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NCAA MEN'S 1ST ROUND: DAYTONMarch 13, 2012Ron Anderson, Jr.Anthony CollinsStan HeathDAYTON, OHIO THE MODERATOR: We're joined by South Florida student‑athletes Anthony Collins and Ron Anderson, Jr. Questions? Q. Can you talk a little bit about the first time you saw Anthony and what he brings to your team? RON ANDERSON, JR.: First, I think that everybody in the gym, they were just kind of relieved. They felt like he went out there and just did a great job at making everybody else on the court's job a lot easier. He was very flashy.  He came out with energy. And basically right away just took over the game, took over the tempo of the game and basically said he was going to be the general on the court and make all the decisions. Q. For those who aren't familiar with your team, this is for Ron, if you can describe your team's style of play, how would you characterize it? RON ANDERSON, JR.: Team style of play, we pride ourselves on defense a lot. I think that's been the foundation of our team throughout the course of the year. Offense‑‑ our offense is‑‑ we kind of pick it up from our defense. When we go out on defense, we pride ourselves on getting stops, keeping it below 60. If we can kind of hold a team below 60, then we know‑‑ then we feel pretty good about what we did out there on defense. Q. Anthony, tell us what you guys know about Cal at this point if you would? ANTHONY COLLINS: We know that they have good perimeter players. They're very skilled and that they run their offense well. Q. Anthony, when you came in as a freshman, what did you expect? How much did you expect to play? What were your goals coming in, and how long before you figured out: I'm good enough to play now? ANTHONY COLLINS: I just tried to come out and play hard and didn't worry about how many minutes I played, just tried to come out and help my team in any way I could. Q. What do you make of people that say that your brand of basketball is, quote, ugly or it's tough to watch, things like that, that kind of criticism? What do you make of that? How do you respond to stuff like that? RON ANDERSON, JR.: Brand of basketball, I mean, history kind of shows that different teams have succeeded different ways. And this is certainly not the first time you've seen a defensive team go out and be successful. A lot of times nowadays people are more interested in the flashiness of a game or how high somebody's jumping or how many blocked shots you can get. But when it's all said and done, it all boils down to fundamentals. Every head coach across the nation, the first day of practice, they always harp on defense. That's where you start off with. And for us it's really helped us out, won us most of our games this year. And, like I said, that's our foundation. So if it's going good, we want to stick to it, and as far as it's not a sloppy game or we're not putting up a lot of points. A win is a win. And the team's really‑‑ we're just really excited. We're excited to be here and excited that our defense has helped us get here. Q. Picking up on that, talking to our Florida colleagues, the Big East, I think you were picked 14th. You've heard all this ugly basketball stuff all season. Apparently Obama's website had you guys listed as San Francisco. When you hear all this stuff, is it haha, or does it tick you off? What's the feeling among the team when you kind of get these reactions? RON ANDERSON, JR.: Honestly, we've been kind of dealing with adversity all year of basically everybody outside the locker room probably not having as much confidence in us as we would like. But at the same time we kind of fuel off that. And it's nothing negative. But we just‑‑ we know that we're a good basketball team. We know how much work we put in every day. And we know how hard we work. And really the only thing, we just want the nation to understand that, too. We want the nation to know we're going out just like everybody else. And we're really working hard. We're fighting hard. So as far as being undeserving of it, we're very grateful for having the spot. And we're going to continue doing what we're doing, continue playing Bulls basketball and playing defense. And no matter how sloppy it is or unflashy it might be, we're still going to stick with our foundation and hope for the best. Q. Ron, how much do you remember that first NCAA Tournament game you played at Kansas State and how do you take that memory or experience into this game? RON ANDERSON, JR.: I remember it like it was yesterday. I mean, it was an experience that you don't get very often. Not too many people understand how difficult it is to make the tournament. I guess coming in as a freshman that year it was a little bit easier, but I had a couple of first‑rounders on my team that helped me out. But this year being that nobody's averaging double figures, everybody's coming in, knows their role. We had to become a team and we had to build through the course of the year. And I think that's what makes coming back to the tournament, especially for my senior year, that much more sweet, knowing that the road to get here had its challenges and we overcame a lot. Q. Does Coach Heath ever talk about his Elite Eight team? Anything that you guys can draw from that, if so? RON ANDERSON, JR.: Yeah, I mean, he talks about it a lot, saying that the Elite Eight team, coming in, you know, nobody really expected them to probably make that type of run. And we believe him. We trusted him all year. And we understand that every decision he makes is for the success of our team. He just wants us to succeed. So he has that experience. And nobody's ever really been‑‑ nobody on our team has been in that position before. So we just kind of just want to follow his leadership and just listen to what he's saying and try and go out there and play the way he wants us to. Q. Of the teams you played this year, especially the Big East, who does Cal look like? Who do they remind you the most of? RON ANDERSON, JR.: Well, Coach in the locker room just now, he was talking about how in the Big East we've basically seen every style of play. The Big East and Cal, they have really good guard play. I probably wouldn't be able to single it down to one particular team. I'll probably just say the guard play, they like baseline screens. They like penetrating to the middle. So you can kind of equate their style of offense and what they try and do to score points to teams in the East. Q. When you guys are really locked in on defense, can you get a sense on the court that other teams can get out of their comfort zone and get kind of frustrated because you are taking them out of what they need to do? RON ANDERSON, JR.: Absolutely. I mean, I feel like when we feel comfortable out there on defense, and we know because the tempo of the game is kind of the way we like it. When we kind of‑‑ when we get the other team to break out of their offense a little bit or go away from their game plan, the tempo and the way we want things, they kind of fall into place for us. And you see that. We'll come out of a huddle sometimes and we'll tell each other: All right, the next three times down the court we want to get three stops. And the five guys on the court we really‑‑ we pride ourselves going out there and getting those three stops. When we get one, we yell it out: Got one stop. That's just for like the players on the court. We try and go and build off of that. That brings energy for the team. That brings the confidence of the team up. And all those things are really vital to win the game. I think that will probably be the biggest thing. Q. Coach Pitino in the Big East tournament compared you guys to getting a root canal. Do you guys take pride that you're making people uncomfortable with the style of play? RON ANDERSON, JR.: That's a Hall of Fame coach giving us a great compliment. If our defense is that of a root canal‑‑ he's been doing this for a very long time‑‑ then that's as good as a compliment as I think our team has received all year. And it's good to feel like that. And being a senior on the team and knowing that we played defense and having had coaches not want to go up against our defense or not wanting to prepare against it, I think that really says something about ourselves, about the coaching staff. Because the coaching staff is essentially‑‑ they tell us how we're going to defend from game to game, everything changes. I mean, it's an honor to hear him say that. Q. Ron, there was a time people wondered if he was good enough to play as a freshman and then if he was good enough to play in the Big East. Is he big enough, is he good enough for the NCAA Tournament? RON ANDERSON, JR.: Everybody‑‑ I think everybody knew how good Anthony was except for the people who hadn't seen him. He was with us, he was with us working out during the summer and before the season started, and we all were just excited for him to hit the court so everybody could see what we saw. I think that he's proven it game in, game out. And this is his first year. He's put us on his back for many a games, competitive games. He had a great game against Napier and he was the starting point guard on the return championship game. He's had really good games against great point guards, point guards that basically built up a name for themselves within the conference. So I feel like you can't really go without looking at that also. And Anthony is going to do wonderful in the tournament. He's cool, calm and collected when he hits the court, and that's what you need. Especially an asset from a freshman. You don't get that all the time. So going into the tournament with him I'm excited. I'm confident that we'll do good. Q. How do you feel about preparing for a team given just 48hours' notice, a team that you've never played before and haven't seen much of? ANTHONY COLLINS: Basically I think you just stick to your principles, but also you have to switch things up according to them and don't let them do certain tendencies that they like to do, but also stick to the principles that got you here. So I think we'll be fine. Q. Anthony, physically how are you feeling? I know you had the finger that got hurt at the end of the last game there in New York. What happened there and how do you feel physically? ANTHONY COLLINS: Just a finger I hurt in high school, just got retweaked in the game. It's a little swollen, but I'll be fine. Q. Ron, have you ever seen him panicked in maybe a non‑basketball thing, where, you know, he can't find something? And Anthony, to the same question, was there a moment in your life where you remember being really panicked? RON ANDERSON, JR.: The only time I saw him panic, I was about to beat him in video games on NBA. That was the only time. Other than that he's been good. ANTHONY COLLINS: I would say about when I'm about to lose in video games or something. THE MODERATOR: Thank you. Questions for Stan Heath, head coach of South Florida. Q. It's a familiar one, but could you talk a little bit about what Anthony brings to your team, the maturity and the calm? COACH HEATH: He was a Christmas gift. He's special. He really is. The first time he got the ball out there on the court in a game and I saw how he ran the team, guys responded to him, he was able to read the defense and make plays, I knew we had something pretty special. I think sometimes we talk about his passing and his ball handling. His defense and his toughness is just as good. And I think really when you talk about who we are and what we do, we're a very good defensive team, and I always think it starts with the point guard position. That guy, when he has the ability to neutralize the other team's point, and we play a lot of great point guards, it allows the guys the freedom to lock in on their guys. So he's been a fantastic player for us so far, and I know he's got a bright future ahead of him. Q. How tough is it to get a team, offense and flash, whatever they want to do when they come to college, how tough is it to get them to buy into being this kind of defensive team and playing this style of basketball? COACH HEATH: It's not easy. But I think what's more‑‑ what makes it a little bit easier this year was the difficulties we had last year. When you only win ten games and you come back into the next season, you're in spring, you're in the summer and you're trying to get ready for a season and the only thing that coach is talking about: Listen, we're going to have to sacrifice individualistic play, we're going to have to sacrifice scoring, we're going to have to build our team around toughness, defense and team play, and as a player you say to yourself do I want to win or do I want to lose? And you have to make that decision. And those guys made a decision that winning was the most important thing ahead of individualistic things, and that's why we are where we are. Q. Stan, in New York they were asking Pitino about the possibility of playing you guys, and he said it felt like getting a root canal. I just want to ask you about how much of the defensive success is making teams and making players feel uncomfortable on the court? COACH HEATH: That's a big‑time compliment from a great coach. And that's what we want to do. We want to disrupt you. We want to smell your breath. We want to get underneath your skin. We want to make life miserable for you. And we want to do it the right way. We want to do it with moving feet and active hands and helping and talking and all those different things, and closing it with rebounds. But that's what we want to do. And we have good personnel. We have long guys. We have guys that have good footwork, and we have a couple of guys that, I think, when you look at Ron Anderson or Hugh Robertson, or if you look at even Anthony Collins, you have three guys that I think have a really high IQ for basketball as a whole, but even a higher IQ for defense on the other end. Q. Going back in prior years, when you're trying to get out of the Big East basement and it's not happening, do you worry about confidence or guys being able to see the light at the end of the tunnel and sticking with things? COACH HEATH: Well, we've had‑‑ I've been here five years, and year three we were knocking right on the door. We were 9‑and‑9 in conference play. We had 20 wins. I think we finished ninth in the league and only 18 wins that year. And I think that was the starting point for us where we felt and tasted a little bit of success. We had a terrific player in Dominique Jones who set a great deal of leadership and another kid, Chris Howard, those guys were fantastic. So this wasn't just this happened this year. Toarlyn Fitzpatrick was on that team. Ron Anderson was sitting out as a redshirt that year. So some of the guys were part of that, and the next year, which was last year, was the year that we struggled. And obviously losing Dominique Jones was a big part of our setback. We really felt last year was the year we could make that jump. So having that table set a couple of years ago and having some of those guys being a part of that, I knew the leadership guys, the older guys, Augustus Gilchrist was on that team as well, wanted to get back to that situation. That's what set the table up for this year. Q. Stan, what little you've seen of Cal or how much you've seen of them, what's your characterization of the team you're going to face? COACH HEATH: I'm very impressed with them. Mike Montgomery is an excellent coach and his team plays extremely well together. They're highly skilled offensively. They have four guys in double figures. And when you look at Gutierrez and Kamp and Crabbe, those three guys are terrific basketball players, and they understand how to play. They play well together. They're very sound fundamentally. So we know we're playing a very, very good basketball team. Q. Touching on Hugh a little bit on his defensive efforts, when he came to the program, how long did it take you to see that he was going to be a very special defensive player and what did you see out of him that opened your eyes? COACH HEATH: When we recruited him I knew we needed a guy like that. We were losing Chris Howard who did a great job of guarding people. And I knew we needed a guy that had the ability to guard people. And he didn't have necessarily an offensive strength, wouldn't say he was a great ball handler or great shooter or anything like that, he was more of a slasher, but I knew he had some length and quickness and could guard people. I think it's important to have guys that fit certain roles. In our league and around the country you're going to face wing players that are normally the leading scorers on their basketball team. I really believe you need to have a guy that can hold that person under their averages or shut them down or at least keep them under control to give your team a chance to win. So when I saw Hugh, right away I thought he had the ability. The thing you never know in recruiting is will a kid buy into accepting a role like that, and that's why you have to give Hugh a lot of credit because he was willing to make that sacrifice to play a unique role where he was the defensive stopper. Now, I don't say: Hugh, that's all you do. Hugh needs to be an offensive player and needs to score for us, but he knows that's the number one thing he does to help our team win. Q. How much are you using your Elite Eight run back at Kansas State for this program and going forward with that? COACH HEATH: Not a lot. I did mention it a little bit to the guys, and only because I wanted them to understand teams like VCU from last year that were in the same situation as us, what Butler's done over the year. What UConn did last year finishing ninth in the league and winning the national championship. I wanted them to know you're in a select field of 68 teams that have legitimate chance to win the national championship, and anything can happen. Your first game is your most important game. You can't overlook anyone. And the other thing I'm going to talk to them later on is whenever‑‑ and I learned this from Tom Izzo, and I think this is a great way to look at this, we are in a tournament bracket right now. This tournament bracket, this is the Dayton/Nashville bracket, and we need to win three games to win this championship, and I think if you can give them smaller goals to set, it helps them as they continue down the line. So those are kind of the references I use from the past. And that team I thought‑‑ and I think all teams, our team needs to feel this way, this is really the players' time of the year. They're going to decide how far they want to go. If they're going to put the energy and effort and really play out there together, they're going to have a chance to move along. If all of a sudden someone sees the light come on, I want to be the star, get 20points, they want to do it a different way, they want to give the effort, then you're going to have a short trip here. Those are the references I use towards Kent State and different programs I've been in. Q. You started by calling Anthony a Christmas gift. Why do people underestimate a guy like that? Why does he slip not necessarily through the cracks, because he's here, but he's a kid from Houston, what happened? COACH HEATH: Just look at him. He doesn't look the part. He looks like your 12‑year‑old kid down the street. He's such a nice kid. He's a terrific student. He's probably been one of the easiest guys I've ever coached in my life that not only will he take coaching and do whatever you tell him to do, he picks it up so quickly. And then you watch him out there on the court. And we're going‑‑ it seems like every game, especially in our league‑‑ we're going up against a guy, and I'm saying, man, we're getting ready to go up against Peyton Silva, we're getting ready to go up against this guy or that guy or this guy, how in the heck are we going to stop him? And now I don't even worry about it. I don't care who it is, who we're playing. And I don't know how he does it. He doesn't look exceptionally quick. He doesn't look like he can jump or he's explosive, but he gets the job done. And that's all that matters. Q. How many times have you met Anthony before you heard his voice? COACH HEATH: How many times had I met him? Q. How many times did you meet him before you finally heard his voice? COACH HEATH: I didn't hear his voice until we started playing games, because‑‑ I don't know if I'm answering your question, but the voice I think you're talking about is the voice of leadership, the voice of confidence, the voice of toughness. That's the voice that our players and coaches hear when he's playing out there on the court. The voice you hear up here is a shy kid from Houston, Texas, that really doesn't want to be in the lights. But the voice you hear in the court and in the huddles and locker room is a totally different voice, and that's what makes him really unique. Q. The games tonight don't necessarily have any relevance, but will your kids be over at the arena tonight watching it or not? COACH HEATH: We talked about it going back and forth, and I think with everything going on with the president and everything like that, it just would be a little bit much to try to do it. I wouldn't mind the guys getting a taste of the environment. We did that at the Big East tournament. But I think it will be harder to do tonight. But we'll watch it on TV. Q. Cal's offense has stumbled a little bit in recent games. When you watch them, how much is Gutierrez a key in terms of what they do? He's not the point guard, but sort of the facilitator a little bit. And what's your impressions of him more specifically? COACH HEATH: I'm really impressed with him, and I think, like most teams, we're all excited about playing someone different that doesn't know every little detail of what we do from a scouting standpoint. But I'm very impressed with him. I do think he is the key to their offense. His ability to move without the basketball, to come off screens and shoot it, come off screens and drive into gaps and make plays for other people, and just the intensity, the pace that he plays at is at a really high level. And I think he makes them tick. I think Kamp‑‑ those two guys I think make them tick, their two seniors, which normally that's the way it is. But he's a guy that we have to do a good job on. And I think that's the only way we have a chance, is if we can hold our own against him. THE MODERATOR: Thank you, Coach. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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