Final Four notebook: Illicit recruiting; Matt Bradley vs. the new ball; Steve Fisher speaks
Matt Bradley #MattBradley
Florida Atlantic coach Dusty May let it slip last week before the Elite Eight game against Kansas State. The subject of the transfer portal came up and he blurted out:
“You’re always concerned because they’re getting recruited now,” May said. “They’ve been recruited through this (NCAA) Tournament. It’s part of it. … I’m not accusing any coaches; it’s usually a third party. There are middlemen, third parties, that have incentives to get kids in the portal and help them find another spot and then with the new rules who knows what happens after that.”
The issue is timing. The NCAA Tournament began March 14. The transfer portal opened March 13.
The further you go in the former, the further you fall behind in the latter since coaching staffs no longer playing can devote endless time to recruiting while you’re preparing to play another game.
May backed off his comments slightly Friday, insisting it was “a little overblown” and is “a nontalking point.”
“There’s probably not a program in the country at any level that’s not facing that obstacle in some way, shape or form,” he said. “I’m not being critical. It is what it is. I wasn’t accusing anyone. I never said the word, ‘poaching.’ I just said … there’s a lot of avenues to get directly to players now.
“I wasn’t complaining. It’s stating the obvious. I think everyone knows there are people reaching out to our players, to their players, to their players.”
Does that include San Diego State?
Coach Brian Dutcher said he is unaware of any illicit overtures to his players. But that might also be because there are few players on his roster who would qualify for potential portal interest.
Of the nine-man rotation, four — Matt Bradley, Nathan Mensah, Aguek Arop and Adam Seiko — will exhaust their eligibility in Houston. Two — Darrion Trammell and Micah Parrish — would be second-time transfers, and the NCAA recently issued a memo indicating it will severely restrict multiple transfers. One, Jaedon LeDee, would be a third-time transfer.
That leaves two regulars: Keshad Johnson and Lamont Butler.
Johnson has an extra COVID season at his disposal but participated in Senior Night earlier this month and has said he is leaving open all avenues: staying at SDSU, turning pro or entering the portal. Butler, a junior with two seasons of eligibility left, said Friday for the first time that he may test pro waters after the season.
“I’ll (consider) it after the season, just reflect on what I’ve done,” Butler said. “I’ll decide after.”
He said no one has reached out about a transfer, dangling a pot of NIL money. And even if someone did, he admitted he can’t imagine himself leaving SDSU.
“I put so many hours into this school, I put so much effort into this school, and they trusted me as well,” Butler said. “It would be really hard to leave, for sure. Money can’t buy family, and family is everything to me. And this is like extended family to me.”
Bradley was SDSU’s leading scorer through the regular season and conference tournament at 13.3 points. In the NCAA Tournament: 8.8 points (third on the team behind Trammell and Butler) while shooting 31 percent overall and 1 of 10 behind the 3-point arc.
Last weekend in Louisville was even worse: 4.0 points on 3 of 17 shooting (0 of 3 on 3s).
So when he says he’s not fond of the Wilson balls the NCAA is using in the tournament, as dozens of other players from other teams have echoed, there might be something to it.
“It’s kind of too late to complain about it now,” Bradley said. “I’ve heard people say certain things, from coaches to players. I hope moving forward that (as players) they let us in on what’s going on and see if we have some pointers on it. We’re the ones shooting it. Maybe take some air out of it, or maybe use this (other) ball.
“I’ve used that ball before. It’s actually really good when it’s broken in. But to bring it out new, right out of the bag, fully pumped, it makes it tough on us.”
The good news for Aztecs fans: Bradley has never stayed in a slump longer than a couple games this season, following it with a big night. He was 6 of 26 over two games in November, then went for 18 points against Ohio State. He had four and five points over two games in December, then had a season-high 27 against Air Force. He had a 0 of 4 night from 3 against Boise State, then went 7 of 10 over the next three games.
“When you’re a scorer, you’ve got to think: ‘If they give you a bowling ball, you’ve got to make it,’” Bradley said. “I don’t want to blame the ball too much because it’s not changing. I’ve got to deal with it. I’ve made shots with it in shootaround. I just have to get out of my own head and just go out there and play basketball.
“I’m feeling good. I’m hoping the other team is counting me out as somebody who can score the ball. I know I’ll make them pay if I have the opportunity.”
Former coach Steve Fisher is in Houston. He regularly comes to the Final Four, specifically to attend an annual banquet only for head coaches who have led teams there.
This year is different. The program he built is playing.
He was asked if he’s surprised.
“I had the ability to close my eyes and dream, and dream of this, to be honest with you,” Fisher said. “It took a while. I passed out tickets for three or four years to get people to come to the building. And now tickets are at a premium everywhere we go. To say I’m surprised, I’m not going to say that. You have to get lucky to get here, and we’ve had a great, great season with a bit of luck in the tournament. And we’re here. And we’re good enough to be here (for the championship game) on Monday.”
Also here is his son, Mark, a special assistant to the program who is suffering from ALS. He watched practice Friday at NRG Stadium and will be courtside for the game.
“If you’re parent, you want for your kids,” Steve Fisher said. “I’ve always been family first with everything I’ve ever done, every decision I’ve ever made. The beauty of San Diego State and Brian Dutcher, when I (retired) and Mark had ALS, they said he’s here as long as he wants to be here. And they said it not just to say it, they said it because they mean it.
“I’m proud that he’s here. He hasn’t travelled a lot the last couple years. The ALS folks in San Diego and in Houston, and the NCAA, have been phenomenal with us to make it as easy as possible for him to be part of this. I’m very appreciative.”
Mensah blocks an average of 1.7 shots per game, second-most of any player remaining in the NCAA Tournament. He’s been on a tear lately, rejecting five shots in the Aztecs’ Sweet 16 win over Alabama and three in their Elite Eight win over Creighton.
Shot-blocking appears to be a lost art, and the 6-foot-10 Mensah may know why. The forward said many players are afraid to attempt blocks, in part because of what happens when they fail.
“If you get dunked on, it’s going to be posted everywhere,” he said. “Nobody wants to be posterized. But I have the feeling that I’m going to stop (players) no matter what happens.”
Donovan Clingan can relate. UConn’s freshman big man is averaging 1.8 blocks per game this year, a minuscule amount more than Mensah, though SDSU’s senior has three more block (12) than Clingan (nine) in the tournament.
U-T sports editor Ryan Finley contributed to this story.
This story originally appeared in San Diego Union-Tribune.