Indiana University Athletics
Practice Report 3/15
3/15/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
March 15, 2005
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - The Indiana men's basketball team had its final full practice on Tuesday afternoon before Wednesday night's National Invitational Tournament game against Vanderbilt in Assembly Hall at 8:00 p.m. IU head coach Mike Davis, junior guard Marshall Strickland, and freshmen forwards D.J. White and Robert Vaden were just a few of the players that spoke to the local media after practice. Below are some excerpts from the interviews:Head Coach Mike Davis
On the NIT:
MD: `We are excited to be playing in the NIT. It's a chance for us to play more games and that is what we are concentrating on."
On Vanderbilt:
MD: `They are a team that can shoot the ball. They finished the year 18-13 and 8-8 in the SEC. They play in a great league. They are a strong basketball team. We will have our hands full on Wednesday night."
On the young team being able to play more games:
MD: "It is very important for us. That is what I have been talking about for a long time. It's important for us to play. This will just give them more experience that they need."
Junior guard Marshall Strickland
On the NIT:
MS: "We look at the NIT as an opportunity to win some more basketball games. This is just more tournament atmosphere. We want to get back onto the court and play. The NIT will get us on the right foot for next year."
Freshman forward D.J. White
On this opportunity of playing in the NIT:
DW: "It's a great opportunity for us. We are still playing, that is the most important thing. We are very excited about this tournament. This a good opportunity to show people what we can do."
On the development of the young team:
DW: "The main thing is that we continue to get more experience. It's good for this young team to just get more games under its belt. So this will help us for next year."
On playing at home:
DW: "We went 8-0 in the Big Ten at home. We feel really good about playing at home."
Freshman forward Robert Vaden
On the NIT:
RV: "This tournament is very important. It lets us feel what its like to have a season after a season. Last year they didn't have a postseason and this year we have the NIT. We just want to take every game one at a time. We are going to take this game as another opportunity to play basketball."
On playing at home:
RV: "I think its great that we get to play at home. We didn't lose a game at home during the Big Ten season. We are going to have energy at home, and its important to take care of your home court."
On is it hard to get up for an NIT game:
RV: "I don't think that it's hard. Some teams are done playing for the year. We are still one of the best teams in the country because we are still playing. Other teams are sitting at home. We are just going to use this game as a building block for next year."
Players Mentioned
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