NCAA MEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP: FIRST ROUND - PITT VS IOWA STATE

March 16, 2023

T.J. Otzelberger

Gabe Kalscheur

Jaren Holmes

Tamin Lipsey

Greensboro Coliseum

Iowa State Cyclones

Media Conference

THE MODERATOR: We're here with the student-athletes from Iowa State. Questions?

Q. For any of the guys, you had a little tough stretch in February. Do you think that is over with now, and playing someone not in the Big 12, was that kind of -- how much of a benefit might that be at this stage?

GABE KALSCHEUR: I think it's over with. We're gelling together at the right time. We're feeling well. We're all celebrating each other's success. We're just ready for a clean slate in March.

Yeah, we're just ready to get at this Big Dance. It's an opportunity every year, and we're blessed to be in this position.

JAREN HOLMES: Yeah, I would say I would agree with Gabe. Every team in college basketball goes through those stretches. You have those moments. I think those are the most defining moments as a team, and you get to see who is really in that locker room with you, who can stand tall, and be ready to fight adversity.

So we made it through that fire, and we're back to being who we are, and we're in a good spot right now.

TAMIN LIPSEY: I think we've got a lot of energy right now. Practices have been great. Everyone has been super ready for this game coming up and just ready to play someone that we haven't played, new competition. Just go out there and be ourselves and just have a good team, enjoy it.

Q. How much do you feel like playing in the conference that you played in kind of prepares you for this?

GABE KALSCHEUR: Yeah, it prepares us drastically. I think the Big 12 is one of the best conferences in the country. You know, day in and day out, night in, night out you get to play a quad one win, top 25 team every night.

So just having that physicality is going to prepare us for March. Whatever team we face, we haven't really seen anything that we haven't played before. We had a great nonconference as well.

I think we're really prepared for this moment.

JAREN HOLMES: Yeah. I think in my opinion the Big 12 Conference is the best in the country with the physicality and the players and teams and the legendary coaches that are in that conference.

You go against those players night in, night out, and it prepares you for years to come in my opinion. So it's exciting to play somebody new. You play everybody twice in the Big 12, which everybody kind of figures each other out at the end of the season. So I'm excited to see some new faces and go some new teams.

TAMIN LIPSEY: Like they've said. The Big 12 is a hard, hard conference. Every night is a battle. You've got to go out there and do what you do every night. Otherwise, you could get beat. There's no bad teams in that conference. Every night you've got to go out there prepared and with a lot of energy. So I think this group is prepared and ready for anything that comes at us, so we're going to take it head-on.

Q. Tamin, I assume as a hometown guy, you sensed all the excitement last year with the team in the postseason, how different does it feel to be part of it this time?

TAMIN LIPSEY: I'm still trying to sort of feel it. Just because, I mean, I just look at it as another game, another chance to play longer in the season. Obviously, it's a little different. There's a lot more eyes on us now. That's March. It's the tournament.

Yeah, I've dreamed of this being a kid, as most everyone has as a young basketball player. It's awesome to be here, and I'm looking forward to the atmosphere.

Q. Being part of it with a new team this year, kind of what's your thoughts going into it, and how do you -- what do you expect out of this experience?

JAREN HOLMES: I would say I'm in the same position as Tamin really. When we made it, it was the bubble, so it was very different. We weren't seeing all your guys' wonderful faces and this contact and the ability to have fans and our families close by and truly have that experience. It's definitely different.

I'm really just ultra excited as if I was a freshman right now. It's truly an honor to be able to be in this position with Iowa State and the great group of guys that are in that locker room. It's exciting, to be honest.

To go with two teams in my career, it's honestly a blessing.

Q. What is your relationship with Blake Hinson, and what do you think about playing against him?

JAREN HOLMES: Yeah, I mean, Blake last year in the summer, he competed hard. He was a fun guy to play with. I mean, this is a new team, and, I mean, we're excited to play Pitt. Our focus is on them and what they do well and what areas we can attack. I feel like we match up really well against them, and we're excited for it.

THE MODERATOR: Okay, guys, thank you.

Coach, opening statement, whenever you are ready.

T.J. OTZELBERGER: Excited for the opportunity for our team to be here in Greensboro. Guys are a really connected group, playing our best basketball. So excited to see where things can go this opportunity for us.

Q. Coach, you guys went through a little stretch, 8-10 where you struggled and lost. How did you bring these guys back and get them on the right path heading into this tournament?

T.J. OTZELBERGER: Well, our guys understand that we play in the best league in America, and it's a credit to our opponents. We know every night out feels like a heavyweight fight.

A lot of humility playing in our league that you have got to have and a short-term memory. We were able to remind our guys the hard work they do every day and that being the more together team, being more connected, more unified this time of the year allows you to give yourself a chance to be successful.

We also expanded our rotation, started playing more guys, which I think has given us more energy as well. So just credit to our guys continuing to keep their heads down and doing the hard work.

Q. What have you noticed on tape from Pitt in preparation for this game?

T.J. OTZELBERGER: Yeah, they're a really good basketball team, and they're playing well. They've continued to elevate their play later in the season. They've got a lot of experience. They shoot the ball extremely well from the three-point line. They're a team that with those veteran players you can see that experience come out, especially later in games.

They've been fortunate to win some close ones because of it. So just a really experienced group that's playing for one another, and a lot of respect for them and their program.

Q. Going along the theme with Pitt, Jamarius Burton made First Team All-ACC for them. He has really elevated his game since coming over from Texas Tech. I was just curious the experience you have had with seeing him play in prior years of what presents the biggest challenge when it comes to defending him?

T.J. OTZELBERGER: Yeah, he was at Tech the year before I got back to Iowa State. What I would say in watching him he is a very physical guard that can make plays. He can back you down and get to spots. He can score at all three levels. He is effective at the rim and the midrange and from three.

He has a lot of toughness that he plays with, so it doesn't surprise me that he made First Team All league because he does so many things well, and he has a great competitive spirit.

Q. Blake Hinson obviously transferred over from Iowa State to Pitt. Just what were your experiences like around Blake, and how have you seen his game grow going into this game tomorrow?

T.J. OTZELBERGER: Blake is a terrific young man, and he signed up to play for the coach prior to us. You know, I think it's something where he felt like it wasn't the best fit for him, and I think both sides have done all right with it.

It's neat to see Blake continue to play well and elevate his game, and at the same time, you know, we're proud of where we're at with our program.

So it's one of those situations where I think everybody wants to make something out of it, and at the end there's a young man who is playing really well on an NCAA tournament team, and then it's our group that's playing well also. So everybody came out okay in that situation.

Q. How has Gabe's role kind of evolved over the last couple of years, and what has he really meant to you as a Cyclone during that time?

T.J. OTZELBERGER: Gabe has continued to expand his game. We talked over and over about what a great worker he is, his character, how important it is to him to be a Cyclone, to do the right thing.

And his confidence has grown through his hard work and dedication. For me when you see somebody that puts the time in every single day, you want to continue to help them expand their game and create more opportunities, and we've tried to do that for Gabe.

You know, for a guy to make Second Team in the Big 12, in the best league in the country, and then also be All-Defensive Team speaks volumes to just how far he has come as a leader and a go-to guy.

He has expanded it through his hard work, through his confidence and that he's built, and our guys really believe in him too. Excited to see what he continues to do here as a Cyclone.

Q. Pitt had eight threes in the game the other night. Their three-point shooting and your three-point defense, how much of a concern -- how much are you talking to your players about that?

T.J. OTZELBERGER: Yeah, they were 8 for 13 in the first half and came out. You've got to do a great job pressuring the basketball and not letting them get rid of those threes, whether that's switching certain things or disrupting or just finding a way to take them out of their natural rhythm because when they can get in that rhythm, they can get it going.

You have guys like Hinson and Elliott that have been proven guys, as catch-and-shoot guys, to make a lot of them over time. Then you also have guys like Cummings and Sibande off the bench, as well as Burton.

A lot of shooting out there for them. You know, we're going to need to be highly disruptive because we know that they can really get it going from long range.

Q. You have asked Tamin to do a lot in his freshman year. Just generally, how do you feel he has responded and stepped up to what you have asked him to do?

T.J. OTZELBERGER: Well, he came in with great support network, maturity, work habits. As a freshman, it's hard to transition. It's really hard to transition in a league like the Big 12 where not very many freshmen play.

Then to do it like he has done it where we're asking so much of him. He is an elite on-ball defender. He makes our offense go. He gets so many energy plays on the glass. He is a guy that takes tremendous pride in playing for his teammates, and he has continued to elevate his game as our season has moved on.

So can't say enough positive things about Tamin, what he has meant to our team and our program this year. You know, excited about this opportunity for him tomorrow and then his future because he has a really bright future.

But I'll always believe that that starts with character and work ethic, and Tamin is at the very high end in both of those.

Q. This is a Big 12 versus ACC matchup. Last year's national championship, obviously, was the same matchup of power conferences. How much are you looking forward to representing the Big 12 in a deep field this year, knowing that there's some pretty strong representation and it has gotten a reputation as one of the strongest conferences in the nation this year?

T.J. OTZELBERGER: I would say the Big 12 is certainly over the last few years solidified that standing as the best league in the country. Whether you look at metrics, percentage of teams in the tournament, all those sort of things, it seems apparent that the Big 12 is at the top.

We've played 20 games against Big 12 teams over the last three months, and that helps prepare you for an opportunity like this.

We take a lot of pride to represent our conference, and to do it in such a way that represents all the effort-based things that the teams in our league do: getting loose balls, taking charges, rebounding the basketball, playing with tremendous passion and enthusiasm.

That's what we experience night in and night out in our conference, and that's what we hope to carry forward into this game tomorrow.

Q. When Gabe came in, I think he was mostly regarded as a really great defensive player, but as time has gone on, we've seen him tap into that offensive part of his game. How would you characterize his development over the last two years and maybe the impact he has had on this program?

T.J. OTZELBERGER: He has had a tremendous impact in terms of his character, his people skills, his love for being a Cyclone. His passion and enthusiasm to practice at a high level every day has really taken our program to another level. For two straight years to lead and do those things, that's been amazing.

His game -- because he plays so hard defensively, is great in rotations and close-outs, takes charges, and does so many winning things, we know we need him on the court. When you need a guy on the court to the extent that we need him, you want to continue to elevate and create more opportunities for them and also for him to embrace those.

I think where Gabe has been really good this second half of the year for us is understanding where his strengths lie, understanding his teammates want to get him shots and get him more opportunities, and then knowing that he can step up in the big moment, which he has done for us time and time again.

Q. Tell us, tell the country, something about your team that maybe the average fan wouldn't know.

T.J. OTZELBERGER: You know, what I would say about our group is we start in June. We start workouts and doing things. Everybody approaches their process differently, and we talk to guys when they come here about work capacity and that we believe we're going to roll up our sleeves and do as much or more than any.

What I would say is we've been really fortunate to have a group that has essentially dove right into that and embraced that.

So for us, calling on those daily habits, you get to this time of the year, and there's certainly such a thing as your team is playing well or you're making shots, but we really want our guys to have a tremendous sense of pride in all the work they've done up to this point that started in June and knowing that it's prepared them for this moment and this opportunity because they've earned the right to have that confidence.