Davis becomes favorite among national media

ATLANTA -- It's hard not to like a guy as easygoing as Mike Davis. And for the national media that got to know him for the first time in Atlanta this weekend, it would be an understatement to say that they fell in love with him.\nAndy Katz from ESPN looked giddy when he was talking to Davis this weekend in an extended interview while Linda Cohn, also of ESPN, gave Davis a big hug and told him how happy she was for him after the Oklahoma win.\nAnd between games, Davis was poked and prodded with questions on all types of subjects. He joked that he wanted a raise after this run to the Final Four and spoke of his desire to someday coach in the NBA, prompting the media to assume he will leave after this season.\nAfter a reporter told A.J. Moye something that Davis had said, Moye couldn't help but crack up.\n"Coach Davis will tell (the media) anything," Moye said, laughing.\nApparently Moye is right. All week leading up to the Final Four the media was focused on Tom Coverdale's left ankle, assuming that he was likely to miss the game. After Coverdale played 29 minutes Saturday night, Davis tipped his hand Sunday afternoon.\n"I was glad (the media) was talking about Coverdale because I knew he would play," Davis said. "I kept saying he's 40 percent, 50 percent, 60 percent. Then I said 70 percent. Everybody thought 'Okay, he's going to play.'\n"I said I'm going to tell them 40 percent again to keep people off guard."\nSeveral people have criticized Davis for saying the wrong things at the wrong time, but he doesn't worry too much about things like that. As Davis is known to say about himself, he is not a traditional coach. \n"I just feel like in this business you need to be friends with people and try to help other people as much as possible," Davis said. "I have people call me all the time telling me 'You shouldn't do this, shouldn't do this, shouldn't say this.'\n"Maybe I shouldn't. Maybe it is a game and you have to know the rules of the game to survive."\nWhile Maryland had a standard practice Sunday, Davis and the Hoosiers stuck to their usual Sunday routine, which consists of no practice but an optional shoot around. The media was puzzled, but IU knows the drill.\n"Our coaches have done an outstanding job in showing us how to win basketball games," Dane Fife said. "Coach understands that he's got guys that are willing to work for him. He knows that he has guys who are going to come in and shoot."\nPerhaps the funniest comment of the week came from Davis before last night's game. The talk had been that the Terrapins were superior in athletic ability to the Hoosiers. IU was supposed to have not even gotten to the title game. The Hoosiers were supposed to be outclassed athletically by the Sooners.\nComically, Davis agreed with the doubters.\n"You should shake your head because if you watch Oklahoma, Kansas and Maryland practice, and you look at us, you probably say 'There's no way (the Hoosiers) -- they can't win.'"\nApparently the Hoosiers are even surprising their coach.\nA tough trip\nIn its run to the national title game, Maryland became the first team in tournament history to advance in each round by beating the highest possible seed in each round. The Terrapins beat No. 16 Siena in the first round and beat eighth-seeded Wisconsin in the second round. In the Sweet Sixteen, Maryland beat No. 4 Kentucky and then No. 2 Connecticut to advance to the Final Four.\nIn the national semifinals, the Terrapins beat No.1 Kansas. In that game Saturday night, Maryland won 97-88 as the two teams combined for 185 points. That total is the most since IU and UNLV combined for 190 points in the 1987 national semifinals. The Hoosiers beat the Runnin' Rebels, 97-93, en route to IU's fifth national title.\nAfter beating the Hoosiers Monday night, an exhausted Gary Williams enjoyed taking his alma mater to its first national championship in school history.\n"It is just a great feeling because we had to come through some great teams to get here, some teams that have won national championships," Williams said. "It was a great thrill for us because of the competition involved. I thought Indiana was a terrific basketball team"