MARK POPE Q&A:
* Bucknell has a veteran team, a really capable backcourt and a solid big who holds down the middle. All 5 spots can shoot it.
* Would like to see better rebounding, keep teams under 10 offensive rebounds.
* On review of the game film from Wright State… Some things we didn’t adjust to on the fly as well as we would like. I don’t think the staff or I did as good a job of helping them adjust to some things.
* Bucknell will try to get out in transition. This isn’t a team that tries to milk the clock like a Princeton, for example.
* Says “intentional” is his favorite word right now. Hard to really define it, but wants it to be how the players operate and make decisions on the fly regardless of the situation they face.
* On how you recruit unselfishness… Manifests itself different for guys depending on what their role is. The big thing we do is to get guys to understand there’s something bigger and more meaningful in their lives in general than just serving themselves.
* On turning defense into offense… They have a benchmark they’re shooting for of 20% transition points. Hard to get to that, but that’s where they want it.
* On the “Catapult” training system they’re using for conditioning data… Gives you measurements of four main areas of the body, measures running load and jumping load. We want to take a scientific approach to conditioning to help us manage our minutes and what guys are capable of. Some guys like it, other guys don’t, but it’s pretty much the standard in the sport right now.
* On the assist-to-turnover ration being pretty astounding right now… Haven’t faced high-pressure teams yet, but it’s still impressive. Our guys typically do a good job of protecting the ball. We don’t want them playing with a thought of “don’t turn the ball over,” but it needs to be a natural part of the process of making plays and doing what we do.
* Jason Hart has been such a great addition to the staff. Really special. Could be a big-time coach at college or pro level in the near future. It’s going to be fun to watch his trajectory.
* On staying in the moment and not looking ahead to Duke… We can all get distracted as human beings. Everything is trying to pull you away from being focused on “right now.” One of my jobs is to keep them focused on right now. Not just before a Duke game, but all year long, have to grasp the power of “being in the present.”
* Asked if he follows what’s going on with other college basketball teams, SEC teams, Pope says he typically won’t know what happens until the next day. For him to be successful, he’s found that he needs to be hyper-focused on his task at hand.
