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NCAA MEN'S 1ST & 2ND ROUNDS REGIONALS: TAMPAMarch 20, 2008Keno DavisAdam EmmeneckerKlayton KorverJosh YoungTAMPA, FLORIDA Q. Adam, I'm curious to know with all your degrees, what do you plan to do with all that information? ADAM EMMENECKER: Well, part of the reason I got so many degrees is because I don't know exactly what I want to do once I'm done here. I already accepted a job at the Principle Financial Group in Des Moines in what's called the Leadership Development Rotation, which kind of fits in well with all my majors, because it's kind of a cross-functional look at a lot of different business areas. So hopefully that will give me a little bit of an exposure to the different areas of business, and the financial business. And I'll be able to figure it out from there. Q. Talk a little bit, they're going to move the three-point line back next year. How big an impact do you think that will be on the game? JOSH YOUNG: I think it will be a big impact. I think it will allow offenses to get the defense stretched out a little bit more. And if you have shooters that can shoot from that range, it will be something good for your team. So I think it will definitely benefit a lot of teams around the country. Q. Will it affect how you shoot or play at all? JOSH YOUNG: No, I think we shoot pretty far back right now. So I think we'll be okay with the line being moved back. Q. You guys have worked so hard to get to this point, how do you guard against, I don't want to say letting down, but how do you keep that focus that you've had to do all the things that you can to reach this point and continue to have success here in the tournament? KLAYTON KORVER: Well, it's one and done now, so if you're not ready to play now, I don't know what's wrong with you and you probably shouldn't be playing. So we're excited to play, and we can't wait to get out there. Q. The 12-5 game has always been a game that's produced a lot of upsets, how do you guys kind of guard against that and are you guys aware of that? KLAYTON KORVER: We've all picked brackets in the past. We all know about that. But last year there weren't any, so I guess we're hoping for that again for this year. But we're playing against a great team. And I think that we play a lot alike, and we know they're a great team. So we're ready to go. Q. There is a short list of players that are unknown around the country but have a pretty good game, and you're one of those. How do you feel about being put on that short list? JOSH YOUNG: Well, that's quite an honor to be put on a list like that. I think with our team we have a lot of guys that could fit in that bracket. And so I'm just honored that we're here right now and getting a chance to play down here. We're all excited about playing tomorrow. Q. What do you make of the match-up of Western Kentucky-Drake, kind of two mid-majors and what does that bring to the table? ADAM EMMENECKER: I think when you look at the differences between the two teams, there weren't that many. Athletically and skill-wise, we're similar teams, we just have a little bit better record on the season as they do. We don't see ourselves being too much of a favor in the match-up because they're such a good team. They played Tennessee tough, and they had such a tough schedule early in the year but they didn't pick up some of the wins we did. But we know they're going to come out and they're going to be a good team, and they're going to give us all we can handle. We just have to play well, play together, and try to do the things that got us here to try to be successful. Q. Has it felt like this team has continually had to validate what you've done at every level first in the MVC, in the bracket buster, now in the NCAA Tournament? ADAM EMMENECKER: Well, I think the validation is more for media purposes than for our team. Playing all those tough games and having people keep telling us that the next game we play is going to be the biggest game we've played all year, it helps us understand that we can play at that level. But I think that's more for media purposes. We're confident in what we do and how we play together. As long as we keep staying together, which we have all year, we think we can win some games or at least have a chance to win in the end. And we know Western Kentucky is going to be tough. Like I said, give us all that we can handle. But it comes down to us, I think. Q. Adam, is it true that you got zero interview requests for your media day during preseason? And if so, what's it been like just for you personally to get all this attention now with the TV appearances and stories and whatnot? ADAM EMMENECKER: Yeah, that is true, first of all. I didn't do a single interview during our media day. Apparently, that's changed a little bit since then. Our media obligations as a team went up considerably since we went on that 21-game winning streak, and all the success we've had. But I think anything that I've done personally and all the media things that I've gotten as an individual is really just a testament to this team and how well we've played together and how unselfish we are. You know, you look at the guys on this team, and we might not have the most talent, and we might athletically we might not be the best team in the country. But as long as we're playing together and playing smart, then we're tough to deal with. Q. For you personally what was the most gratifying? Was it Rome or was it CNBC? ADAM EMMENECKER: I'm not sure that there was something that is the most gratifying. You don't expect to be on ESPN national TV, and then to have an honor like being on CNBC. Not a lot of college students get opportunities like that. I think the biggest thing for me is just the combination of both the athletic accomplishments and the academic accomplishments, and just being able to try to make myself as well rounded as possible. Q. For Klayton or anybody, does this team remind you of anybody in the Valley that you've played this year? KLAYTON KORVER: Illinois State, their bigs are very quick, and they're very good under the basket, and they've got a great guard who is going to play in the NBA if not next year. So they're kind of like them, but they probably are a little better. Q. Klayton, your brother played on this stage, the NCAA Tournament, what's it like for you now that you're here with all the focus on you and this team and the bright lights? KLAYTON KORVER: I'm just glad I got to make it once. He made it four times. I'm glad I got to go here in the end. Hopefully it's a start of a run of these trips for Drake University. Q. The high-powered offense of Western Kentucky, they average almost 80 points a game, they have a great player in Courtney Lee, what do you do to try to slow them down? JOSH YOUNG: I think we'll continue to do the things we've done all year. I think it's important that we identify their shooters. Courtney Lee, we've seen him play, he's a great talent. So I think it's important that we put a lot of focus on him. Q. Keno's always given you a green light to shoot pretty much from anywhere, how has he expressed that? The other day in practice did he say, okay, you're shooting it or do you earn it one by one? Take me through that process of getting the green light. ADAM EMMENECKER: I don't take too many deep shots like these guys do. So I don't quite know about that. But I think it's more of just understanding your role and knowing what you're supposed to be doing on the floor. I think that's one of the best things about this team as well. You look at Josh and Klayton, who can both shoot from 24 or 25 feet. By them doing that and knocking down shots, it allows me to get in the paint. It allows Bucky Cox to get some points in the paint. And Leonard Houston and Bucky Cox are the same way. They're going to step out 23, 24 feet, and they can also take you off the dribble. So I think it's a combination of a few things. It's not really that he sat us down and told us what our role is and what our limitations are. It's just kind of, play the way you play, and do what feels natural. As long as you're putting the work in on the defensive end and rebounding, then you'll let the offense come to you. Just play your game. Q. Not only do you guys make history this year, what is it like to get out of the state of Iowa this time of year, come down to Tampa? ADAM EMMENECKER: Well, that was one of the things we talked about on the plane yesterday is just, do we understand where we're going? We're going to play in the NCAA Tournament in Tampa, Florida. It's a long way from Des Moines, so it's kind of hard for our fans. But it's nice for us to be able to enjoy the weather and get a little bit of a break from the wind and the cold in Des Moines. So we're excited to be here, and we're happy that the weather is just a bit warmer. Q. Adam, your story is such a good one, the media seems to latch on to it. Have you grown tired of telling it yet? ADAM EMMENECKER: No, not yet. You know, I had three, almost and a half years with doing no interviews. So we're trying to make up for it as much as possible as my days are getting close to being numbered toward the end of my senior year. So it would be hard to say that I'm getting sick of it, because I mean, how many people get the opportunity to do this? You know, you kind of have to put it in perspective and say with all the success we've had this year and all the success I've had individually, it's a really rare occasion. It's something that you have to enjoy while you're going through it, because it's really a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. THE MODERATOR: Gentlemen, thank you. We welcome Coach Keno Davis of Drake University to Tampa, and questions, please. Q. We've all heard about the guards, Courtney Lee and Ty Rogers from Western Kentucky, and Adam and Klayton and all them. Talk about some of the battles you're going to see in the post tomorrow? COACH DAVIS: I think it's a unique situation when you've got a couple kind of mid-major programs but have some very talented inside players both at Western Kentucky and at Drake. So I think that could be kind of the hidden story line is how successful is each team able to go into the post. Because when you get in the NCAA Tournament, you realize you can't just rely on your outside shooting. You've got to be able to find a way to score inside, get to the free-throw line. So, obviously, that is a big focus of ours. Q. Can you talk about how impressed you are with Adam's ability to carry four majors, and this year be MVC player of the year? COACH DAVIS: I think just having four majors alone is pretty impressive. It's hard to believe you're able to do that in college these days. But his success on the court to be able to come as a non-scholarship player for three years, and in relative anonymity coming into the senior year, and be able to be the Missouri Valley Most Valuable Player, it's quite a story. I think it shows how hard work, even though you might not have been recruited, you might not have had the playing time. He just kept focused on how hard he could play, how hard he could work to be a part of this team at Drake during his four years. It's all come together for him his senior year. But I think the academic success he's had is a big part of why he's been able to have success on the court. His focus, it definitely translates. We wouldn't be here without him. That is probably the understatement of the year. Q. How do you deal with Western Kentucky offensively and all the different ways they can attack, especially Courtney Lee? COACH DAVIS: Well, I don't know that I have the answer to that. I think when I watch them on tape it reminds me of our team a lot, and how I'm often asked, how would you defend yourself? I don't know. I don't know how we're going to be able to defend them. But I think what you try to do is you just try to limit when you have a great player in Courtney Lee. You just try not to let him beat you single-handedly. You understand he's going to get his points and his numbers, but you just try to have your focus of an overall game plan and what you're trying to do. You don't give the players as much information as you might think. You just give them a couple things that we want to focus on. And try to have the same kind of game plan we've had all year. Q. Obviously your first tournament appearance, what kind of nerves have you experienced so far, if you have any? And do you think you'll experience some tomorrow morning, too? COACH DAVIS: Well, I think it's natural to have nerves in the NCAA Tournament because it's such a special time of the year. You talk about it at the beginning of the season. Hey, you want to play in March Madness. Once you've arrived, you've got to make sure that you have the same kind of focus that you have had all year to what's been successful. You don't want to change a whole lot. Whatever has been good enough to get you are there, you hope is good enough to have a good product on the court and see if it's good enough to get another victory. So we're going to have nerves. But I worried about our nerves this season when we played at Butler. When we played our conference championship game in St. Louis. We played our best ballgames then. So hopefully we'll have the same kind of focus tomorrow. Q. Talk if you could, growing up with your father and all, what are the earliest NCAA Tournament memories that you have of following either Iowa or being around this environment? Did you get to go on any trips with your dad? COACH DAVIS: Yeah, I made most of the trips, the NCAA Tournament trips. You know, it's a great memory for me to be able to be on the bench and to travel and follow some of his great teams. But I think I've used that experience as well as just talking to him the last four years and now about the NCAA Tournament. Well, what changes, what would you do differently? Were you in it again? What did you do that worked well? Because I think as a coach, regardless of who your father is, you're going to try to get some information from people that have been through it more times than you have. Obviously, it is a great resource for me to be able to talk to my father about. Q. Has it felt like this team has continually had to validate the wins at each level, first in the MVC season, then maybe the bracket buster, the MVC tournament, and now here again? COACH DAVIS: Yeah, I don't know that I would say we have to validate as much. I think we've accomplished a ton. Whenever our season ends, we'll look back at it as being successful. But what I do think is that maybe the lack of respect or around the country when people talk about Drake, what it's done is maybe it hasn't motivated us, but it's kind of allowed us to play pressure free. When everybody already expects the other team to win or your season or your great winning streak or your conference championship or your post-season play to end, that takes pressure off of you when everybody else is picking the other team. So hopefully that continues. I don't want too many people to pick Drake. I'd like to have all the experts pick Western Kentucky. Our guys would relish that underdog role. Q. Have you noticed anything between Sunday and now, perhaps a let down after the tournament match-up got announced or have the kids been focused the entire week? COACH DAVIS: No, they've been very focused as I would expect. All year they haven't had a let-down. We haven't had that many losses. But even in those losses I didn't feel like we had a let-down in any of them. Just playing against some really good competition. I think after winning down in St. Louis, we had a couple of days that we kind of used for rest and recovery. And there might have been when we came back to practice the first thing, it might have been a little bit of a let-down. Once you see your name up there on Sunday, I don't think there is any team that isn't going to be focused to play, whether you're a 1 seed or a 5 or a 16 seed, you're going to come in. And this is what you play for this time of the year. So we're excited about it and just want to have our best effort on the court. Q. Adam's story has been retold and told so many times. He said he's not tired of telling it. Do you ever get tired of hearing it? It's almost like a big old fish story in some sense that it just keeps getting bigger and bigger? COACH DAVIS: Well, it does. No, I'm not tired of hearing it or telling it. I'm not sure how it happened. I've had a lot of people, other coaches want to talk about our success and Adam's success. But, you know, you're talking about a young man that when we had our media day before the season he didn't have any interview requests, and now you look at what he's got. So I think it's an inspiration. Hopefully a lot of young people will use him as a role model of what they want to try to accomplish both athletically, but definitely more importantly, academically. He's a great representative of our university. We hope we have more of them just like him in the future. THE MODERATOR: Coach, thank you very much. End of FastScripts |
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