JP and his family already show they have great taste in clothes as they sport Gopher gear!
Minnesota Gopher basketball fans have seen their favorite squad struggle mightily against zone defenses recently. Junior shooter J.P. Macura of Lakeville North could be a possible recruit who could give Minnesota a needed outside threat and scorer. Gopher Hole.com caught up with Macura after a 39-point effort in the Panthers’ loss to #1 Apple Valley.
Macura is averaging 25.0 points per game and has 10 games of 30 or more points.
Gopher Hole: How many offers are you up to right now?
J.P. Macura: I am up to 11 right now. North Dakota, North Dakota State, South Dakota, South Dakota State, Milwaukee, Toledo, Vermont, Northern Colorado, Wyoming, St. Louis, Utah State and New Mexico State.
Gopher Hole: You are obviously having a great offensive season. How pleased are you with how well you have been playing this season?
Gopher Hole: You are obviously having a great offensive season. How pleased are you with how well you have been playing this season?
J.P. Macura: Pretty pleased, especially in the games that we are winning and when I am getting the whole team involved. Like tonight, I was disappointed that we lost. Sometimes, you have to score less in these situations to win. I was just disappointed that we lost tonight.
Gopher Hole: Obviously you were feeling it in the beginning of the game. Does that make the basket look little bit bigger to you sometimes?
J.P. Macura: Definitely. It looked a little bigger to me. In the second half, I got a little bit colder in the beginning and I picked it up a little bit.
Gopher Hole: You were playing against one of the top teams in the state and were able to hang with them. Does that give you some confidence that you can play with anyone if you are playing your best as a team?
J.P. Macura: Definitely. Playing the best team in the state helps our team out. It tells us that we can play with anybody in the state and that we are going to go into our next game and we are going to think that we can beat anybody or come close to beating a lot of teams.
Gopher Hole: You recently visited Utah State, right?
J.P. Macura: I went there this past weekend. It was fun. I love the coaches there. The game they played against New Mexico State, they won and it was a great atmosphere. I had a great time.
Gopher Hole: I think that you have recently started hearing from some bigger schools. Wisconsin was at one of your games (versus Burnsville) and Coach (Ron) Jirsa recently watched you, right?
J.P. Macura: Coach Jirsa came to one game this year and came to a practice earlier this year.
Gopher Hole: What are you hearing from the Gophers? What are they saying to you?
J.P. Macura: They mainly said “keep doing what I am doing in scoring and keep winning.”
Gopher Hole: Have you been to many college basketball games this season?
J.P. Macura: I have gone to one. I went to the Gopher game versus Iowa.
Gopher Hole: What was that like?
J.P. Macura: It was great. I liked how I could be right by the bench around the players and hear how they talk and stuff like that. I liked that.
Gopher Hole: When you pick a school, are you looking to play at the highest level? What will be the main thing?
J.P. Macura: I don’t want to sit for one or two years. I want to possibly play my first year or redshirt and get stronger and more physical. The main thing that I am at college is being able to get along with the coaches and players and have a family relationship with them.
Gopher Hole: Do you want to play close to home or far away? Does that matter much?
J.P. Macura: It doesn’t really matter. My mom is actually a flight attendant, so I can go wherever.
Gopher Hole: What things have you been really working on to improve yourself as a player?
J.P. Macura: Basically, just my ballhandling, my pull-up jump shot and my defense. Just being able to stand in a stance longer. Fundamental defense.
Gopher Hole: What things are you going to try to do this summer? Are you going to try to go to some college camps or have you thought that far yet?
J.P. Macura: I haven’t thought that far yet.