Saint Peter’s is back in the NCAA Tournament just two years after its magical run to the Elite Eight. It’s a new Saint Peter’s program with then head coach Shaheen Holloway moving on to Seton Hall and new head coach Bashir Mason stepping into the head job.
It was a shaky year for the Peacocks who went 16-13 in the regular season before winning three games in the MEAC Tournament by a combined eight points to make it back to the Big Dance.
Mason met with the media in Charlotte on Wednesday and discussed his team’s run back to the NCAA Tournament, Tennessee star Dalton Knecht and much more. Here’s everything Mason said.
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On how the Saint Peter’s run two years ago elevated the program
“I’m born and raised in Jersey City. It was more so about being that hometown kid going back to his neighborhood school and being able to get us back on this stage here. I’ve known Shaheen since I was in seventh grade. I’ve known him for a long time. The job that he did was incredible. Our name recognition nationwide is recognizable anywhere.
So I don’t know how much it necessarily played into it or it was more about just that hometown kid going back to his neighborhood school and seeing if we can keep this thing going.”
On how the run has impacted his job, recruiting
“Yeah, when you pick up the phone and call and you say St. Peter’s, most kids say, man, I watched you guys make a run. I was cheering for you guys. You guys were doing a great job. Once they stop ranting and raving, I usually follow it up with, hey, that wasn’t me. I’m the guy that replaced that guy.”
On if he ever thinks about having a Cinderella story of his own
“I felt it at our conference tournament. This is now year 2 for me. Both years at our conference tournament, I thought the fans, the support is great. That mystique of Peacock nation, that was a very real thing for me. I felt it.
Being here now in this environment, I’m excited. I’m excited about having this opportunity, this platform, and having that opportunity to say or to hear the Peacocks did it again.”
On what stands out about Tennessee
“I’ve been telling my team we’re probably a version of them in terms of how we defend, how we rebound. But they’ve probably got a couple of NBA players on their team. Size, athleticism, everything is a little bit different. Dalton, we haven’t played against a guy like him. It will be the ultimate test for us, but I think we’ll be up for it.”
On growing as a head coach in that role instead of as an assistant
“The one thing that getting into this profession did to me, it cost me my hair early. No, I’ve seen it all in college coaching. There’s things that I did early on that I wouldn’t do now. You’ll probably notice my calm temperament during the games, and sometimes I’m probably joking with people on the sideline. They think that I’m crazy.
Being able to do this for a long time and being closer to 200 wins, there’s not a lot that’s going to rattle me. It’s just if I can keep my players composed and in the moment of what’s actually happening.”
On how important tempo will be in this game
“Huge. Huge for us. I think Tennessee is probably averaging 15, 16 more points per game than we are. We’re coming off of a conference tournament run. We didn’t give up 70 points. I don’t even know if we gave up 65 points. We want to try to bring them down in scoring and do that by controlling the tempo offensively and defensively.”
On what challenges Dalton Knecht present
“For our conference, for our level, he’s a really, really big wing. I’ve watched multiple games. I’ve heard commentators say he’s from 6’7″, 6’8″, down to 6’6″. My wing players are around 6’3″, 6’4″. So instantly the size differences is huge.
But then just his confidence. That kid always has his foot on the gas, and he’s trying to score, putting pressure on the defense. You’ve got to be ready to defend him for 40 minutes, 30 seconds, the entire game.”
On how Latrell Reed has developed since he got the head coaching job
“You know what, I didn’t do much talking to the returning guys when I came in. I wanted to introduce myself with the work. We got right to work on the court. I wanted to see what they had. They wanted to show me what they had. And I wanted to show them what I was about.
But I will say Latrell and I had a conversation going into this year. I talked to him about, Latrell was a baseball player in high school who went to junior college to try to get a Division I scholarship. That didn’t work out due to COVID. He ended up being a walk-on here at St. Peter’s and starting games and being on our team that went to the Elite Eight.
What I talked to him about was going from that baseball player walk-on to now probably becoming one of the most decorated players in St. Peter’s history if he could lead us back here, and I meant that. That kid took it to heart, and we’re here.”
On if he wants to make Tennessee’s shooters beat him because of their inconsistencies
“They go so simple in terms of getting Dalton the ball, it will be tough to take him away. But we do want to load it up and make him have to play against our team defense and try to make those other guys make shots, specifically early into the game where I think it’s going to be thick. I don’t want him getting off to the greatest of starts and now everybody else sort of follow. I’d rather him play the takeover role for 40 minutes.”
On how Latrell Reid responded from their conversation
“Specifically, I told him he needed to get as big and strong as he could, become a real extension of myself and the coaching staff, not just on the court, but in the locker room throughout campus.
I don’t know how good of an offensive player Latrell is or he was going to be going into the season, but I told him he should really focus on becoming Defensive Player of the Year. And in doing so, he was named Third Team All Conference and he was named Defensive Player of the Year. He is, no doubt about it, the leader of our program.”
On Armoni Zeigler’s reaction to facing Tennessee and Zakai
“Number one, I think — I don’t know why because these guys are crazy, but I think this is the matchup they wanted. We had a setup, and there were two rows, and I was sitting behind the players. When Tennessee popped up on the screen, our entire team pulled their cell phones out and started recording. When we got called next, there was a celebration.
Zakai got to this level because he’s ultimately competitive. Armoni’s with us because he’s competitive. Although they’re brothers and they spend a lot of time with each other and they probably talk a lot, I think they’ll both be looking forward to competing against each other on this stage. That excitement for those two has probably trickled through both locker rooms.”
One Response
The Peacocks are actually in the MAAC, NOT the MEAC, isn’t that correct?