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MILWAUKEE, Wis. − Many players who have made a run in the NCAA Tournament look back on the experience as one that went too fast.
From the final buzzer, to scouting for the next opponent, there's little time to bask in the glory of moving on in the bracket.
Though its only won one game to advance to the 64-team field, Xavier is already feeling the demanding hustle and bustle of March Madness.
After an emotional win over Texas in the First Four, Xavier gained an hour in the early-morning flight to the Central time zone as it landed in Milwaukee around 3 a.m. ahead of its first-round matchup Friday night against No. 6 Illinois at Fiserv Forum.
More: Keys to victory, players to watch, prediction for Xavier vs. Illinois in NCAA Tournament
"There isn't a lot of time," said Xavier head coach Sean Miller, who had never coached in the First Four before Wednesday. "And I do believe this. By the time we get into tomorrow afternoon − we don't play until the evening − our guys will be ready. We'll be ready."
More: NCAA Tournament tip time, TV channel announced for Xavier vs. Illinois in 1st round
Xavier didn't just open the scouting report on Illinois on the plane to Wisconsin.
Since the Musketeers have known they would advance to play Illinois should they beat Texas, preparation began on Selection Sunday.
In 2004, Miller, an assistant under Thad Matta, was the mastermind behind the scouting reports that helped Xavier make a run to the program's first Elite Eight.
"When coach Miller does the scouting, he knows to a tee how everyone plays," former player Will Caudle told The Enquirer last year.
Twenty-one years later, Miller assigned assistant coaches to begin preparing a scouting report on Illinois on Selection Sunday. With the potential of playing three games in five days to get to the Sweet 16, Xavier assistants like Adam Cohen, Dante Jackson and David Miller have to be ahead of schedule.
All the magical moments of March Madness start with extensive work in the shadows that the public doesn't see.
"The work is already done for our staff," Miller said. "So, for me, it's about them catching me up on Illinois, making sure that I know what they know and then sharing that with our team most importantly. So that's the process we're in right now."
Scouting reports near the end of the regular season were pretty cut and dry with the familiarity Xavier has with its Big East foes. Turning the page to a non-conference in a win-or-go-home scenario is a different animal.
Especially on short rest against one of the most explosive, fastest offenses in the nation.
Though its three-point shooting was an Achilles' heel, Illinois plays at the No. 18 tempo in the nation and ranks 11th in college basketball in scoring at 83.8 points per game.
"I think you start to really fall in love with their offense, watching it, because it's the modern game," Miller said. "Not too many teams really sit there with five players in double figures. We respect the Big Ten as a conference. When you average 80 points per game in that league, from an offensive perspective, you have a lot of things you do well."
Xavier had a noticeable home-court advantage at UD Arena but could be on the other end of that Friday with Champaign, Illinois just 224 miles south of Milwaukee.
Xavier must make life difficult on an Illinois offense that can capture momentum in a hurry with its ability to run the floor and produce back-breaking second-chance opportunities (No. 18 in offensive rebounding percentage).
"They're a very physical team so we'll have to be ready to go to war," Zach Freemantle said.
Counting the COVID year, Brad Underwood has combined to take Stephen F. Austin, Oklahoma State and Illinois to the NCAA Tournament 10 times over a 12-year span, including six consecutive trips with the Fighting Illini.
Illinois lost a week ago to Maryland in the Big Ten Tournament by 33 points. Though Underwood knew his team would play either Xavier or Texas in Milwaukee, the Fighting Illini took a different approach to scouting.
Aside from simulating some concepts of both Xavier and Texas (without the players' knowledge), Illinois has stayed away digging too deep, too early.
"In past years, we have been a big two-day prep team. We got away from that this year. We've done a lot more one-day preps in terms of what we've gone over with our players, not giving them too much information," Underwood said. "I feel like a little bit in the past we've killed them with numbers and too much information sometimes, so we backed off that."
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: 'We'll be ready.' How Xavier is preparing for Illinois matchup Friday
Continue reading...
From the final buzzer, to scouting for the next opponent, there's little time to bask in the glory of moving on in the bracket.
Though its only won one game to advance to the 64-team field, Xavier is already feeling the demanding hustle and bustle of March Madness.
After an emotional win over Texas in the First Four, Xavier gained an hour in the early-morning flight to the Central time zone as it landed in Milwaukee around 3 a.m. ahead of its first-round matchup Friday night against No. 6 Illinois at Fiserv Forum.
You must be registered for see images
More: Keys to victory, players to watch, prediction for Xavier vs. Illinois in NCAA Tournament
"There isn't a lot of time," said Xavier head coach Sean Miller, who had never coached in the First Four before Wednesday. "And I do believe this. By the time we get into tomorrow afternoon − we don't play until the evening − our guys will be ready. We'll be ready."
More: NCAA Tournament tip time, TV channel announced for Xavier vs. Illinois in 1st round
Xavier's preparation for Illinois began earlier than you'd expect
Xavier didn't just open the scouting report on Illinois on the plane to Wisconsin.
Since the Musketeers have known they would advance to play Illinois should they beat Texas, preparation began on Selection Sunday.
In 2004, Miller, an assistant under Thad Matta, was the mastermind behind the scouting reports that helped Xavier make a run to the program's first Elite Eight.
You must be registered for see images
"When coach Miller does the scouting, he knows to a tee how everyone plays," former player Will Caudle told The Enquirer last year.
Twenty-one years later, Miller assigned assistant coaches to begin preparing a scouting report on Illinois on Selection Sunday. With the potential of playing three games in five days to get to the Sweet 16, Xavier assistants like Adam Cohen, Dante Jackson and David Miller have to be ahead of schedule.
All the magical moments of March Madness start with extensive work in the shadows that the public doesn't see.
"The work is already done for our staff," Miller said. "So, for me, it's about them catching me up on Illinois, making sure that I know what they know and then sharing that with our team most importantly. So that's the process we're in right now."
'We'll have to be ready to go to war.'
Scouting reports near the end of the regular season were pretty cut and dry with the familiarity Xavier has with its Big East foes. Turning the page to a non-conference in a win-or-go-home scenario is a different animal.
Especially on short rest against one of the most explosive, fastest offenses in the nation.
Though its three-point shooting was an Achilles' heel, Illinois plays at the No. 18 tempo in the nation and ranks 11th in college basketball in scoring at 83.8 points per game.
"I think you start to really fall in love with their offense, watching it, because it's the modern game," Miller said. "Not too many teams really sit there with five players in double figures. We respect the Big Ten as a conference. When you average 80 points per game in that league, from an offensive perspective, you have a lot of things you do well."
Xavier had a noticeable home-court advantage at UD Arena but could be on the other end of that Friday with Champaign, Illinois just 224 miles south of Milwaukee.
Xavier must make life difficult on an Illinois offense that can capture momentum in a hurry with its ability to run the floor and produce back-breaking second-chance opportunities (No. 18 in offensive rebounding percentage).
"They're a very physical team so we'll have to be ready to go to war," Zach Freemantle said.
You must be registered for see images attach
Why Illinois is preparing differently than Xavier for 1st-round matchup
Counting the COVID year, Brad Underwood has combined to take Stephen F. Austin, Oklahoma State and Illinois to the NCAA Tournament 10 times over a 12-year span, including six consecutive trips with the Fighting Illini.
Illinois lost a week ago to Maryland in the Big Ten Tournament by 33 points. Though Underwood knew his team would play either Xavier or Texas in Milwaukee, the Fighting Illini took a different approach to scouting.
Aside from simulating some concepts of both Xavier and Texas (without the players' knowledge), Illinois has stayed away digging too deep, too early.
"In past years, we have been a big two-day prep team. We got away from that this year. We've done a lot more one-day preps in terms of what we've gone over with our players, not giving them too much information," Underwood said. "I feel like a little bit in the past we've killed them with numbers and too much information sometimes, so we backed off that."
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: 'We'll be ready.' How Xavier is preparing for Illinois matchup Friday
Continue reading...
