Isaac Brown and players spent time with local reporters Friday as part of Wichita State's annual men's basketball media day. Read up on what the head coach had to say.
 

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ISAAC BROWN ON…
 
… Opening Statement:
"Everything is going well. Guys have been buying into the system. We're ready to get started in a basketball game. They've been going since June, playing against each other, so they're just ready to go out and compete against another team."
 
… Acclimating the six newcomers:
"…We've been getting those guys adjusted to Shocker basketball -- learning our defensive system, our offensive system. I think the new guys have done really well. The older guys have been coaches on the floor and in the locker room. Right now, all of them are playing with confidence. They've got our system in. Now it's just about going out and competing."
 
…Ricky Council IV's maturation heading into his second year:
"He's a better defender. He knows our system. He's a really talented guy who can create his own (shot), and now he's starting to buy into the system more. Running in transition. Knowing how to run our sets. And he's a much better defender. We're looking for a great season from him."
 
…Council's defense:
"Offensively, he was always one of those guys that had that natural ability to go out and get a basket. Now, he'll probably get a lot of more playing time, because he can really defend. He can guard 1-4, he's one of our better rebounders, and he knows our system."
 
…Using Dexter Dennis as an example to young guards like Council:
"Last year Dexter got off to a slow start. He wasn't shooting it well, but he was still playing 30 minutes-a-game. Every time we watched film, I was telling the young guys, 'Dexter is on the floor because he can defend, rebound and he doesn't turn the ball over.' So those young guys really bought into defending and know that's how they can get on the floor."
 
… Council's defense (again):
"He's locked in now. He's buying into the defensive system. He's always in the right position. He's a great athlete, but defending a lot of the time is about being in the right position. Knowing what's going on. Understanding scouting reports. And he's gotten a lot better at that."
 
…Practices this year vs. last:
"We're going the same stuff. We're preaching defense, we're preaching rebounding, and we're preaching getting in the gym and getting up shots. We've got to become a better shooting team -- at the free throw line, the three-point line. We've got to take better shots. I think shot selection will be huge in getting those numbers up."
 
… Dealing with the burden of expectations after making the NCAA tournament last year:
"These guys have some expectations now. Handling that success and the fact that, coming off a conference championship, everyone will be shooting for us. Now we've just got to go out and play well."
 
… Emphasis on defensive rebounding after a lackluster year in that category:
"In order to be a great defensive team, you've got to rebound... Every day in practice we've been doing rebounding drills. We've (played where) you lose a point if you give up an offensive rebound. That's been our biggest emphasis this summer on defense. To win at a high level, you've got to rebound. So those guys have been checking out. They've been doing a better job with their technique. They're boxing out and now they're going to retrieve rebounds. We've got to keep that up."
 
… Becoming a great rebounding team without the luxury of a tall frontcourt:
"I don't think it's about how big we are at the 4 and 5. Houston was one of the better rebounding teams, and they were small at the 4. It's just about having toughness. Having the will to want to go in rebound. And we've got to do a better job at that."
 
… Abilene Christian transfer Joe Pleasant:
"Bigtime player. High basketball IQ. He can play multiple positions. He's an experience guy who's been to the NCAA tournament and won a conference championship. He can guard 1-5. I'm just so excited to have him in the program. He'll play a lot of minutes. He's a great defender, a great stationary shooter, a guy that can score it on the low block,  and a guy that can run offense."
 
… Adding experience and maturity through Pleasant and Qua Grant:
"They're veterans. They're serious. You don't see them goofing off a lot. They come to practice ready to play. They've got a good mindset. They're tough kids that have won at a high level, and we're just glad to have two experienced guys like that on our basketball team."
 
… The importance of the next two weeks for the freshmen:
"They've been able to practice a lot and play a lot of minutes, because we don't have a lot of depth. We only have 12 (scholarship) guys. Two of them have been out, so we're down to 10. All our freshmen have been getting a lot of minutes in practice, and I think that's been huge. We played in the scrimmage game last week. All those guys were able to get into the scrimmage against older guys, so they gained valuable experience."
 
… The value of scrimmages like the one with Texas Tech:
"It was great for us. Everybody was able to play. We went 5-in-5-out. Those guys learned a lot. We learned from our mistakes. We know what we need to work on. We (also) know what we did well. I just think it helps us a lot down the road."
 
… Steps taken to improve shooting:
"We've got to do a better job of sharing the basketball. We've got to make sure we have good spacing. We've got to do a good job of getting in the paint, and guys have to step up and make shots. Those guys have done a really good job of working all summer long. We had a "500 Club." They had to get in the gym and make a certain amount of shots. We've seen their numbers improve."
 
… Former All-American Grant's transition from Division II to Division I:
"He's going a good job. I told Qua, 'At this level, you've got to trust your teammates. When you're at D-II, you're the guy, so you've got to take on double-teams. Now, when you get doubled, kicked to an open guy. He can make that shot. That's the biggest difference in guys who come from junior college or Division II. They're not used to facing 7-footers. He's doing a good job of driving the ball, creating help situations, dumping it down to the big guys, getting in the lane, kicking it out to the shooters, Dexter and Tyson. He's done a good job finishing at the rim and drawing fouls. He's been great in practice."
 
… Grant's winning attitude and pedigree:
"He's played at a high level in Division II. He's made it to the (national) championship game. He knows how to win. And that winning has rubbed off on a lot of our guys in practice. He's very competitive. His team is always winning a lot in practice. He's doing everything on the defensive end. (One of) the biggest things for Qua, coming from Division II, is trying to defend the basketball. At this level, you're going up against more-talented guys. But he's done a good job of keeping guys in front, contesting shots and on offense, creating for his teammates."
 
… What's he's seeing from point guard Craig Porter Jr.:
"He's a leader on the floor. He's a guy that won a national championship at junior college. He knows our system like the back of his hand, and he's done a great job this summer of staying healthy. He's playing well, he's more athletic, he's shooting it better, and we're looking for big things out of him."
 
… Getting the first and second-year players prepared for a full Charles Koch Arena:
You've got to talk more. When Charles Koch Arena is packed -- a sellout crowd -- you've got to be very vocal. You've got to talk more. I've got to do a better job of emphasizing that. We're doing to try to play music in practice -- make some noise -- so they can see what a game is like.
 
… freshman guard Jalen Ricks:
"Good player. Hard worker. He's done a good job in practice… He's got a lot of toughness. He's just got to keep working, keep buying in, keep taking coaching, get in the gym, be able to make shots and just keep getting better."
 
… Chaunce Jenkins' improvement heading into his second year:
"He had a great summer. Based on stats, he was our best shooter this summer. He shot around 50%. We stat practice and scrimmages, and he did a great job of making shots. He's gotten bigger and stronger. He's a better defender. He's been out maybe 5-10 days now with a knee injury, but hopefully we get him back soon. We expect he can make shots. He's a guy that can defend at a high level. He can also get out in transition and make plays for us."
 
… Jenkins' explosiveness:
"He's one of our better athletes. He's got great size. He can make jumpshots. He's great at finishing at the rim. Very creative. He'll dunk on you, finish with either hand. He's got a good pull-up game, a good floater game. He has a high ceiling."
 
… the American Athletic Conference's upcoming expansion, announced Thursday:
"I know a lot about those teams. I've (coached) in Conference USA. They've done a great job in the NCAA tournament the past couple of years. North Texas won a game last year. UAB a couple years ago... It's a really good basketball league. They've got great coaches. I'm excited about the new (look) league."
 
… the value of having more games in Texas and in the Southeast:
"These are (all) areas we recruit -- Texas, North Carolina, Florida. That helps us a lot in recruiting, for those kids to be able to go back home and play against those teams in their (home) state. It does a lot for us in recruiting."