Laken Litman and Laken Litman | IndyStar

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Matt Cashore, Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports

SOUTH BEND – With the summer tournament circuit over and the recruiting quiet period in session, IndyStar’s Notre Dame Insider Laken Litman sat down with Fighting Irish basketball coach Mike Brey.

In a wide-ranging interview, Brey discussed where his program stands big picture coming off a successful although disappointing end to last season, realistic expectations for the team and Bonzie Colson in 2017-18, whether the program gets enough attention and much more.

Notre Dame opens its season Nov. 11 on the road against DePaul.

This interview was edited for length.

Question: Where does the program stand coming off a run at the ACC championship and second-round exit in the NCAA tournament last season?

Answer: The program may be at its healthiest state in its 113-year history, quite frankly. We’ve got unbelievable momentum, we feel we’re in a great position with young players. Part of the culture here is young players growing up in our system getting older, getting better. We’re very excited about our recruiting to date for the 2018 class (three four-star players), and again, the ACC kind of energizes you.

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It was like taking a new coaching job when we went to the ACC (in 2013-14). You can get a little stale in the Big East — and I loved the Big East. But when we went to the ACC, it kind of energized me because it was a new challenge and, can you make it? Of course after the first year (when Notre Dame went 6-12 in league play), I was wondering, maybe I can’t make it in the ACC. But the last three (in which the Irish have gone to two Elite Eights) we’ve been on a good run. We still have a nucleus of kids who have been part of winning and I think that the culture is really firmly established.

We’re really a model program. We’re not grabbing a bunch of five-star guys, we’re getting guys better. How we play, the demeanor and style of how we interact. Our culture is asked about a lot and that’s very flattering. But it’s a pretty good thing we’ve got going and it’s exciting to be part of it.

Q: What specifically do coaches ask about the culture you’ve developed?

A: Certainly our style of play. Our offense is something people talk about. I hadn’t done an instructional video in awhile, but I did one and it’s going to come out in the next couple weeks.

From the offensive standpoint, I get back to a Jay Bilas line about our program 6-7 years ago: “Your guys play with a free mind.” There’s a confidence to our play, hopefully that’s part of my demeanor and how I handle them in a game. They’re not looking over at the bench if they make a mistake. They’re kind of going for it and playing a little loose.

Q: How do you make sure you don’t get stale in your approach?

A: I think I’m always looking to, how can I freshly address these guys? Maybe for most my tenure here, but especially the last three and definitely with this team, we had some really intense guys. They have such a high bar for themselves and as a team that I have to keep them loose because they’re really hard on themselves and I gotta get them to breathe a little bit sometimes.

T.J. Gibbs and Rex Pflueger, Bonzie (Colson), Matty (Farrell), who will be four-man guys for us, those guys are hard on themselves. And I’m gonna have to be the guy who says, “On to the next play, man. Relax.” I think if you don’t have that kind of kid you can’t coach my way. The kind of kids we get here, because they want to compete in the classroom, they’ve been high achievers most of their life and so they are maniacal when they make a mistake or things don’t go well.

Q: What do you do to keep them loose? I remember last year before the Wake Forest game you took half-court shots during shootaround.

A: When my guys get to be juniors or seniors, you can kid around with them and I can get on them and they can tease me and then business is business (on the court). That’s why I love coaching here. My guys stay four and sometimes five years. You’re really talking to them like men and then when it’s time to get down to business it’s time to get down to business.

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Q: Do you think your program gets enough attention given its recent success?

A: I think at times we probably have not had maybe what we should have. I sensed that in my years earlier before this run, but I do think it’s kind of turned a little bit and people have been excited.

The one thing — and I’ve always felt this way — is I’ve gotta market my program every day. I’m always thinking of ways to market. I really connect with our students. I don’t ever want to lose that base. When I got here I always sensed we had to generate that a little bit. I think we’ve hit a level of people appreciate and respect the program and like what’s going on.

Q: What about during the ACC tournament in Brooklyn? Notre Dame has a strong alumni base in New York but it didn’t show up in the crowd.

A: I was disappointed in our crowd in New York. I was disappointed there and I was disappointed when we played Villanova (at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J.). We do have a very good New York contingent and we’ve been pretty good in the ACC tournament (winning the conference title in 2015, playing Duke in the championship game in 2017). That has disappointed me the last couple of years because I know we have people there. They need to get off their backsides and get out there and watch this thing.

Q: Would you ever be interested in another job? There was some discussion earlier this year when jobs such as Georgetown were open and you were named on a few candidate lists.

A: I’m really not interested in another college job. I get a few calls every spring. Very humbling, very flattering. Georgetown was back in your hometown, which made you pause, but maybe only for 10 minutes.

I’ve not interviewed for a job or gotten into any deep negotiations with any other university. It takes a long time to get your name on a program, and we’ve got that here now. I love the momentum we have. I feel we can go further and get better. It takes a lot of energy to reinvent. The way I do it is, at Delaware and Notre Dame, I basically run for mayor. I don’t know if I want to do that again.

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I’ll never forget, and it’s amazing we’re going on 18 years, the first question at my press conference 17 years ago was from a reporter at the Chicago Sun-Times. I was replacing Matt Doherty, who was here for one year and then he went to North Carolina. So the inferiority complex around here was, is this going to be a quick pit stop and then you’re going to go? I was like, “God no. I hope I’m good enough that I can retire here.” And I’ve kind of lived by that.

This should be the last coaching job and I’ve still got great energy — even though I’m not a young coach anymore. But this should be where you wind it down and that’s always been the plan.

Q: You said “college job.” Would you be interested in the NBA?

A: You have a few feelers from there at times, too. That’s intriguing, but I get back to, the high school coach and teacher that I started as, that’s still how I operate and I wonder if I could really be the teacher that I love being at that level that I get to do at the college level. I’ve never thought of myself there. But I do end up watching the NBA a little more now. We’re interesting, I’m interesting I guess, because offensively we play the way the league plays.

Never say never but I say, this is probably the last place I call timeouts.

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Q: How will this team be different than it was last year?

A: We’re really good defensively right now. I’m still trying to figure us out offensively, which is usually not the case. But it’s kind of been a refreshing dynamic this summer. When you have a T.J. Gibbs and a Pflueger on the floor more, those guys really guard. You’ve lost some shooting with (V.J.) Beachem and (Steve) Vasturia, so how will we shoot the ball is something I’m interested in evaluating.

Q: Is Bonzie really going to be that different from how he was last year?

A: I think what you see with Bonzie is, he’s stretching the floor and shooting the jumpshot more, even shooting the three. That’s something that he’s evolved to and he’ll do it even more and more confidently this year.

Other than that, we want him to be that junkyard dog around the lane and in the paint. I think it’s important for me to find out where we move him around the floor offensively to take the best advantage of him because he’s so versatile. I think I’ve always gotta keep in mind during the game, where are we going to get him a touch? Is it the low post, the elbow, are we trying to set him up for a ball screen and flare for a three? That’s something on my mind that I’ve gotta be very sharp with because he’s got so many ways to hurt you.

I’ve been really impressed with his leadership. I never knew if that would be him. I think it’ll make him a better player. On the summer circuit talking to coaches, he’s the most appreciated college player coming back by coaches. Coaches love Bonzie Colson. They love him, they respect him, they love the chip on the shoulder that he’s made himself a player. If I had a dollar for every coach in the last three weeks that’s said, “Man I love your guy Colson!” I mean I could retire.

Q: What’s your recruiting strategy in Indiana? Notre Dame currently only has two players from the state on its roster.

A: We recruit the state. We had Chris Thomas, Luke Zeller, Luke Harangody, Demetrius Jackson, V.J. Beachem, Austin Torres, A.J. Burgett — we always look here first, there’s no question. The coaching in this state is fabulous. And you gotta remember, I’m the longest tenured coach in this state, I know all the high school guys. The other jobs have changed, so they really know me and they know our program and many of them reach out when they feel they have a kid that’s a good fit. And I respect that. When a high school coach in Indiana calls me and says this is your kind of guy.

D.C. to Boston is an unbelievable corridor for us. Florida has been good to us lately John Mooney and (UConn transfer) Juwan Durham are two guys from down there. We’re always looking at Texas, that’s an interesting area. Then Chicago, Ohio, Michigan a little bit.

Q: How does Archie Miller change the in-state recruiting scene?

A: He certainly gives Bloomington credibility. I think he really works at it. Great energy. He’s a really gifted young coach. I think it’s a great hire for Indiana. I thought it was a great fit. He’ll be a factor recruiting the state, there’s no question about it. But whether you’re coaching at Notre Dame or Indiana or Purdue or Butler, you can’t just do it in the state. You need more if you’re gonna be successful, so you gotta spread it out a little bit.

Q: Will the ACC best as strong as it was last year?

A: I think we’re gonna be a nine-bid league again, I really do. I think we’ve established ourselves as the deepest league. It’s one of those things, can you survive the regular season and get enough wins? The thing about playing in the ACC, there’s good news and bad news: the bad news is, oh my god you’re in the ACC. The good news is you’re in the ACC, which means there’s always a quality win on that schedule coming up weekly and if you get enough of them and you get to 10 league wins, it’s going to be hard to keep you out — even if you haven’t done crazy damage in the non-league schedule.

When we get to 20 league games (in 2019), then I’ll be bald.

Q: Is the difficulty of the league why your team was dragging in the NCAA tournament?

A: I’ll tell you where we were tired. We were tired because we played our best basketball in New York (at the ACC tournament). And we played the late show (every game tipped off at 9 p.m. or later) and we went for it. Bonzie gets the ankle, I mean, there was no way we were getting back to that level that week, you know?

As a matter of fact I’m thrilled we beat Princeton (in the first round). Like that’s a great win because we were limping. Literally and mentally that whole game. It was hard to get the engines going again. But I wouldn’t have it any other way because you play for an ACC championship and you’re wanting to play good in March.

Twenty league games though, I think you have to be smart about your non-league schedule. We can’t play too many power games in the non-league. The Crossroads Classic is always on there, the ACC-Big Ten Challenge — now there’s 22 power games. If I play in the Maui Classic, there’s two or three more.