Q&A with Syracuse guard Brandon Triche

Triche
Triche

NEW YORK — Brandon Triche was at the New York Athletic Club in Manhattan on Wednesday for Big East Media Day. We spoke with Brandon in an exclusive interview. Here’s what he had to say:

The Juice Online: Has it been a difficult transition from being a supporting player to a go-to guy?

Brandon Triche: Nah, it’s been cool. I love it. I’m excited. Just to have one year where I feel like I am that guy. I feel like my teammates are going to look for me a little more and look for me to produce a little more. It’s a fun position to be in. Growing up, I was always in that position before I got to college. I’m excited to go back to my old ways.

Triche
Triche is in his final year

TJO: You were high school teammates with DaJuan Coleman and now you’re college teammates. What advice have you given him?

BT: I just told him what type of hard work you need to put in and what he’s doing well. As a freshman you don’t want to tell him the negative aspects of it. You want to tell him the positive criticism and you want to tell them how good they’re doing. I pretty much talked to him about things you needed to do, and that’s part of being a leader.

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TJO: What are we going to see in your game this year that we haven’t seen in your previous three years?

BT: Everything. Being a lot more aggressive offensively. Getting to the basket, finishing above the rim. A lot of people don’t think I can jump, but I can really jump. You’re going to see more explosiveness. You’re going to see a little more passion on my sleeve than before. Just playing with a lot more energy and charisma.

TJO: Does leaving the Big East for the ACC have any impact on you?

BT: Personally, it doesn’t. But in the back of my mind, as a team, we do think about it because most of the players are going to be playing in the ACC. You just want to go out with a bang. It makes it so you want to go out on a high note.

» Related: Brandon Triche now leader of SU

TJO: Have your three years on The Hill been what you expected it to be?

BT: As a team, we’ve been doing exactly what I planned on doing. I wanted to win a national championship, but that’s a hard thing to do, especially in Division I. But personally, it hasn’t been up to par as far as my goals go. But I still have one more year to go, so I look forward to having a good year this year.

TJO: You’ve been on two teams that have been ranked No. 1. and you’ve been a starter through one of the most successful periods in college basketball. What does that mean to you?

BT: It’s cool. As a team in basketball, it’s all about winning. If I can help the team out in any way to get a W, that’s what I’m willing to do. No matter what you do individually, as long as your team wins, it’s going to make you look better as an individual.

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About Wes Cheng 2907 Articles
Wes has worked for Rivals.com covering the New York Knicks, as well as for Scout.com covering Syracuse athletics. Wes has also been a contributing writer for the South China Morning Post (Hong Kong), for SportsNet New York (SNY) as a news desk writer covering all of New York professional sports, and reported on the NBA and MLB for the New York Sportscene. A native of Long Island, New York, Wes graduated from Syracuse University in 2005 with a degree in journalism. Contact him at wes[at]sujuiceonline.com.