NCAA MEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP: FIRST ROUND - NEW MEXICO ST. VS UCONN

March 17, 2022

Chris Jans

Teddy Allen

Jimmy McCants

Sir'Jabari Rice

KeyBank Center

New Mexico St. Aggies

Media Conference

New Mexico State 70, UConn 63

CHRIS JANS: Congratulations to Teddy Allen. That's quite the intro. I'm just proud of our guys. We played, obviously, very well. The majority of the game. Got up to 14, and we knew they would come back. They punched us pretty hard. Had a couple of time-outs there and tried to regroup. I kept telling them at the eight minute mark, I think it was a one-point game. Guys if I woke up today and it was a one-point game at eight minutes, I would have taken it. It's a new game. Let's go. At 3:55, I think we were up two and kind of had the similar conversation. Then we just made some plays. Players make plays, and we had some guys make some plays down the stretch and get the win.

Q. Teddy, obviously, talk going into the game was about how you are a bucket. To do that on the NCAA tournament stage hitting the shots that you were hitting, what was that like especially leading your team to a win?

TEDDY ALLEN: It was fun just being out there getting a W yeah. Hella fun.

Q. Down the stretch in the game, down the stretch that last seven minutes, it seemed like you just tapped into your inner mamba, man. Just run us through the last seven minutes of this ball game.

TEDDY ALLEN: Well, they had tied it or something like that, and the media time-outs as long as hell, and I was getting my breath. I was, like, all right, it's time. I know my team needs me, and just like they was picking me up when I was tired early in the second half, I had to pick them up. It was just my turn.

JIMMY McCANTS: The man is a bucket.

Q. For you, I saw that big smile on your face when Teddy got the and-one there with a minute to go. Walk me through that reaction right there. I don't know if I have ever seen you smile like that before.

CHRIS JANS: It was one of those classic cases of "what are you doing?" Heck of a play, Teddy. I wanted him to kind of burn some clock and get fouled and go to the line. He had other plans. Players make plays. Players make plays, and that's why he has earned the honors and awards and reputation that he has earned because of his ability to make plays.

Our kids have done an excellent job of understanding that and trying to get him the ball in the right spots and kind of let him do his thing at times, but that play right there, that obviously felt like that was a big game changer, and it was a heck of a play.

Q. Teddy, when a shooter is feeling it like you're feeling it, we saw those threes were rainbows. Just what was that kind of zone to be in that moment in that game?

TEDDY ALLEN: I don't know. It's just they was a long team, and I was trying to get it up there and. I don't really need to feel like I'm in no zone. That's just how I play.

Q. Teddy Allen, the whole world got to see that you had your usual performance. Congratulations on that, but I wanted to talk about John McCants hitting a perfect game from the floor tonight. I think the whole world now knows that you shoot threes better than you shoot free-throws.

JIMMY McCANTS: More than likely, yeah.

TEDDY ALLEN: We want to see you shoot free-throws. My boy.

SIR'JABARI RICE: Let's see you shoot free-throws.

Q. Talk about that frustrating moment around the 12 minute mark where you get banged up a little bit. What does Coach do to keep you composed in those moments where the game is high and you're dealing with things like that, getting banged up, no foul called?

JIMMY McCANTS: He just tells me to just play through it. I've been battling injuries my whole -- this whole year and all that, but nothing is really going to stop me from playing on the court with my guys and trying to win for them and trying to help out the team and help out to win. And Coach over here just keeps on pushing me and pushing me and pushing me. Jabari and Teddy keep pushing me and pushing me. They don't give up. They don't give up on me, I can't give up on them.

Q. The rebounding battle was kind of what people thought might -- you ended us winning it by one. Just why were you able to control the glass the way you guys were against a team that is coming in a really good rebounding team?

JIMMY McCANTS: Just a lot of help from the guards, a lot of help from Big Will boxing out their men. And them being number one in offensive rebounding and crashing the glass like they are, being very athletic. We just got to make our plays. Coach Jans said it's got to start on the ground by boxing out before the ball is even shot. You got to box them out. You got to be the hit first, and we are very fortunate, and we just did our job.

Q. Teddy, it seemed like you have been waiting your whole life for this moment. You've had quite a basketball odyssey. What were your emotions going into the game, and was it tough to keep things in control and playing in a game like this in the biggest setting in college basketball?

TEDDY ALLEN: I was just ready to play. I'm a hooper, and right now at the level I'm at, this is the biggest stage, and this will be the worst time to fold. So I just know, and I also know if we're going to advance in this thing, I got to be playing good, so I just came ready and you have to block all the other stuff out.

Coach told us, you know, if we didn't -- how do I paraphrase that? We are going to know if we're soft. That's what he said. We're going to know if we're soft today, and I just wanted to come out and prove we ain't soft.

Q. Question for my guy over there, point guard over there now. This is called March Madness for a reason, right, and, you know, you guys were in control of the game in the first half. UConn battled back, especially late in the game. Y'all was going toe to toe, blow for blow down the stretch. What was some of the things that you were telling your guys to get you guys to come out on top of this victory?

SIR'JABARI RICE: Literally everything Coach Jans was saying because before the game, he told us if we're going to win this game, we're going to have to do it every single time. We're going to have to impose our will. We're going to have to live up to them trying to be bullies towards us just because we're in the WACC and they're in the Big East, and that's obviously like a thing.

We came out, and we just imposed our will. We hit first. We denied everything. That's not what they're used to. We talked about that in scouting. They're used to drop coverage in the coverages, and we shadowed them, aggressive shadow, and got back in front and made them just play one-on-one, and that's not really their strong suit. We kept them off the glass. We had zero offensive rebounds in the first half, so I think that was a big thing. You know what I mean?

If you would have said that they wouldn't have any offensive rebounds, everybody would have been like, no, they would have had some. I think we did a great job of setting the tone in the first half. And then going into the locker room, everybody knew that we can't come out flat, and they're going to come out hard. We just matched that intensity, and we play hard every day in practice, and we put in hours every day in practice. So that's something we had to do, and Teddy stepped up big-time, and we were right behind him in every shot he made. We were going to play defense for him. He made the shot, we were going to play defense for him. That's just how it went.

Q. At the 12 seed, how does this victory prepare you going forward?

SIR'JABARI RICE: I think it just gives us a lot of confidence, and I think it just makes us a little bit tighter to where you can't -- now you get the thing that nobody has done in our school history, I guess, so now we're trying to do more, and we're not trying to be satisfied, and our coach is never going to allow us to be satisfied or complacent, so I think we're going to celebrate this for a couple of hours, but then it's going to be lock-in mode, and worry going to be back to seeing who we play next and trying to get to the Sweet 16.

Q. Johnny and Jabari, you've been here as long as anybody at New Mexico State has. Johnny, you're from Los Cruces. To finally get over the hump and get in the NCAA tournament, what does that mean to the two of you?

JIMMY McCANTS: We've been battling for, what, the past --

SIR'JABARI RICE: Four.

JIMMY McCANTS: -- four years together. Butt heads in practice on and off the court. We fight, but we just love each other. We love playing for one another. We have a great connection on the court. Getting this win with honestly NMSU, not just Jabari, but the whole team, it's a blessing. Great opportunity for us going forward.

Q. Teddy, whenever the game ended, we saw that the first thing that you did was -- or one of the first things you did is you went over to the NMSU fans and just screamed and let out that emotion. What was that emotion that you felt in that moment?

TEDDY ALLEN: I mean, they made the journey out here to Buffalo. That's a long trip from Los Cruces, and just to be able to share this W with them is big-time, and just want to show them that we feel their support out here. We all knew where our Aggie section was, and no matter if it's 50 or 500, we are going to be happy that they came, and we're going to let them know that we noticed them.

Q. Question for anyone who wants to answer it up there. Why is this team made for March? Why are you made for this tournament?

JIMMY McCANTS: Because we got a bunch of dogs.

SIR'JABARI RICE: Type of coach we have, and we follow suit. He is a dog. We got to turn into dogs too, so --

JIMMY McCANTS: Got a bunch of winners on the team, a bunch of guys that are just not going to back down.

SIR'JABARI RICE: We're just not going to give up, and we're going to keep playing, and even -- whatever happens, we're going to go down swinging. We're not going to go down not playing hard.

JIMMY McCANTS: Uh-huh.

Q. Congratulations on the win. What does this mean for your university and for the conference knowing that you guys knocked off a big Power Five school in UConn?

TEDDY ALLEN: I think it just means for the conference, the WACC is no slouch. Great exposure for our conference. We're out here in the tournament doing big things, and for us as a -- what was that? No, someone else grab that. (Laughing) I don't remember the second part.

JIMMY McCANTS: It means a lot. Basically to the whole school. We've got a big fan base, and I'm going to say it every time I talk about the fans. I love the fans. They're basically the heart and soul of the team. Every time they bring energy, they pick us up a lot more. For the whole school, it's a great opportunity just for everything. Gets more exposure for NMSU, for the players, for the coaches, everything.

Q. (Off microphone)

TEDDY ALLEN: WACC ain't whack, baby.

Q. Coach, watching your team all year, we've seen you iso Teddy in second halves of games, but you went to it pretty early on. Why did you decide to do that? Was there something that you saw in him that just made you feel like, hey, it was kind of his night, and there was the opportunity to do it?

CHRIS JANS: It wasn't the plan. It just felt like he was getting some edges early. You know, he was getting by his guy, getting his shoulder by his guy, and, unfortunately, he missed some shots early that he normally makes. One time he had the edge, and he passed it to Will, and I'm, like, we're all on the bench like, what are you doing? Lay the ball in.

We just felt like that was going to be a big part of our offense because they're very good point of attack. They really guard the ball on film. I mean, they are number one defense in the Big East, fifth in blocks in the country percentage. We felt like we had to get some space and get him downhill and creating space for others. He got to the line 13 times. He is the only person that got to the line, and then certainly he was a willing passer. Guys that watch us see that, and he made good decisions to create some of the baskets for his teammates.

Q. You've been a part of magical March wins from your time at Wichita State. Is that locker room in there -- is this the vibe that you are feeling like that? Does that compare anything like that to this?

CHRIS JANS: Before the game, I was in the hallway doing my little pregame deal, and the Richmond game got over, and I was right next to their locker room, and I just kind of sat back and stopped and just watched those kids run in and just celebrate and the coaches. And I certainly wasn't near them or anything like that or involved, but it just gave me chills to think about what that would feel like for us, and it was cool. It was cool to watch them having nothing to do with it and the joy behind the scenes that they had.

I was just really, really hoping that we would get to feel that as well. We did. We did, and the locker room was lively. We're certainly going to enjoy this for a little bit, and obviously, get ready for Saturday.

Q. Coach, yesterday you told me quite eloquently what you thought a win might mean to everybody involved. Now that you have the biggest win in a generation for New Mexico State sports, how does reality compare to what you thought?

CHRIS JANS: I have no idea. I'm going to be focused on this game and scouting and spend a little time with my family. They know the drill. We'll be up late tonight trying to prepare for Saturday's game, but I'm sure other people in and around the program and university will clue me in on how they feel and what this means, but I do know that our fan base has not been hungry for it. They've been starving for it, and it's something that we wanted to give to them. It's something that they deserve. They've been so loyal. They have such -- we have such an unbelievable fan base. They wanted this. They needed this, and I think hopefully we're not done. At some point, we'll have some perspective on it, and it will probably feel even better than it does now.

Q. Yesterday you said that you got goose bumps thinking about winning a tournament game and what that might mean to the fan base. I'm curious, whenever the final horn sounded, did you get goose bumps? What was that feeling? What did you feel?

CHRIS JANS: Just happiness, excited to advance. Just the kids were just elated. I mean, just the joy that you get to see on their faces and in their bodies and to know what's lying ahead for them because, obviously, I've been down that road. It's just -- there's no other feeling like it. This is the greatest show on earth. To advance and play in the next round is just awesome. It's just awesome, and I can't wait to get back to work.

Q. You talked about being outside the Richmond locker room. Was there a moment during the game where you had the realization that this was going to happen?

CHRIS JANS: When Teddy made the free-throw to make it seven, I kind of took my foot off the gas. I think there was 6.4 seconds or something like that because our guys were starting to celebrate a little bit too early, and I'm, like, whoa, whoa, whoa. Obviously, every coach thinks that way, and you've seen so many crazy things happen in this game that we play.

At that point, I kind of turned to the bench. I'm, like, you know, we did it. It was just an unbelievable feeling. It's hard to describe. Like Teddy, I went over and shared it with the Aggie fans and my family and looking forward to seeing all those folks here real soon.

Q. You obviously have been in the game a while. The Final Four with Wichita State. Have you seen an individual performance from one of your players like Teddy put on tonight?

CHRIS JANS: Not off the top. He does it so efficiently. 37 out of 24 shots. Led us in rebounding. Had three assists. Only two turnovers there. They were obviously very physical against him. I didn't know he had 37 until I sat down right here. I had no idea that he had 37. He is just a special scorer. He has supreme confidence in himself. He has done an unbelievable job of immersing himself into our program and building relationships with the leaders on this team.

Certainly we've had bumps in the road. Who doesn't over the course of a regular season, as long as it is? He is one of those guys that's going to play the best when the lights are the brightest, and certainly we needed him to play well, and he delivered.

Q. Coach, to follow up on that, you actually gave most of the answer, but Teddy takes 24 of your 50 shots. Ideally I know coaches always talk about spreading the ball around and wanting to get people involved. Ideally, would that have been how you drew it up?

CHRIS JANS: It's a fine line. I've had to adjust a little bit with shot selection. It's been a give and take all year long. We've had plenty of individual meetings about it, film about it all year long. Sometimes just me and him. Sometimes the whole team to try to get my point across, but he is a unique player, and he is a bad shot taker, and he is a bad shot maker, and when he makes one of those, he can go on a run, and people that watch this know what that does for the team. And all of a sudden he is an 8-0 run and the game changes.

Certainly, you know, there are nights when it doesn't go in, and those are tough. Those are tough. Yeah, it's not how you draw it up, but each game unfolds in its own way, and you never know what's going to happen.

Thank you.