Oregon State MBB West Coast Conference Media Day Recap
West Coast Conference Media Day happened this week in Las Vegas, Nevada, where representatives from every team spoke with reporters about the upcoming season. Oregon State head coach Wayne Tinkle, as well as guard DaMarco Minor and forward Michael Rataj, sat down with Jeff Goodman and Rob Dauster of The Field of 68 to discuss their new roster, amongst other things.
"We've gotten tougher, we've gotten deeper, we've gotten more mature, we've got shooters around the court so we can stretch the defense, and we've got low post scorers, guys we can throw it to and not settle for mediocre shots," said Tinkle of his new roster. "I haven't felt this good in a while...but talk is cheap. We've gotta take it to the court."
When asked on his first impressions of his new teammates, forward Michael Rataj had the following to say: "My early thoughts were, wow, these guys can definitely play basketball, and they're great additions. You saw from the beginning guys like Isaiah [Sy]...he came in and was shooting the lights out in practice...Nate Kingz doesn't miss a shot in practice almost...Great additions overall."
They then asked one of these new adds, guard DaMarco Minor, about his experience in joining a new program. "I'm focusing on the little things, adjusting. The best players are able to adjust on the fly...[pick] coach's brain and the best version of me."
When asked about his 8.5 rebounds per game at SIU-Edwardsville despite standing at just 6-foot-1, Minor answered with his mindset about playing the game the way he does: "I've been playing basketball for a lot of years, so I know what people want to do and what people don't want to do. Those point guards and shooting guards just wanna be pretty. They don't want to get down there and do the dirty work...I just like doing the dirty work."
Towards the end of the interview, they asked Rataj what brought him back to Oregon State in the midst of so many transfers, and he praised Tinkle for the culture he had built. "I always wanted to play college basketball. He brought me here, he gave me an opportunity. He gave me a lot of minutes my freshman year...This is where I want to stay."
You can watch the rest of the interview below (OSU starts at 2:58:30).
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Keenan Womack is a sportswriter native to Dallas, Texas, who has spent the last 12 years in Austin, the home of his alma mater, the University of Texas. Keenan has covered sports for SB Nation, Bleacher Report, Rivals/Orangebloods, a host of his own sites and now, Fan Nation. Focusing on basketball, Keenan was on the beat for the Longhorns hoops team for the last two-and-a-half years before moving on to pursue other opportunities. He is married and lives with his wife close to the Moody Center, so they can continue to catch games together.