NCAA MEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP: REGIONAL SEMIFINAL - MIAMI (FL) VS IOWA STATE

March 24, 2022

Jim Larranaga

Kameron McGusty

Sam Waardenburg

Charlie Moore

United Center

Miami Hurricanes

Sweet 16 Media Conference

THE MODERATOR: We're joined by student-athletes Kameron McGusty, Sam Waardenburg and Charlie Moore.

Q. Charlie, obviously your college career has been a journey. What is it like for you to be back here in Chicago, in the Sweet 16, and what has this whole journey of your career been like?

CHARLIE MOORE: It feels good to be in the Sweet 16. It's a once-in-a-lifetime type of experience. I'm just enjoying my time here with my guys, my teammates, my coaching staff. I'm trying to take it one moment at a time.

Q. Charlie, what are your memories of your time at Kansas?

CHARLIE MOORE: My memories? A lot of great people. Good friends. One of my best friends, couple of my best friends I met at Kansas. My memories there are still pretty much good memories.

Q. Charlie, what are the emotions that you're feeling, though, coming back to Chicago for this, at this point in your career and the success you're having?

CHARLIE MOORE: I'm just excited. I'm excited I get to share these moments with my teammates, my family and friends. I'm sure they're going to come to the game. I'm just excited to get out there and play and help my teammates come out with a win.

Q. Sam, can you just talk about how the team feels right now being in the Sweet 16? And sometimes there's teams like you guys, teams that weren't expected to be here, they get to the Sweet 16, and it's like, oh, we made the Sweet 16. What is the mentality about wanting to go farther and just kind of that topic?

SAM WAARDENBURG: So that first part of the question, as Charlie said, we're super happy to be part of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. And the thing that Coach always emphasizes on a daily basis to us is having fun, not being too serious about it. He's always smiling in practice, trying to have us all cheering it up and positive and that's been the main feeling of the team right now.

Going into March Madness on that Selection Sunday, once we knew who we had, I think everyone's mentality on this team was we're not just going into it to get one win. We want to win it. We know we're good enough to compete against anyone in the country. We've shown that all year. And that's our mentality right now.

Q. Kameron and Sam, obviously a lot has been made about their defense. What do you see when you watch their film in terms of how they play defense? And, secondly, how much pride do you guys take on your defense? You guys have been a very disruptive force in this tournament as well?

KAMERON MCGUSTY: Yeah, looking at their film and just looking at their stats, they lead their conference in steals just like how we lead ours. We know they're real scrappy. They've got good guards that defend. They've got bigs that are not only getting steals but blocking shots and being disruptive. They're a real disruptive team. We know we need to take care of the ball.

Q. And (indiscernible) your defensive style?

KAMERON MCGUSTY: That's our identity. We knew coming into the season to make up for our lack of size and not really having a big, we were going to have to be scrappy, make people turn the ball over, make them uncomfortable, pressure them. And like I said, we have taken on that identity and it's taken us all the way here to the Sweet 16. We just look forward to keep doing that and continue to do what we do on defense.

SAM WAARDENBURG: Kam basically hit on it, really. Looking at them they obviously pride themselves on defense. They're a really good team. I think statistically they're like a top five team defensively. It's going to be a challenge for us. We're preparing well for it. We'll be ready for it.

Based on our defense, we take huge pride in it. It's our identity, the way we play. We know we're not a big team, a strong team, but that allows us to be quick and agile. So we try to utilize that and get out there, scrappy, get the turnovers. Charlie has been amazing at that all season and everybody helps push our offense in transition as well.

Q. Charlie, when you first came to DePaul, you talked about wanting to be closer to home. And last year when you decided to enter the transfer portal, could you talk about that decision to leave DePaul and leave home and go outside the city to Miami?

CHARLIE MOORE: You know, really, my dad encouraged me to do it. I came home, first time, go to DePaul, to be closer to my parents. Help those guys out. But I was home for two years. My dad wanted me to be happy. So he encouraged me to go home. I had a good conversation with the coaching staff. And he enjoyed it as well. And I knew I was going to come play with great teammates out there in Florida. So that made it easy.

Q. Kameron and Sam, obviously you guys have one of the best transition offenses in the country. You pride yourself on the defense but you love to get out and run and have a fast-flowing offense. But in Iowa State, they love to hammer you in the half court and they'll probably try to slow you down. So what do you think will be the key to overcoming their defense and moving the ball fast like you want to do?

KAMERON MCGUSTY: I think the key, it all starts with our defense, honestly. Our defense turns our offense up. It's what gets our offense going. We're playing in transition. We're getting steals. We're getting stops, clapping. And that's what gets us going. That's what gets our energy going and our energy flowing. So it's definitely going to start on the defensive end.

In terms of their offense and stopping them, like I said, just sticking to the game plan. We know and we feel like when it comes to trapping and the scramble and making teams uncomfortable, we've really taken a lot of pride in that. And that's really what we've turned ourselves into, a team that really makes you uncomfortable and makes you have to come up with a different game plan. So we just look forward to continuing to do what we've been doing all year.

SAM WAARDENBURG: And looking at Coach L, how he's been in this position before. He's taken great teams to this point. We have full trust in him that he's going to give us an amazing game plan with this one. We'll get to practice now. Get to work.

Q. Kam, you look at the first two games, the second half against Auburn you guys overwhelmed them. Do you guys feel like you've played your best basketball yet?

KAMERON MCGUSTY: I think that second half in that Auburn game as a whole was a really great game for us. We had good energy. We were making shots, playing defense, being scrappy, playing fast. That's just our style of play.

But do I think we've had the best game that we've had so far? I don't think so. I still think we've got probably another level or two that we can get to. But like I said, I love the way we played last week, even against USC. We've just been playing with a lot of energy and trusting each other and having fun out there.

Coach L always puts an emphasis on having fun, don't be too tense in the moment, just enjoy it and have fun and do what you do and be relaxed. And I think we've done a good job of that. And like I always say, continue to look forward to keep doing it this weekend and hopefully next weekend as well.

Q. Any team in the Sweet 16 will have a sense of satisfaction, but when you consider where you guys were one year ago, coming off a year where injuries decimated you from game to game, losing season, a lot of tough things, how satisfying has it been for you guys to see where this program has been able to go in 12 months, to this spot?

KAMERON MCGUSTY: It's been very satisfying. I mean, the last two, three years, even when I sat out two years ago, we dealt with injuries and people in and out of the lineup, not having the chemistry that you want. And at the same time it's also out of your control. So it can be very frustrating and very draining. But we stayed down to come for this moment now.

And like I said last question, we're just enjoying it, living in the moment, trying to have fun, and just trusting each other, trusting in our coaching staff and the game plan. And I've just been enjoying this moment so much. It's been such a blessing to be here. This is a dream come true. As a kid, this is what you look forward to, being able to play in the Sweet 16, Elite Eight, Final Four. It's just a blessing.

SAM WAARDENBURG: Kam hit on everything. It was tough the last three years, and a lot of it was out of our control. A lot of adversity. When you have the injuries that we had, it's hard to build that chemistry that this team has right now. You can't even go up and down in practice. And without that you can't build the feeling for one another. But it's been great this year.

We've been able to do that. Even if one or two guys had been a little hurt and had to sit out a practice or two still have enough guys to get up and down and build that chemistry. And I'm super happy where these guys here now. But we're not finished, not at all.

Q. Charlie, you've had a unique college basketball journey. How would you describe it? And how would you describe what it feels like to have it all, I don't want to say it end here in Chicago, but at the very end of your journey for you to be here in Chicago playing in such a meaningful game?

CHARLIE MOORE: I guess, like you said, it's been a unique experience with me. But going through what I went through, going from college, to college, I've learned a lot. I don't regret anything. It made me who I am today as a person and I'm pretty happy with who I am.

But to end it in Miami, with these guys, our coaching staff, the Miami family, it's been a blessing to put it into words.

We're in the Sweet 16. This is pretty amazing, in front of you guys, talking to you guys. I'm just thankful and blessed to be here with my teammates. So it's an exciting experience. But we've got more work to do.

Q. (Question off mic about Jalen Coleman-Lands).

CHARLIE MOORE: Yeah, I've talked to Jalen. If I see him. That's my guy, though.

Q. Charlie, being from Chicago, how many people have hit you up for tickets? And who of your family is able to make it?

CHARLIE MOORE: There's been a lot of people hitting me up for tickets. But I'm just focused on what's at hand, for my teammates, to be honest. It's not about me. But I'm pretty sure my mom and dad. I'm trying to make sure they're good for the most part and I'll be happy.

Q. And growing up here, what does it mean to play in Michael Jordan's house.

CHARLIE MOORE: It's a blessing, the things Michael Jordan did here. There have multiple other people, too, (indiscernible), one of my favorite all-time point guards. It's a blessing to play here. I'm from Chicago. I grew up in watching Chicago basketball, grew up going to the games and to actually now be playing on the court with my teammates, it's amazing.

Q. Going back to Coach L and all the fun we've all seen the video now, I've watched it many times, every time I am stressed out I just watch the video of Coach L dancing. Could you describe what it's like when he breaks into one of those dances? And what has he done on this trip so far, did you guys do anything fun yesterday or does he have any funny messages or things to try to keep you loose going into tomorrow's game?

SAM WAARDENBURG: It's always funny and amazing. It shows how special Coach is, coach L -- how special Coach L is as a coach when he does stuff like that. He lives for those moments, I feel like.

I've been here for just over five years now, and every year I feel like it's something new and something special that he does, if it's a shuffle or a dance like that. And there's a few times in the locker room he's thrown the ball out and dived for it. I don't think he's done it in the last couple of years, but earlier on, maybe.

There's just so much love from him toward the players and likewise the players towards him. And there's such a special bond between us.

Q. Anything on this trip in Chicago so far, bonding?

SAM WAARDENBURG: Went to a nice steakhouse last night. That was super nice, good to spend time with the team and everyone. Haven't had much time to do anything else, really.

Q. Kam and Sam, could you discuss about the impact of playing in the ACC this year, how it has prepared you for the NCAA Tournament?

KAMERON MCGUSTY: Playing in the ACC has prepared us so much. I know early in the season or even now during tournament time everybody's saying the ACC is overrated and it's not that good. But as you can see we've got three teams in the Sweet 16 right now. And you know we've gone to war these last two months. That's what Coach L always says -- the ACC, tournament play, it isn't a sprint; it's a marathon. That's the truth.

We've had our times where we've won six, seven games in a row and we felt on top of the word. Then we had our times where we lost one or two. It's just a long marathon. And all the wins and losses, you just learn and build chemistry and build confidence and it's just one of the best leagues to play in. It's a blessing to be able to play in the league like the ACC.

SAM WAARDENBURG: As Kam said, I felt like the ACC kind of has been underrated a bit this year. We didn't have the best start of the year as a conference but I think we have some of the most, a lot of transfers coming into the conference for most teams. When stuff like that happens it's hard to get used to one another early on.

But obviously showing now that we are a good conference. We have good teams and throughout our conference play we were in a lot of close games because of that, because of how good our league was. I think that's probably the best preparation we've had for this tournament, because you never really know what's going to happen. It's madness for a reason. And we're expecting games to be close, us to be part of close games. The ACC prepared us well for that.

Q. Charlie, what does your relationship look like with Coach Larrañaga? And could you talk about how it's been built over the last year?

CHARLIE MOORE: It's a great relationship. Coach Larrañaga is more like a father figure or a teacher more so than a coach, who is always down on your back and stuff like that. I feel like when you've got a relationship with a coach or your father, you love them a different way. You will do things differently for them. So I think that relationship helps me and my teammates go out there and give extra percentage of work ethic every time we step out on the court.

So the relationship I have with Jim Larrañaga, it's a great relationship. And I will appreciate him for the rest of my life.

Q. Charlie and Sam, you mentioned the bond between coach and the players. Just how quickly when you met him did that kind of stand out to you?

CHARLIE MOORE: Pretty quickly. Took me a little minute to try to understand, like, what was going on and stuff like that. But I started to realize that that's just him. He's that type of guy who he cares for his players.

He wants you to go out there and play with confidence. He wants you to go out there and play hard and do what it takes to help your teammates win. That's really all he cares about.

SAM WAARDENBURG: Yeah, for me personally, since day one, I think the first game Coach L came to that he was recruiting me, he walked into the gym. Big smile. Waved at me. You could just tell like this coach is special.

And throughout my recruitment, first time I got on campus, you could really tell he instilled family values in the program. And he was a family man. And every year since then it's always been positivity that's the main emphasis of the program and you just love him for it because he just makes life so much better and special for you during your time in college.

Q. Kam, take me through if you can what that decision was like to come back this past offseason and why you chose do it, especially after like you said earlier, coming off such a tough year last year?

KAMERON MCGUSTY: It was a long process. It was a very hard decision. Anytime you're making a decision whether you want -- that's going to change your life, it's definitely hard. A lot goes into it. But I talked with the coaches and the players. And I just felt like it was best.

And kind of like Sam always says, that's usually when he's asked this, but when I came, the program, we had Bruce, Lonnie, they had went to the tournament.

Miami was one of the hottest schools in the country when I decided to come here. So I wanted to leave on the same high note that I came in on. So it was a no-brainer for me to come back and I knew I had another level I could get to individually. I knew my teammates could, too.

We dealt with injuries and a lot of stuff that was out of our control. So I knew that if we had the chemistry, stayed injury-free, and the guy was the limit for us. I knew we could have a season like this. We have the best coaching staff in the country. We have the most support. We have the best managers and GAs. We're a very interdependent program and everyone has done such a great job this year and done their part. And it's a blessing to play with the team I'm playing with now. And coming back was easily one of the greatest decisions I've made. And I'm just blessed to be here and just glad that I made that decision.

THE MODERATOR: We're joined by Miami head coach Jim Larrañaga.

COACH LARRAÑAGA: I'd like to begin by reiterating what Kam said, and Sam has said it often and it's been the whole key to the season. When those guys arrived at Miami we were really on a roll and playing well, and it built the program to a point where I thought our guys were very comfortable and confident that we could get to the Big Dance on an annual basis.

But then we ran into some roadblocks, some things that were out of our control. So when Kam and Sam both made the decision that they were coming back, it was a huge step in the right direction.

My staff celebrated those decisions and went about, okay, now how do we get these guys to really play like we think they're capable of. And the key to that was we need to recruit a couple of transfers. And getting Charlie Moore and Jordan Miller -- Jordan is not up here but he probably should be because he's a major player in our season.

And with those two guys taking over as a point guard and a fourth guard in the lineup, Jordan Miller and the chemistry they developed in the offseason has really gotten us to where we are today.

Q. This year you've run a small ball system and a fast-flowing transition offense with great success, one of the best transition offenses in America. But in Iowa you face a very stout defense that loves to force turnovers. I believe they're ranked second nationally. Why do you think your small ball system has been so effective? And what will be the key to playing that style against Iowa State?

COACH LARRAÑAGA: First of all, I think everybody in the country knows Iowa State plays a very stingy defense, forces a lot of turnovers and has had so much success in doing that; that's why they're here in Chicago, in the Sweet 16.

Our guys have kind of done the same thing. We've been a very good defensive team, have been able to force turnovers. And that's what's created the fast break opportunities to make us an efficient offensive team. And when you have a leader, a quarterback like Charlie Moore and you have two outstanding shooting guards in Isaiah Wong and Kam McGusty in his wings, and you have two very versatile front court guys, not big bulky guys who jog up the floor, but a Sam Waardenburg and Jordan Miller who can run up the floor, we've taken advantage of our speed and quickness. But the thing about this game that's different from our first two, the matchups are similar.

We played two very big teams. Now we're playing a team that's very similar to us. They're very defensive-minded and they're very stingy on defense. They force a lot of turnovers. And they share the ball offensively. They run a motion offense and make a lot of passes and do a lot of cutting. And that's going to be a real challenge for us. Hopefully our offense will be a real challenge for them.

Q. You mentioned the roadblocks earlier. And one of those we know hurt you guys for years. You were cleared of everything. But did you feel like you weren't going to be able to come back from that and get to this point at some point in that stretch?

COACH LARRAÑAGA: Well, you and I go way back. You know I've been very passionate about my love for the game. I became a basketball coach because of my high school coach, Jack Curran. He was my mentor and my inspiration, and I wanted to be just like him.

What happened a few years back was totally out of my control. And my wife had to remind me every day that as far as coaching is concerned nothing has changed. You're going to go to practice every day. You're going to prepare your team. You're going to be the teacher and mentor that they need.

And that's what I needed to hear. And when you hear the players talk about me, I just hope that I've had that same kind of impact on them that my high school coach had on me. Because if that occurs, then I've done my job.

Winning is great. Losing stinks. But it's the relationship building and trying to lay the groundwork for them to be successful long after their playing days are over.

One of the things about basketball, is it stops. You're not going to bounce the ball for a lifetime. And the job my staff and I do is to prepare them for that day. So I want to keep doing this as long as I can.

Q. Is this emotional for you?

COACH LARRAÑAGA: Yeah, it is.

Q. Last year, how frustrating and hard was it for you to never have a night where you had all the pieces you could come close to putting together? And how exhilarating, for want of a better word, for this year having most nights where you could do that?

COACH LARRAÑAGA: It's probably not a great analogy but it would be like playing a chess match and you start the chess match without your queens, one rook and one bishop. You just don't have the manpower. We were so shorthanded. And I think Sam mentioned it or Kam mentioned it, that we couldn't practice.

We only had six guys, seven guys. You can't go up and down. You can't develop the chemistry and the bond of players. You can't learn the offense when you're not even going against a defense.

So this year the greatest gift we have is health. The guys are healthy. We haven't had injuries to deal with. So as long as we can stay healthy and keep practicing and preparing, the guys will do the best job they can of executing the game plan. So we're enjoying the heck out of it. And we keep our fingers crossed.

Q. You mentioned earlier going into the transfer portal last year. Could you talk about what it was like to recruit Charlie Moore to Miami and what were some of the conversations you two had to get him to come to your program?

COACH LARRAÑAGA: Are you from DePaul?

Q. Yes, DePaul student newspaper.

COACH LARRAÑAGA: I absolutely love Charlie. His personality on and off the court. I've got to tell this story because I love it. And I hope you can really appreciate this. Charlie arrived at the University of Miami, but he hadn't been cleared medically yet. So he was able to sit at the workout but not participate in the workout.

And we were working on a drill. And I asked Charlie to pay close attention. I didn't know if he would because he wasn't really playing. And we did this drill. And one of the players, I asked him, hey, do you know what to do. He said yeah. And then he didn't do it. And I said, hey, I thought you knew what to do. He said oh man, I forgot.

I said, okay. Do you remember now? And he said yeah. He went and did it.

After the drill was over -- now this is like 10 minutes later, I went to Charlie. I said, did you follow the drill? And he said yeah. I said can you do it? He said, Coach, not only can I do it, I can remember to do it. (Laughter).

Now, do you know how funny I thought that was? I thought it was hysterical, because he was like poking fun, but in such a clever way. And that's how our relationship began, because I do that all the time.

And so he's from Chicago. I'm from New York. We bonded right away. I gave him the ball and said, look, you need to be our quarterback.

Now, we have another freshman point guard but you've got the experience. I have tremendous confidence in you. Bill Courtney, who is my assistant coach, coached at DePaul, he knew Charlie. We had recruited Charlie out of high school and didn't get him. He signed with Memphis and then went to Cal. Went to Kansas and then DePaul. I still had his phone number.

So when Bill Courtney said to me, Charlie Moore just put his name into the portal. We probably should reach out to to him tonight. I said, I'll text him right now. And I texted him that day, and we got it started.

And he couldn't visit the campus because of COVID. So we just did everything on Zoom. And as he said, his dad just encouraged him, look it, you probably need a new experience. And I think probably the biggest thing was when DePaul decided to make a coaching change, everything is new again. And he decided, okay, I'll look around and try to find the program that best suits my skills. And he did. He chose a place that not only needed him, but allowed him to be the best version of Charlie Moore he could be.

Q. Along those lines, Charlie mentioned just the relationship that the two of you have. How much do you feel that that's played into his ability to thrive finally? What a journey he's had, to finally find a hoops home with the Hurricanes.

COACH LARRAÑAGA: Okay. So I'll share one conversation that took place back in November that I think really helped Charlie understand my point of view. So I called him in. And we started talking about our league and how good the ACC was. I said, Charlie, I want you to understand. I know this league backwards and forwards.

And I really truly believe you're the best point guard in this league. And you need to believe that. You need to understand that you're as good or better than anybody at any other school, because a lot of guys get a lot of publicity. There's a lot of exposure, but you need to understand your coaching staff, me and my staff, we think you're the best.

And I think that gave him the confidence and the trust that we were going to give him an opportunity to be the best that he could be. And he's delivered.

Q. Does anything change, feeling, messaging change for you guys when you go from being the underdog first couple of rounds to now, maybe being expected to come out with the win?

COACH LARRAÑAGA: Well, that would mean I believe wholeheartedly in the media. (Laughter). And that will never happen. Now, we were picked preseason No. 12 in our own league. You get seeded a certain spot. Who cares about that? I tell the team all the time, if you're in the dance, you've got a darned good team because you earned your way into the dance.

You either won your conference tournament, and you're the champion of your league, and it takes a lot to win any league in this country. You get into the dance, you're a darned good basketball team.

If you're one of the 36 at-large teams that means you've been invited because the committee looked at your resumé and decided you're really, really good. So there's 68 teams that started out with the same goal. All very, very good teams. Five of them from our own league. Us as one of those five.

So to me, it doesn't matter what you're seeded. It's not reflective of who you are. It's just a number put by your name to start the tournament. What matters is how you play and how you match up against your opponent. And how well you play that day, how well do you execute the coach's game plan.

So we have tremendous respect for Iowa State. They play in the Big 12. And if I'm correct, isn't the Big 12 ranked the No. 1 league in the country? They've got a lot of great teams. There's three of them in this dance right now in the Sweet 16.

No, we don't take anything for granted. We're always going to approach things in a very positive manner and we're going to try to enjoy ourselves the best way possible. And the best way possible is to execute the game plan and enjoy the heck out of playing great basketball with your teammates.

Q. Where was your confidence level that the program would get back to this spot or spotlight after the last three seasons?

COACH LARRAÑAGA: Let's say this is my highest level of confidence. And this is my lowest level of confidence. You can't see how low my hand has gotten. College basketball was difficult. To build a program is extremely hard. To do it in the ACC -- in my mind, the best basketball conference in America, traditionally -- it's even harder.

Think about the programs and the coaches in the ACC. You are talking about the winningest coach in college basketball history. A few years ago we had four Hall of Fame coaches coaching all at the same time. This is a challenging job. What makes it so special, what has made it possible for the University of Miami to be where we are today is these guys.

A Sam Waardenburg who is from New Zealand. A Kam McGusty who had to transfer out of a situation and come to Miami not knowing what it would be like for him. Or Charlie Moore to come from his journey to ours.

So, no, it's very, very difficult. And did I have confidence we could do it? The only confidence I had is I have a great staff. I have great people who advise me, counsel me, help me.

When I say, during last summer we came up with a new offense and new defense, not my idea. It's an accumulation of ideas that come from all of our experiences. Chris Caputo, my associate head coach, does an amazing job. Should be a head coach. He's got all the experience in the world to run his own program. Bill Courtney, who's had six years of head-coaching experience. Those guys are my brain trust, and they work with the players. As much as the players feel about me, if you ask them about my staff they would tell you the same thing. They love those guys.

My most vivid picture is when we won the ACC championship in 2013, and Shane Larkin, who was a Second Team All-American ACC Player of the Year, the moment we won the game, he ran over to our bench and hugged Chris Caputo. That's the kind of relationship my staff has with the players. And that's going to continue because I've got great coaches and a great group of kids.

Q. Two-part question about Charlie. Number one, is he even better than what you expected? What he's done this year and the stuff that he does on the court, is he even more than what you expected? And second part of the question is, have you talked to him at all about extra pressure, just being in the Sweet 16 in his hometown, how to deal with that? Because obviously in here, the first question was: You're home, you're home, there will be people here watching. Have you talked to him about that at all?

COACH LARRAÑAGA: Charlie has exceeded expectations. But my expectations were so high, it would be very hard for him to exceed it. But the difference is, with most of my players, it takes a while for them to kind of adopt our system. It took Charlie no time at all. And that's what makes him so special, that he was able to just embrace every challenge that he faced. It's not easy to be a quarterback, because what you find out, when you're the point guard, everybody wants the ball. Everybody wants the ball. And to keep them happy is not easy. You throw the ball to the guy on the right, the guy on the left was, hey, I was open, you should have thrown it to me.

Charlie has been able to quarterback our team on offense and make every one of those guys embrace him. They love him. And then at the defensive end of the floor, which has really been the catalyst for our success, Charlie's been the leader there, too. So he's done an amazing job.

How he will deal with the emotions of being back here in Chicago, here's my simple message: Quit asking him. Leave him alone. He's trying to enjoy the Sweet 16. (Laughter). He talked to his parents, and enjoy the moment.

Q. How much do the Miami players of 2022 know about the George Mason story? And are they ever curious about it? And is there value in the message of that journey that's still relevant for you to use with them today?

COACH LARRAÑAGA: Sadly to say, they're tired of hearing about the George Mason, and have told me, hey, let's do what they did so you can talk about us in the future rather than them.

No, I'm a storyteller. I tell stories every single day in practice, in pregame, at halftime, what have you. I've always done that. That's what my high school coach did. That's what I'm doing.

And the George Mason is a good story to share with them about being underrated, underappreciated, and even basically told you not even going to make The Dance.

But with these guys, they've also created a lot of stories. So in preparation for our tournament games, we've shown highlights of them. We've shown clips and showed them about the stories they've already created and the memories they've created for themselves.

We even shared stories about the NBA teams and NBA players. We talked about Charlie Moore being like a Chris Paul. I told the team, we're like the Phoenix Suns. They say, like, what do you mean? They played the Utah Jazz with a great blocking center in Rudy Gobert.

So we showed highlights of Phoenix Suns eliminating them from the playoffs last year, Rudy trying to block their shots. And Chris Paul and Devin Booker pulling up and shooting 15-footers. And you see Kam McGusty and Isaiah Wong do it the next day.

We're constantly trying to send very, very positive messages to them, whether it be on offense or defense or even just about life itself.