Donnie Jones | Stetson University Hatters Men's Basketball Head Coach

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Minimum monthly payment, down payment, tax and delivery may be required. See store for details. Coach Donnie Jones, you've known for a week that you'll be in the NCAA tournament. But as a coach with a bunch of young guys who were so excited, what was it like to see your name pop up on selection Sunday night and then right away?

Yeah, no, thank God. We didn't have to wait too long because we've been anxious for, it's been the longest seven days. I feel like it's been a month. We've enjoyed the time to rest and recovery, but we've been practicing against ourself all week long.

It's been a little different for that. But there's been a lot of love in this community and it's been amazing to see the support, especially for our guys who's never experienced anything like this before. So as a coach, you see your name, but then you realize you're attached to UConn.

What are the emotions that go through you just in those kind of 15 seconds? Yeah, as a coach, we anticipate it was going to be one of, right? We thought it was one of UConn or Purdue or Houston. So we know now it's reality. So now we got to focus on the day-to-day process of how we prepare for that and how we approach that as a staff. We'll put long hours in here tonight looking at that and making sure we try to keep our guys locked into the moment because we know that stage is big.

Now we just got to try to simplify it as much as we can. You've been around basketball a long time. I love the synergy, too, of you were part of that Florida team that won back-to-back national championships. And now, of course, that's the story around UConn. What does it mean to you to take a group, though, that has no clue, really has no idea what it's like at that next level?

Yes. So yeah, that will be an incredible challenge. I was a part of that, like you mentioned, and I know how difficult it is to do. And what you've done the first time is completely twice as hard as what you do the second time when you experience that as a team or when you're on that side like UConn is. But our guys are going to play free. We're going to play respectful.

We're going to come out. That's who we've been all year long. We played number one Houston at Houston to open up the season because I wanted our guys to understand that level because our goal was to get in the NCAA tournament. So we played a very difficult schedule early on, and it helped us. And I think it's prepared us. I know our guys will respect who we're playing, but they won't be scared of that. And they will go out and play with a lot of confidence. We're excited to spend a couple minutes with the head coach of the Stetson Hatters.

Get to know them. 16 seed taking on UConn in Brooklyn in the first round. And Donnie Jones is as a head coach. This is your first appearance, right?

Leading a team to the NCAA tournament. It is. This is my first as a head coach and very exciting to be able to do that. Yeah. Well, congratulations. What a cool milestone. It's after hours here on CBS Sports Radio. If people don't yet know about Jalen Blackmon, they're about to know what makes him so special.

Yeah. You know, he comes from a great pedigree. You know, his father was a great player at Kentucky and played in the NBA.

His brothers played in Indiana, were great players. And you know, Jalen's been the baby of the family and they got their own gym in their house. So he grew up in the gym, literally, and playing. And so he's got great confidence. He was a four star player out of high school and transferred in here from Grand Canyon.

And you know, he's just walked in here and it's just taken our program the last couple of years to a place where we are today. So he can score in a lot of different ways. He's, you know, he's got the ability to get it going and get it off the dribble, get it off catch and shoots.

So that's what makes him so dynamic and being able to defend him. Why Stetson? What were those conversations like with him that he chose your school? Yeah, you know what, we had a few kids from Indiana that mentioned us.

You know, I think I've been fortunate. I think my pedigree where I've been, I've had 23 NBA players, I had coached and recruited, been a part of, you know, three national championship appearances, won two, been to the tournament 14 times. So I think as a coach, his family felt comfortable with the development of him, style of play. And I think being able to come in and help us become who you're seeing us become today. And how does he raise the level of play for the guys around him? You know what, I think he raises it.

He gives a lot of attention, obviously. Stephon Swenson, the other guard has been terrific. Thousand point scorer, all time leading the CISSC at the point. Those two together, all conference players, both of them have been very dynamic.

You know, they're both juniors and seniors. So I think, you know, it starts with your backcourt. Those guys can really control a game and can score in a lot of different ways. Putting up 94 points in your championship, your conference championship, and having the ability to put that type of offense out there on the court. What types of defenses have you seen from opponents as they try to slow down, not just Jalen, but try to contain your backcourt?

Yeah, absolutely. We've seen a lot. You know, we've seen practicing, we've seen trapping, we've seen mixed up defenses. So, you know, we've played a variety of really good teams this year, which I think has helped us evolve as a team, offensively. You know, we lost a key front court player a little less than three weeks ago, who was a senior at 6'8 and Josh Smith. So we had to start playing smaller. And I think that made us more dangerous on the perimeter with our guards that could shoot it, pass it, space it, and be able to create for each other. So I think that really helped us offensively play to a different level. I can imagine that's tough for him, though, watching you guys win the championship and not being on the court as a senior.

Yeah, really hard. And you know, he just came back in January. He blew his knee this time last year.

So two ACLs within 12 months for him, which has been a really hard thing. Head Coach Donnie Jones of Stetson is with us here after hours on CBS Sports Radio. People paying attention as you make the tournament for the first time. Ultimately, though, you have to go out and play a basketball game.

So how do you get your guys ready for the stage? Yeah, absolutely. Well, you know, we realize, you know, we've talked about the process. I think that's the biggest thing my experience brings to this platform is, you know, you have to embrace where it is. We've had a week to digest it, and then we try to lock into our time together. And so now for us, as we move forward, now we know who we're playing, which really helps us lock in. And I think with that, you know, we just talk about how to take that in and respect that and you've got to be able to flush it and you've got to be able to move on. And so that's where we've got to be able to, you know, grow our guys right now. And this group's been trust, very trustworthy.

I think they've trusted our staff and understand what it takes to get them to this point. Just preliminarily, Coach, what's the strategy for trying to defend a 7-2 guy? Yeah, you know, I had Taco Fall. I was the head coach at UCF, recruited him. He was 7-6-300. So they're different players, but I understand and respect that. I coach Noah, Joe Kim Noah, and Al Wilfred. We've had some big players. Assam Whiteside was one of my players as well, played in the NBA for a long time. So I've had big guys and I'm aware of it. So obviously stomping into another challenge. He's a terrific player.

He's got a lot more players around him as well, but we'll have to mix it up with how we defend him and how we try to contain him and eliminate his ability to dominate us on the glass. 20, 21-year-old guys and gals, they're not always cognizant of history. Do your guys know that you were part of national championships and recognize the experience that you bring to the table? Yeah, absolutely. You know, we talk about that. I talk about the journey with that and how that was developed. So that's been part of the process of coming to a school. 53 years we'd never been to an NCAA tournament. We've had one 21 season in 49 years. So we have been way behind the times with our level of our play and just teaching kids how to win and what it looks like has been the path for the last three or four years. And so it's been a journey to get to this point. And a lot of it's been that path that I was fortunate to be a part of at Florida. Why did you pick Stetson coach? Yeah, you know, I had the opportunity to come back home as assistant at the University of Dayton with my best friend Anthony Grant. We coached side by side at the University of Florida for 12 years. And this opportunity came up and had a chance to come back to Florida. And I really thought this could be a program that could bring my family into a town and a vision that this could be somewhere where we could settle down and build a program that could compete in an ASUN championship and NCAA tournament every year.

I felt it had the qualities to do that location, size, and the ability here in the south where there's so much talent that this could be a win-win in so many ways to build a program. Considering all of your years in college basketball, do you ever look around and go, whoa, this sport has changed so dramatically? It really has, you know, and you've got to be able to adapt and adjust. You know, it's my 35th year in college coaching. I've just been so fortunate to be around so many great players and great coaches. And, you know, there's been different times where you've always had change, but it's been dramatic the last three years.

You went through COVID, you went through NIL, you went through transfer. It's been really hard to, to be able to put a team together. And it's really hard for the little guys like us because, you know, the big schools come and get your players. So it's hard to keep them. So you got to keep evolving. You got to keep teaching, adapting, and what you did in four years, you got to go do them one now.

In developing kids, it's a different method and you got to adjust. And I can imagine though, school history, being able to make the tournament for the first time makes it all worth it. It really does. You know, this community is 36,000 right outside Daytona Beach. Great, great little small town and these people love it. We packed the Edmonds Center for the first time probably since they opened the building and for the championship game. So, you know, winning brings a lot and we got great kids too.

And so that makes it even better. Well congratulations on this conference championship and the first NCAA tournament appearance in school history. Donnie Jones, a Stetson head coach, his first appearance as a head coach, which is neat too. And we appreciate it a few minutes. We're excited to watch you coach. Awesome.

Thanks so much for having me. Really appreciate it. Celebrate and save at Ashley's anniversary sale with Hot Buys, your choice of colors starting at just $399.

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