Otzelberger recaps Sweet 16 loss, first season at helm
In the moments following his team's 70-56 loss to Miami (Fla.) that ended his initial year as head coach, T.J. Otzelberger met with the media for his post-game press conference. Here's everything he had to share.
Opening comments:
“First of all, Miami deserves a lot of credit. They're very well coached, very well prepared, veteran team. We knew tonight coming in the turnover battle was going to be one that would have a significant impact on the win. And they did a better job than we did in terms of disruption and creating live-ball turnovers.
“They made some timely shots when we made our runs as well. So, a lot of credit to them. Tonight just wasn't our night. But man, I'm proud of the young men on our team. What an amazing season. Great job they've done working every single day and really proud of them.
The last thing I'd say, to clarify before we move forward, it was, on our end, what happened with the starting lineup, if anybody has any questions regarding it, we entered it wrong. And that's on me as the head coach. So I'll own that. But that's what it was, why it was starting lineup happened the way it did.”
On what a season like this will do for the future of the program:
“These three guys right here, they trusted and you say bought in from the start. They had no idea what the wins and losses would be this season, but they agreed to work extremely hard to sacrifice, to work at a level that's uncommon and to put their belief in one another.
“So, I'm proud of this group. Right now we're excited about as things move forward what we can do with this program. But tonight all my attention is going to be paid to these guys and being thankful and grateful to them for how they've carried themselves -- classroom, community and on the court -- and you mentioned restore pride, and that's something that's very personal to me based on how I feel about Iowa State.
And so, really proud of our guys for how they've carried themselves and what they've done and what they've shown this season.”
On this freshman season being a springboard for Tyrese Hunter:
“Well, for every player, you want to play to the best of your ability and do the things that you do well. And Tyrese is a gifted player. He's certainly matured as the season moved on. Did a great job of commanding our team. Proved that there's no task too big for him even though he's a freshman. Plays with a poise and composure well beyond his years.
“So, really great freshman season for Tyrese. If I know Tyrese the way I believe I do, he's going to continue to work extremely hard to build on it because he's got great character and work habits. So, I know he's got an extremely bright future based on how much he gives and puts into this game.”
On how he’ll remember this squad:
“This team is an enjoyable group to be around every day. I'll remember these guys for their heart, their fight, their sacrifice to one another, for the trust they bestowed in our coaching staff; for rolling up their
sleeves and just doing the work every single day. It wasn't easy. But they kept coming back.
And we had our challenges during the year. We had some stretches, we lost four in a row. We lost four or five. We lost three in a row coming into the tournament. And these guys continued to do the work and fight through adversity.
And as a coach, that's really rewarding. You want to see young people develop individually, but you want them to learn those life lessons, that if they do those things, they can be successful husbands and fathers in whatever field they choose to work or play basketball moving forward. So this group will be very dear to me. And I'll always remember what these guys did each and every day.”
