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BIG EAST CONFERENCE MEN'S TOURNAMENTMarch 14, 2014Greg McDermottEthan WraggeNEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK Creighton - 86 COACH GREG McDERMOTT: We're thrilled. In less than 24 hours, we're playing for a Big East championship. When Ethan and Doug made the decision to come to Creighton, when I made the decision to come to Creighton, for that matter, none of us ever dreamed that would be a possibility. So to be on the stage we're going to be on tomorrow night is a fitting way for an incredible senior class to end their regular season careers to play for a Big East title. So they played in two championship games in the Missouri Valley Conference and won them both, and then they come back this year and get back to the championship game in a league as good as the Big East is really a credit to their career, to their perseverance, to their toughness, and to their willingness to play unselfish basketball. I thought that was the key tonight. Doug obviously scored some points. I thought he set some great screens to get Ethan loose on a couple of occasions. Ethan's battling some injuries, and he just keeps fighting. But really proud of my basketball team because Xavier obviously, it goes without saying, they're a very good team. We've had two very competitive games with them leading up to this one, and tonight was no different. So we're thrilled to win and excited to have an opportunity to play for a championship against a very good Providence team tomorrow night. Q. Coach, after losing to Xavier just four or five games ago, what do you think was the biggest difference in the rematch that helped you win? COACH GREG McDERMOTT: We were 10‑of‑34 from the three‑point line that night, and if I'm not mistaken, I think Doug took 12 threes and was 5‑for‑12, and I think Ethan was 3‑for‑9. So two of our best shooters had some decent looks at the basket and didn't make them. Xavier really made us pay on the other end of the floor. We didn't have an answer for Justin Martin. I think we did a better job on him tonight. And we made the decision tonight just not to go after the post as much as we've done the first two games and really allow them maybe to get some tough twos, but to try to take away their rhythm three‑point shots as a result of our post doubles we used the first two games. I thought our guys without any prep time really executed that well. Q. Doug, you came to the Garden about six weeks ago and didn't play your best game. Did that trip help you, you think, this weekend? DOUG McDERMOTT: Yeah, I think it did. I think it helped all of us. We were kind of in shock mode when we got here the first time because we all just dreamed of playing here. So now to be here, we were a little more comfortable these last two games because we already saw the atmosphere, what it's like shooting here, and what the crowd's like. So I think that helped. And having 3,000 or 4,000 fans here is helping us, too. Q. Coach, you said you guys had eased off the post. How much of that had to do with Stainbrook being limited? COACH GREG McDERMOTT: We were going to do that if he was playing as well. We just felt we gave him too many three‑point shots the first two games, and probably increased their shooting percentage because of how open they were on the back side of those double teams. We did it to try to protect Ethan because we're asking him‑‑ he's giving up four inches, five inches, and 40, 50, 60 pounds, whatever it is. So we've got to give him a little help. Obviously, he had some foul trouble tonight because we left him on an island, but we thought it gave us the best chance to win. Q. Playing in the Garden for your first time with a home‑court advantage being heavily in you guys' favor, did it help you guys' energy? ETHAN WRAGGE: Yeah, like Doug said, there was 3,000 or 4,000 people there tonight and just the sendoff we had and the whole vibe of the game, it doesn't feel like we're 500 miles away from home or however far we are. Q. More than that. COACH GREG McDERMOTT: How's your geography? (Laughter). ETHAN WRAGGE: Whatever. It was just impressive. We're the road team traveling the furthest and we can bring the most fans. Q. For Doug and Ethan: Talk about just the opportunity to play for a championship in the Big East tomorrow. DOUG McDERMOTT: It's what we all dream for. It's pretty crazy that we're already here and we're playing a good Providence team. It's going to be a special feeling when we walk out there tomorrow. I know our fans will be there with us again. We're really excited. We've got to get some rest tonight and be ready to go tomorrow. ETHAN WRAGGE: It's just an unreal feeling. Five years ago, I was playing just in the Missouri Valley, and now today‑‑ or tomorrow at least, we'll be playing for one of the most historic college tournaments of all time. It's just an unbelievable feeling, unbelievable ride, and we're excited for it. Q. Doug, you moved up on the charts all‑time scoring. Is that something that you kind of keep track of or somebody's keeping track of those numbers for you? DOUG McDERMOTT: Someone's definitely keeping track of them for me. I don't think about that too much. That's Rob Anderson's gig, our SID. It's been really cool, though, just seeing that happen. But it's all credit to our coaches and my teammates. Q. Coach, your opponent tomorrow, Providence, has basically gone the whole year with six guys. To hear what they've been able to do, is that impressive to you to see that they've been able to get this far with that little? COACH GREG McDERMOTT: I think Ed Cooley has done as good a job of coaching this team as anybody in the country. Given some of the injuries they had early and then the defections, a lot of teams pack it in. To his credit, his team has really willed their way, in my opinion, into an NCAA Tournament, because we've played teams from the Big Ten and the Pac‑12 that are on the bubble, and the team we're playing tomorrow night is much better, in my opinion. He's done a fantastic job, but Doug played 39 minutes tonight, Austin played 33, Jahenns played 36. We're going to have some sea legs tomorrow night, too. But I think, when you get on that stage, the adrenaline takes over. We played them a week ago tomorrow at our place in the regular season final. So we're both familiar with each other. It's going to be two good teams playing basketball and having the time of their life. Really looking forward to it. Q. Doug, can you speak a little bit to what it's like to play on the stage of Madison Square Garden in this kind of tournament. DOUG McDERMOTT: It's unbelievable. It's a feeling you can't really describe. The fans are so close. All the focus is on the court. It's so bright. Dark backdrop. It's just a dream come true. It's an unbelievable atmosphere, and we couldn't ask for a better way. We're glad we could play our third game here tomorrow. Q. To both you guys: You're undefeated wearing gray uniforms. Safe to say you'll be wearing the gray again tomorrow? COACH GREG McDERMOTT: Shhh.  DOUG McDERMOTT: Knock on wood. There we go. We're good. Yeah, they're working for us, so we're going to keep wearing them. Q. Greg, you guys joined this league, and even though you had as much success as you had before coming here to coach, did you sort of envision yourself as being potentially the conference champion in your debut season? COACH GREG McDERMOTT: I think in the back of our minds we felt like we could compete in this league, simply because, besides Doug being a fourth‑year player, Jahenns being a fourth‑year player, Ethan's a fifth‑year player, Grant's a sixth‑year player, Will Artino's a fourth‑year player. Austin Chatman is a two‑year starter. We just have so much experience and guys that know how to play basketball. I think that trumps size and athletic ability to a certain extent and allows us to compete. But there were a lot of questions as well. When we made the decision to go with the small lineup, how are we going to be able to compete defensively? How do we compete on the boards? What do we have to do offensively to make sure the tradeoff is worth it? If we're going to give up something down there, we have to make sure we take advantage of something on the offensive end of the floor. To these guys' credit, we just kept tweaking the offense and finding different ways to get our shooters loose. They're smart enough that they can continue to take all that in and execute it. So I don't know that we're surprised. We're honored, but these guys have‑‑ these guys have averaged 26, 27 wins a game over the last four years, and I think there's something to knowing how to win and understanding how to win. And then they play for each other, and I think any time the coach is blessed enough to have a group like that, your chances are pretty good because these guys, they don't care who gets the credit. Obviously, Doug takes a lot of shots. He's a focal point of our offense. Those guys in the locker room are his biggest fans and are really happy for him when things go well, and Doug's really happy for Ethan right now because Ethan had a heck of a game. That's what being on a team is all about. Q. Greg, talk about Austin's play in the tournament so far, especially that rebounding race down with the free throw? That was the best part. COACH GREG McDERMOTT: He's been outstanding. He was really good last week at home against Providence as well. He's probably the one guy on our team‑‑ and I think Ethan and Doug would agree‑‑ that probably doesn't get the credit he deserves. We ask him to do a lot for us. He's the quarterback of our transition game, getting it there quickly and making the right decision. Oftentimes, he's guarding one of their best players on the defensive end of the floor, and constantly sticking his nose in there. His development over the course of the last three years is right up there with anybody in our program. So he understands how to play the game. He's learned to really manage a basketball team. There might be better point guards in the country statistically. I'm not sure there's a better point guard in the country for this team than Austin Chatman. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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