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BIG 12 CONFERENCE MEN'S MEDIA DAYOctober 15, 2014Lon KrugerKANSAS CITY, MISSOURI COACH KRUGER: First of all, go Royals. Is that appropriate? THE MODERATOR: I think that's appropriate. COACH KRUGER: What a great story, fun to watch, having grown up in the area for sure. Great time of year. Otherwise, practice this time of year is the best. Guys come with great enthusiasm, great energy. We've got a lot of guys returning from last year. So they've got a little better idea of what to expect, and the leadership has been outstanding with Buddy Hield and Ryan Spangler, Isaiah Cousins, three juniors for us that have been through a lot of Big 12 games and other venues as well. They've done a great job in the off‑season with their investment of time and, again, the leadership. They don't just do it verbally. They do it with their actions and been outstanding. Been through seven or eight practices now. We're off today but resume tomorrow. First exhibition game is November 7th. Comes on very quickly, but again a fantastic time of year. Q. Lon, you've taken the step of getting Oklahoma back into the NCAA Tournament as a player and as a contender in the Big 12. But what's the key to taking that next step, of contending for a championship and also having an extended stay in the tournament? COACH KRUGER: The key is always players. The experience that they gained from last year, I think, will help. They know how tough it is to win conference games. They know how tough it is to win postseason games. They want to do that. They worked awfully hard in the off‑season in preparation for the start of practice. Again, the leadership of this group with Ryan and Buddy and Isaiah is outstanding, and Jordan Woodard, as a sophomore, understands more clearly what Big 12 games are all about and how tough it is. As good of a freshman year he had, I think we'll see a big jump going into his sophomore year from him. The perimeter depth is good, and that's always important to win games in postseason. Q. Do you get a sense that the team will buy in defensively a little bit more this season than perhaps last? COACH KRUGER: I do. That's an area that we have to do a better job with. Last year we knew we could score. We had confidence on the offensive end. I think that took away from the sincerity a little bit on the defensive end, and we can't afford to do that. So we've got to cover better. We've got to get stops. We've got to rebound the ball better, be a little bit more physical in that way. I think our guys do have a much better understanding of the value of all of that. Q. Lon, Buddy took a big step last year scoring. I don't see him taking‑‑ you know, adding another nine points to his average, but where can his game go? COACH KRUGER: Buddy had a good summer. He did well in K.D.'s camp, did well in LeBron's camp, representing the Bahamas in international competition and did well there. I thought as a freshman, Buddy was a little bit more aggressive in attacking the rim and going to the offensive boards. Last year a little more perimeter oriented and shot the ball and had a good year. I think we'll see him combine the two and attack a little bit more off the dribble and make him more effective in shooting the ball. I think we'll see a more well-rounded game out of buddy. He's worked awfully hard at it. Q. I just wanted to ask you a question about the incoming freshmen and what you expect out of them this season with such an experienced team. COACH KRUGER: Khadeem Lattin and Jamuni McNeace, two guys that are rangy and athletic. A lot of energy, a lot of enthusiasm on their part. Great for them to come in and play every day in practice with Ryan Spangler, TaShawn Thomas, D.J. Bennett, three older guys that they'll learn from every day and go up against every day and really benefit from that. They've got great upside. A lot of excitement about watching them grow and develop as young players. Q. Lon, what do you think of the development of Jordan Woodard in his second year as a collegiate player? COACH KRUGER: Jordan had a really good freshman year, but probably‑‑ typically, they make the biggest jump from freshman to sophomore year. Buddy did that. I thought Isaiah did that. I think Jordan will do that. As good of a freshman year as he had, I think we'll maybe have the greatest impact, relative to change, of all the guys. He's shooting the ball more consistently. He's making good decisions. Again, he's worked awfully hard in the summer and in fall in preparation for that. Q. Lon, apologize in advance if I miss this, but you referenced TaShawn, and just more about his situation with the NCAA, if you've heard anything back. Do you have any kind of‑‑ I know these things tend to be a little bit nebulous. Any kind of timeline as to when you expect to hear something on his situation? COACH KRUGER: Expect to hear something soon. Don't know what that means exactly. We kind of thought that the last ten days or so, but really do think it's soon now. Don't have any idea. We feel like he's a great kid, on course to graduate, done everything right. He's represented well, and, again, we're hopeful of an additional eligibility, immediate eligibility. We'll find that out soon. Don't have any idea. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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