NCAA MEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP: FIRST ROUND - DAVIDSON VS MICHIGAN ST.

March 17, 2022

Foster Loyer

Luka Brajkovic

Hyunjung Lee

Michael Jones

Bob McKillop

Bon Secours Wellness Arena

Davidson Wildcats

Media Conference

THE MODERATOR: Welcome to our press conference for the student-athletes from Davidson. A reminder, when you ask questions, to please state your name and your affiliation.

Q. Question for Foster. I haven't had a chance to talk to you since Selection Sunday came out. When Davidson popped up against Michigan State, what was your initial thoughts?

FOSTER LOYER: Just a lot of excitement. I think every guy in our locker room is excited to be here. Obviously, there's some extra kind of stuff with me, but at the same time, we've been focused this past week on just staying within ourselves and doing what we do and preparing to go win a basketball game.

Q. Foster, when you do see that as Michigan State there, does your phone start blowing up? Do you start hearing from more people? What's that experience like in that hour or two after?

FOSTER LOYER: Yeah, I would say it started to blow up pretty quickly. For me it was important just to kind of shut it down, block everything out. I obviously heard from a lot of my friends and family, a lot of good lucks, a lot of congratulations. But at the same time for us, it's been focusing on doing what we need to do to prepare and not letting anything take us off that course.

Q. Foster, obviously you know Michigan State's system very well. You know their players very well. How active were you with the coaches and helping to prepare this week, would you say?

FOSTER LOYER: Yeah, obviously I got to be a part of that for three years. Kind of knew the insides and outs. I obviously have quite a bit of knowledge of what they might try to do, what they're successful at, things like that.

So I was definitely involved, but our main focus was taking care of us, making sure that we're ready to play and be on key of what we want to do well in order to succeed.

Q. Luka, this question is for you, but it's about Foster. When he comes in as a transfer, what did he do to establish trust with you guys to be named captain? And how has he elevated the rest of your games?

LUKA BRAJKOVIC: Yeah, so pretty quickly when Foster came to Davidson, it was evident that he was a leader. Usually it's really rare that a first year guy gets elected captain right away, but from the second he played pickup with us, we knew he was special. He helped me tremendously. Like I never made an All Conference team once in my three years at Davidson, and he helped me tremendously, just because like he knows what it takes to be a great player.

On the court he guides me a lot, tells me what to do. He just helped me a lot to get there.

Q. This is for everyone but Foster. I wonder if the other three of you, I don't think, have played in a single NCAA Tournament game before, right? So I know you're excited about it. How do you embrace that as opposed to let the nerves get to you? I wonder if you could speak to this opportunity.

MICHAEL JONES: Definitely we're all really excited. Like Foster said earlier, we're trying to stay within ourselves with our preparation. What we did this week. Treat it like every other game in regards to a scout, and obviously there might be some more with the TV, but it's the same goal for us to go out and execute and be the best team we can be tomorrow.

HYUNJUNG LEE: It's going to be fun. One game at a time. We prepared for a lot. I think we're ready to go. Yeah, we're just going to have fun.

LUKA BRAJKOVIC: So it's pretty funny, me and Mike always used to joke before the season, we were scared we were going to be the recruiting class that's not going to make the NCAA Tournament since 1990. So I'm just happy that we're going to make it. If you're playing college, your dream is to play in the NCAA Tournament. I'm so glad my dream is coming true.

Q. For Hyunjung Lee. As your popularity is growing in a lot of Korean media and national media is focusing on your performance, what kind of mindset do you have going into these upcoming games? Do you feel any pressure with the media looking at you, and is there any message that you want to say to your Korean fans that are going to be watching the game?

HYUNJUNG LEE: Of course I feel pressure a lot looking at the media. What I did was I just deleted Instagram notifications. I just turned off the notifications, and all I focus on is just trying to have fun with those guys and just one at a time.

I think those kind of pressures just make me motivated to work harder because I'm representing my country. So I think it's a good motivation for me actually.

Q. This is for Foster again. You obviously have seen what Hyunjung has gone through this season. Has that prepared you for this? You're obviously the focus of this, but what have you also seen with him that can help you prepare for being the focal point of attention?

FOSTER LOYER: I think a key aspect when you're getting keyed in on and when you're the focal point is just to really have that trust within your teammates, not put too much on your shoulders, make the easy play, make the easy read, kind of let the game come to you.

I'm going to disagree with you a little bit that I'm the focal point of this or anything like that. This isn't Foster versus Michigan State. This isn't Foster versus Coach Izzo or anything like that. This is Davidson versus Michigan State. We're both approaching that from the standpoint of going in and trying to win a basketball game. I know I'm just going to do everything in my power to prepare myself and help prepare our team and make sure our team's ready to go come 9:40 tomorrow.

Q. Luka, how would you describe Coach McKillop's style, like how he coaches you guys?

LUKA BRAJKOVIC: Obviously, he's really intense. He really doesn't like shortcuts. That's probably his biggest enemy. (Audio interruption.) He has like a lot of cool sayings about basketball, like he kept saying stuff all over again, like pay me now or pay me later. So he's like that in real life and basketball.

Back to your question, in practice it was really (audio interruption) that I came from Europe, and obviously coming to America, Coach McKillop he pushed me a lot. It was so intense, but he really brought me to where I am now, and I'm really grateful for that.

Q. Is there one saying you hear over and over and over again in your head now, even when you're not at practice, like I can't get this out of my head when I'm doing dishes or whatever?

LUKA BRAJKOVIC: He always tells me smell the coffee, especially my first two years because in the beginning of practice I used to be really unfocused and he would always be like smell the coffee. I wish I could impersonate him, but I'm really bad at it, so I'm not going to do it.

Q. Foster, well before the tournament, Tom Izzo talked about how he maintained a relationship with you, kept in touch with you. What did it mean to you to have that? Did you maintain any relationships with your former Michigan State teammates this year?

FOSTER LOYER: Yeah, obviously I've stayed in touch with some of the guys on the team. They were my roommates and best friends the last three years or so, so I kept in touch with them, watching some of their games, just talking to them as friends and all that. I kept in touch with the coaching staff. They would text and congratulate me after a good game, things like that.

None of those relationships were burned when I made the decision to come to Davidson. I think that was something that was important for me was just to go out on a good foot, on a good note. Yeah, it's been fun having the year that we've had this year and seeing those guys have my back.

Q. Luka and Lee, a follow-up on this being your first NCAA Tournament experience, Luka back in Austria, Lee in South Korea, before you got to Davidson, was this something on your radar, the NCAA Tournament, or what was your idea of what this was all about?

LUKA BRAJKOVIC: Yeah, it was definitely on my radar. I always wanted to play in it. I remember really well. When I committed to Davidson, I think it was Davidson versus Kentucky in the NCAA Tournament, I watched the whole game, and I was just like I really want to play there too. Ever since I saw that game, it was a dream of mine. As I said, I'm glad it came true.

HYUNJUNG LEE: Same as Luka. I was watching the YouTube, like all the highlights from March Madness, the upsets and the crazy buzzer beaters and then the crowds. Then I was looking forward to it, but my freshman year, because of COVID, got cancelled, second year didn't make it. So I'm actually really excited about it.

Q. Michael, you've really grown as a player this year and you've seen some of the other guys grow as well because, when Foster was out for five games, everyone seemed to step up. Did this become a deeper team during that stretch where Foster was injured?

MICHAEL JONES: Yeah, I think definitely we did. It's a testament to the work that myself and the rest of these guys put in over the summer with the coaching staff with our team. You know how they always say great players are made in the summer, but great teams are made in the winter. I think this winter we really gelled as a team. We were able to overcome a lot of adversity with Foster being out.

We had guys step up. Emory and Grant both came in and played more minutes, and they obviously did a great job. I think that really helps having all these guys that we have coming off the bench or in our starting lineup, we all trust these guys to make big shots, take big shots, to be in the game. So I think that really helps us and I think does make us a deeper team.

THE MODERATOR: We now have Coach McKillop. A reminder to state your name and your affiliation when you ask a question, but we'll start out with an opening comment from Coach.

BOB MCKILLOP: We're honored to have this opportunity. We're grateful to have this opportunity, and I couldn't be more happy for our guys because I know how hard they've worked for it, what they sacrificed for it, and how they've given so much of themselves to be part of this experience.

Q. Coach, how ready are you, and what's your sort of feeling on the Foster versus Michigan State thing? Downplay it? Embrace it? What exactly?

BOB MCKILLOP: Well, we've got another meeting and film session tonight. We've got to walk through tomorrow and a film session. So we're still not there. We've got some work to do.

In terms of Foster, I think he answered it very clearly and very eloquently. This is Davidson against Michigan State. He's got a tremendous relationship with the Michigan State program. He's got such fond and treasured memories of his experience there. Tom Izzo has been sensational from the first time I spoke with Tom about Foster, throughout this whole year. So I don't think that that's much more of an issue for anyone, but it's certainly a talking point for the media.

Q. Question about Hyunjung Lee. During the most recent championship, Lee seemed like he didn't perform as well as we all wished to be. His overall condition didn't seem too well regarding his free throws and just his overall condition. Did you have a conversation with Lee over it? What issue do you think was going on with Lee during that game?

BOB MCKILLOP: I'm sorry. I didn't understand that question.

Q. In the championship game, Lee didn't perform as we all wished to be. His free throws weren't too good. Did you have a conversation with Lee regarding the issue that he was having?

BOB MCKILLOP: I have no issues whatsoever with Hyunjung. What he has accomplished this year is sensational. Every opposing coach's scouting report, he has seen every kind of defense that is imaginable in college, pro, high school athletics, and he has learned to become a better player as a result.

His statistics clearly don't reflect the contribution he makes to our team. There are no statistics reported about his screens. There are no statistics on his cuts. He has made us a complete team because of the various defenses that he has.

Q. Bob, you've made deep runs before. How much can (audio interruption) help a team during a tournament game? You've been there before.

BOB MCKILLOP: Well, I can recall the first experience we had against Michigan, tractor trailer. It was in Atlanta. Holy crap. (Audio interruption.) It was an experience that was overwhelming for me. Our guys are a little more savvy than I was back in '98 because of social media and the exposures they've had already.

So I think that our players have had a good baptism based just upon who they are in our culture. As far as the coach's experience, I think that's valuable, but I think that's an experience that is accentuated by experience in conference tournaments and MTEs. Obviously, there's a much different pressure involved.

But tournaments are tournaments, and the pressure to perform and one-and-done is there in those tournaments just as well.

Q. I'm wondering about the fish bowl effect with Lee. How does that prepare you guys both for the tournament and for someone like Foster who's getting kind of that same treatment this week, just having all the eyes on them during a given time? Does that prepare a team for the spotlight of March Madness?

BOB MCKILLOP: That's a great point. I would agree with it. Lee has had the spotlight on him since he played for the national team last summer in the Olympic qualifiers, and he is to a degree the face of Korea here in the United States. Our players have seen that. Our players are seeing the way Lee has embraced it, and our players have embraced it along with him.

With Foster, there's a sensitivity to the fact that he came here and was named captain. That's an extraordinary statement that immediately put him under the spotlight as well. How is this new guy coming into the program and being named captain?

But I think every one of our players has a uniqueness about them that has attracted them to a fish bowl mentality. Sam Mennenga's from New Zealand. Luka's from Austria. Nelson Boachie-Yiadom is from England. So there's this sense of uniqueness about who we are that has maybe relieved some of the pressures that might normally be there.

Q. You probably heard Luka joke about the fact that the streak will continue as far as recruiting classes of yours getting to the NCAA Tournament. But the significance of that for your program -- and I know you harken a lot about the coaches who came before you and the tradition that they built -- but to continue to build that tradition and the fact that your school continues to have guys, at least once, get to the NCAA Tournament, what is the significance to that for you and your program?

BOB MCKILLOP: You know, I didn't realize it until Luka brought that up in his conversation. It certainly is a mark of excellence, but it's more of a shooting star than a shining star. We're not up there in the sky all time, and I'd much rather be a shining star than a shooting star.

Q. Jim Larranaga was talking earlier about the relationship that the two of you have that goes back decades. What's that relationship like for you, and what has that meant to you?

BOB MCKILLOP: Relationship with who?

Q. Larranaga.

BOB MCKILLOP: Oh, with Jimmy Larranaga. My last game as a high school player was at Fordham University in the quarter finals of the City Catholic championship. We lost to Jimmy Larranaga's team, Archbishop Molloy, and they were sensational. Let me tell you, they were great. Kevin Joyce, who I think is one of the greatest players to ever play the game, was in that game.

We lost the game to a jump shot with 14 seconds on the left wing by a guy named Brian Adrian, who became a legendary scorer at Davidson.

Jimmy and I have been friends for the longest time. When he first went to Davidson back in '72, '73 as an assistant coach, which I don't know if you're aware of. He was an assistant at Davidson and became one of Terry Holland's assistants. We latched onto a relationship that was further developed because of his recruiting and my being a high school coach, and he recruited a number of our high school players.

Ever since I came to Davidson as a college coach, he and I have been terrific friends. He was a really good player. My goodness, he was really good. He's really boring, but he's really a good player. (Laughter).

Q. Bob, as a follow-up to one of these earlier questions you had, when it comes to Lee, how much more impressive is it to you that he's accomplished so much when he's the face of an entire country's basketball right now?

BOB MCKILLOP: Well, you know the pressures that he's under. I think parents are such a major factor in the way people handle pressure, and he's got extraordinary parents. His father's a legendary coach in Korea, and his mom was a silver medalist. So he grew up as the son of a spectacular coach and a silver medalist in the '84 Olympics. That's pressure unto itself.

You think about guys we've had, Brendan Winters, who was the son of Brian Winters, legendary NBA player, had tremendous pressure on him. And of course No. 30, Steph Curry, had a little pressure on him from Dell and all of what Dell did for the Charlotte Hornets.

It's something that's been part of being raised in a family where the parent or the parents had pressure themselves, and I think that's been a big, big factor for Lee and his ability to handle what is a challenge to him right now.

Q. Just want to follow up on what I was asking about before. Have you and Jim talked at all since you've been here? When you see that he's going to also be here, are you kind of like, man, two guys from New York six decades later or so are here.

BOB MCKILLOP: We have not, but I know it triggered a memory, the fact that he's here, and I'm sure it triggered a memory with him. The last time we were together was in 2006 in Ohio, in Dayton, Ohio, and that's the year they went to the Final Four. So I know he's really superstitious. So he's probably thinking this is great karma.

But, no, we have not spoken since this started.

Q. Coach, what is your biggest concern about Michigan State?

BOB MCKILLOP: Well, they've got things that they do offensively that have jumped out and gotten them where they are as not just a great team this year, but a program, a culture. It's their ability to rebound a basketball. It's their ability to push the ball, and it's their ability to attack you physically. Those things are three things that are going to be one, two, and three in our scouting report.