Coach Murphy Quotes - Eastern Michigan
Rob Murphy
Eastern Michigan Head Coach
Syracuse vs. Eastern Michigan
12/19/16
Did (Syracuse) do anything better than what you’ve seen on film?
“We knew where their shots would be coming from; I thought they did a really good job of getting the ball to the high post. They made some really long 3-point shots to start the game. Once they got up we weren’t scoring and we began to lose a little bit of confidence, but I kept telling our guys we have to hang in there. Anytime you play that effectively and that efficient offensively you put yourself in position to win. Coach Boeheim has been honing in on making sure they execute on both ends of the floor and they did a great job tonight.”
When you were prepping for this game, were there one or two facets of your game where you thought, that doesn’t necessarily look like a Jim Boeheim coached team and he’s going to fix that?
“No not really,.In the end these guys just weren’t making shots. They struggled to score in some areas. They were getting the shots they just weren’t making them. Again when you have new guys, they’re trying to find some chemistry. They lost two fifth-year seniors and (Malachi) Richardson, and that’s tough to lose. You have a lot of new faces and they’re trying to figure out what Coach Boeheim wants offensively and defensively. As they continue to work in practice and games they’ll continue to get better. This was a huge step for them as they’ve been struggling here and there, but to win a game and win it like this builds confidence and they’ll go right to practice these next few days and work hard.
“When St. John’s comes in here Wednesday they’ll have their work cut out for them. A lot of college basketball, Division I basketball, is confidence, believing in yourself, believing what the coach wants, knowing and understanding what the coach wants. Today, he has a lot of positive film to show.”
How effective was Taurean Thompson today?
”He was pretty good. He’s long, he’s athletic, and he can see the floor. They have big targets. Our goal was to keep it out of there, but it’s almost impossible with our size playing against this level team. They’re going to beat us at the beginning with size so you have to pick your poison -- are you going to let him make the short jumper -- but then when we guard him they’re going to make those open three’s.
“This is Syracuse basketball, these guys play pretty good. I know they hadn’t played this well all season, but this is why Coach Boeheim was picked in the preseason and named this one of his better teams, and we happened to see it tonight, unfortunately for us. They’re coming off of a rivalry loss and everything was done correctly tonight. They did not miss a beat, did not miss a step, and to Coach’s credit this is why he’s a Hall of Fame coach. He knows how to get his guys going.”
Did you see that team Coach Boeheim was talking about at the start of the year?
“I did. I did see the talent. I know they have a chance to make a run and be at the top of the ACC. Once they got the chemistry down and understood what he wanted, anytime you have new faces it takes time to get what you want. This was a big game for them to get off to a better start to where they’re trying to go. A lot of talent, a lot of athletic ability, a lot of skill, a lot of size, they’re good.”
Eastern Michigan Head Coach
Syracuse vs. Eastern Michigan
12/19/16
Did (Syracuse) do anything better than what you’ve seen on film?
“We knew where their shots would be coming from; I thought they did a really good job of getting the ball to the high post. They made some really long 3-point shots to start the game. Once they got up we weren’t scoring and we began to lose a little bit of confidence, but I kept telling our guys we have to hang in there. Anytime you play that effectively and that efficient offensively you put yourself in position to win. Coach Boeheim has been honing in on making sure they execute on both ends of the floor and they did a great job tonight.”
When you were prepping for this game, were there one or two facets of your game where you thought, that doesn’t necessarily look like a Jim Boeheim coached team and he’s going to fix that?
“No not really,.In the end these guys just weren’t making shots. They struggled to score in some areas. They were getting the shots they just weren’t making them. Again when you have new guys, they’re trying to find some chemistry. They lost two fifth-year seniors and (Malachi) Richardson, and that’s tough to lose. You have a lot of new faces and they’re trying to figure out what Coach Boeheim wants offensively and defensively. As they continue to work in practice and games they’ll continue to get better. This was a huge step for them as they’ve been struggling here and there, but to win a game and win it like this builds confidence and they’ll go right to practice these next few days and work hard.
“When St. John’s comes in here Wednesday they’ll have their work cut out for them. A lot of college basketball, Division I basketball, is confidence, believing in yourself, believing what the coach wants, knowing and understanding what the coach wants. Today, he has a lot of positive film to show.”
How effective was Taurean Thompson today?
”He was pretty good. He’s long, he’s athletic, and he can see the floor. They have big targets. Our goal was to keep it out of there, but it’s almost impossible with our size playing against this level team. They’re going to beat us at the beginning with size so you have to pick your poison -- are you going to let him make the short jumper -- but then when we guard him they’re going to make those open three’s.
“This is Syracuse basketball, these guys play pretty good. I know they hadn’t played this well all season, but this is why Coach Boeheim was picked in the preseason and named this one of his better teams, and we happened to see it tonight, unfortunately for us. They’re coming off of a rivalry loss and everything was done correctly tonight. They did not miss a beat, did not miss a step, and to Coach’s credit this is why he’s a Hall of Fame coach. He knows how to get his guys going.”
Did you see that team Coach Boeheim was talking about at the start of the year?
“I did. I did see the talent. I know they have a chance to make a run and be at the top of the ACC. Once they got the chemistry down and understood what he wanted, anytime you have new faces it takes time to get what you want. This was a big game for them to get off to a better start to where they’re trying to go. A lot of talent, a lot of athletic ability, a lot of skill, a lot of size, they’re good.”
