University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Head Coach Doc Sadler speaks at preseason press conference
10/8/2018 5:01:00 PM | Men's Basketball
HATTIESBURG, Miss. -- The 2018-19 season opener is less than one month away, and Southern Miss men's basketball head coach Doc Sadler took questions Monday afternoon at the team's preseason media day. Senior guards Cortez Edwards and Tyree Griffin also spoke as well.
The Golden Eagles tip off on Nov. 6 at 7 p.m. inside Reed Green Coliseum against Southeastern Baptist. Season tickets are available for as low as $100 and can be purchased through SouthernMissTickets.com, calling 1-800-844-TICK or visiting the Pat Ferlise Center during normal business hours.
Southern Miss is coming off its best win total since 2012 after making a run to the C-USA semifinals. The team returns four starters and has improved its league-win total in each of Sadler's four years at the helm.
Opening Statement
"We really have two different teams: a group of guys who know what to do because they've been here, and a group of freshmen who need to learn what to do. The good news is that this freshman group is a really talented group of kids. Once they do pick up everything, it's going to get faster and that will make us a lot better. I'm really looking forward to this season. It's been a long four years. We are now to the point where we aren't going to go undefeated, but I do know that any game we go in to, we will have a chance. I've not been able to say that in the past. Saying that, we have a very touch preseason schedule. We have six road games, and at the end of it we have a little over a week and that's not even counting the tournament that's neutral. We will have three games in December. Then you come back home and open the league with three-straight road games. It's going to be a challenging schedule, but I did that so we would be best prepared for our conference season and tournament. Last year, we played at our best in the last few weeks of the season, and I'd like to be doing that again this year, because with this team, I feel we can win the tournament."
On local buzz with the team following the latest successes
"There are probably more people talking about it this time of year. Yesterday, I was visiting with Deanna Favre, and she said she was excited about basketball season. It's nice when people are talking about it."
On if the new post players will change the way the team gets pushed in practice
"That's a great question. I have been asked a lot of questions the last four years, and as you know, I've really never not used anything as an excuse for anything. As an outsider looking in, you want to say 'wow, you have seven scholarships,' or eight, or nine. To me, that wasn't the biggest issue. It was not being able to hold people accountable, since they knew they would get to play regardless. That's been the toughest part of building a culture for a basketball program."
On if he has been able to create more accountability on the court this preseason
"On the court, yes. It's good. Our post defense the last four years was not very good, but they knew they would get to play. Now, they know that if the ball gets into the post too easily, we can put somebody else in there. Coach [Eddie]Â Sutton told us a long time ago that the best voice on the team isn't just from the head coach, it's from the bench. If the players don't have the fear of the bench and having to sit there, I could yell as loud as I want to, but it isn't going to work."
On the current state of the post positions with added depth
"It's the best we've had. Right now, we've got three guys that are further along mentally in what we are trying to do, and the other three are very athletic and have a chance to be really good, so that's a good combination. The first three have been in the program, and the other three that are new to the program (Ladarius Marshall, Tyler Stevenson) are the most athletic guys I've had since I've been here. We can have a lot more opportunities with lob passes."
On the newcomers, especially with the in-state signees
"The freshman group is as talented as any guys I've had. My ideal situation, and I more than 100 percent believe this, is that we would have 13 scholarships with kids from Mississippi and Mississippi junior colleges and can win this league. We can sign up to six next year, and that's a lot, almost half a team."
On the expectations of the veterans and the example they will have to set for the whole team
"If we are going to be good, we are going to have to get it. I think we have the best guards in the league. It's their job to prove that they are. Unfortunately, Cortez Edwards and Kevin Holland were forced to play before they were ready. Now, it's going to benefit them. Dominic Magee and Tyree Griffin are here as well, and I think Tyree is as good a point guard as not only anyone in this league, but in a lot of leagues. Those four guards together all bring something. If they are going to have a good year, they will have to be good leaders and hold others accountable, and we've talked about that. They do the right thing, but they have to correct the guys that don't and say "this is the way it's got to be done.'"
