NCAA MEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP: FIRST ROUND - SAN FRANCISCO VS MURRAY ST.

March 16, 2022

Todd Golden

Jamaree Bouyea

Khalil Shabazz

Gainbridge Fieldhouse

San Francisco Dons

Media Conference

THE MODERATOR: We are being joined by two student-athletes representing the University of San Francisco Dons, Khalil Shabazz and Jamaree Bouyea.

Q. Khalil, you are coming from a Division II school. Now you are here at March Madness. What has this been like?

KHALIL SHABAZZ: Honestly, it's been like a movie. A lot of dudes don't go Division II and then move up and have this opportunity to play in March Madness. So I'm just trying to enjoy every minute of it. It's a blessing. I'm just trying to take it all in and make the most of it.

Q. I know Coach Golden mentioned the stress of watching the bracket reveal as it goes one region after another. You're not the 8-9 game, and all of the sudden there is one spot left for you guys. And as veterans, especially for you, Jamaree, you came back for this moment. What were those minutes, seconds like as you were waiting to find out whether you were going dancing?

JAMAREE BOUYEA: I think it was nerve-wracking. You sit there and wait and wait, and you think you have done everything to get to the Tournament, and you don't know if your name is going to be called. And then the moment it happens, it's a blessing. I think it made it more exciting to be the last spot we can make it in. Being there and being a part of that was definitely special.

KHALIL SHABAZZ: There is a video of us, we're all sitting together and waiting anxiously, and when we see our name called, just let all the emotions out. It was definitely crazy throughout the whole Selection Show. It was stressful, nerve-wracking, hands shaking, hearts beating super fast. For our names to be called and for us to be up here right now is a blessing, and we're just happy that we are here.

Q. What specifically about Todd has helped get this program to the next level?

KHALIL SHABAZZ: Coach T, him just allowing his players to be themselves, on the court and off the court. I think when we are on the court, he's not like super strict on what we do. He allows us to play free flow, in a structured but for the most part free flow, and we are able to be ourselves.

He did a really good job of recruiting this last summer, getting the big guys, Yauhen and Patrick and stuff like that. So I think his recruiting and allowing us to be ourselves, and the coaches he brought in, all of that put in the pot makes him a pretty good coach. And for him to do that in three years of him being the head coach is super impressive.

JAMAREE BOUYEA: It's like my second family. I have been here for five years, and three of them have been with him, and he has trusted me from the beginning and trusted Khalil since Khalil got here I think as well.

He's just a guy that is going to give it his all, and we appreciate that of him, and we give it our all for him. Like Khalil said, he kind of got transfers in here. He didn't mention Gabe, but Gabe is also a crucial part, and Julian Rishwain as well. So I think he's done an amazing job here.

Q. Guys, we talked about last week how this is a dream come true. Have you paused at all? You're sitting here in front of the March Madness background behind you. What has it been like?

KHALIL SHABAZZ: After the show it didn't really kick in, but me and Jamaree, we hung out at my apartment, and we're all sitting back and thinking about how much work we put in and how much we've been through this year to try to get to this spot.

I think it still hasn't kicked in. It will probably kick in a little bit more when we get on the court and when it's time to play tomorrow. But like we said, we're trying to enjoy every minute of it.

JAMAREE BOUYEA: Tagging off Khalil, I think the day it happened it was pure excitement and emotion, but it wasn't the real feeling of it kicking in. And now we are here in the arena and, a lot of media here and guys practicing on the floor I think it's definitely kicking in pretty soon, and when the game happens it will kick in, for sure.

Q. Guys, for both of you. Congratulations for being there. Playing in a conference with you played the number one team in the nation three times, how much confidence does that give you going into March Madness, even though it's your first time in a long time since the team has been there?

KHALIL SHABAZZ: I think it gives us a lot of confidence. We've seen those guys in Gonzaga three times this year and we usually see them two to three times a year and that gives us confidence and seeing the way they play in nonconference against other schools in the country knowing that we went toe-to-toe with them three times definitely gives us a lot of confidence.

JAMAREE BOUYEA: I think it gives you confidence for sure, playing against the No. 1 team in the country definitely isn't easy, and last time we kept up with them and gave them some pressure, so knowing that we can play with them gives us confidence that we can play with any team in the country, and hopefully we can come out and do that tomorrow.

Q. There are a lot of people, the experts putting out in their bracket that Murray State is going to win this one. Do you use this as any motivation? Do you enjoy being the underdogs at all in some people's eyes?

KHALIL SHABAZZ: I'm not the guy to really look at the point spread or look at who is going to win or who is not going to win. I just know I'm going to go out and play my hardest and do everything to help my team win, and I know our team is going to go out there and do everything we can to help us win, and I know our coaching staff, and I know our fans, and I know our community. So just knowing we have all those guys to come out and try our hardest to it make it a reality, I don't have to worry about the outside noise.

JAMAREE BOUYEA: Piggybacking off of Khalil, I think those guys, or those critics, that's their job to do, and they have to make favorites and make decisions, but I think we're going to basically play our heart out and do everything we can to get this win tomorrow.

Q. I know you're there for business, but what's been the coolest part of the experience so far?

JAMAREE BOUYEA: I would say today. Practicing at a local -- we went to a local sports center to get some shots up and go through our stuff, but showing up here and walking through and see the media and being at the Pacers' arena, seeing a lot of things you never seen in your life.

KHALIL SHABAZZ: I think being in this arena, having this media thing going on. We had like a little police escort and stuff like that. Never experienced that. So that's probably one of the coolest things.

THE MODERATOR: Guys, congratulations on a great season. Best of luck tomorrow tonight.

We are now joined by the head Coach of the University of San Francisco Dons in Todd Golden.

Q. You're going into this game coaching a team that hasn't made it since '98. What is your mindset going into this game? What is your plan for this first game?

COACH GOLDEN: You know, we will try to be as consistent as possible in regards to our approach and preparation. Obviously it's a big moment for us and our program, but the way we prepare won't change. We will prepare the same way we did for the first game of the season as we will for this one tomorrow night.

Obviously a big challenge ahead of us, but trying to be super consistent, to be honest.

Q. Coach, what jumps out to you as the most impressive thing about what you've seen on tape from Murray this year?

COACH GOLDEN: They have won 20 games in a row. This is a team that has a great understanding of how to win. It's in their DNA a little bit. It's a great program.

They have three really, really talented kids. Jus Hill, a really talented guard, a guy that can score from all levels, really explosive player. Tevin Brown can shoot the laces off the ball. One of the best scorers all time in the OVC. A guy we are going to have to be aware of at all times where he is on the floor. They run a lot of good action to get him open to catch and shoot threes.

And their big fellow, KJ Williams, is a really impressive player. He reminds me a little bit of the guy, Orlando Robinson, that we played earlier in the year from Fresno State. Just a big guy that can score inside and out. Likes to play face-up but can score back to the basket. And really a good three-point shooter when he has time.

So those three guys specifically. They have a bunch of really good players, but those are the three guys that popped out to me.

Q. Todd, your name has surfaced as a possibility for a few openings this week. How do you handle that, when you are preparing for the most important game of your career?

COACH GOLDEN: I'm focused on trying to get a win tomorrow night. Those conversations and worrying about those things is not something that's on my radar right now. I want to do the best I can to make sure I give my student-athletes the best chance to be successful tomorrow night. Grateful to be the head coach at USF.

Q. Hi, Coach. Can you speak to the value in having a fifth-year senior point guard like Jamaree in a moment like this? Obviously he's never played in the NCAA Tournament, but the experience he has been through on the court, how it translates to March Madness?

COACH GOLDEN: He's just an amazing player. He's an incredible human being, but just to have someone as talented and as experienced as he is to lead us as he has throughout the season -- I'm going to be Khalil in that group as well because he's been with us for four years now and has a great understanding of our program and what we like to do.

J.B. and Khalil are the type of guards that give you confidence to go up and match-up against anybody in the country. They're one of the best back courts in the country. They've proven that all year long.

I think if you look back at some teams that have made runs in March, whether it's from lower or mid-major conferences, generally they have really good guard play, experienced guard play. And I think both those guys fit the bill, and I expect them to play really well tomorrow night.

Q. Coach, congratulations on reaching the NCAA Tournament. Just was wondering, I heard you say you're going to prepare for this game the way you did the first game of the regular season. Are you going to do anything -- is there a movie you're going to watch to help the butterflies tonight to make sure everyone sleeps right?

COACH GOLDEN: No. It's one of the great things about our group. We have an older, mature team. They've done a really good job all year, whether we're playing home, road, or neutral, of being consistent in their preparation.

We know what's at stake. This is a great opportunity for us. The thing we are trying to do is enjoy the moment, not let ourselves -- obviously we want to win tomorrow at all costs, but we're not going to miss this moment and when we get home be like, oh, man, we took it for granted.

So we're trying to enjoy each other's time and enjoy being in each other's presence as much as possible. Continue to prepare the same way is something we enjoy doing both as a staff and as a team.

Tomorrow is going to be a long day. We don't play until 9:40 at night. So it's going to be a long day, but we'll be ready to go.

Q. Has there been a moment where you have found yourself reflecting on the version of yourself that was selling ads for Comcast SportsNet and wasn't even in coaching? Could that version of yourself ever could have anticipated something like this, especially at such a young age?

COACH GOLDEN: Great question. That experience, working in the business world for a couple years, what it really did was opened my eyes to the fact that that wasn't the world for me.

Getting back into basketball and being part of a team and being able to coach, it makes me go. It makes me tick. Looking at Sunday, sitting there and seeing our name come across the screen was a surreal moment. That was a little bit of the cherry on top in regards to the start of my coaching career.

Q. Coach, congratulations, again.

COACH GOLDEN: Thank you.

Q. You mentioned on Sunday that your staff would be up burning the midnight oil trying to do research. How challenging has it been to come up with a game plan in a matter of three days for a team you are totally unfamiliar with?

COACH GOLDEN: You know what? It's easier nowadays as it was 15, 20 years ago because we have quick access to films, to stats, to data.

Honestly, by the time midnight rolled around on Sunday, we felt like we had a pretty good feel for these guys. And we've seen them a lot. They're on TV a good amount. Watched them play in their conference tournament.

Now it's Wednesday afternoon, and all we have been doing besides practicing with our guys is watching film on Murray. So I feel like I could name every guy on their roster and their tendencies and what they want to do.

It's a fun opportunity to dive in and see how well you can prepare. And we will have some different things we will do tomorrow to keep 'em off balance a little bit. But it's a good poker game to play going into this first round game.

Q. I know you mentioned the late tip. What does the day look like when you are staring at a NCAA Tournament game at 9:40 at night?

COACH GOLDEN: We're not going to wake up until about noon tomorrow. We're just trying to stay on West Coast time right now. It's funny, but I'm kinda being serious, we let our guys sleep in today. Tomorrow we don't play until 9:40. I'm going to let them sleep in until 11, 11:30. We will start our day later. And we've been able to stay on this West Coast time, which hopefully will be a benefit to us. I will tell you after the game tomorrow night whether it was or not.

It will be a long day tomorrow. Usually we keep it pretty light on game day, but we will try to get out of the hotel once or twice to make sure we are not fogged down and sitting around all day. But 9:40 is late, man. It's unique. I'm interested to see how it goes.

Q. Coach, how would you describe your team and your style to someone who may not be familiar with you?

COACH GOLDEN: Great question. I think first of all, like I said earlier, we have an incredibly old and mature team. And that's really a big reason as to why we have been able to be successful. A lot of mature guys that are unselfish and willing to put the team in front of themselves. That speaks for everybody on our team. We have 17 guys on our roster; they have all been great that way.

From an actual basketball perspective, it starts with our backcourt. JB and Khalil have led us and been phenomenal all year, and when you have two guys like that you have a chance to be super explosive and really achieve some really good results. They've done that all year.

Yauhen Massalski who, unfortunately won't play for us tomorrow night reinjured his knee in practice on Monday. Really feel terrible for him, because he's been such an big part of our team all year, and without him we wouldn't be here. But other guys will have to step up.

We have great depth on the front line and that's something that has shown up for us all year. Guys like Patrick Tapé, Josh Kunen, Volo Markovetskyy, has been playing great lately. He's a guys that I anticipate will step up and play well tomorrow night. Zane Meeks is another guy that's gonna play well.

We're deep, we're old, we're physical, we're big, and we shoot it well. I think we're just a really well-rounded, mature team and I think the 24 wins speaks to that.

Q. Coach, when you play the number one team in the nation three times and nationally ranked Saint Mary's, how well do you feel that's prepared you?

COACH GOLDEN: First of all the league, I can't say enough about the league. I played in this league back when it was eight teams, no BYU, and it's by far the best it's ever been. I think the top half of our league challenges most high major leagues in America. Getting three teams in, BYU was close. I think Santa Clara was a tournament team if they're healthy all year.

The depth of the WCC is so much better than it's been in the past, and I think people across the country are yet to understand that if you if don't watch it as consistently as we do. On top of that, we played 18 games out of our 33 against top 100 opponents, so we have had a really, really tough, challenging schedule. I think those games both out-of -conference games like Davidson, UAB, Towson, Fresno, all these teams, along with the top in our league have prepared us for a team like Murray State tomorrow night.

THE MODERATOR: Coach, we will let you enjoy the rest of your day. Congratulations and best of luck tomorrow.