SAN JOSE – The top-seeded Wildcats are heading back to the Sweet 16 for the third consecutive year and fourth time in the last five seasons. Ahead of Thursday’s showdown with No. 4 Arkansas, see what Arizona head coach Tommy Lloyd and veterans Jaden Bradley, Tobe Awaka, and Anthony Dell’Orso had to say at the SAP Center as they preview the matchup with the Razorbacks.
Tommy Lloyd:
Lloyd on his alter ego, DJ Tomm-E:
“That’s not off topic. I can talk about that all day – listen, it’s more of a joke than anything, so let’s be honest.
But I have been able to develop a great relationship with Mike Schwartz, AKA Mix Master Mike, who’s a Bay Area guy who will be in the building tomorrow for the game.
He’s one of the best DJs of all time, and happened to run with the Beastie Boys for a lot of years, and it’s no secret I’ve always loved the Beastie Boys. It’s been a little bit of a, I guess — I don’t know if a childhood fantasy but probably a manhood fantasy for me that’s come true. So it’s been awesome to have that relationship.
Lloyd on if there are any comparisons he can draw between coaching and DJ’ing:
“No, but what I’ll say is — people probably want to talk about other stuff, but getting to hang out with him in his studio and stuff, you see a true artist at work, and it’s crazy how talented people are. And what’s really impressive is when somebody is so talented at something you have no idea about, but you respect the outcome of what they do. It’s really cool to see them explain to you the process a little bit. So that’s been fun to kind of be able to get a peek behind the scenes, so to speak.”
Lloyd on Arizona equipment manager Brian Brigger and the Wildcats’ equipment staff:
“Well, another thing I’d love to talk about. I think what you’re referring to, though, happened last year. It was at our Cincinnati game. I think. I get emotional about Briggs every week, so it’s hard to remember.
But Brian Brigger is a really important piece of our program. He’s the equipment manager, but more than that, I kind of joke he’s kind of our spirit animal. This guy is so genuine and so authentic and has — is so willing to sacrifice anything for us to be successful that — it’s what makes a program a program.
You have to be more than just about winning basketball games. We’re together a lot, and you need people that are willing to put it on the line and sacrifice everything for others to be successful, and he embodies that maybe better than anybody I’ve ever seen.”
Lloyd on Arkansas head coach John Calipari and what he remembers about facing him at Memphis:
“Yeah, we would play these mid-season kind of conference season battles between Gonzaga and Memphis back in the day, and they were epic battles.
A vivid memory I had was when he had that thing rolling at Memphis is Derrick Rose come down on a fast break, and I’ve never seen anybody so fast with the ball in their hands in my life.
What’s so cool with Coach Cal is everyone has different styles. How he’s — with his swag and his personality, been able to manage so many uber talents over the years has been really, really impressive to watch, because at the end of the day, let’s face it, if you want to be trying to win the whole thing here, you’ve got to have really talented players.
Coach Cal has done as good a job as anybody maybe in the history of the game at managing talented players.”
Lloyd on if he or the players feel a burden to get past the Sweet 16:
“Not really. I don’t feel a burden. I know it’s easy to create narratives. These are hard basketball games, and I fully respect that.
I love this team. And I love how this team is built. I think this team is built for the long haul. But I also respect the fact that we’re going to have to do it possession by possession, media time-out by media time-out type of game, and our opponents are formidable.
Yeah, obviously we want to be playing Saturday, but we’re not going to look past this opportunity or make it like an end-all, be-all for anything because it’s not that. Our approach to our guys has been normal. Let’s just treat this as normal. Like, we’re playing on three days’ rest instead of four days’ rest. Well, we did that in the Big 12. So let’s treat this as normal and let’s not make it bigger than it normally is.”
Lloyd on the freshmen talent for both Arizona and Arkansas:
“You know, I think it’s — Coach Cal, obviously, I just mentioned is probably as good as anybody at recruiting and coaching young players. Obviously Coach K at Duke did a great job, John is doing a great job of that now.
I just think that Arizona is another one, another destination for some of these top young players. Our program is probably not a perfect fit for everybody, but for the right guys, it’s a special place.
I think what it says, if you have coaches that are confident in the culture of their program, it doesn’t matter what year you are in school. To be able to be a significant contributor.
I know, the way our freshmen play, people remind me all the time, like, did you realize your three freshmen were the leading scorer last game? No, I didn’t realize that, but I also — when I’m writing up lineup cards and whatever, or game plans, I don’t write freshman next to their name, either. I just know they’re really good basketball players.”
Lloyd on Wilbur Wildcat tearing his ACL after getting tackled by Arkansas’ mascot, Tusk, the last time the two teams faced off in the Final Four:
“Was he able to play through the ACL tear? — I don’t know, is there a statute of limitations or can we get a lawsuit on that? I mean, I think he should get a good lawyer. Call Rafi, maybe? That’s a name I see a lot in Arizona. I don’t know.”
Lloyd on his impressions of Darius Acuff Jr. and how he stacks up against a loaded freshman class:
“Darius is a supreme talent, and he’s a great young man. Obviously, for those that don’t know, I was able to coach him in USA Basketball two summers ago. He was the MVP of our tournament.
Darius is a serious guy. He doesn’t always say a lot. I was only around him for three, three and a half weeks or something. So I’m sure there’s more to him than I saw, but what I know is he’s a supreme competitor, and I know that’s a guy that’s not afraid of the moment, and he has the ability to kind of, quote-unquote, get the eye of the tiger. He has that ability and that mentality to kind of rise up his game based on the importance of the game.
So I’m sure we’re going to get a great effort out of Darius tomorrow, and I even reached out to him previous to last summer, and I was trying to make a pitch for him to come back and play for us for the U-19s, but he had other plans. And good for him. I’m glad — he’s had a really good season. Maybe, I don’t know if he got some of the early accolades some of these other freshmen got, but like I’ve always said, who cares about early accolades because I know he’s getting them now and they’re well deserved and he’s put himself in an incredible opportunity to have a great career.”
Lloyd on if he’s had to chance his approach to coaching with starting three freshmen:
“Nope. No, to me it’s the same approach. We’ve been doing stuff on the court almost since June, so we have a lot of time and a lot of experience together.
I mean, maybe there’s some things early to get them up to speed or get them the experience you want to have, and you might have to live with some mistakes that allow for growth opportunities early, but we’re at the point now where I think a lot of lessons have been learned. Not that they know it all, not that I know it all. But they’re definitely acclimated, seasoned veterans at this point.”
Lloyd on his impressions of Arkansas ahead of the Sweet 16 matchup with Arizona:
“They’re putting up video game numbers on offense. Obviously they’re electric in transition. They have the ability to play up top in lobs and kind of the vertical spacing stuff as well as anybody.
Obviously you’ve got to really take care of the ball against them to try to force them to play in the half court. But, you know, what they’ve found in the half court is Coach Cal is a vet; he knows how to get guys in the right spots and try to find the right matchups, and they’ve got a guy right now that they’re comfortable putting the ball in his hands and he led the SEC in scoring and assists as a freshman. That’s pretty impressive.
They’re definitely a tough out, and I mean, to me, when you see them pop up, I don’t know, what are they, a 4 seed, something like that? For a team to take second in the SEC and win the SEC tournament be a 4 seed, yeah, they’ve probably got an argument there.
But hey, let’s throw the seeds out the window and let’s get after it tomorrow.”
Lloyd on the relationship between Jaden Bradley and Brayden Burries:
“I think it’s been a critical component. I would say the leadership aspect is really important. But I think just as important is the young player to be open to being led. Sometimes when you come out of high school — we all know how we were — you think you know maybe actually more than you really know.
Brayden has never been like that. I remember — obviously it’s well documented, Brayden didn’t start the season off on fire, and he and I had a couple meetings during that time, and I just had to continue to remind him that these were experiences that he needed to get where he wanted to go, and I think once he started out slow and we had won some tough early games, I think he felt like he did not want to step on anybody’s toes.
He and I had to have a good talk about that because I told him, I have a sneaky suspicion once this thing clicks for you you’re going to be our leading scorer. But I think that just says who he is and his character that once we sort of started having team success, and he wasn’t having success, he didn’t want to come in and overstep and maybe mess up that team success because he’s such a great young man.”
Lloyd on rumors of his name being connected to the UNC head coaching vacancy:
“Oh, wow, well, thanks. I preferred the first question about Mix Master Mike. I already have one of the best jobs in the country. One thing we talk about in our program all the time, and I think I’ve gotten better at, and I think our team has been crushing it this year, is just the ability to have full focus and be present in the moment.
So I think we have a great team. I think we have a chance to advance in this tournament game by game. But I’m not delusional. I know we could lose tomorrow.
But this team deserves my full focus, so there’s not one thing that is going to knock me off my path. I’m 100 percent focused on Arizona basketball and this program, and I can’t wait until the ball gets thrown up tomorrow, and then can’t wait to try to figure out a way to come out on top.”
Jaden Bradley:
Bradley on helping Arizona’s freshmen acclimate and adjust to the NCAA Tournament:
“They’ve got two games under their belt now, so they’re pretty familiar with the expectations and everything that’s going on. We just try to tell them it’s just a game. It’s definitely more important, has a little bit more meaning, but they have great experiences and great leaders.”
Bradley on his relationship with Arkansas forward Nick Pringle, who both started their careers at Alabama:
“Yeah, that’s definitely my guy. I talk to him here and there. I’m excited to play against them as always, go against somebody that you spent a year with practicing and battling with. Excited for that.
But just ready to go at it with my guys.”
Bradley on how he has seen NIL and the transfer portal change the landscape of college basketball:
“You know, NIL is definitely changing the game, but us players, I feel like before NIL we just fell in love with the game of basketball, and relationships, can’t really speak for other players, but I know guys on this team, we really don’t care about that stuff, we don’t talk about that stuff, we really love each other, just go in, play the game, love the coaching staff, and our ultimate goal is to try to reach the next level. We just try to encounter that stuff.”
Tobe Awaka:
Awaka on if there is any added pressure to get to advance past the Sweet 16 to the Elite 8:
“I mean, I don’t really think the past is a predictor of the future. I think we’re just worried about what’s next up on our plate, which is Arkansas. We’re going to prepare to the best of our ability, follow the game plan, follow the scout, and hopefully if we do what we do, we’ll be successful.”
Awaka on his streak of knocking down 17 consecutive free throws earlier this season:
“I mean, honestly, it’s not something that I keep a strong mental count of. Just always try to lock in, take a deep breath and make as many as possible during the game.
If I have, I’m not sure. But again, the goal is to always try and make all of them.”
Anthony Dell’Orso:
Dell’Orso on Arizona’s gameplan to limit Arkansas’ potent backcourt:
“Just limit their shots, try and make every shot tough. No easy looks, crash the glass, play our normal game, to be honest. It’s tough with quick turnarounds and multiple teams you’ve never seen before, so we’ve got to stay true to ourselves and just make the night as tough as possible for them.”