Taking a tough defeat to the nationally-ranked Fighting Illini last Tuesday at Madison Square Garden, the Florida Atlantic men’s basketball team are looking to bounce back with their next two contests against FIU and St. Bonaventure taking place on December 13th and December 16th. Head coach Dusty May (pictured) spoke with media on Monday to evaluate the current state of the team and their preparations against the Panthers and Bonnies. Below are some of the highlights from the session. Reflecting on their in-game adjustments in the loss to Illinois at Madison Square Garden “They scored 90-plus points. We made a lot of defensive errors that we don’t typically make but credit Illinois too. It’s very difficult to play six games in 13 days. And keep in mind, Illinois played Rutgers in New Jersey. They’re sitting in the JW for three days rested preparing for us, so we weren’t as quick as we typically are. To be elite, you have to be able to overcome that and we were one possession away in the last four minutes and just made some mistakes but also Illinois still had to make plays. They have very good players. They’re top 20 in the country for a reason at that point so yeah, we do wish we could have some things back and change some things absolutely just like we do in every single game, win or lose.” “But yeah, Domask played well, Terrence Shannon played well and I thought Coleman Hawkins made the biggest shot of the game. Number four came off the bench and made a couple of huge threes. We were supposed to be kind of shading off him to help on Domask and then he makes a couple and then you have to adjust. They did a good job of getting their non-shooters out of the game and they played their best shooters, which allowed them to have a lot of space because if you go double Domask, you leave Lukegood open for three. Those are always the questions that you have to ask yourself. We did force him to make some some very difficult shots but our defense at the point of attack is something that took a step back that game. We’ll have to fix that.” Status update on Nick Boyd “He’s still day-to-day. He’s definitely improving and feeling better every single day. I think it’d be another game-time decision for the time being.” Given May’s response, Boyd should be considered questionable. Preparations for Arturo Dean & FIU “First and foremost, when you lead the country in steals…[Dean’s] fast and he’s aggressive, and it’s not a one-man band. They’ve got good players. They haven’t found ways to win a few games that they probably deserve to have, Florida Gulf Coast jumping out as one where I feel like they probably outplayed Florida Gulf Coast for a majority of the game and Florida Gulf Coast found a way to win. They have guys that have been in the program and it’s a very similar roster to the one that had us on the ropes [back in] late-January down at their place.” Early look at St. Bonaventure “They’re always really good. They’ll probably be an NCAA tournament team. Out of a non-Power Five League, one of the best coaches, one of the best basketball coaches in the country, one of the most storied programs in the country, and we’re very honored to be a part of the Hall of Fame Classic to be included in this event. Other than that, I know a couple of our guys are following box scores but all of our focus, other than one assistant coach, is on FIU. Immediately after the game, I’ll turn the page to St. Bonaventure, but we’re in no position right now to be looking ahead of the Panthers.” With today’s practice already concluded, the Owls will continue gearing up before Wednesday’s matchup against FIU.
