Josh Eilert George Mason Postgame
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00:00 >> First of all, I just wanna give you an update on Cook.
00:03 Found out good news.
00:06 He's stable, he's responsive, he wanted to make sure he
00:10 congratulated his teammates and he's in a good place right now.
00:15 They're probably gonna be holding him overnight and doing a lot of testing.
00:18 But never thought I'd have to deal with a situation like that and
00:23 it's heartbreaking but I'm glad he's still here with us.
00:28 So, but on to the game, credit George Mason.
00:32 Credit George Mason, they came in here ready to go, ready to fight and
00:36 it was a dog fight and they took it right to us.
00:39 And we certainly challenged us on the defensive end and
00:43 a lot of things we need to clean up in that regard.
00:47 So credit to Tony and his team and program coming in here and
00:51 giving us a good test, something we probably needed going into that first game.
00:56 And thank you to the fans, thank you to the fans for coming out.
01:01 It sounds like we had about 9,000 people, a lot going on on Friday night and
01:04 I feel the support from Mountaineer Nation and
01:07 that was uplifting to our guys and fun to play in front of.
01:10 >> Josh, it looked like after the incident and
01:15 they moving on the stretcher, it looked like maybe there was talk.
01:22 You guys always gonna just continue to play or was there talk to?
01:26 >> Yeah, there was a discussion and Tony and I talked and he left it up to me and
01:31 I made sure the guys were in a good headspace,
01:36 good enough headspace to continue the game.
01:39 That's important and they wanted to play so we decided it's the best to move on and
01:44 try to turn the page and get out there warm up and go after them.
01:49 [BLANK_AUDIO]
01:56 >> What changed on the court after that incident?
02:00 It seemed like maybe a little bit more fire, obviously some better execution.
02:04 >> I don't know.
02:04 I had to kind of force the issue with Jesse.
02:10 I wanted to do as much as I can to get everybody involved and
02:15 sometimes you just keep riding that horse and riding that horse, wear him down.
02:20 And we have lack of depth at the big so that's concerning to me and
02:25 it's a charity exhibition game but ultimately I wanted to win so
02:30 I went to Jesse and I kept forcing that issue.
02:33 And he handled it well and kept fighting and got us to win.
02:38 >> The closing minutes there, I've talked to him.
02:43 It almost seemed like he was like a closer and a baseball kind of situation.
02:48 I mean, he said that could be anyone on any given night but
02:53 I mean, can he be that closing kind of guy for you?
02:56 >> Yeah, we gotta keep him on the floor.
02:58 Gotta keep him on the floor.
02:59 I mean, I'd said at halftime, as a coach with this team,
03:04 it's my worst nightmare to have my two bigs with foul trouble.
03:08 And we hadn't ran a lot of those lineups out there before and
03:13 we had to go small, we even went Quinn at the five.
03:15 We've never done that in practice.
03:16 So we were experimenting on the fly to figure out how to win a game and
03:23 credit to those guys, every one of them stepped up and figured out a way to
03:27 contribute and handle the adversity and figure out a way to get the win.
03:32 >> Josh, I mean, were you sad for so long, you could refer to any number of things
03:38 in the past to get you a point of reference for how to move forward on something.
03:42 But the A cook thing, are you just winging it there or
03:45 you just being a human instead of a coach?
03:47 How are you organizing?
03:48 >> Say that again, I'm sorry, I didn't hear you.
03:50 >> How are you getting, what experience do you draw on or
03:54 what lessons do you just try to get back on the court after the cook thing?
03:57 >> There isn't one.
04:01 It's fortunate that the cook's doing good and
04:07 it's one of those things that gives perspective to what we got going on here.
04:12 This is a basketball game, but these are human lives.
04:16 And these kids we get really close to and it was tough for everybody.
04:20 But in life we move on, I hate to say it like that, but he's good and
04:26 a good place and the guys wanted to continue playing so we continued playing.
04:33 >> And then you don't wanna lose the scrimmage to Vanderbilt, but
04:37 that was a close game back and forth in this, not the same but similar.
04:41 Did you see growth, lessons learned applied to that?
04:44 >> I thought we played a lot harder.
04:45 We made a lot of the same mistakes we did against Vanderbilt.
04:52 But our energy and our enthusiasm and
04:54 probably credit to our crowd playing in front of the fans for the first time.
05:00 I think that really gave that energy and that jolt to our guys and
05:06 turn it up a notch and they're competing out there.
05:09 I love the fire, I love the competitiveness.
05:12 There's certain guys that we need to get more out of and
05:15 understand that their role is gonna be a lot bigger coming up.
05:19 So we'll hit home on that tomorrow and we'll go through everything and
05:24 break down all the film and try to do our best to recover and get healthy.
05:28 Because the game within the game is controlling our bodies and
05:34 taking care of our bodies because our depth isn't that good.
05:37 >> I imagine watching Offrey grow during this year is gonna be quite something.
05:44 >> Yeah, he's a special kid.
05:45 He really is a special basketball player.
05:48 He's got one of the best basketball IQs that I've seen as a freshman.
05:53 And he competes.
05:55 He competes and the questions he asks,
05:58 sometimes I don't understand what he's saying.
05:59 But once I figure it out, they're really good questions.
06:03 So we're working through that and getting that language barrier broken down.
06:08 But in the heat of the moment, sometimes I don't know what he's asking, but
06:11 we get it figured out one way or another.
06:13 >> Have you had to sit down with him about what's going on back home and
06:17 what he is and- >> Yeah, I check with him every day and
06:21 make sure he's in a good mental head space.
06:23 It is a lot for him.
06:27 His family's safe.
06:29 He's got one older sister that is with the family, but they're in northern Israel.
06:34 So it's not quite as intense in northern Israel.
06:39 And but yeah, it's one of those challenges,
06:43 keeping everybody level headed and in a good mind space.
06:48 And that's a challenge I have with Offrey with his situation that's going on and
06:53 a challenge I have with Raekwon and trying to keep him positive and optimistic.
06:58 And there's a lot going on and a lot of challenges we have to navigate,
07:03 but that's life.
07:06 >> Coach, a new blocking foul kind of came into play tonight with the charge and
07:09 how they're gonna call that this season.
07:11 Is that gonna take some getting used to for the refs and the players?
07:14 >> Yeah, and it's supposed to be the secondary defender in a lot of ways.
07:19 I thought I could argue a lot of several of Kerr's situations.
07:24 I thought he was in really good position defensively.
07:26 And so we're gonna have to analyze some of that and really dissect it.
07:32 But we didn't really run into any of the issues where a secondary defender step up
07:36 and try to take a charge.
07:37 It was all primary defender.
07:39 And if that's your space, that's your space as a defender.
07:42 If they can't run right through you.
07:44 >> The one with Seth at midcourt also kind of, I mean,
07:49 it looked like that would have been a charge in most years.
07:52 >> Yeah, and I argued that too.
07:54 I mean, I felt like he was there.
07:56 He had two feet planted and plenty of space and he just ran right through him.
08:01 And I think we're gonna have to figure out a happy medium.
08:04 I know they said they analyzed like 100 block charges last year.
08:10 And 96 of the 100 wouldn't have been a charge.
08:14 So we really gotta look at that.
08:19 And I think sometimes the officials are just gonna err on the side of it's always
08:23 a block.
08:24 And we gotta figure out where that is, especially with a primary defender.
08:29 >> Josh, going back to Oak Creek.
08:31 That's such a unique recruitment, his location, his background.
08:34 But also you kinda needed somebody that could play.
08:37 But also it was young, I think, is what you're looking for too.
08:39 And you can't see him, get hands on him, and work with him, and
08:41 scout him in person.
08:42 But were you asking certain questions, looking for certain things to say yes?
08:45 >> No, we watched a lot of film on him.
08:48 And that's the only way we could evaluate him.
08:50 This summer, there were a lot of challenges to navigate.
08:53 And certainly filling our roster was one of the big ones.
08:55 So you kinda had to take a leap of faith with some guys.
09:00 And I really didn't think with his size when he came in,
09:03 he'd be as effective as he is.
09:05 But he's so active, and he's got such a great high IQ,
09:09 basketball-wise, that he can make up for a lot of mistakes.
09:13 And no, I've been so pleasantly surprised with him.
09:16 And he keeps coming in every day and competing.
09:20 And he's a great teammate and a great kid to be around.
09:24 >> You get into halftime tonight, and obviously you guys are down a few points.
09:28 But Jesse's in foul trouble, but he also doesn't have a rebound at halftime.
09:35 Kerr doesn't have an assist at halftime.
09:38 Is that a moment for you where Josh Eilert blows up?
09:41 Or is this a teaching moment?
09:43 How did you kinda handle- >> Honestly, I didn't know either of those
09:46 stats.
09:46 That's crazy to me that we're only down, what, we're down four at halftime?
09:53 Maybe six.
09:54 And my best rebounder didn't have a rebound.
09:57 My ball handler didn't have an assist.
10:00 And credit them, I mean, they threw us off.
10:02 They threw that 2-2-1 out there.
10:04 And when we scouted them, their zone immediately turned man.
10:09 And we didn't work as much zone offense this week.
10:12 And they slowed us down.
10:15 And we weren't quite prepared in that regard to attack what they threw at us.
10:21 So we were a little bit discombobulated in that regard.
10:24 So credit to them, trying to figure out a way to throw us off.
10:28 And they certainly did that.
10:29 >> What'd you like most offensively?
10:33 >> I thought for the most part, our ball movement was pretty good.
10:35 We still need to really hound our spacing.
10:39 There are several times we drive downhill and our guys aren't in the right spot.
10:44 And I talk about it all the time with them in terms of trust.
10:46 You gotta trust your teammates gonna be in the right position.
10:49 So we gotta get to the right position and the right spacing.
10:51 So I thought for the most part, we played really unselfish.
10:57 And I think that was something that shot selection,
11:00 it was really kind of off in the Vanderbilt scrimmage.
11:04 That we kind of shored up a little bit.
11:06 But I didn't see anybody out there trying to get theirs and
11:09 really break off any plays to make it all about them.
11:14 >> About rebounding?
11:15 >> Gonna be a concern.
11:17 It's been a concern from the first day we stepped on the practice floor with
11:21 everybody.
11:22 I wanna play fast.
11:24 I wanna get down the floor.
11:25 I wanna get easy buckets.
11:26 But not to the detriment of giving up a offensive rebound,
11:30 because people are just leaking out and we gotta fix that.
11:34 >> Quinn and Jesse were both talking about some of the modern stuff you've had.
11:38 That's the word they used, right?
11:39 How did you modernize it?
11:42 Was it stuff that you just kind of impinged to a board through the years?
11:44 Did you look at your personnel and say, I wanna do this?
11:46 >> Yeah, I mean, I was a video coordinator when I first got here.
11:50 I dissected everybody's offense.
11:52 And so I took a lot of mental notes on what I wanna do.
11:56 And I became a head coach.
11:58 And certainly, the playbook that I have in place, I mean, we sit down,
12:03 Dashaun and I, and he brought a lot to the table in terms of offensive ideas.
12:08 And we get a playbook that's pretty thick, but
12:11 we're probably only a third through it.
12:13 Because college athletes don't pick up everything.
12:17 It takes some time.
12:19 Everybody's starting from scratch.
12:21 So it takes a little time to get all those plays in.
12:23 And we probably used way too many tonight to get the job done.
12:30 And not something I really wanted to do in an exhibition game.
12:32 But I also don't wanna lose.
12:36 >> Was there a team or a coach or a conference that you borrowed most from?
12:42 >> Say that again. >> Was there a team or
12:43 a coach or a conference you found yourself borrowing most from?
12:45 It's been a while since you were the coordinator.
12:46 >> Well, I mean, yeah.
12:48 The biggest thing we probably gave up with the spacing was offensive rebounding.
12:56 And that's not answering your question, but
12:58 there really isn't anybody like it comes to mind.
13:03 I used to love Tom Izzo's spacing when he flashed one four and
13:07 ran out everything.
13:08 They brought everybody up to the foul line and ran things through.
13:13 You always had backdoor options.
13:15 You always had downhill options.
13:17 There wasn't anybody clogging the paint.
13:18 So that's the first one that comes to mind.
13:22 And he's probably changed his offense two or three times since then.
13:25 So no, you take pieces that you see and
13:31 you try to make it work with your personnel.
13:34 And sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.
13:36 And sometimes you scrap things and other things you go to and
13:40 you hammer home because they're really efficient.
13:42 >> Your turn?
13:44 Go ahead.
13:44 >> When you were named coach, were you worried at all about the idea that you
13:49 had not coached and getting accepted to players like the players from here,
13:54 played for Bob Ovens, who was in all fame and 900 wins.
13:58 Jesse had played for Bayheim.
14:01 Chris had played for Sean Martin, Sean Penn, or whatever the hell his name is.
14:07 >> I don't know.
14:07 >> Yeah.
14:08 Anyway, did that go through your mind at all?
14:12 >> Well, I mean, I think Tony probably had to do the same thing.
14:16 George Mason, he had to put a lot of pieces in place and
14:20 try to make them all mesh.
14:22 And chemistry is certainly one I wanted to hammer home and
14:27 make sure people know how to play off each other.
14:29 And it's a long season, we're not quite there by any means.
14:33 But yeah, when you bring so many different personalities and so
14:37 many different talents together and try to, and
14:41 some of these guys have played for guys for, Jesse played for Bayheim for four years.
14:47 So a lot of things that he did is ingrained in him.
14:49 So trying to figure out how we use him and
14:53 get some of those things out of his game and it's a challenge.
14:57 It's a challenge every day and getting everybody on the same page and
15:01 locked in to do what we need to do.
15:02 Because it only takes one or two guys breaking an offense or breaking a defense.
15:07 And you got somebody going downhill and right at the rim.
15:10 >> Coach, going back to Kerr, he obviously played better in the second half.
15:16 Still finished with four fouls, had a couple turnovers.
15:21 What was your quick evaluation of him running the show out there for you tonight?
15:25 >> He did great.
15:26 I know there's a lot more to Kerr than he probably showed tonight.
15:31 He's a competitor.
15:32 There's some fire there.
15:33 There's some fire there with Quinn.
15:35 But I'm gonna lean on Kerr a lot.
15:39 He's an in-game type of player, coach.
15:43 So he can see things on the floor that a lot of point guards might not.
15:48 And he can call sets that we've already ran and run them.
15:52 And I don't have to worry that people aren't gonna be in the right spot.
15:55 He's gonna try to get them there.
15:56 >> Coach, thank you.
15:58 >> Thank you.