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EA SPORTS MAUI INVITATIONALNovember 21, 2012Kevin O'NeillLAHAINA, HAWAII Marquette – 72 THE MODERATOR: Coach, some opening comments? COACH O'NEILL: I thought we had two stretches where we just killed ourselves into the first half. We had the score tied and had a series of mishaps that weren't good. We had an air ball three, which was a bad shot. Two turnovers and two defensive errors and all of a sudden it goes from two or three to ten. Our guys fought. Did a good job. Marquette's a very good basketball team. Very well coached and play hard. They've got ten deep. They've got back‑to‑back Sweet 16 experience. They're a team that the points they got off their bench was really key for them. Except for the first half against Illinois, I like how our team played throughout the tournament. I like how we played throughout the year. I'm really appreciative I got Buzz his 100th win. That's good for him. I like the way we played. We did some good things. We're not shooting the ball well right now, and that's hurting us. Two of our perimeter guys are 1 for 8, and 3 for 11 on good looks. So it's tough to win games when you do that. We're not turning it over. We're rebounding the ball fairly well. We're doing a lot of good things defensively, so we've just got to build on the tournament and go from there. Q. With all the guys back from injury from last year, the transfer guys, how does this tournament‑‑ how has this tournament this week kind of helped you guys get going for the season? COACH O'NEILL: Well, we got to play three top‑flight teams, all different styles, all very good. Had a chance today‑‑ didn't have a chance against Illinois. That was over about eight minutes in, and we should have called it. But I like how we played the last two games. I like a lot of the things we did. Ultimately we're trying to get ready for our league. If you look at our schedule, we're playing a lot of good teams. We're going to go back and play a really good San Diego State team at home next Sunday. We're on the road in Nebraska, NewMexico, Georgia, home against Minnesota, Dayton. We've got a good schedule ahead of us. But a lot of the things that happened here were good for us, and it will help us going forward. Q. I'm doing a project on concussions. In recent years how has dealing with concussions changed from a coach's perspective? COACH O'NEILL: Oh, God, I don't even know that. I've had several, I think. At least I act like that. It used to be 10 years ago, 12 years ago even if somebody had a concussion and they didn't play, everybody said they were soft. You know, get in there and do this, get in there and do that. But obviously, over time it's been proven that it is a little more than a headache. I think there is an overreaction to it all now. Every time a guy bumps his head, he's out for three days, can't practice, might have a concussion. So I don't know anything about this concussion baseline test they do or any of that. But I think trainers are very aware and I think doctors are. It's one of those things where it's better to be safe than sorry, because if it saves one guy's life, that's good. That's all I know about concussions. THE MODERATOR: Coach, one last comment about the Maui trip? COACH O'NEILL: Yes, we had a fantastic time. It's hard to have a fantastic time when you play like we did the first half of the Illinois game. Everything for us, the tournament, and everything outside of it was as first class as you could ever have. Both banquets were outstanding. The hospitality was unbelievable. The tournament was extremely well run, and it's a place that everybody should play. We played in the Diamond Head a couple years ago. It was my first time ever coaching in the Maui Invitational, and as soon as we have a chance, we'll come back. That's the best thing you could ever say about any tournament. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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