By Harry Minium
HARTFORD, Conn.
Win or lose against Purdue in the NCAA tournament on Thursday, Jeff Jones plans to return as Old Dominion’s basketball coach.
Asked about his future at a press conference Wednesday at the Hartford Civic Center, Jones didn’t quibble.
“Coaching is not just something I do. That’s who I am,” he said.
“So I have every intention of continuing to coach. You know, the idea of not coaching, the idea of retirement, that’s not even on the radar at this point.
“I heard people in our community this year, people were saying, ‘oh, this is going to be his last year.’ I mean, I guess I understand how stuff like that gets started, but there’s absolutely no truth to it.”
Jones’ battle against prostate cancer this season was a mostly a local story confined to Hampton Roads until the Monarchs won the Conference USA title against Western Kentucky last weekend in Frisco, Texas. After the game, he was seen on national TV sobbing into a towel.
Part of that reaction, he said, was because it was the first time he’s taken ODU to the NCAA tournament in six years. But it was also because his struggle against prostate cancer has been difficult.
It is incurable. The growth can be managed with drugs, but as long as he lives, he’ll have cancer.
Jeff Jones has taken on a national profile in urging men older than 50 to get tested for prostate cancer.
Wednesday morning, the story of Jones' courageous battle against cancer was featured on the front of USA Today, which owns a chain of newspapers that are re-running the story. Suddenly, he’s become the feel-good story of March Madness. The Washington Post and other national publications are now running with the story.
Jones spent 15 minutes behind the podium Wednesday and the majority of questions revolved around his cancer. Could he become the Sister Jean of the 2019 tournament?
“It’s not like every day is torture,” he said. “I mean, most days, it’s fine. The side effects are there and they aren’t a whole lot of fun, but there have only been a handful of days where it’s really affected me.”
An hour after his press conference, the XL Center was nearly empty save for the ODU team, band and cheerleaders. But the place was jumping.
A few dozen ODU fans, and the band, cheerleaders and dynasty dance team made a ton of noise as players shot, went through drills and smiled as they listened to the commotion. Afterwards, it was a lovefest, as the players exchanged high fives with their supporters, band, dancers and cheerleaders and exited the court.
Leave it to a cheerleader to state what many are saying about ODU’s chances to upset No. 3 Purdue Thursday night in the NCAA tournament.
“I’ve got a feeling,” one yelled, “that you’re going to do great things tomorrow.”
ODU (26-8), a 14th seed, remains a longshot among oddmakers, who pick the Boilermakers (23-9) to win by 13 points in the 9:50 p.m. game (TBS-TV; ESPN-Radio 94.1 FM).
Logically, that makes sense. The Boilermakers have an All-American in Ryan Carsen, and have been to the Sweet 16 the last two years. They’re taller, bigger and more talented than ODU.
ODU's shootaround practice at the XL Center Wednesday drew a smattering of fans and the Monarch band and cheerleaders.
An ODU victory would be a major upset. A bracket buster.
But nationally, ODU has picked up a ton of pre-tournament hype. USA Today picked ODU as the team most likely to pull off a major upset. So did NBC Sports. Basketball expert Jeff Goodman has ODU headed all the way to the Sweet 16.
And because of Jones’ story, a lot of people nationally are rooting for ODU. Purdue coach Matt Painter would be one of them if his Boilermakers weren’t playing ODU.
Painter isn’t especially close to Jones, but said the scene after the C-USA tournament victory touched his heart.
“Obviously, when something like that happens, it puts everything into perspective,” he said. “It lets you know that basketball is really not that important.”
He said he saw the video of Jones and choked up. “Just the emotion of it,” he said, was inspiring. “I’m happy for him and happy for those guys.
“Any time you go through some adversity and then you’re able to have some success, you know, it makes it all worthwhile.
ODU's locker room was jammed with reporters Wednesday in Hartford.
For him, I think it’s kind of twofold. He’s a great guy and he’s a great coach. I think his players would say the same thing.”
That doesn’t mean Purdue will show any mercy to the Monarchs.
“Everyone in the NCAA tournament earns their way in,” he said. “That’s a good team. They’ve been in a lot of close games and they’ve won most of them.
“We’re going to play very hard.”
B.J. Stith, ODU’s leading scorer and Conference USA Player of the Year, said the season has so far been magical and indeed it has. ODU had a suddenly developed a very big hole at center late last spring when Trey Porter transferred to Nevada, but filled it nicely by getting transfers Elbert Robinson III and Dajour Dickens.
ODU swept three games from Western Kentucky, the C-USA preseason favorite, and won at No. 25 Syracuse and at home against Atlantic 10 regular-season champion VCU.
“We faced odds that no one thought we could overcome,” Stith said. “It’s been magical. But we do not want it to stop.
“Coach Jones hasn’t talk a lot about his cancer. And personally, I didn’t want to know any details. I’ve had family members with cancer, so I know what it’s like.
“All I know is that he hasn’t changed a bit. He’s still the same guy he’s always been.”
That was evident at a morning practice on Wednesday, when Jones blistered the team for a lackluster effort.
“Yeah, he got on us,” said freshman Jason Wade. “He’s told us to focus on the game plan, keep getting your rest, staying focused and locked in.”
The key matchup in this game is between point guard Ahmad Caver and Carsen. Caver is ODU’s quarterback, the guy who sets up the offense, sets the pace and generally takes on the best offensive guard on the opposing team.
“He’s a great player,” Caver said of Carsen. “They have a lot of sets designed to get him open. I’m going to try to beat him on every catch and try to make him take tough shots.”
ODU is a mid-major who is sometimes covered by just one reporter – Ed Miller from The Virginian-Pilot. Wednesday afternoon their locker room was deluged with media members from all over the country. More than a dozen crowded in and asked questions of players who haven't been interviewed much, if at all, this season.
The media attention can be a distraction, but the Monarchs say they are drinking it in.
“It means the world to me to be in the NCAA tournament,” said Justice Kithcart, a transfer from Pitt and a Durham, N.C. native.
“I grew up seeing Duke and Carolina go to the NCAA tournament. I dreamed of playing in the tournament.
“To come into the environment like Old Dominion, with great guys, great teammates, I couldn’t ask for more.
“To get the chance to play in the tournament is something I’m going to cherish.”
As the ODU band played, an ODU cheerleader screamed at the Monarchs that she felt an upset was in the air.
Jones was originally treated for prostate cancer in 2015. He announced in September that the cancer was again growing and he would need more treatment.
“Last summer, the summer of 2018, the cancer began to grow, so I needed to begin treatment,” he said “And the therapy, the side effects from that therapy were such that there was not going to be a way to keep it private. I knew it was going to get out.
“I wanted to control the message. I wanted my players to hear it from me. I wanted my friends and family and professional colleagues to hear it from me.”
He also said his wife, Danielle Jones, encouraged him to go public to get the word out that men older than 50 need to get tested. Jones found out he had cancer only because he took a blood test as a requirement for a new insurance policy.
“Trying to bring awareness was another goal that was important to me,” he said.
He said his staff made this year easier to allowing him to take a day off here and there when he needed it. President John R. Broderick and athletic director Wood Selig “have been explicit in telling me, make sure you take care of yourself and don’t overdo it. When you’ve got that kind of support from the people above you, as well as the people around you, I won’t say it makes it easy, but you can get through it.”
Stith said the video of Jones brought tears to his eyes.
“It got to all of us,” he said. “It made us want to win more games in this tournament for him, to keep this magic going.
“Everyone wants to win for coach.”
Contact Minium: hminium@odu.edu