NCAA MEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP: FIRST ROUND - MONTANA ST. VS TEXAS TECH

March 17, 2022

Danny Sprinkle

Abdul Mohamed

Xavier Bishop

Amin Adamu

Jubrile Belo

Viejas Arena

Montana St. Bobcats

Media Conference

THE MODERATOR: We're joined by Montana State student-athletes and coach.

Q. Abdul and X, I'll start with you. The last time we saw this group it was celebratory after the Big Sky Conference tournament. Could you tell me what the mindset has been like this week in terms of getting back to business preparing for another game?

XAVIER BISHOP: It's kind of been pretty easy. Last week was fun. We enjoyed it. It was a goal we wanted to accomplish, punching our ticket to the Big Dance. It's definitely been easy getting back into the swing of things, going through another detailed scout and getting ready for Texas Tech, which is a good opponent. We've been grinding, getting back to work, working on things and trying to figure out ways to attack them.

ABDUL MOHAMED: We accomplished our goal. We knew what we needed to do. Now we set our sites for winning a game on Friday. Same preparation and everything we go through.

Q. Amin and JB, you used the word "surreal" a lot last week. Now that you've been in California for I guess a little over a day now, is it starting to feel a little bit more real and how are you trying to soak all this in?

AMIN ADAMU: It's feeling real. We're taking in everything, the environment. We're embracing the atmosphere, all the love we can. And we're taking it a step at a time and trying to focus on Friday.

Q. Follow-up, what did it feel like walking up the steps right now and sitting down to do this interview with the March Madness sign in the background?

JUBRILE BELO: It feels crazy, honestly. Like coming from high school and London, I just never expected I would be walking upstairs from, doing interviews for March Madness. And I'm just blessed. I just feel blessed to be up here with my brothers, going through this together.

Q. For those from outside the U.S., how big a deal is March Madness in London or Canada?

AMIN ADAMU: It's a big deal. Everyone tunes in when it comes to the time of the month. Everyone's excited. Everyone is talking about their brackets, who they predict will happen. It's pretty much the same atmosphere as it is here compared to London as well. It's pretty big.

Q. Jubrile, anyone who wants to answer this, in terms of Texas Tech and their defense, what's been the biggest focus on what they're able to do and what they've been able to do so far this season?

JUBRILE BELO: They pretty much rely on their defense to win games. And so we just have been making sure that we know that we have to expect to pass on where our next pass is going to go. Like we need to know, take care of the ball and rebound. And by doing these certain things, we'll be able to eliminate the pressures of their defense and just making sure that we know how to get open and catch the ball, really, make plays.

Q. Abdul and anybody else, of course the MSU women play tonight also. Do you have plans to watch that game? And how exciting is it that both of the programs from Montana State get to play in the NCAA Tournament on the same day?

ABDUL MOHAMED: It's just an unbelievable time to be a Bobcat. Our sports programs have been doing so well so I'll definitely tune in. We're a family, big family. We support one another and everybody knows everybody. And we're connected and I'll definitely support them and tune in.

Q. Abdul, as somebody who grew up in Canada, did you watch March Madness growing up as a kid?

ABDUL MOHAMED: I definitely watched. We had some great Canadian hoopers who made March Madness. We were always tuned in. Ice hockey is the sport they play in Canada, but basketball is slowly growing, and March Madness is a big deal for a lot of us in Canada.

Q. There are increasing number of Canadians in college basketball now in the U.S. Why do you think that is?

ABDUL MOHAMED: They just do a great job of just developing the game. We have great individuals who played. Steve Nash, for example, is a key individual who helps a lot in Canada. We come down south of the border to come play in tournaments and stuff. Just the development and stuff is really what's going on.

Q. Abdul, I asked Jubrile about this with the defense. But in terms of what they have on offense, Kevin Obanor or Kevin McCullar, what have you seen that makes them go on offense?

ABDUL MOHAMED: They've got experience and guys who have been to March Madness who have been through these reps and stuff. They're an experienced team. We know that. But also we're an experienced group of guys being older and stuff. So it's just going to be our experience versus their experience.

Q. Obviously you guys are veteran players on this team, but it's of course everybody's still first time, too, to the NCAA Tournament. You still have a lot of guys on the team. How do you as some of the leaders make sure that everybody keeps their head for this environment?

XAVIER BISHOP: Pretty much just staying poised staying level-headed through the ups and downs. It's going to be ups and downs throughout the game. There's been ups and downs throughout the season. Just leading by example. Our young guys definitely look up to us and we've got to set an example out there that no matter what we're going through; down or up, we're going to be fine.

THE MODERATOR: Questions for Coach.

COACH SPRINKLE: Obviously, unbelievably excited for our program, our community, Bobcat Nation to be down here representing them in March Madness, the NCAA Tournament. It's the first time in 26 years. It's been too long.

Our fans have been through a lot. They've been there through thick and thin. I'm excited to see how many show up tonight. We have a bunch of pep rallies going but the excitement is off the charts in Bozeman. I know our players are excited. And I can't wait to walk them on the blue carpet and get out on that court here in a minute.

Q. Given your coaching history and your personal connection to Southern California, how meaningful is it for you to be back here?

COACH SPRINKLE: It's awesome. It's almost like God sent us here. Like it really is. As soon as San Diego was on the bracket, I had a feeling we were coming here. I got a ton of family, friends coming down from L.A. for the game. A lot of them I wasn't able to get tickets for but they bought them. They're still coming down to support.

It's awesome because obviously I spent 20 years here as an assistant coach here down in Southern California. This is kind of where I built my network and really learned everything from Coach Braswell and Coach Taylor, and it's awesome to be back in Southern California.

Q. 26 years ago, when Montana State was playing in the NCAA Tournament, you were a player. What is it like to be back here with the Bobcats this time as a coach?

COACH SPRINKLE: It's awesome. It's almost better. Just to see the excitement on our players' faces and to see some of our fans that were literally in tears in Boise. That's excited they were for this moment and how long they've been waiting for it. And it's an unbelievable experience.

This and the Super Bowl are the two biggest events in the world. Like literally the biggest sporting event in the world and Montana State is part of that. It's going to be an unbelievable experience that these players and the fans they'll remember the rest of their lives.

Q. Speaking of that '96 team, you've got a couple of players in town coming to watch. Have you talked to them? Have they talked to the team?

COACH SPRINKLE: A lot of them are flying in today. They'll probably talk to the team. Hopefully they make it to the hotel. But they're all excited. Not just that, the '87 team, too. They're coming, that championship team. The first NCAA team. It's going to be awesome.

Bobcat Nation has been waiting a long time for this. And those players, that's who we do it for; the players who came before us. Couldn't be more proud that they're spending their money to come and support us.

Q. As long as we're doing the walk down memory lane, what do you recall about playing against Donovan McNabb 26 years ago? And what did you learn as a player that you think can help your team prepare for this weekend?

COACH SPRINKLE: I don't even remember if Donovan McNabb got off the bench, but he was in the game. But what I do remember is how big Syracuse was. And that zone that Coach Boeheim has is gigantic. I remember that. I remember being down by one at halftime and feeling good about ourselves. Came out and got smacked by 30 in the second half.

I think the one thing I want to get across to our guys is it's a no-regret game. I don't want to, at the end of the game, say, I wish we would have showed up the first five minutes of the game. Man, we actually competed with those guys but we didn't come out the way we were supposed to.

I want to come out and be aggressive and compete. And let the chips fall where they may at the end. But for that 40 minutes, we don't have to be better than Texas Tech for the season. We just have to be better for 40 minutes. And tomorrow at 10:45, that 40 minutes is all that matters. And we've just got to knock down some shots and play with confidence like we have all year.

Q. From what you've seen from Texas Tech as a whole this season, what makes them such a tough opponent?

COACH SPRINKLE: Their toughness. I had a coach in the Big 12 tell me they're as real as real gets. And you can see it when you watch film. You've obviously seen them play this year. Defensively they're tremendous, but that's what Coach Adams has done since he was at Howard Junior College.

That's what his teams do. They play with an enormous amount of grit and toughness. We'll have to be able to match that tomorrow. We have to be able to score the ball. Have to make some tough shots. Teams that have beat them, that's what you have to do. It's not going to be easy but you have to make tough shots and compete and take care of the basketball and do the disciplined things that it takes to win games at this time of the year.

Q. Just wanted to see if you've come across Coach Adams, what your relationship is with him.

COACH SPRINKLE: He doesn't know who I am. I've obviously known him a long time. I recruited a couple of his players at Howard Junior College. One of them was Dezmon Harris. He ended up going to Weber State in 2007. I gotta have a word with Coach Adams about that because he was a good player.

We recruited his players a lot. And obviously he had thousands of coaches come in. He's not going to have any idea who Danny Sprinkle is. I've known and respected him because I know his background and pedigree. Everything he's earning this year has been because of the work that he's put in at the junior college level, everywhere.

And he's just, knowing him I know one of their guys on staff, Barret Peery, one of his assistant coaches was the head coach in our league at Portland State the last couple of years. I talked to him quite a bit throughout the year. Obviously a tremendous coach that's getting rewarded.

Q. I wondered how important recruiting international players is for your program, in particular Canada?

COACH SPRINKLE: It's huge. We have Kellen Tynes and Abdul Mohamed, both from Canada. We've hit England hard. Three of our better players -- Jubrile Belo, Amin Adamu and Great Osobar are freshmen and all from England. We have another, Borja Fernandez, from Spain.

Bozeman is a place where they can come -- you've got to be on task academically at Montana State. We can't just get anybody in school. And those kids come over, they're grateful for the opportunity. They love Bozeman. Academically they're great.

It's somewhere where maybe we can get a player that's maybe above our level, that in order to come to the NCAA Tournament, to win our league you have to be able to get Mountain West-level players, low Pac-12-level players. And we feel we've done a good job of that in the international market.

Q. What have you liked or seen out of your team in the last week or so in terms of going from such a celebratory mood on Saturday to getting back to business this week?

COACH SPRINKLE: We've had a next -- our motto this year was take the next step. And we've done that every day, just take the next step. Just worry about today. Then we'll take the next step tomorrow. And to continue to get better every day -- and playing seven games in 13 days, our whole team was injured. Xavier, Jubrile and RaeQuan, they didn't practice for five, seven days leading up to the Sacramento State, the first game of the tournament. They just came and played.

And it shows the depth of our team and how important like their care for each other. There's no way, even though Jubrile was 50 percent, there's no way he was not playing in that Big Sky tournament. So you see the grit and the toughness mentally, probably more than physically that I was really impressed with our team.

Q. You mentioned Barret Peery. Everyone talks about the defense for Texas Tech, but in terms of what they have done on offense could you speak to what Barret has been able to do to make them more up tempo than previous years?

COACH SPRINKLE: A lot feeds off their defense. Hard to score on. They're never taking the ball out of the net. They're transitioning. And you see they have tremendous athletes. They're all 6'5" and above.

They can all get the basketball to the rim. When they start making 3s, they can win -- they're super dangerous. But it all comes from their defense.

It all comes from their pressure, their aggressiveness. Bryson Williams, I remember watching him as a freshman in high school. He is obviously from Fresno. We recruited a couple of players off his AAU.

When he went to Fresno State with Coach Perry and UTEP, he's always been an all-league player. He's kind of their guy offensively. Terrence Shannon is super dangerous, Obanor -- he does as good a job in the recruiting as recruiting to his philosophy and his mentality. You have to have a certain mindset to play at Texas Tech. You can't be a pretty boy All-American if you're gonna play at Texas Tech. That's why he wins.

Another fun fact. When I was a freshman, we actually played Texas Tech. The year we went to the NCAA Tournament, we played Texas Tech down in Lubbock. They had Tony Battie and Sasser, I think they went 30-2 and beat Duke in the Sweet 16 that year. But I remember that game very specifically because I was a true freshman. That was kind of my eye-opening moment to high major basketball.

Q. Spoke with your parents. One of your former players came up, gave them a big hug, and your mom said that team is family, that '96 team is family, how have the parents influenced that mindset with you and your program?

COACH SPRINKLE: I wouldn't here without them. They're my backbone. They're the biggest supporters. You see them at every game. No matter if there's 12,000 people in that arena tomorrow, you'll be able to hear my mom, I guarantee that.

And it's just family. And all my players, my mom's their mom. She still makes them caramels, Xavier Bishop. That's what she does. For road trips she's packing them stuff. She's that team mom still. She'll never change because that's how important that family atmosphere is to her.

Q. What sort of conversations have you had with Trisha this week in terms of both being on the stage together getting to represent the Big Sky and Montana State on the same day no less?

COACH SPRINKLE: Our women's program's awesome, the staff and players. We haven't had time to talk we're both so busy. But we did see each other in the offices, gave each other a big hug. Super proud of them. And just you see the work that they put in, and it's no surprise how successful she's been and their girls have been because that's just what they do.

Q. Despite the team being banged up last week, how are they sitting now, especially Jubrile Belo?

COACH SPRINKLE: He's better this week. He still hasn't practiced this week. But he'll be ready to go. He'll be ready to go tomorrow. And I imagine he'll be a little healthier than he was last week.

One other thing I hope my players don't remember, about six weeks ago I wasn't very happy with our defense. I thought we were getting pretty selfish. So I clipped up about 25 clips of Texas Tech's defense, and I showed it to my players. I was like, this is how hard I want you to play. This is what we have to look like defensively. And I hope they don't remember that because we've got to score on them at 10:45 tomorrow.