From Freshman to Senior: Daniel Mullings’ Inside Look at March Madness

March Madness captivates sports fans and non-sports fans alike, leaving us teetering on the edge of our seats, our eyes glued to our screens in anticipation. And if March Madness is this exciting for the viewers, imagine how exciting it is for the players.

The Niagara River Lions have a handful of players that have had the opportunity to participate in March Madness, with Trae Bell Haynes participating in 2017 while he played for the Vermont Catamounts, Kassius Robertson participating in 2018 when he played for the Missouri Tigers, Javin DeLaurier participating four times while he played with the Duke Blue Devils (2017-2020), and Daniel Mullings participating four times with the New Mexico State Aggies (2012-2015). 

We had the pleasure of chatting with Daniel Mullings about his experiences at the NCAA tournament and had the opportunity to pick the veteran’s brain for advice on how players can stay composed and play to the best of their ability as they participate in this high-stakes tournament.

Throughout Mullings’ four appearances at March Madness, the Aggies were consistently labeled the underdog and had to prove to fans and competitors alike that they deserved their ticket to the tournament. 

“To be considered the underdog is nothing new for me and the program as well” Mullings stated. 

Mullings experienced his first March Madness in his 2012 freshman season with the Aggies, where they entered the tournament seeded #13 and faced off against the #4 seeded Indiana Hoosiers. 

“That experience was a crazy experience because being so young, I was like, ‘Oh man, this is amazing, this is a feeling I want to experience for the rest of my collegiate career’” stated Mullings. “And then you see some of the sophomores and the juniors that maybe it’s their first time so they can’t believe it, and then you see the seniors who it’s their last go-around/their last leg, and you see how much they appreciate it. It just allows you to sit back and soak in the whole moment and take it for what it is, and it gives you that added motivation to want to get that feeling back again.” 

 

There is no denying the different feel that March Madness has compared to other tournaments. Players are performing in a high-pressure environment with cameras constantly at the ready whichever way they turn, which understandably, can throw some players off of their game. This makes being able to reach out to older players who have prior March Madness experience invaluable to younger players looking for guidance. 

 

“The older guys told me to enjoy the moment, to enjoy everything that’s going on around me, and to feel proud of myself because we really worked hard to get to that point and to reach March Madness and to be a part of the whole experience. Not a lot of people get to experience that” Mullings said. “So they told me to just enjoy and relax and take everything for what it is.”

 

In Mullings’ sophomore year, the #13 seeded Aggies lost to the #4 seeded Saint Louis Billikens. 

 

Mullings’ junior year is where things started to heat up. The Aggies faced off against #4 seeded San Diego State and ended up forcing the Aztecs into overtime, where after an immaculate effort by both teams, the Aggies lost with a final score of 73-69.

 

“We all played well that game. We all had the same mindset and we all put it all out on the line and it was just unfortunate that we came up short” Mullings recalled. “I felt like that game we all felt like we were going to win and we should have won. Everyone played well but it was still a great experience and that was the closest that we got to getting to the next round.”

Leading up to the tournament, Mullings was awarded NABC (National Association of Basketball Coaches) All-District First Team as well as WAC Player of the Year, amongst other conference awards.

 

In Mullings’ fourth and final year in his collegiate career, the New Mexico State Aggies faced off against the #2 seeded Kansas Jayhawks, where they were unfortunately beat out in Mullings’ last appearance at the tournament. But, Mullings was able to share the experience with some of his closest friends at the time. 

 

“For senior year, that was my last collegiate game and there were three other seniors with me. One of the guys came in the same year as me and we registered at the same time so we spent a lot of time together. So that memory sticks, and there’s a picture of all four of us standing after they [Kansas] took us out and we all stood together as four brothers. You could see the pain because we were so passionate and we knew that this was the last time that we were all going to be together and playing together at that level. We loved each other so much as brothers and our bond was so good that it hurt so much with that being our last go-around” said Mullings. 

 

With four NCAA tournaments under his belt and the unforgettable memories to go with them, Mullings’ multiple March Madness appearances have provided him with the experience and knowledge that can help guide the upcoming talent who hope to participate in the tournament throughout their college careers. 

 

“Go there and don’t put any additional pressure on yourself. Go in there, be you, be proud of yourself but not satisfied” said Mullings. “Focus on your task at hand, but while you focus, enjoy and have fun. Enjoy the moment. Stay present in that moment and don’t think too far ahead about the games, about the shooter rounds, about this and that. Just try to stay within that present moment and have fun because these are moments that you don’t get back and moments that don’t come for everybody often and every year. I would tell them [Freshmen] that they belong there and to act like it and continue to do what got them there. Don’t get there and switch it up because now there’s more eyes on you or you feel like there’s a little more pressure. Just do what you do, do what you do best, do what you’re used to doing, and the rest will take care of itself.” 

In typical March Madness fashion, the current 2021 NCAA tournament has had plenty of upsets that are keeping fans dialed into the action. The tournament is scheduled to end on April 5th and will surely come to a nail-biting end. Check your brackets!