Men's Basketball Holds Annual Media Day
October 12, 2011 | Men's Basketball
Oct. 12, 2011
Team Pictures | 
Coach and Player Interviews
GREENVILLE, N.C.- Donning its new purple uniforms for the first time this year, the 2011-12 East Carolina men's basketball team gathered in Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum to take team pictures and then meet with members of the press at the team's annual media day. ECU Head Coach Jeff Lebo fielded questions before selected student-athletes sat down to talk about the Pirates and their upcoming season.
East Carolina Head Coach Jeff Lebo
Opening Statement
"I can't believe it's already time for basketball season to begin. Friday is the first official day of practice. It's a very exciting time for our team and players. I know they're itching to get started.
"We have a lot of new faces on this year's team. We lost four seniors off last year's squad. We lost over 60 percent of our scoring and a lot of experience. Our backcourt with Jontae Sherrod and Brock Young were two guys who averaged about 27 points a game. We also had Jamar Abrams. We have a lot of holes we have to fill, but we're excited about our new faces.
"If you want to talk about the older guys we're going to count on from the beginning of the year, it starts with Darrius Morrow. He really improved from the beginning of the year to the end. We need for him to be good right away. Not just late in the season, but from the beginning to the end. I think he's ready to shoulder that responsibility, as well as a leadership role. He and Austin Steed are this year's only seniors.
"We're healthy right now. We've had a few workouts and conditioning. Everybody has made their six-minute mile time, which is really nice.
"I just got back from Dallas for the Conference USA Media Day. I didn't officially see where we were picked, but I saw some magazines that had us anywhere from 10 to last in the league. I think our kids who read the magazines obviously feel we are better than that. We're excited about the season being here so we can prove everybody wrong."
On Being In His Second Year With The Program
"We have a ton of new faces on the year's team. You're not starting completely over, but you have a lot of things you have to begin again and teach again.
"One area I thought we did improve last year was defense. We still have to rebound the ball better, though. That's going to be an emphasis this year. We gave up too many offensive rebounds and fouled too much last season.
"It is nice to come in this year and have veterans with an understanding of what's expected of them. The new guys can look at the older guys in drills and during practice and see how it's supposed to be done. From that standpoint, I think we are moving in the right direction. We have a ways to go yet, though.
"We can have two hours a week with them as a team right now, so we've gotten a little taste of what they can do. Our practices in the preseason have been competitive. I think we'll be able to have a lot of different combinations on the floor this year."
On Newcomers Expected To Make An Immediate Impact
"We have four new faces who have all played Division I basketball. Miguel Paul transferred from Missouri and played two years of high-level Division I basketball. Austin Steed is from the SEC and South Carolina, where he played at a very high level. We also have Maurice Kemp and Shamarr Bowden, who both played Division I before going to a junior college.
"Those guys have been through a few wars at this level and will be able to have a better feel of what it's going to be like right away. I've been impressed with those guys.
"Everybody likes talking about the new guys, but we have some pretty good guys who have played a lot of minutes for us. Corvonn Gaines started almost every game for us last year. Erin Straughn also started many games. Those guys will be counted on to get better. Robert Sampson has put on some weight, gotten stronger and become more comfortable on the floor. He is starting to get in better shape.
"Those guys are going to be counted on first, then those new guys will be the next group. The new group will have to watch and learn."
On The Conference USA Competition
"I think the league is wide open this year. Memphis has typically been head and shoulders above everybody in the league and they have almost everybody back. They are the top pick right now. Marshall is picked second and has a ton of people back. "This was a league with a lot of seniors last year. UTEP has 10 new players and Tulane has nine new players. Southern Miss has a completely new team. We have a new group. A lot of the better players in the league, besides Memphis, last year were seniors.
"There are some question marks and unknowns. There will be a lot of jockeying for positioning I think. We have some good pieces and parts. If we can get them working in the same direction early, it will be nice.
"When I came in last year, we wanted to be able to compete against and beat the upper echelon of teams. We did that at home. The next step is continuing to do that at home and then beating that upper echelon consistently on the road. That's what separates the upper half of this league from the bottom half."
On East Carolina Basketball Pride
"The one thing that was great to see last year was East Carolina basketball t-shirts worn around campus. At the end of the season, our kids earned the right to feel good about themselves. Their body language changed. They felt they could go on the court and have a chance to win every night. We have that feeling right now.
"Last year is last year, but we have to build upon that. We have a lot of new faces and that's always somewhat hard. We have high expectations for this team. This team also has high expectations. It doesn't really matter where you're picked to start the season, it matters what you do at the end. We finished in the top 100 of the RPI last year. Nobody probably thought we would finish in the top 250."
On The Pressure To Get Off To A Strong Start
"You always feel pressure. You always want to do well. We want to be the best we can be. We'll see what happens in the end. We'll judge success at the end of the year.
"Last season we had a couple games that we might have been able to win. Maybe we could have gotten to 22 wins on the year. In college basketball it's such a fine line between being 20-10 and 10-20."
On The Style Of Play For This Year's Team
"We're trying to figure that out ourselves. We'll take a few practices to figure out how we are going to play. We can shoot the ball from the perimeter pretty well. Obviously having to replace Brock Young, Jontae Sherrod and Jamar Abrams, three very good perimeter shooters, will be a factor for us.
"Defensively, we want to be able to play man-to-man without fouling. We may mix in a little more defensively now that we have our man-to-man principles in place. We like to play fast and utilize the three-point line.
"Inside we have a proven guy in Darrius Morrow who can score consistently. Being able to play off of him will be big. If people are going to double Darrius, we have some guys we signed who can shoot from the perimeter.
"I'm not a guy with a predetermined style in mind. I try to evolve to fit our teams. Each team is different, so I figure that out as we go."
On Improvements That Must Be Made
"I think we're going to have to rebound the ball better defensively and not foul so much. At times we turned it over a bit too much last year. If we can take care of the basketball, we'll get high-percentage shots.
"We have some better speed and depth this year than we did last year. Hopefully that will help."
On Miguel Paul
"Miguel has played at a high level. He played a lot of minutes at Missouri. He has speed. Comparing him to Brock, Brock may have been a little quicker with the ball, but Miguel is faster from end line to end line. Miguel has speed in transition. He's tough and has decent size for a point guard.
"For new guys who haven't played in a while, it'll take some time to get adjusted again. He and Austin Steed have practiced with us, but they will have to relearn the speed of the game. They can't feel too much pressure to get everything done in the first two minutes of the game.
"We're going to have to grow with them. They'll be fine after they get their feet wet in a few games."
On His Contract Extension
"I'm excited to have a chance to coach here. I'm delighted Coach Holland and Chancellor Ballard gave me the opportunity to stay a little bit longer. I love it here. All my family is here. This place fits me very well and I hope I can stay for a long time."
Junior Guard Miguel Paul
On sitting out last season
"It was frustrating not being able to play and help out the team but it was also a little bit of a learning curve having a talented point guard in front of me in Brock Young.
On similarities between Brock Young and himself
"Brock and I are similar in many ways. He is quicker on the ball, but I am faster down the court and can finish at the rim. We can both shoot the ball, but I think I am a little taller and stronger."
Senior Forward Darrius Morrow
On carrying over last season's strong finish
"We had a strong finish to the season last year and were able to advance to the postseason, which is always good no matter which tournament it is. We have a lot of new guys, but still have high expectations and want to be one of the upper echelon teams in Conference USA by the end of the season.
On losing weight and becoming more athletic
"I was on a strict diet last year. You could say water became my best friend. I had to cut back on a lot of my favorite foods which hurt me dearly but in the long run it is going to pay off and it has already. During preseason, I was able to run faster and jump higher as well as take the shots I wanted to take due to my increased athleticism. I was also proud of making my time in the six-minute mile test.
On becoming a more developed post player
"I do a lot of homework on some of the better post players in the NBA. I watch their footwork and how they work out on a daily basis. It is a process and you definitely have to put a lot of effort into it. I think I am ready to surprise a lot of people with what I can do this season."
