NCAA MEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP: FIRST FOUR

March 13, 2023

Steve Lutz

Trevian Tennyson

Isaac Mushila

UD Arena

Texas A&M Corpus Christi Islanders

Media Conference

Q. Trey, just an opening statement and your excitement of playing in the NCAA Tournament.

TREVIAN TENNYSON: It's a dream come true for this team.

Q. Isaac, your thoughts on March Madness and being here on this stage?

ISAAC MUSHILA: We've put a lot of work (inaudible)?

Q. You guys have experience being in the First Four last year. Can you talk about what you learned from that experience and how you've used it to prepare for this year?

TREVIAN TENNYSON: Just being level headed and stuff. Last year you kind of come in as a freshman in college and you're kind of eyes wide open to everything. So this year we've already been here, seen everything, so now we're just focused on the game really.

Q. Isaac, would you like to add to that?

ISAAC MUSHILA: I mean, he pretty much said everything. Just got to focus on the game and be ready to win tomorrow.

Q. Talked to a couple of you guys and it's been kind of motivation since last year. You were disappointed to fall short. How much have you guys been able to use that to drive you all year and then obviously to get back to this point?

ISAAC MUSHILA: Last year we came up short, but this year it's just more of like mentally being disciplined and focus more on the game and try to win it.

TREVIAN TENNYSON: For me, it was all the motivation I needed. We had meetings at the beginning of the year, and the only thing I told them was my goal this year was to get back to March Madness. We're here, so that's really it.

Q. Was it nice having a little bit of extra rest this year after the conference tournament last year? You guys were getting back into town early Sunday morning and flying out the next day. Was it nice having a few days off?

TREVIAN TENNYSON: Yeah, it's really nice because we get to rest our bodies and any lingering injuries get a little more time to heal. Feel fresh and rejuvenated.

ISAAC MUSHILA: It's pretty nice to have this break. We have the same break for all our fans and get the break we needed to get our bodies right for the game.

Q. Being in the situation last year, it's a quick turnaround, you don't get a ton of time to study, you find out who you're going to play late Sunday. How much of that experience from last year and trying to prepare for a team so quickly, how does that pay off this time around, knowing what it's like and what the time frame is like?

ISAAC MUSHILA: I think this year we have more time to prepare physically and mentally. Just feels like we're going to be ready. Like last year it was just like everything happened so fast. We didn't have time to prepare everything. So everything has to be done in one day.

But this year, we had like four or five days or something like that. Was better than last year.

TREVIAN TENNYSON: Yeah, our conference games are every Thursday and Saturday, so we always only have one day to prepare for the next time all season, so I feel like this year we're better prepared for it.

Q. Is there anything that sticks in your mind that was a surprise last year or that you think about now just from the whole experience from being here?

TREVIAN TENNYSON: Anything can happen really because it's March Madness. Last year we started off on a really good trail. We was up, I think, almost 15, and we didn't end up coming up with the win. Really just anything can happen.

ISAAC MUSHILA: He said it. I had the same thing in mind.

Q. So much of this team came back, pretty much everybody that had eligibility came back on this team. What would you say is different about this group compared to the team that you guys brought to Dayton last year?

ISAAC MUSHILA: I would say more experience. We got to know each other, play together. We built that camaraderie, and I feel like that will really help us tomorrow night to go through the game.

TREVIAN TENNYSON: Same thing. Last year was our first year being together, so this was our second year together. Last year, pretty much all our freshman year is playing D-I because we all came from junior college and we had a few transfers. This year is just better for us.

Q. Losing Terrion in the first few minutes of the Southland championship, what's going through your guys' mind? Because obviously you guys got down big and then came back. What did that rallying cry sound like, and what does it mean to you guys having him here with you guys in Dayton?

TREVIAN TENNYSON: It's our motivation. That's our brother. Sit in the back of the bus with him every day, we spend so much time together, so I feel his pain. You can see it in his eyes in the game. When he was leaving the court you could see it. Just throughout the whole game, I was just thinking about you've got to go harder for T. Just our motivation.

ISAAC MUSHILA: Losing Terrion is a big loss for us, but we all want to do it for him. He's one of our players, like Bradley, so we're ready to win that game tomorrow for him.

Q. Tomorrow you'll have a chance again to get your first win in the NCAA as a program. What would that mean to you guys, your team, your community and the school?

ISAAC MUSHILA: Personally, it's always been a dream for me to came into the tournament and win at least one game or more. I've got a chance to do that, so I've prepared my mind to it, prepared my whole body physically to it. I think I'm going to be ready, and my squad too is going to be ready for it.

TREVIAN TENNYSON: I think it would mean a lot to the city just in Corpus because nobody really knows where it is or anything. Like I'm from Texas, I didn't even know where Corpus was growing up. Just being able to put on for the city and stuff, they really embraced me. I really call it a second home for me.

Q. The opposing coach said he wants to impress upon his guys how long the games are, that they're not exactly the same as the other games you've played. I wonder if that's something that resonates with you guys. He's talking about the TV time-outs, things that go on. Does that strike a chord with you guys?

TREVIAN TENNYSON: I don't really remember it being longer. I think the TV time-outs are more like coaching yourselves, because they've got to interview your coach for a time-out, like during a couple other time-outs, so I think we just kind of coach ourselves, and I feel like that's what great teams do anyway.

ISAAC MUSHILA: That's what I had in mind, too.

THE MODERATOR: Coach, just an overview of your season and the accomplishments of your group.

STEVE LUTZ: I'd first like to say, shoot, it's a lot better to be here now than the last time I was sitting here. The last time I sat here, we obviously had lost.

But these guys have taken the next step. We talk all the time about winning the league, winning the league tournament, and going to the NCAA Tournament and winning games. And last year we didn't win the league. We were the No. 4 seed, and we won the tournament, and obviously we came here and lost to Texas Southern.

We've taken the next step as a program. We won the league. Then we finished off and won the league tournament. Now we're back here in Dayton, and we have an opportunity to win a game against a really good SE Mo team that's well-coached and then go toss it up against Alabama in Birmingham on Thursday.

Q. I'm sure you'll take any opportunity you can get, but what do you think about the First Four -- I know you say you have a chance to win a game, but if you had your druthers, would you prefer to be in the 64 to begin with?

STEVE LUTZ: I go back and forth. As a program, you want to obviously go directly into the NCAA Tournament. I think that that's everybody's goal. But the First Four is fantastic. This arena last year was electric. The people here in Dayton are great. If you're complaining about coming to Dayton and the First Four, you're messed up in my book. I'm not trying to be whatever.

We're in the NCAA Tournament. Who's complaining? You don't bitch about going to the NCAA Tournament. There's a lot of teams sitting at home right now. There's a lot of teams playing in other tournaments that would trade in a heartbeat.

Man, I try to look at the bright side of things rather than look at the dark side of it. We're playing. Let's win tomorrow, let's win Thursday, let's win Saturday and we'll go from there. I'm a believer in those sort of things. These guys have worked really hard, and they deserve it.

Q. You can talk about it, but to actually have the experience, knowing what it's like, the quick turnaround, being here on Tuesday, having all the country watch you in a nationally televised game, are those things that will help the guys you have coming back with the majority of your roster returning?

STEVE LUTZ: I sure hope so. You don't come through this experience the first time and have the disappointment -- if you don't learn from it, then it wasn't worth doing it the first time. Experience is always key in life. It's key in basketball. So yeah, I think that the experience will absolutely help us.

But when you tip that ball up tomorrow at whatever time, 5:40, 6:40, all that stuff really goes out the window. You've still got to go play the game of basketball. I'd like to think that we've got a team that's proven that they can play the game of basketball and play it at a high level.

I definitely think that it has helped us in that we moved -- our league has moved the championship up to a Wednesday versus a Saturday night. We don't feel nearly as rushed this time. We actually got a day or two off to heal up and get some injuries squared away and that kind of thing.

But it's still always hectic, man. When you leave Texas at 11:30 central time, you land, you check into the hotel, and then probably 25 minutes you're turned around and you're on that bus and you're coming down here, it's hectic. But that's a great hectic, so you should never complain about that.

I would like to think that it -- our experience is going to help us in the long run.

Q. With so much of your roster coming back, how would you say this team is different or similar to the team that was in Dayton last year?

STEVE LUTZ: Well, I mean, it's different in that we lost our point guard who's a first-team all-league player in Terrion Murdix. He was also defensive Player of the Year. When you lose him three minutes to go in the championship game, that changes things.

Obviously we'll have to adjust, and we adjusted against Northwestern State for the final 37 minutes.

But in terms of productivity returning, in terms of experience returning, rebounding returning, all of those things, it's very similar. Now, I would like to say that Trey Tennyson, if you look at his stats from last year to this year, he's improved, and if you look at Jalen's stats from last year to this year he's improved.

I'd think that each and every individual has gotten better or at least maintained and stayed the game. Then you add Ross Williams and you add Owen Dease, both those guys have stepped into big games at big times and made big plays or big shots.

I think that we've got a little bit more depth, and that's not to knock losing a guy like Myles Smith who was over a 1,000 point scorer for us. But I like where we're at, I like our team, I like our depth, I like our experience. I think that's the reason why we're here.

Q. In this tournament anybody can beat anybody, so what are some attributes about your team that make you confident not necessarily only tomorrow night, but potentially even going forward?

STEVE LUTZ: Yeah, I mean, any time you win 23 Division I basketball games, you've done something. Any time you win your league, you've done something. Any time you win the league tournament, you've done something.

We're a fun team to watch for those that haven't watched us. We play fairly fast. We're top 20 in the country in tempo and scoring. We're aggressive defensively. We create turnovers. We get to the free-throw line at a high rate, and then we shoot the ball pretty well at the free-throw line.

We usually score a lot of points. With that being said, we're about to go play a SE Mo team that plays even faster than we do. It should be an interesting game for us.

Then if you go play Alabama, whoever goes to play Alabama, they play fast, as well, shoot a bunch of threes, all that kind of stuff.

Our game against SE Mo and whoever's game against Alabama, man, those should be two really good first-round games in my book.

Q. What does it mean to you and to the guys to have Terrion with you guys on this trip?

STEVE LUTZ: Oh, I mean, we would never leave Terrion behind. When he blew his knee last Wednesday at the championship game, it took a chunk out of each one of our hearts. And it took us a little while to get our bearings again and get back to playing the way that we're capable of.

I don't know how many of you have seen it, but if you haven't seen it, I'd tell you to go on Twitter and look. When they brought Terrion back from the hospital and those guys ran out to meet him at his car and tell him how much they loved him and missed him and how awful they felt for him, and then to have them wait for him to cut down the net, it just should warm everybody's heart. It just shows how close and tight-knit a group this team is and how wonderful a person that Terrion is and the guys that are surrounded around him.

But, yeah, it's awful for him, but we would never leave that guy behind, man. He's going to help us win a game at some point even if he's not in the game. I promise you that.

Q. What's the reason, what's the attribute, why on this team were you guys able to overcome something like that in a key stage being down double digits? What was it about this group that helped you guys get over that hump?

STEVE LUTZ: Well, we've got good players. That's the first thing. You lose a first-team all-league player but you've got another one in Isaac and you've got another one in Trey. Even though he was a second-team all-league player in terms of getting votes, I still believe he's a first-team all-league player. It's just there's only five of them, and there's other good players out there, as well.

We talked a little bit about experience earlier. Obviously we've been on the road at Notre Dame, we've been on the road at Arizona, we've been on the road at Mississippi State. Those are games that help you build character. Those are games that help you gain experience. And you get behind in a game and how do you dig yourself out of that hole. When you play those games, that's just going to -- it's just going to continue to give you more and more valuable experience as to how to overcome it.

Unfortunately or fortunately, we were able to do that on Wednesday night.

We've got good players. We've got good players. We've got good talent. We've got good chemistry. We've got good depth, as well.

You never want to lose a person like Terrion, but I think that when we did, you don't go from here to here. You may go from here to here, but the bottom doesn't fall out of it, and that's a testament to the guys that we have on the team.

Q. What has mostly impressed you about SE Mo? What do they do? What's going to be a challenge?

STEVE LUTZ: Man, they're fast, and obviously you've covered us for two years now. We play pretty fast. We're top 20 in tempo in the country, and they're top 10 in the country in tempo. They play fast. They've got good guards. They've got a balanced team. Brad does a good job putting them in positions to be successful offensively. They get to the free-throw line a lot, at least they did in the OVC tournament.

We're similar in a lot of aspects. Obviously we're a little more aggressive defensively in terms of turning people over, but something has got to give there. One of the two of us is not going to be able to take care of the basketball, and the team that doesn't take care of the basketball is the one that's probably going to come up on the losing end of this game.

It'll be a battle of wills and a battle of two good, hard-playing teams at the end of the day, I think.

Q. You mentioned the regular season title and that being a goal, obviously the conference tournament championship. Outside of the trophies, what are you most proud of about this team and your accomplishments for the season?

STEVE LUTZ: Oh, that's an easy one. I've got good people. I coach good people. They made a 3.36 G.P.A this fall. Those are the things that make me proud. We don't get in trouble on campus. We go to others' events. We support other students. They're normal people. They don't get caught up in being an athlete on campus. They're normal people who are normal students who embrace the university and don't ever put themselves on a pedestal.

Now, that doesn't mean that we're perfect angels by any means, but they're good guys. Like these are guys -- when they finish playing professionally, when they finish and get their degree, these are guys that I can look each one of you in the eye and say, hey, you need to hire them because they're guys that are going to be winners the rest of their lives no matter what they do.

THE MODERATOR: Coach, congratulations on a fantastic season. We look forward to seeing you again tomorrow night here in Dayton. Best of luck against Southeast Missouri.