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Arizona, UConn, Illinois and Michigan addressed the media hordes on Thursday before the Final Four. What'd they say? Plus: Bidunga enters NBA Draft and portal, NIT and Crown results, UCLA gets a key returners and programs in line for high retention.
Tristan Freeman
April 03, 2026
Happy Friday! Hope you’re ready to consume loads of college basketball content over the next few days. We are.
Let’s get to Thursday’s news.
In partnership with D1.relocation
1. Players, coaches set the Final Four stage
Final Four players and coaches fielded media questions on Thursday in Indianapolis, stoking the interest for what should be a great Final Four.
Here are the highlights:
With the open UNC job being linked to two of the Final Four head coaches, Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd said that the team “has my full focus” and that nothing will knock him off that path.
Lloyd praised star guard Jaden Bradley, noting that “I don't know if I've seen a guy be as consistently high level in clutch moments as he's been for an entire season.”
Michigan coach Dusty May says that Elliot Cadeau has arrived in Indy with the team after suffering an allergic reaction earlier this week and is “fine.”
This is May’s second Final Four after taking FAU to the final weekend in 2023. That team returned all its players, which then didn’t fare as well the next season. That challenge was harder than he expected. “It would have been healthier for the group if we didn’t retain everyone,” May said.
May also argued that recruiting has actually become easier in the transfer portal, pointing out that a lot of “resources you’ve wasted” were spent on high school prospects to commit.
UConn coach Dan Hurley was clear about the Huskies’ goals, noting that they “don’t hang banners for Final Fours… we hang national championship banners.”
Illinois coach Brad Underwood, looking back at the Elite 8 loss to UConn in 2024, said “we learned a lot from that game.”
Illinois forward David Mirkovic on the upcoming matchup with UConn center Tarris Reed Jr: “He didn’t see two seven-footers yet in March Madness.”
After limited minutes in the past two games, UConn forward Jaylin Stewart says he’s “100%” for the Final Four.
2. Bidunga to enter NBA draft and portal + more news
About 1,000 players intend to enter the transfer portal when it opens on April 7. And so far, none is bigger than Flory Bidunga, the reigning Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year and starting forward for the Kansas Jayhawks.
