NCAA MEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP: FIRST ROUND - DELAWARE VS VILLANOVA

March 17, 2022

Jay Wright

Collin Gillespie

Jermaine Samuels

Justin Moore

PPG Paints Arena

Villanova Wildcats

Media Conference

Q. Collin, obviously good memories from this arena from you guys' last run. Is it nice being back here? Are there good memories when you walk back in, that sort of thing?

COLLIN GILLESPIE: Yeah, I'm not going to lie, I remember freshman year but I don't remember this arena, per se. We might have been in a different locker room, though, but yeah, it's exciting. It's an exciting time of the year, one of the best sporting events in the country, so we're excited.

Q. Jermaine, beyond saying you're fine, how are you doing physically?

JERMAINE SAMUELS: I'm great. Promise. (Laughter).

Q. What's the week been like to get to being great?

JERMAINE SAMUELS: Just doing everything I can possibly to work on my body. Shout-outs to the guys that are on the staff, Dan, Al, Dr. Kropf. Those guys have been working with me nonstop, and then staying moving, staying loose and having the confidence that these guys have in me.

BY AHER UGUAK:

Q. Delaware's head coach Martin Ingelsby is the son of a former great Villanova player. I know Jay works very hard to keep the alumni and guys who have been through the program involved. How much of that, if any, do you get guys involved with? Do you get to meet Tom Ingelsby, all these great players from the past? Is it part of what you have to do as a Villanova basketball player? Does that ever come up in any kind of meaningful way?

JUSTIN MOORE: I mean, there's certain events that we attend that we get to meet some of the alumni and stuff like that, but for the most part we're focused on basketball and preparing to get ready for the game.

Q. Obviously Collin and Jermaine, you guys played with Dylan. I know you commented on his post after they won the CAA. Have you talked to him since then and what's it going to be like sharing the court with him?

COLLIN GILLESPIE: He had reached out to me through social media of some sort and talked about possibly playing, and I wouldn't have imagined it. But now we're here, it'll be definitely weird to play against him on a different team because last time we played Delaware, he wasn't playing I don't think yet, but it'll be weird. But he's a great player and we have a lot of respect for him. He put in a lot of time and work with us, so we have a lot of respect for what he's done.

JERMAINE SAMUELS: Yeah, same. I haven't really heard from Dylan besides the social media posts. But Dylan is a great player, great guy, and he helps his team win. It's definitely going to be weird to see him on another team, but we're looking forward to playing him.

Q. Do you look at Delaware as better than a 15 seed? Do you think they deserve to be a little bit higher?

JERMAINE SAMUELS: Yeah, I would say definitely. They worked all year. We've just seen them run through their conference tournament, and it wasn't easy for them, but they battled through. They beat some of the top teams in their conference, and they're battle tested. They're a great team. They have a lot of experience, and they have a lot of veteran guys who are ready to play and know how to play.

Q. Jermaine, Jay mentioned the other day on Selection Sunday that you guys were exhausted as a team. How if at all have you been able to kind of dial it back over the last couple of days? Have you let up at all to try to get some rest and all that? What have you guys been doing if anything to try to address that?

JERMAINE SAMUELS: Yeah, one thing Coach preached on Selection Sunday was for nobody to go in the gym the next day and for everybody to take time to focus on something else, that way we can refresh our minds and be ready to go for this tournament. That's probably the biggest thing he's harped on. Honestly just for our mental, it's a good thing for us and it'll help us prepare for this tournament and this game.

Q. Was that hard to stay away? Is it hard to stay out of the gym?

JERMAINE SAMUELS: It is hard to stay out of the gym, but you've got to know that it's for your own good. It's definitely not easy. You can't stop thinking about basketball. You can't stop thinking about your teammates. But you have to bear down and just focus on what you have in front of you and taking the time for yourself.

Q. Justin, you played in high school with Ryan; what was that experience like, and have you guys spoken since then?

JUSTIN MOORE: Yeah, he's a great player. I was in my freshman year or sophomore year of high school when I played with him. He's a great player, a great leader. He's a veteran guy for them. And yeah, we talked all throughout this year, and he talked to me after the Selection Sunday about playing us and he was excited and stuff like that.

It's going to be weird playing against them. I played against them my freshman year of college and we played Delaware two years ago, so it's going to be exciting.

Q. Obviously a lot has changed about his game, but do you think you know each other really well and that's going to play a factor in anything tomorrow?

JUSTIN MOORE: You could say that for a lot of different teams we play. We know each other very well, but it's also a system that we play in and we know how competitive we get, so it just depends how the game goes.

Q. Collin or Jermaine, with the amount of success that you've had over the years, do you look at it like championship or bust? Is that the mentality for you guys? Or is it just we take it one game at a time?

COLLIN GILLESPIE: This is one game at a time for us. Delaware is our most important game because it's our next game, and that's the mentality that we have. We don't talk about championships or anything like that. We kind of just focus on having a growth mindset and becoming the best Villanova basketball team we can by the end. If we could come into the locker room after a game and look each other in the eye, knowing we gave it up for each other and played Villanova basketball for 40 minutes, that's how we define success.

JERMAINE SAMUELS: Pretty much Collin said it all. We're grateful to step on the court with each other any time we can. It's not about the next game, it's what's in front of us right now. And that's what we focus on and try to play Villanova basketball the best way we can for each other, and we'll accept our destiny after that no matter what.

Q. Collin, you've played more Villanova basketball games than anybody. What is Villanova basketball? What defines it?

COLLIN GILLESPIE: Playing hard; hard, together with pride, defend, rebound, run and execute. When you do those things, I think that's when you're playing Villanova basketball, and that's what we pride ourselves on, doing all those little things and making sure we're competing and playing hard for 40 minutes each night.

Q. Justin, you're coming from the D.C. area; what is it like representing the D.C. area in the NCAA Tournament?

JUSTIN MOORE: I think it's very grateful. There's so many guys from the area that we play against every game all across the country. You see different guys from the D.C. area. I'm blessed to be a part of that and just going out, focusing on playing as hard as I can for my teammates, though.

JAY WRIGHT: It's a thrill to be here in Pittsburgh and have the tournament normal. And having a sendoff from back home and knowing that there's going to be fans here, this is exciting to see everything back to normal again. We know we've got a great battle ahead of us with a very experienced, a very skilled, well-coached Delaware team.

I think we're ready, and we're looking forward to playing tomorrow afternoon.

Q. Delaware obviously got better defensively toward the end. You're a Delaware expert by now watching film. What did you see from them late including defending the three?

JAY WRIGHT: Yeah, I think they've just -- they had injuries, but when Dylan Painter went out and was injured, I think Davis really stepped up and gave them some extra mobility defensively, and I think they became a lot more connected, just playing together, they read each other very well defensively. I think they understand the personnel they're playing against very well. That takes experience.

I think it's something that we've gotten better at as the season went on. We weren't great in the beginning. They're similar to us in that way, just being much more connected and intelligent defensively.

Q. Martin when he was out here mentioned that he appreciated the relationship you had forged with his dad. Why is it so important to you to keep Villanova alumni connected to the program in the way that you do, and is there any residual benefit to your current players to have those guys around?

JAY WRIGHT: Yeah, that's a great question. First with Tom, initially it was selfish because he's one of my idols growing up. Growing up in Philly, it was him and Chris Ford in the backcourt. I thought I could be like them. Not close by the time I got to college, but I really did think I could play like those guys. There's certain people you look at, you think maybe I could be that kind of player.

Then when I got to Villanova, from being an assistant, I always appreciated how close all the former players were and how close they stayed to the program. When I came back as head coach, I kind of felt that responsibility that we've got to keep this -- this was the greatest thing I remember when I was an assistant, and we've got to keep this together, and actually it's probably our greatest strength.

The benefit for our current players is to see that they're a part of something bigger than themselves. We always show them -- I remember when we first came back, showing them the banners, the retired jerseys and telling them, that man, or Tom Ingelsby, that's him. That's the guy. You're going to be that guy one day, and you're going to want the players that are playing to respect what you did, so let's make sure we all respect what they did.

Our guys have been great that way, and our alumni always come back and always stay in touch with our players. It's kind of cool when you see they kind of pick the guys at their position. They really forge great relationships.

Q. Coach, Delaware has got two all-CAA players coming off the bench in Dylan Painter and Ryan Allen. What does that say about them, and how does that make them more difficult to deal with?

JAY WRIGHT: It speaks to their talent level. It's hard to seed teams and there's a lot of issues with seeding. They are not -- probably by rule they're a 15 seed. Talent-wise they are not a 15 seed. That's a good example right there. We watched film of our game against Delaware a couple years ago where we played really well. And it was a two-point game with like three minutes to go, and we played well. Allen and Anderson played in that game, and Dylan had just played -- Dylan won games in the NCAA Tournament for us.

We know how talented this team is, and we know how difficult this game is going to be.

Q. You talked Sunday night about how you guys were tired and you didn't want them doing anything Monday going into the gym. A, did they do that as a group, not go in the gym? And B, was it beneficial for them?

JAY WRIGHT: I hope so. We really did -- I know it kind of sounds funny, but we literally have to kind of negotiate and argue with them to not come in the gym, and really had to monitor -- guys just want to get in and shoot. We kept them out of the gym Monday.

You know what, a couple guys might have snuck in. I don't know about. I really worry about that.

I think we've got them rested. I think we've got them separated from the Big East Tournament. That is a concern, I think, because they know Delaware, they know how good they are, they understand how difficult this task is going to be.

That's going to be what we're going to see on Friday. Did we separate, did we get rested, and how good Delaware is.

Q. Easy question: What makes Martin such a great coach?

JAY WRIGHT: I think he's a really intelligent offensive coach, really intelligent. They are very well schooled in all the aspects of intelligent offense. So he's intelligent but he makes his players intelligent.

And then probably an underrated defensive coach because they're an outstanding defensive team in terms of playing your personnel, taking away the strengths of your shooters, taking away the strengths of your post players. And you look at the teams they play against and what they limit. Drexel, for instance, was one of the top three-point shooting teams, and the way they defended Drexel was unique and it shut down their three-point shooting.

I think he's got it on both sides of the ball. I think he's got great demeanor and respect from his players. I think he's an outstanding coach.

Q. Obviously you coached under Rollie and a big thing for him was pasta dinners and doing all that stuff. When Martin came out here, he talked about how close you are with his dad. Are there any things that you feel like you've brought since you've been the head coach that's been able to keep people close and keep, like, the Villanova basketball family?

JAY WRIGHT: Well, it's easy at Villanova, as I said, because those guys are all connected. But we have a lot of things -- our alumni could come to practice. No one is allowed on our practice court in our practice facility to watch practice unless you played there. And those guys appreciate that, and they come back and they watch practice and they're on the court.

We have what we call summer jam where we have an event for all the former players and former coaches. We play golf, we have dinner together, we have a big party, and our current team plays against our alumni. The guys -- the pros -- and only the former players can watch. No one else is allowed in there. We're not allowed to watch because we're not allowed to watch our guys play.

Our banquet isn't a tribute to the current team, it's a tribute to the tradition of Villanova and all the former players. There's a lot of events like that. The former players, they've got a lot of things going on in their life, and for them to take time to come back to games and come back to events and spend time with our players is much appreciated, and it's what makes our program strong.

Q. Who's the shot steward when there are negotiations like that over staying out of the gym? Is it the fifth year guys or is there a surprisingly loud voice?

JAY WRIGHT: No, no, the fifth-year guys are the problem. They're not good at that. We really do -- we like that. If that's our problem, that's a good problem, right, but it is a problem. We try to explain to them the psychology of resting your mind and staying out of the gym.

I think we did a good job Monday. I really do. We really talked to them about that, physically and really mentally getting away from that tournament, getting away from basketball.

I really wanted -- I took it as far as I had a suggestion. I wanted to talk to them about the Ukraine war and what was going on in the world and get my assistants. And my wife told me, you're crazy, leave them alone. So we just had everyone stay away for a day.

But the whole staff works on that with them.

Q. Is Shempy around this weekend?

JAY WRIGHT: Shempy is always around. He's not in Pittsburgh.

Q. Omnipresent?

JAY WRIGHT: He's not in Pittsburgh.

Q. Do you wear suits anymore and have you gotten used to the casual and comfortable on the sideline?

JAY WRIGHT: Yeah, I like it, man. I've always been a proponent of it. I like wearing suits and I love my suits. And God rest Gabe DiNunzio, my tailor, he passed on COVID. It's just that it was a tradition going back to Nat Holman, and if that was the tradition of coaching, I'm going to be respectful of the tradition.

But I think this is the way it's going -- it's the way it should be. Our alums, even our president gets on me about it a little bit, but I think that's the way it's going.

Q. I know Nnanna has had some illness and a death in the family and he's a freshman. I want to ask you how he's coming along and fitting in in your program.

JAY WRIGHT: Great. We love him. We love Nnanna. He's going to be really good. He's had a tough freshman year. He's had injuries, illness, but he's really progressing. He's going to be a very good player for us. We're thrilled with him. He's in that process of learning how to be a Villanova basketball player and doing a great job.

Q. Can you talk a little bit about your conversations with Dylan when he decided he wanted to transfer?

JAY WRIGHT: Yeah, Dylan was looking at our roster and just saying, What was the time I was going to be able to get to play, at what point was I going to be able to get to play significant minutes? And he just said, I want to have a chance to go play right away. He was the ultimate teammate, the ultimate Villanova basketball player. It's one of the things I fear about playing Delaware is if you could take any player and have him explain to you what is Villanova basketball, he could do it as well as Jalen Brunson, Ryan Arcidiacono, Collin Gillespie. He was the ultimate. We loved him. We didn't want him to leave. But we loved him so much, we understood his position, and we've stayed in touch. That's why I know so much about Delaware because if they're on TV, I want to watch Dylan, I want to watch Martin. I got to watch them a lot and I saw their team grow.

His parents, we maintain a great relationship. He's an incredible kid, and he's a winner. You can see what he's done with their program and the leadership he's brought.