go after it confidently. Improving the players that -- we had a really good core of talent in the locker room that was coming back, and so I think it made sense for Danny White to make that move. It was a great decision on his part to keep Nate. I told Nate, "If you don't get it, there's a spot open for you with me on the staff at Arizona State." Q. Nate talked so much about how grateful he is that you gave him his shot at Division I coaching, what is it like to hear him have such gratitude for you still? BOBBY HURLEY: I think we share mutual respect and friendship, and it's not easy to get your foot in the door in this business. I'm fortunate to have like a storied basketball playing career which helped open doors, and there are a lot of talented people out there that don't get the opportunity. And so we were able to recognize that and Nate worked his butt off to really put himself in a position to want to be a college coach, assistant coach, and he's made the most of it. Q. Can you give us an idea of what the plane ride was like on the way back? Were the assistants looking at film, breaking down, just how that worked? BOBBY HURLEY: Everyone was -- just had their own computer and were watching whatever Buffalo games they chose to watch. I didn't mandate anyone to watch a particular game. I had my set of games I was watching. Otherwise, the plane was quiet. We expended a lot of energy -- the guys were sleeping or had their headphones on just listening to music. Q. I know he's obviously had the back injury, what is Mickey Mitchell's status with the team now and going forward? BOBBY HURLEY: He was at our house on Sunday for the selection show party. He's still a part of what we're doing. He's had some setbacks with it, and we're trying to get him to a point where he's a hundred percent. He's had trouble getting there this year. He's had a lot of the wear and tear over the years, both playing basketball and football. We're hopeful we get Mickey to a hundred percent healthy. When we get there, then we can focus on basketball. Q. Bobby, when you look at the game against Saint John's and the high number of turnovers, was really just a matter of Remy Martin not being a hundred percent and only playing 23 minutes or some other underlying factors? BOBBY HURLEY: When you generate that type of lead, sometimes you let your guard down some, and we got a little careless with the basketball and you also have a team that's desperate playing for their season. They have -- they had some quick twitch athletes. Saint John's plays five guys that are around six-five-ish that can move around and shoot passing lanes. They did a great job of turning people over before us. We have to do better at that. Remy is usually a one-man press break he's so fast and good with the ball and just wasn't quite up for that challenge yesterday. Hopefully another -- little more time to get healthy, he'll be better tomorrow night. Q. Bobby, Nate fondly recalls some pickup games that you guys would have when were you at UB. He said that it was really competitive. What do you recall about some of those times? BOBBY HURLEY: Where my game is at right now, I'd almost like to forget. I'd like to remember back when I was actually good. We did play at 6:00 am hoops, and I remember it and I think there was a D2 player that was playing with us and he knew my rep and I was like, I don't know, 39, 43, 44 and he's trying to go at me like I'm 24. You know, kind of push me really and my competitive juices kicked in. I stole the ball at half court and he chased me down. Most times in pickup, let the guy go and lay it in. I had to go find another gear and I ended up pulling my hamstring. That was one of the last times I really competitively tried to play basketball was in Buffalo. Q. Nate said when he was -- building the program, really making it his own, how did he lean on you and your brother when he was, I guess, constructing his own vision for the program? BOBBY HURLEY: Yeah. As much as the foundation was there from what we did for two years, there were obstacles. He had a couple of key guys leave the program and he had to go in another direction. I think he hired a very good staff, too, and his assistants have done a good job of getting players. Then Nate went out of the region and found Massinburg, which was a huge get for Buffalo. THE MODERATOR: Okay. Everybody in? Excellent. Bobby, thank you very much. Good luck. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports   |
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