Dusty May, FAU Men's Basketball Head Coach

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Call 562-314-4603 for details. Hey Coach, thank you for hopping on. Appreciate the time. Hey, it's great to be on.

No doubt about it. Now, what's this deal? We heard that you like Rod Wave. They asked all the coaches and they said you like Rod Wave. Well, you know, I like Hubert Davidson's response.

I'm not that old. And I think when we grow up listening to a certain genre of music, and I like all types, the rap, R&B was always my favorite. Rock was a close second. And Rod Wave, he's mellow, he's chill. So I told the guys, or I told some people that tweeted at me, it's not like I'm sitting here listening to Onyx as I'm watching film. I mean, it's smooth, it's laid back. And so I was a little bit surprised of the backlash, especially when I'm simply trying to support a St. Pete guy and ride the wave. Oh, I appreciate the answer. I would have been impressed. I like Rod Wave.

I also like Onyx. I wouldn't mind a little bit of slam. You got to play that in practice, okay?

Yeah, you just can't chill with it. I hear that. Dusty May is here with us, the head coach of Florida Atlantic. We know that you're going to get things ready and rolling against Northwestern on Friday. I guess my first question is overall about the season. How was the transition, if any, this first year in the AAC?

Well, it was a lot different. Several teams moved into the new league, but as is the case with most college basketball, there's really no familiarity from year to year with the same teams because the rosters change. But the individual talent in the American Conference was impressive.

The guards are big, they're strong, they have elite playmaking skills. And so, yeah, we were impressed with the individual talent. The thing that probably separates the American and the Conference USA, the Conference USA probably had more returning players or more continuity. So the team chemistry was maybe a little bit better, but the American, it's been a great league for us this year, especially the television package. It's been a confluence of a lot of things that came together at the right time.

Dusty Mays here from the Florida Atlantic Isles. You want to talk about continuity from last year. We know you guys went over and went out to the Final Four and you returned a lot of the same players. What were some of the adjustments or what was some of the emphasis of growth that you wanted to make for this season? Well, we went into the offseason and we were going to tweak some things and we were going to make some adjustments, so we didn't get bored with it and we probably skipped a few steps with the foundation. We played so well in May and June and July in our spring and summer workouts that it looked like we hadn't missed a beat. We were competing at a high level and then once practice started in the fall, we got a little bit loose with the fundamentals, especially on the defensive end.

And once you have to go back, then it's tougher as opposed to just starting and building step by step. We probably started on step five or six and had to go back to two and three and that's not the way you would typically plan it as a teacher. The other thing is we thought we could get a little bit more for everyone. We knew it's human nature. We had an entire offseason of hearing how great we were and we thought we could get a little bit more for everyone, so we wanted to get more possessions. We wanted to send more guys to the offensive glass and play more up-tempo. In reality, the messaging should have been that there's not going to be, we can't count on any more for the individual, but there could still be a lot more for the group.

Because as it happened, everyone wanted more and even subconsciously they wanted more than they even realized. Some of the roles changed. We had a couple guys emerge and make big, big leaps and jumps in their game, so then that actually took a little bit away from some other guys. It's been different challenges, but as I told someone the other day, I've been coaching maybe 25 years. Last year's team was the most enjoyable group I've ever been around and I would say this year is a close second.

It's still been a lot of fun and very rewarding. Head coach of the Florida Atlantic Owls Dusty May is joining us here at the JR Sport Reshow on CBS Sports Radio. You talk about particular players who have taken jumps. If anyone hasn't watched you guys throughout the course of the season and is going to be tuning in for the first time since what we saw last year against San Diego State, who are some of those players who have made some jumps that we might be able to see show up in big time on Friday?

John L. Davis was co-player of the year in our league with Chris Youngblood from South Florida and Vladislav Golden. Those two guys, when you just look at the trajectory of their stat, their game, everything since they've been here, they've made significant jumps year in, year out. Those two have made an even bigger jump this year from a metric standpoint, from an efficiency standpoint. Both of those guys have done that and on the defensive end, Golden has really improved as well. Like a lot of big guys, he controls his body better now. He's able to move and anticipate better angles. It's the growth that he's made defensively that has allowed us to improve here as of late.

But those two guys have made significant jumps from last year. Coach, I know last year there was a lot of noise made in Madison Square Garden with your team. You have an opportunity and a chance to launch again in New York City, this time on the other side of the river out in Brooklyn, New York. Is that something you pay a little bit of attention to or is it just like, eh, we're back in New York, let's get to work and keep it moving?

Well, it's familiar. We played the Jimmy D here in the Garden in early December, so that was kind of our reunion trip or ceremonial trip. This seems more like business and this year definitely feels a lot different than last year. Last year was so new, everything was unknown. Our guys now, they know what to expect. They know it's going to come down to playing really good basketball for 40 minutes.

And all this other stuff is fine, but we're here on a business trip. Last year we were just kind of feeling our way out, just kind of pacing and looking around the corner to see what's next. What have you seen from the campus and the community knowing that you went on a run last year? You're back in the tournament again this year.

This is all still new for the school in a general sense. How have you seen things grow as we've continued to move on, as this organization, as a squad, has more success? Well, it was gradual last year where we got ranked early in the year and our game started becoming an event and the big ticket. And we had several sellouts last year towards the end of the year. And our arena is not big, but in South Florida you don't need a big arena.

There's a lot to compete with. And then this year almost every game was sold out. We had some of the best environments in college basketball. It was an event.

Several hundred students would be turned away each game. And so it's really cool to see a new university that was once a commuter school turn into a place where the students have unbelievable pride and wearing their gear, living on campus and experiencing the environment that a really proud athletic team can provide. And it's something for the students to rally around and show pride in. So it's done a number of things. I've been at schools that had great basketball tradition and I've been at schools that had none.

I've never been anywhere that it went from almost zero to where we are now. But as anyone knows, it's very, very difficult to sustain. But we thought if we could do it two, three years in a row, it could be something where people had our games on their calendar, their kids. It was a routine on Saturday afternoon to go watch the ALSP. Hey, well Coach, that's a testament to you and the work that you've put in in addition to your staff and of course the athletes out on the floor. As we start to wrap things up, Northwestern is the opponent in Brooklyn on Friday. When you take a look at the squad, what are some of the concerns that you have?

What has popped out to you once eight? They're incredibly physical. They control the tempo of games.

They don't beat themselves. They shoot the ball incredibly well. And I think they have great role definition or self-awareness. One of the two things because they all play to their strengths. They know who their best players are and their creators are.

And they let those guys do that. And they all support and play off of them very well. Their team defense is impressive.

They're on a string. Five guys moving together, playing with, like I said, a lot of physicality. So we're going to have to move the ball. We're going to have to figure out ways to get some driving kicks and get them off balance a little bit.

But they present a number of challenges. I mean, obviously with Bubu, you've got a guy that's capable of getting 30 or 40 because of his ability to create offense and shoot from deep while being able to get to the rim, mid-range, draw fouls. He scores at every level.

He's an All-American for a reason. Hey coach, final question for you. There's been a lot of talk and conversations about the current tournament, potential expansion, who gets in, who doesn't get in.

I mean, if you think about things from your perspective, you know, maybe the Owls wouldn't necessarily get the same type of perspective. Some of these changes went forth. What do you think about the standing and getting in and then a potential expansion?

I would lean towards no expansion, but I'll be brief, but you have two sides of it. Number one, you have 360 or so teams now and only 68 get in. So obviously that's a small percentage of teams that are able to play in the biggest postseason tournament, but it's the greatest tournament on the planet.

So why would you change it? The other thing, if we are going to make it more exclusive and I guess more favorable towards the power five, then let's do something with the scheduling and really, really reward the teams that schedule the right way, meaning they don't just play home games and then two or three neutral side games. And, you know, and not give good lows and good mids and majors an opportunity to play. And especially I heard Matt Painter say in a press conference the other day that, you know, they would play Indiana State. Obviously we wouldn't play them at their place, but we have such a great home court environment. Why wouldn't we play them at home? And they played Sanford, who's a tournament team at home. So, you know, you at least got to give the lows and mids an opportunity to play at your place, but the neutral side games as we saw this year were so beneficial to us and they were all set up by television. So, you know, it's the chicken or the egg, I don't know, but without our neutral side games against Arizona and Tommy Lloyd, thank goodness, we wouldn't be here either. And the ESPN events in Orlando, Thanksgiving, where we were able to beat Butler, Virginia Tech and Texas A&M, those games we wouldn't have been able to play.

And so this would look a lot different if the television, if TV didn't make those games happen. And most certainly we've seen the growth in what you guys have been able to do. Well, Coach, you mentioned Arizona. Good luck on Friday. Good luck getting to Phoenix. I wish you guys nothing but the best and hopefully we chat on down the line. Appreciate the time as you get ready to prepare.

I look forward to it. Old Man Winter here. If I had it my way, it would stay winter all year long. Short days, wind chill, black ice and a good polar vortex.

Heaven! Wait, is it getting warm in here? Your cold snap is over, Old Man Winter.

Spring has arrived. Spring is here, which means it's the perfect time to get away in the Hyundai you've always wanted. Visit the Hyundai Getaway Sales Event, where you can get great deals on all of our award-winning Hyundai models, like the tech-filled Tucson and Kona, as well as the spacious Palisade. Enjoy wherever you go with the peace of mind that comes with America's best warranty and three years or 36,000 miles of complimentary maintenance.

But hurry in. These deals won't last. Add more joy to your journey at the Hyundai Getaway Sales Event. Now get 0% APR or up to 1,500 bonus cash on the Hyundai Tucson, now during the Hyundai Getaway Sales Event. Offers end soon.

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