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NCAA MEN'S 1ST ROUND: DAYTONMarch 17, 2014Semaj ChristonChris MackJustin MartinIsaiah PhilmoreMatt StainbrookDAYTON, OHIO THE MODERATOR: Introducing the student‑athletes from Xavier, Isaiah Philmore, Semaj Christon, Dee Davis, Justin Martin, and Matt Stainbrook. Congratulations on making the NCAA Tournament. I'd like to turn it over to questions on the floor. Q. Matt, can you tell us how you're feeling with your knee and can you explain what that cryogenic tank was that you were in the other day? MATT STAINBROOK: Yeah, I'm good to go, feeling okay, and I'll be all right for the game. The cryo tank we got in, it was a nitrogen‑based‑‑ what it is, it pumped nitrogen in to drop the temperature down to negative 300 degrees for 180seconds, so three minutes, and it gives you the same effect of like an ice bath for 15 to 20 minutes except it does a little better for‑‑ sort of shocks your system, so it helps it out that way. And it was something to help heal and just refresh your legs. Q. What was that like? MATT STAINBROOK: It was really, really cold. It was tough. The first two minutes weren't too bad. The last 60seconds definitely were tough. Q. Matt, Chris said yesterday he thought you would be better than you were for the Marquette game physically. Can you just talk about comparing to how it feels now today? MATT STAINBROOK: Yeah, I feel a ton better. Dave Fluker and Matt Jennings have done a great job making sure I've used all the resources that are available to me. And we've continued to run on the treadmill, the AlterG, try to stay in shape.  And the cryo spa we used, that was really cool. I think I've had a lot of time‑‑ a little more time than I did maybe to get my legs back and feel a ton better. So, yeah, definitely I'd say I'm a lot better off than I was ready for the Marquette game. Q. If you could each talk about what it's like to play here at the UD Arena and be in the NCAA Tournament. Isaiah? ISAIAH PHILMORE: We played Dayton last year, so we're kind of familiar with the arena, when it comes to shooting and the background and everything, when it comes to the atmosphere. So, I mean, I'm really excited to be in the tournament. It's my first time, first go‑around. And we're looking to make some noise. SEMAJ CHRISTON: I feel pretty much the same way. Like Isaiah said, we played here last year. The arena is crazy when a lot of people are in the gym. So just ready to play them. Ready to shock the world. DEE DAVIS: I agree with both my teammates, but, I mean, in the tournament it doesn't matter where you play at, doesn't matter where we play at, I just want to play. JUSTIN MARTIN: I'm just ready. MATT STAINBROOK: I never played here before. I came and watched these guys play last year. I'm just excited to have an opportunity to be in the NCAA Tournament, and I know our guys are really excited and that one thing that won't be lacking in the game tomorrow is definitely energy. Q. Matt, how much of your decision to transfer here was the chance the play in the NCAA Tournament? MATT STAINBROOK: A lot of it. That was a big appeal for coming to Xavier University. They had the track record that showed they're getting to the tournament over and over again. That's something I wanted to do. Now that we have the opportunity to do it, it's kind of surreal. You get in here and you're just like, wow, looking around, kind of just sightseeing. But we know we have to be locked in for tomorrow. Q. I know you've answered it before, but not when I was around. How much have you changed your body and changed as a player in two years since you were last seen? MATT STAINBROOK: A ton. A lot of credit to Xavier University for doing that. I've lost a lot of weight. I've matured a little bit. Still have a little more maturing to do. But overall it's just been a drastic change for me from the things I eat to how I work out. And definitely the cast around me. So it's all benefitting me in a great way. Q. Isaiah, we talked to you about 24 hours ago. Can you talk about what you guys have been doing in the last 24 hours and what kind of crash course you've gotten on NC State? ISAIAH PHILMORE: In the last 24 hours, you know, we had walk‑throughs, shootaround and practice, watched some film to get more familiar with NC State. You know, when you find out you're going to play on a Tuesday on a Sunday, the only thing you can do is really get in the gym and try to get ready for your opponent. When it comes to NC State, they're more of a driving team than a shooting team like Creighton. So that's good for us, because it didn't turn out well against Creighton. Other than that, we were just getting ready to play. Q. You guys talked about the building itself. But what do you expect from the crowd tomorrow night? It's not going to be as hostile as when you played Dayton here, but do you think the neutral fans will get behind NC State, or do you think you'll have a lot of blue up here as well? ISAIAH PHILMORE: I think we're going to have a lot of blue, but the neutral fans around here are probably going to be on NC State's side. So, I mean, we have away games like that, so it shouldn't really affect us. SEMAJ CHRISTON: I feel the same way. We have a lot of Xavier fans here, but I know a couple of Dayton fans will be here yelling at us. It is what it is. DEE DAVIS: Yeah, playing in the Dayton game, you expect that from the Dayton fans if you play Xavier. But I'm more so looking forward to the Xavier support. JUSTIN MARTIN: I don't know who is going to be here, but I know these guys and the rest of the people in the locker room, we're going to be ready to play. MATT STAINBROOK: Yeah, I'm not sure whether we'll have big‑‑ a lot of red fans out there, but I think Xavier Nation will do a good job coming out. And, regardless, we have a team full of warriors. When you challenge a warrior, a warrior responds. Q. Dee, given the standard that was set here and now making the tournament last year, how satisfying is it to be back? DEE DAVIS: It could have been a lot more satisfying if we didn't have to play the first game, but just being in the tournament is great. We're excited as a team, and we're doing as much as we can to prepare for this game. Q. Semaj, you know T.J. from your time at Brewster. What did you get out of Brewster? How did you improve on and off the court? SEMAJ CHRISTON: I improved. I improved in a lot of things, just growing up and knowing that you're not always going to be the best player on the court. We had five or six players that can do‑‑ score whenever they want to score. You have to play a role and be happy with winning. We was winning all the time, so I couldn't complain. I think coming from Brewster, that was the biggest thing for me is just knowing you're not going to be the best all the time; you just work as hard as you can trying to do what you can. Q. The question for everyone, excluding Matt: What's the transition been like switching over from the A‑10 all the way over to the Big East now? ISAIAH PHILMORE: Well, the Big East has‑‑ I mean, the transition, there's competition everywhere. But obviously when you're going to the Big East, you expect a little bit of tougher teams physically, you know, more athletic teams. That's really what I would say the biggest thing is. Because the A‑10, the fans are just as wild as the Big East fans. So I would definitely just say more physical and the athleticism. SEMAJ CHRISTON: I say you have a big game every night. Every night it's going to be a show. So you don't know what's going to happen. Just gotta come out there and play. DEE DAVIS: Like Semaj said, every game is a big game. It's going to be competitive, but if you look at the A‑10, they have a lot of teams in the tournament as well. College basketball has been great this year. JUSTIN MARTIN: I kind of don't like when people ask that question because I feel basketball is basketball. No matter where you play at or who you're playing against, it's still basketball. They tie their shoes up just like us. So we just gotta come and compete. Q. Dee, how much were the last couple of days beneficial to you in terms of healing a little bit? You seemed pretty banged up in the Marquette game. DEE DAVIS: Very beneficial. It's quick turnaround, so I'm doing everything I can, like Matt, to get ready. Q. Did you do the cryo tank? DEE DAVIS: I did get in the cryo tank. I'm not a big fan of cold. My three minutes were a lot longer than his three minutes. Q. T.J. Warren is one of the great scorers in college basketball. I'm sure you've seen videos of him. What are your impressions of him and what's going to be your defensive approach? ISAIAH PHILMORE: He's a player that can score in bunches from anywhere. So basically just try to contain him as much as we can. We can't allow it to be a one‑on‑one matchup. It has to be a one‑on‑five. You have to limit him from driving to the paint and shooting his floaters or jump shots, stepbacks, anything like that. SEMAJ CHRISTON: He pretty much can do anything. He scores the ball in different ways. But it's not just going to be one‑on‑one. It's going to be five of us. So at the end of the day it's going to be one‑on‑five. He'll have to score‑‑ he'll have to beat all of us; it's not just going to be one guy. DEE DAVIS: Very much agree. We've played players in the past‑‑ Doug McDermott, for example. He's a one‑man show, but he's got people around him that's helping him out. So we just try to crowd the floor as much as we can and make it tough. JUSTIN MARTIN: I agree. MATT STAINBROOK: Like all these guys reiterated, you just try to crowd the floor for him. You know he's going to get shots up and score points, too. You just try to limit them as much as possible. Q. One other question, what happened at the end of the season? You lost three of the last four. Was it just who you played and when you played them, or was it you or was it them? What was it? MATT STAINBROOK: Had a very tough schedule. We were banged up a little bit. We played some very good teams in Villanova and Creighton. Faltered a little bit Seton Hall, too. But overall we're not looking to the past anymore; looking more to the future. And we're excited about the game tomorrow. JUSTIN MARTIN: It was just a tough schedule. No excuses or explanations, but we just gotta be able to get stops. Anytime we're able to get stops down the stretch, we are usually good at closing out games. And we weren't able to do that those couple of games. So anytime we can do that, we'll be all right. DEE DAVIS: I believe we did enough to get here to where we're at now, and I think we're just moving forward. That was the goal at the beginning of the year, make it to the NCAA Tournament, and that's where we're at. SEMAJ CHRISTON: Like Matt said, it's a new season. Tomorrow starts something new for us. So I don't really think we're thinking about how we finished out the season. Tomorrow starts a new day. ISAIAH PHILMORE: I agree with my teammates. You know, it doesn't matter what we did the last five games, doesn't matter if we lost all five games because it's a new season and we're going to come out tomorrow ready to play and ready to give it all we have, leave it all out on the court. THE MODERATOR: Any other questions for the student‑athletes? All right. Thank you, gentlemen. Good luck tomorrow. Up next we'll have Xavier head coach Chris Mack. He'll start out with an opening statement and then we'll open up the floor for questions. COACH MACK: When you go to a restaurant with your wife, you don't sit on the same side of the booth, so I'm going to have a little space here. THE MODERATOR: Begin with an opening statement. COACH MACK: We're tremendously excited to kick off the NCAA Tournament here tomorrow night. We think, as our players alluded to, we feel like we've earned it. Played a very tough schedule. And this is what you worked for all year. We have a huge challenge in NC State. They're a good team. They're playing their best basketball of the year down the stretch. T.J. Warren is a scoring machine. And we're going to have to do a great job not only on T.J. but the rest of their team. Q. Coach, we were talking to Matt and Dee about that cryo tank and some of the treatments. And I'm kind of intrigued about that. Could you talk more about that, and is that something new that you guys are using? COACH MACK: Yeah, just had a person reach out and say that this is, you know, a way to sort of expedite getting iced after practice, after games, and so we just felt like we would try it out. This time of year guys are trying to heal up a lot of bumps and bruises along the way, and we've been going at it since mid‑September. And certainly Matt and Dee have been battling injuries. Obviously Matt's a little more severe than Dee. But, again, anything that our training staff can do, they'll do. And they'll turn over every rock to try to figure out what they can do to put our players in the best position possible to play on game night. Q. What has Matt brought to your program, not just your rotation? COACH MACK: Tremendous work ethic. High character kid. Kid who wants to win. I think when you talk specifically about his play on the floor, one of the very few post players in America that wants to be in the post that can pass equally as well as he can score. And I think he's just scratching the surface. It's been well documented how much weight he's lost in the last year. But I feel like when this year ends, Matt's going to put just as much hard work, effort, perspiration in this coming offseason so he can be one of the best centers in all college basketball. You know, he's the smartest kid on our team. He's probably smarter than any coach on the coaching staff, and at times he tries to tell us that. But Matt has to understand coaches and then players. But I've really enjoyed having Matt in our program. He's a great kid. Q. Coach, the players addressed playing here in Dayton and the experience and that ties in with the crowd as well. Could you just address that? COACH MACK: I'm sure it's going to be a little bit oil and vinegar tomorrow night. You're going to have a large contingent of Xavier fans that are going to make their way up 75. We have a tremendous fan base, very loyal fan base, hopefully a very loud one tomorrow night. And I'm sure they'll be sprinkled in some Dayton fans that will give us their warm welcome, but that's okay. I think it's going to make for a great environment. I'd rather play in a supercharged atmosphere than a hollow one, and we're going to have that tomorrow night. Q. T.J. Warren gets the lion's share of the publicity, as well he should, ACC Player of the Year, but what does Ralston Turner bring to the team and what does he add to the complement? COACH MACK: He's a tremendous shooter. Coach Gottfried does an excellent job of getting him free on screening actions. He can change the game. Just two or three consecutive possessions they're going to free him up for two or three 3s, and the next thing you know you're down ten points. When he's playing well and shooting at a high level, they're a different team. So it's a huge challenge. He's not a small kid. He's got great size. He's got a very quick release. He's a big challenge. Q. Semaj has had a great year. How good from your perspective has his year been? COACH MACK: He's had a very, very good year. I mean, to me he's one of the best guards in the country in transition. He does a great job of getting in the lane. I think he's extremely hard to keep out of the lane. He makes the right play almost every single time. He draws contact well. He finishes through contact. I think his shooting has been much improved. Earlier in the year he wasn't shooting free throws as well as he is now. But down the stretch, I'd say over the last 15 or so games, he's won us games at the free‑throw line. And, then again, he's not a one‑way player. He plays defense. He takes just as much pride on the defensive end as he does the offensive end. Had a huge steal in our Providence win at home against Bryce Cotton that sealed the game. To me he's one of the best players in the country, and I know he's anxious to play in this tournament. Q. NC State seems like it's a very different team compared to your last opponent, Creighton. But do they remind you of anyone else that you've played this season? COACH MACK: I don't really get into comparisons. We take each team for what they're worth. And I do know that NC State is playing their best basketball of the year. They have a lot of young kids, and so usually that takes time. T.J. Warren has really started to‑‑ I don't want to say put it together, but he's had some unbelievable nights at Pittsburgh, to have 40‑plus games. We know that he's going to be extremely difficult to guard. They're going to put him in the long post. They're going to put him in iso situations, he's going to try to draw fouls. But it's one thing if you have only one or two talented players. NC State has really, really good guard play. They have big guys that go off the offensive glass. So I don't really compare teams. We just know it's going to be a challenge. Anytime you make the NCAA Tournament, whether you're us, you're NC State, whether you're Florida, whoever, you're a good team, and you're very capable on any given night. Q. Overall, just how do you see the matchup? What do you think it will boil down to? COACH MACK: Well, I think it's a good matchup. We have to keep them off the glass. We're going to have to be prepared for different types of defenses. I know Coach Gottfried throughout the course of the year showing several different defenses, whether it's man to man, which is primarily what they play in the ACC tournament. But they'll quickly go to a 2‑3, they'll go to a diamond and 1. We can expect that with Semaj being out there. But, again, I think what tournament play comes down to is being yourself, not getting rattled by the environment, making sure that at least from our standpoint we're the same team that limits you to one shot. We've led the Big East in rebounding differential. If we want to advance in tournament play, we've gotta be that same team tomorrow night. Q. Coach, I asked some of the guys this earlier. What was it like for that transition for you guys moving from the A‑10 to playing in the Big East this year? COACH MACK: I think Justin Martin said it best: Basketball is basketball. There's some terrific teams in the Atlantic 10 as evidenced by the number of teams that got in the NCAA Tournament. It's really hard to compare leagues, per se. I would tell you that physically there's greater size in the Big East, but in terms of skill level and talent, it really depends on who you play. And, for instance, you look at UMass, they're a completely different type of team than St. Louis but yet they're both really, really good. I think what's been really great from our standpoint is the round‑robin feel of our conference. Much has gotten lost in the 14‑team, 16‑team leagues. There's no equity. There's no equality. We play everybody home and away. By the time we got to the conference tournament, anybody that played one another, they were playing for a third time. So I think over time our league's going to have some great rivalries that are going to be built in overtime. Q. Semaj knows T.J. from Brewster. You've had a lot of success with guys from Brewster, different prep schools, high school all‑star teams, various levels. What do you think guys get out of that experience? COACH MACK: I think they get, number one, the ability, an opportunity to live away from home. And those schools, especially up in the New England prep school system, are really good academic schools. Those kids have to go to study hall. They're taking tough classes. They have to balance the fact that they're away from home. It's a mini college experience. And so when they get to an Xavier, an NC State, I think they're better equipped to make that transition. I think a lot of kids that just go straight from high school, where they go home and watch cartoons with Mom and Dad at the house, it's quite an adjustment. And I think guys like T.J. Warren, Jalen Reynolds, Semaj Christon, Myles Davis, guys that have that prep experience are better because of it. Q. Did you ever worry about losing Semaj during his year? COACH MACK: Well, we didn't have him before he came out, so when he was a senior at Winton Woods, that's when we began recruiting Semaj. He made his decision at that time that he was going to go on to a fifth year, a prep school year. And so he committed to us in the summer right before he went off to Brewster. So but, yeah, you always worry. THE MODERATOR: Any other questions for Coach? Thank you, Coach. Good luck tomorrow. COACH MACK: Thank you. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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