Josh Eilert Bellarmine Preview
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00:00 Morning, everyone will go ahead and get started with our media zoom this morning and I'll
00:07 turn it over to coach Tyler.
00:09 Good morning, everybody.
00:11 Want to recap the Florida trip.
00:14 I thought for the most part we had a lot of positive moments outside of a 1015 minute
00:22 stretch against SMU we played pretty good bat pretty good basketball, considering, you
00:27 know, the challenges we're facing and so I'm very, you know, pleasant pleasantly surprised
00:34 that once they pleasantly surprised I've been happy with the way we're competing, you know,
00:40 excited the way we're competing and the way we're handling these challenges, but we just
00:44 got to figure out a way to, you know, get over that hump and and and figure out a way
00:48 to be more disciplined down the stretch.
00:52 Take care of the ball a little better and figure out a way to come out of these games
00:55 of victories.
00:57 So I've been very encouraged with the way we competed the last couple games.
01:03 And you know, certainly not the outcome we had in mind in terms of, you know, coming
01:07 out of a two game stretch in Florida, but it is what it is at this point, we're two
01:12 and three now we got to move forward with four games at home and take advantage of our
01:16 home stretch.
01:17 Yesterday, we had to take the day off and do the NCAA rules.
01:23 So we took that day off, we spent some time as a team together and you know, had a nice
01:28 meal and, and even went bowling and spent some time together.
01:33 You could tell that the guys need a day off, you know, we, I believe I got in bed at 4
01:38 am, you know, coming back from Florida.
01:40 So travel's never easy and never seems to be everything seemed to be delayed.
01:46 And we had to fly in and out of Pittsburgh rather than Clarksburg.
01:50 So got us in a little bit late and got in bed by about four.
01:55 So everybody slept in yesterday and yesterday afternoon, we spent some time together, did
02:00 some bowling and got a good night's sleep last night.
02:04 So we're going back to work today, focusing on Bellarmine and focusing on them today and
02:09 tomorrow and getting ready to take on, you know, a good solid basketball team and coach
02:15 very well on Sunday afternoon.
02:17 So excited to have the next four games at home, you know, really need Mountaineer Nation
02:22 to back us and support us and show up and give us that energy that we need to get over
02:28 the hump and get going in a positive direction.
02:31 And I think we will, but we could use some help from our, from our, you know, the loyal
02:36 supporters that continue to back us and support us.
02:41 And even in Florida, we had a really good contingent of fans that showed up and were
02:46 loud and proud and gave us all that support.
02:49 So with this homestand, we're really going to need that support behind us and pick up
02:54 our energy, especially with shorthanded roster to be able to lay it out on the line, every
02:58 single possession, it's going to be extremely important.
03:02 And back to Bellarmine, very well coached team, a team that presents so many, I mean,
03:10 each team presents different challenges.
03:12 You know, Bellarmine has a group that can, it seems to be, you know, they all can shoot
03:19 it.
03:20 They all take care of the ball, they move the ball efficient, they keep it moving.
03:26 They very, very rarely do you ever see a ball screen, but they really play well together.
03:32 You know, a team that's veteran led, it's got nine returning letterman, four starters.
03:38 So they got a lot of cohesive group and probably not the most athletic group, but the very
03:45 cohesive group that can give you challenges on the defensive end.
03:49 So open it up to questions.
03:53 - Questions for coach, go ahead and unmute yourself and go ahead, Justin.
03:59 - Coach who won the bowling match?
04:02 - You know, it certainly wasn't me.
04:03 I was doing a lot of experimentation with some spins and whatnot.
04:07 So I took an L to my son, I know that.
04:11 I had to pay him some cash on the side because, you know, you get to a point where they're
04:17 old enough to beat you and that's a hit on your old ego.
04:23 So I took an L to my son, but it seemed like everybody was having a good time in their
04:27 respective lanes and excited to see everybody, you know, come together and do some things
04:32 outside of basketball.
04:34 And, you know, even coach Jamar had a beloved family in town.
04:38 So he, you know, after we got done eating there, you know, at Kegler's together, he'd
04:43 had a bunch of them over to his house.
04:45 So it was a good day for everybody to, you know, get a good night's sleep in after the
04:51 late return.
04:52 And the fact that, you know, everybody slept probably until noon or later, it sounds like,
04:59 and we spent the afternoon together and hopefully got a great night's sleep last night.
05:03 And now we're, you know, in the weight room and grinding the weight room and preparing
05:07 for Bellarmine.
05:08 Hey, the question I want to ask about Bellarmine, I mean, you've dealt with scheduling directly
05:15 for like what, like the last four or five years, at least probably.
05:19 Yeah.
05:20 With what coach Davenport does there with his non-conference schedule, if you're a power
05:26 five team, does it take anything more than a phone call to schedule them?
05:32 They're one of those teams that nobody really wants to play.
05:35 And like, even going back to the Missouri state game and the first thing that Dana had
05:40 to say to me was, thank you.
05:43 He said, thank you for playing us.
05:46 We can't get anybody to play us.
05:48 And some of these teams that a lot of the power five schools do really shy away from
05:55 playing because they can cause a lot of problems for certain teams.
05:59 And we've never really been a team to shy away from competition or shy away from those
06:05 teams that can help you with your resume come March.
06:10 So that's the type of approach we've had scheduling.
06:13 So whether we change that approach moving forward, it all depends on how, you know,
06:19 settled in we get with our roster and moving forward in terms of our growth.
06:24 So certainly I probably would have scheduled a little differently knowing our circumstances.
06:28 Right, right.
06:30 And going into the season with all the challenges and three starters down and playing a short
06:35 bench, I would have scheduled a heck of a lot different knowing that.
06:38 But that's where we're at.
06:40 And it's nobody's fault.
06:43 You know, within our program right now, we're just trying to get through this stretch and
06:47 with minimal damage so we can get back to, you know, as much as a full strength roster
06:53 as we possibly can, given our circumstances.
06:56 When you look at their schedule, Bellarmine schedule, what's your reaction?
07:02 I mean, they've already played K-State and Washington.
07:05 I think they got a trip to Utah coming up, a trip to BYU, play you guys.
07:10 I think there's another Power Five team on there somewhere too.
07:13 I think they play Louisville maybe?
07:16 Some of these teams, they're playing for March.
07:21 So their non-conference really doesn't mean much to them because they're not looking at
07:26 trying to get in that large bid, which my understanding is they're in their fourth year
07:30 of transition.
07:31 So I don't even know if they can make the NCAA tournament anyway, even if they got the
07:36 automatic bid.
07:37 And you could correct me if I'm wrong.
07:39 I'm not sure.
07:40 I'm not sure.
07:41 Yeah, I think they are in their fourth year of transition or maybe they are eligible.
07:45 I have to look that up.
07:47 But regardless, they're playing all these big games because, you know, they have to
07:51 go, certain coaches have to raise a certain amount of money with big games for their budget
07:58 to maintain their budget.
07:59 So they have to be bought by a certain amount of high major teams to get that number.
08:06 Now for some of these teams, like I said, they're playing for March.
08:11 So as battle tested as they can possibly be in the non-conference, when they go to their
08:14 conference and can understand who they are and what they have to do to compete and know
08:21 more about their team going to their conference and they're playing for March and the only
08:24 way to get to the NCAA tournament is to win in March and be the automatic qualifier, then
08:30 that's kind of the approach they have.
08:33 Thank you, Coach.
08:36 Questions for Coach, go ahead and unmute your line.
08:39 Go ahead, Greg.
08:42 Josh, you mentioned more discipline down the stretch, finding a way to win.
08:48 Ultimately, what does that take?
08:49 I mean, how do you get that out of this group, especially with only having seven or eight
08:53 available bodies right now?
08:56 Film study, reps, there's a lot of things you can correct just by simply, say for instance,
09:05 our guards come in when they're stringing ball screens out and just keeping your dribble
09:10 and not putting yourself in a position where you pick up your dribble against the ACC,
09:17 defensive player of the year.
09:19 And that's kind of what we did several times with our guard play.
09:23 Sometimes it's not dribbling and getting that confident dribble and when you receive the
09:28 ball and making the quick pass.
09:30 So we're making some mistakes from that end to where if we just think of things differently
09:37 and approach things differently and handle, and a lot of these guys are put in positions
09:44 they've never been put in before.
09:46 So they're trying to get that comfort level.
09:49 So the more we can rep it, the more we can show them on film, some of them very simple
09:55 things to clean up, but it's just got to register with them and their basketball IQ before we
10:01 can clean it up.
10:07 Questions for Coach?
10:08 Go ahead, Hertz.
10:10 Yeah, Coach.
10:13 Everybody, everybody wants to know, I guess, what you learn as a team, you know, fundamentally
10:20 and basketball wise.
10:22 But what have you guys learned about yourselves by what's happened and how it's transpired
10:29 to this point?
10:30 I mean, hopefully, we certainly want to learn by winning.
10:39 We don't want to learn by losing, but you got to figure out how you learn regardless.
10:46 And we certainly down the stretch, you know, those discipline that we talked about, whether
10:51 it be, you know, turning the ball over when we're trying to, you know, get it into the
10:55 post on post entry pass or, you know, the discipline in terms of getting that rebound
11:01 where you needed, you know, one stop and a rebound and you got a chance to win the game
11:06 with 10 seconds, 10, 12 seconds.
11:08 I mean, that's critical moments.
11:10 And I continue to talk to these guys over and over.
11:12 This is a possession game.
11:14 We have very, very little margin for error, given our circumstances.
11:19 So every single possession has to be a complete battle.
11:24 And you got to understand that that possession might be the possession that changes the game.
11:30 So I credit the guys for how much they've grown over the last five games.
11:39 But regardless of saying that, we're two and three.
11:42 We're two and three.
11:43 So we got to figure out how we even continue to grow even further until we can get some
11:48 help to where we're more of a complete team.
11:51 It seems to me that possibly, possibly, shall we say, getting consistency.
11:58 I mean, you've had Seth playing spurts and you've had as hard and as good as Edwards
12:05 has played.
12:07 There's been moments where he hasn't.
12:08 A part of that's obviously due to being tired, but part of it's also, you know, just a lack
12:14 of consistency, I guess, in the way he plays.
12:17 We can't get too one dimensional by any means.
12:20 You know, we have to throw it into the post and we have to utilize Jesse because he is,
12:24 you know, our bread and butter in a lot of ways.
12:27 So we got to make shots, you know, surrounding him and we got to get those guys confident.
12:34 And I had that deep conversation with them at halftime.
12:37 You know, I looked down the stat line and all of our shooters were 0 for and I'm like,
12:43 guys, I mean, you got to understand you guys are shooters.
12:46 You're in there to play a role.
12:47 You got to play a lot of roles.
12:49 But the main role is you got to make shots, step up there with confidence and make shots.
12:54 Nobody's trying to tell you not to shoot the ball.
12:56 We want to take good shots, certainly, and we want to take shots on our offense, but
13:00 we can't be the ones that are creating those things off the bounce.
13:04 We got to create it for one another.
13:06 And I tried to instill as much confidence as I could, especially with Seth and Kobe
13:11 and Josiah had a rough game, never did get to see one fall.
13:16 But those guys got to figure out, you know, where their shots are coming from and what's
13:21 a good shot, what's a bad shot.
13:23 And I think they know, but I think at this point, you know, sometimes we've crippled
13:27 them a little bit with, you know, you know, hounding them like without play with your
13:32 instinct at the end of the day, I need you to play with instinct.
13:35 You're a shooter.
13:36 Don't question a shot.
13:37 If it's an open shot, you take it.
13:39 Back to Justin.
13:41 Hey, coach, I got a two part question here.
13:46 And they're both kind of focused on the roster here.
13:49 Obviously, that the challenges shorthanded, you know, and four games you're getting back
13:57 Kerr, which obviously helps.
14:01 But in your opinion, though, I mean, there are still shorthanded challenges to face even
14:08 when he comes back, isn't there?
14:10 Yes, there's there's plenty of challenges still.
14:12 And I'm not not entirely, you know.
14:18 I haven't lost all hope for Raekwon.
14:21 I still think there's a possibility to see Raekwon.
14:24 So I hope that, you know, things change in that regard.
14:29 So I have I'm an optimistic person, optimistic person.
14:34 So I see down the road that we got help with Kerr.
14:38 Certainly maybe some of these tests and things are going on with the cook can give us, you
14:44 know, an opportunity to see him back on the floor or some some form or fashion.
14:50 So we're trying to figure that out in the meantime.
14:53 And Raekwon situation is certainly not dead.
14:56 So yeah, I mean, I hope that the only thing I do know right now is Kerr's coming back
15:02 for four games.
15:03 Does that entirely help our our depth?
15:06 It doesn't hurt anything whatsoever to have a point guard.
15:10 I think we're going to get a heck of a lot better shots and he's going to create us a
15:13 lot better shots.
15:14 Not and that's no knock on Kobe.
15:17 Kobe's done an extremely great job given his circumstances.
15:22 And so but to bring more depth to the guard position and a guy that's, you know, been
15:29 so proven and even the last two years, you know, I think he led the Pac-12 and assists
15:33 per game.
15:34 So to have a guy like that, getting people, you know, creating for people is going to
15:38 be extremely valuable to our offense.
15:41 And you can see that based on our numbers and our production, even in the two games,
15:46 whether it be Vanderbilt and George Mason, or we had Kerr to work with compared to the
15:51 games we haven't.
15:52 It's it's been it's a huge difference and just one guy not be able to, you know, run
15:59 the show and create.
16:01 The other question was about Ray Kwan and I heard your statement after the Virginia
16:08 game the other night with his lawyers and his family lawyers are kind of taking it from
16:13 here.
16:16 Obviously the court system is not swift in this country and I'm not sure how something
16:22 like this would go.
16:24 But if it were to drag on and then all of a sudden you get to February or mid-February
16:31 and something happens where he could play, if it's that late in the season, is there
16:38 a decision there to be made on your part on whether or not it would be worth him?
16:44 I've thought about that a lot and it's definitely if it is something that's drug out all, you
16:52 know, too long and it's going to be a decision or whether what's best for Ray Kwan.
16:58 And from my perspective, so much of this and I'd love to see him on the floor and he could
17:04 really help us and help our team.
17:06 But what's best for Ray Kwan is not happening by the NCAA.
17:12 I've you know, it's a shame to see, you know, a kid that thrives on hope and thrives on
17:21 having a game of basketball in his life and to be able to compete and the people he inspires
17:27 in the Tulalip reservation and the people of his tribe.
17:35 It's dragging on him.
17:36 It's a huge drag on him and he's starting to, I feel like he's starting to lose that
17:40 hope and I worry like hell for Ray Kwan and his mindset.
17:47 So it's sad.
17:50 It's really sad, especially considering he was the only Native American to play in the
17:55 NCAA tournament last year.
17:58 And a kid that I hate to say like this, but sometimes I think if it was a blind resume
18:05 of sorts with some of these waivers, I think we would have got approved.
18:13 But it's just a shame.
18:17 It's a complete shame for, you know, talk about the wellness and student athlete.
18:22 And I don't think they've at one point denied the fact that we have a mental health situation
18:30 in this regard.
18:31 And the fact that we still denied it or the NCAA denied it twice is a crying shame, if
18:36 you ask me.
18:38 So if it does drag out, I mean, I'm guessing you have a certain date or point in your mind
18:43 where it wouldn't make sense, even clear.
18:48 That would be a decision I have to make with Ray Kwan, doing the best by him.
18:54 And right now, I just worry about his headspace.
18:57 And I love that kid to death.
19:02 And he's such an outstanding human being.
19:05 And he's went through a heck of a lot of challenges in his life.
19:08 And to have to go through not only losing his coach at Montana State to transferring
19:16 here to, you know, I had a connection with him in the recruiting process, but he came
19:20 here to play for Coach Huggins and lost another coach.
19:24 And I stepped in as that role.
19:26 And good thing that we, you know, we've had such a good relationship day one, but he's
19:31 went through two coaching changes in the last, you know, less than a year.
19:36 And here we are.
19:37 I mean, we're not denying the fact that he has a mental health issue, but we're still
19:41 denying him the possibility to take in basketball out of his life for a year.
19:46 It just doesn't make sense to me.
19:49 And one last thing with the shorthanded roster.
19:52 I mean, it's one thing for you guys to talk about it and, you know, for us to ask you
19:57 questions about it.
19:58 And you can, you know, obviously everyone can do math.
20:01 The SMU game that was really kind of the first game where it probably felt like a shorthanded
20:10 kind of roster.
20:11 I'm just kind of wondering, you know, what were the reactions after that game?
20:15 I'm sure everyone was tired and that kind of thing.
20:18 But, you know, and then moving forward, you know, I mean, shorthand, it's kind of going
20:23 to be the topic of discussion, you know, for the rest of the year, almost, you know, how
20:30 that SMU game, how do you deal with it now moving forward?
20:33 Well, first and foremost, I hope our guys understand, and we've talked about it before,
20:39 the one person that's played big minutes in their career has been Jesse Edwards.
20:43 So looking back now, you know, Seth has played big minutes now for five games.
20:51 Yeah.
20:52 Kobe has, Josiah has.
20:54 Hopefully we get ourselves more accustomed to playing these big minutes to where we feel
20:59 like we're more comfortable with the rotation and the role we're in.
21:04 We got to play the hand we're dealt.
21:06 Right now, this is the hand we're dealt.
21:08 So we got to figure that out.
21:10 Back to the SMU game.
21:11 Yes, they kind of took advantage of us.
21:12 They had the numbers.
21:13 They had the numbers.
21:16 They could make it a very physical, very physical game.
21:20 And they did.
21:21 I mean, that's smart on his part.
21:23 He could throw guys at Jesse all night long and foul, foul, foul, and foul and make them
21:29 call it because he had no problem with his guys being foul trouble.
21:33 He can just send another athlete at us.
21:36 Now where it really came into play, and I could have probably done better a job from
21:41 a coaching perspective, was in that second half when we were breaking the press, which,
21:47 you know, hindsight's 20/20, had we, you know, backed some of those, you know, disadvantage
21:53 or advantage situations where we got numbers and we broke the press rather than attack,
21:58 we maybe probably should have pulled it out and ran some offense and slowed it down.
22:03 But that's a double-edged sword too.
22:06 The way we're playing, if we're up 11 at halftime, had we converted early in the second half
22:12 and stretched that out to, you know, 18/20 point lead, that might have been a heck of
22:18 a lot different ball game too.
22:19 They might have backed out the pressure.
22:22 So we were very aggressive against their pressure early in the second half.
22:27 We just didn't convert.
22:29 You know, we had several opportunities and layups at the rim that we didn't convert.
22:34 And so knowing that, you know, that we didn't convert, it would have been smarter that we
22:39 back it out and kind of slow it down and run more offense rather than getting up and down
22:44 ball game like we did.
22:47 Coach, I think that's all the time we have for today.
22:53 I appreciate your time today and thanks to everyone for calling in.
22:56 Thank you.
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