EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Transferring to a new institution is something that brings about several natural challenges for a college basketball player.  Adjusting to a new town, playing in a new system and being on a different campus are just a few of the things that most in Shea Feehan's position face when they begin a new phase of their career.
 
The difference for Feehan is that it has been a seamless transition for the first-ever graduate transfer in University of Evansville men's basketball history.
 
A native of Peoria, Ill., Shea Feehan grew up in the Missouri Valley Conference.  With his family being season ticket holders at Bradley, he experienced the MVC first hand and saw many players who continue to play in the NBA today.
 
"I have been around the Valley my whole life," he said.  "I always enjoyed watching everyone in the league and am very familiar with this conference.  It is just a great conference; I saw a ton of great players when I was younger."
 
Feehan stayed close to home as he attended Eureka College, which is a short drive east of Peoria.  It was the perfect chance for him to get a great education while being close to his family.  He redshirted in his first college season and from that point on, he was ready to keep the door open to continuing his career at the post graduate level if the opportunity presented itself.
 
"I redshirted first year at Eureka, so it was always in the back of my head that if I had a good career, I may be able to make that leap to Division I," Feehan explained.  "After graduating from Eureka, I took some visits, had some offers and when I took the visit to Evansville, I was blown away and it was a no brainer after that."
 
Making the transition even smoother was the system that Purple Aces head coach Walter McCarty is implementing at UE.
 
"We were up and down at Eureka and in the top ten in scoring in Division III.  Our coach gave us the freedom to play up and down," Feehan said.  "When we get a stop on defense, we realized that our best offense was transition.  Teams really could not keep up with us.  We put on the board "First to 100".  If we got to 100 first, that was our game plan."
 
That was a pretty good game plan.  In 2017-18, his squad was a perfect 6-0 when scoring 100 points or more.  His team finished the 2016-17 season ranking 8^th in the DIII level with 90.5 PPG while his senior team last season checked in with 90.1 PPG, ranking 13^th.  While the system at UE will not be exactly the same, there are several similarities and Feehan sees himself fitting right in.
 
"It's a very similar system (at UE), Coach McCarty gives us the freedom to score if we are open – shoot the ball and knock it down," he exclaimed.  "(Coach McCarty) is always telling guys to shoot if they are open.  It is very similar to what I had at Eureka."
 
Shooting when he was open was what Feehan did best.  After posting 26.7 points per contest as a junior, he completed the 2017-18 season ranked second at the Division III level with 30.6 points as he led his team to an 18-8 record and its first league tournament bid since 2013.  He was also recognized as the 2018 St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Player of the Year.
 
With that type of experience and success, Feehan will be depended upon to help a young Aces team next season. 
 
"One thing I have always been good at in high school and college was being a good leader," he explained.  "I worked to hold guys accountable and show them how to do things while leading by example.  I want to show everyone how to be a good teammate."
 
Summer workouts continue to progress along and Feehan has continued to lead by example.  He has truly enjoyed the opportunity to play at UE and has worked to help himself and the team adjust to Coach McCarty's system of play.
 
"(Summer workouts) have been great.  We have been working on learning the system and plays," Feehan said.  "The coaches have been great to work with and are very detailed.  I tell our team all the time that this is where you get better.  We are really coming together as a team and are always doing stuff together outside the gym.  Getting that team cohesiveness is really important."

Keep an eye out for features on each newcomer and the returning players over the course of the summer on GoPurpleAces.com.

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