The Post’s Steve Serby chatted with the 33-year-old coach of the NCAA runner-up Butler Bulldogs:
Q: Have you watched a replay of your championship game?
A: Yes. At 3 a.m. on Tuesday morning when I got home.
Q: What were your emotions watching it?
A: I had to watch it to get everything out of my mind. The emotions that can best sum my week up are pain and pride (chuckles).
Q: And when it ended and you turned it off?
A: I remember staring up at the ceiling thinking, “I don’t think I’ll ever be able to go to sleep again.”
Q: You’ve gotten countless e-mails?
A: For whatever reason, our guys’ effort, focus and togetherness captivated people. The thing that stood out to me is they are coming from all over the world. I get a lot of them saying, “I didn’t know anything about Butler before I saw you guys play.”
Q: From all over the world?
A: I’ve gotten e-mails from most continents.
Q: Any from our troops?
A: Yes, and certainly more than just a couple.
Q: Where do you think Butler-Duke ranks in college basketball annals?
A: I hope it doesn’t rank all that high so I don’t have to watch it all the time (chuckles). The quote that I saw that I think summed it up was from (Duke’s) Jon Scheyer, when he said, “I can’t imagine how those guys feel right now.” For a winner and champion to say that proves there were a lot of winners out on the court.
Q: How has your life changed?
A: I don’t expect to change personally; I hope our players don’t change. I think right now there certainly is a little bit of difference with regard to how recognizable some of these guys are because of the run they put on.
Q: Will success spoil Brad Stevens?
A: It better not. My family would be all over me if it does.
Q: Chatting with David Letterman this week?
A: When you have a guy (who is) that witty, and is gonna put you on the spot a little bit, it’s a little nerve-wracking. I probably live two miles from where he grew up. It’s always great talking to a native Hoosier.
Q: You were 8 years old when Villanova upset Georgetown . . . do you remember it?
A: I do. I was in my grandparents’ living room in Tucson, Ariz. It’s the first game I really remember watching (I was told I watched tapes before that). The reason I think it’s probably so memorable is I understood at the time that Villanova wasn’t supposed to win.
Q: Biggest basketball influence growing up?
A: I think it would be hard to say in the state of Indiana as a kid that the single biggest basketball influence wasn’t Coach (Bob) Knight and Coach (Gene) Keady.
Q: You and your father went to Indiana games?
A: We’d go to Purdue, we’d come here to Butler, we’d go anywhere.
Q: The first time you met Bob Knight?
A: Officially, when we coached against him in Alaska my first year.
Q: What was that like for you?
A: It was unbelievable. Coach Knight does things nobody talks about, and one of the things he did, before that game . . . all five people on our staff had played high school basketball in the state of Indiana. He took time to talk to each of them. Coach Knight recognized that he probably had a huge influence on all these guys.
Q: Head coaches you worked for at Butler . . . Thad Matta?
A: Incredibly
passionate . . . great friend and resource.
Q: Todd Lickliter?
A: Unbelievable teacher and mentor.
Q: Coaches in other sports you admire?
A: Tony Dungy, without question, leads that list.
Q: Why is that?
A: Demeanor . . . the priorities he has in his life . . . and he’s been very good to me.
Q: How do you motivate?
A: I want guys that are intrinsically motivated, first and foremost. I want guys that are motivated by doing the right thing, and the right thing is (to be) a good teammate. I spend a lot of time picking the brains of people I respect.
Q: Such as?
A: Anybody and everybody who was in a leadership position at one time or another, and certainly not limited to basketball or sports.
Q: What drives you?
A: Getting better every day. I’m not very good at taking breaks, and I need to get better at it.
Q: A 96-team NCAA Tournament?
A: I’m all for it. There are 347 teams full of kids dreaming to get there.
Q: Boyhood idol?
A: Reggie Miller.
Q: Favorite childhood memory?
A: Winning a sectional championship with my teammates in high school.
Q: Best piece of advice your father gave you?
A: I remember him saying to me, “I don’t know much about basketball, but I know when you’re not giving it everything you have.”
Q: How did you propose to your wife Tracy?
A: I proposed right after I got the ring. I didn’t have any unbelievable plans. I was shaking in my boots — I just wanted to get rid of that ring. We walked from her home in Rocky River, Ohio, a few blocks to this little lakefront area where I proposed.
Q: Did you get down on your knees?
A: I did. Thankfully she said yes. You talk about a bad decision one person makes. . . . I tricked her one time.
Q: What kind of kid is your 4-year-old son Brady?
A: He loves fire trucks. He wants to be a fireman. . . . We visited New York and brought home the Fire Department of New York T-shirt. That’s his favorite.
Q: Favorite books?
A: There are three books sitting on my desk now — “QBQ!” by John Miller . . . “Uncommon” by Tony Dungy . . . “The Score Takes Care of Itself” by Bill Walsh.
Q: Favorite movie?
A: “Hoosiers.”
Q: Favorite actor?
A: Matt Damon.
Q: Favorite singer/entertainer?
A: Kenny Chesney.
Q: Hobbies?
A: I love to golf . . . I stink at it. We’ve got some great jogging trails and walking trails. I like being out there with my family.
Q: Butler will be a favorite next year.
A: You never know how you’re gonna replace the people that have left. The other thing you never know is who you’re gonna have to match up with.
Q: Who would play you in the movie?
A: I know this — whoever played me would have to be slow, a bad defender, and a guy who liked to run off screens and shoot.