Indiana University Athletics
Tom Crean Talks Abut Sunday's Game
8/10/2014 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Opening Statement
"First things first, we have 80 minutes of experience playing a high, high level of basketball when it comes to speed, when it comes to intensity, when it comes to pace and that's fantastic for us. I think in a game like this, because our 3-point defense, it takes a bit to for us to learn that we're not an over-help team. We really don't over-help on the ball nearly as much.
"That being said, you have to keep the ball under control and that was a real strength of ours last year - we led the league in 3-point shooting defense. It takes a while for us to figure that out - that we stay with the shooters because of the league that we're in. There were times we did a better job of that inside of the game after not doing a very good job early.
"Defensive fatigue got us a little bit. We got fatigued defensively in a sense of leaving shooters, over-helping a few times. Then, when we were so locked in to keeping the ball off the 3-point line, we got beat on a couple of drives and I think that was as much defensive fatigue as anything. But, we're playing a very fast pace, I'm excited about the fact that we're getting to play with that 24-second clock. It's a way to have these guys to understand what kind of conditioning, what pace and space is all about with a game that fast.
"They were excellent and we knew they would be. The two guys who had great games against us are the same guys that led them in scoring against Wisconsin a year ago when it was a 101-92 game. They're good and they shot the ball at a very high rate. We made a lot of adjustments on who was guarding whom during the game, then our switching in the fourth quarter wasn't nearly as aggressive. That was really the one quarter that did us. It was 31-22 inside of that quarter.
"We did some good things, I thought we were able to get to the rim, the game was giving us that. The game is always giving you something and you want to figure out what that is, and well it was middle drives for us. We got a lot going down the middle of the court. They did a pretty good job of taking some of that away, we still got backcuts, we still got plays out of the corner. But, we didn't lose the game on offense, we lost it because we got fatigued a little bit defensively and we didn't get the 3-point shooting under control at the end of the game.
"They shot it real well the whole game, I see that. But, we needed to get a couple of spots. This team needs to learn that to be successful, you've got to put together multiple stops with multiple scores, and that's how you create separation."
"The great news is we get to play a team that's in the same caliber. These teams played for the league championship last year, so those are the films we've been studying - the two of them playing against each other. So, we're excited about that opportunity to play tomorrow night too."
On how much this trip will teach the players about conditioning:
"Absolutely. I don't think there's any question about that. It's a fast-paced, but that's the way. We haven't even put our press in yet. I think it's great. There's not a plus to losing and the bottom line is it doesn't matter if it's Aug, 10 or March 10, you want to figure out how important it is to win. We had chances to get this game and we didn't get it. That's what we have to learn. If the game's important enough to play, the game's important enough to win. It wasn't like we weren't trying; we just got a little tried on the defensive end. I think you're absolutely right - 60 percent on the foul line, that's fatigue more than anything else. We were short on a couple of jump shots late where I think fatigue set in. It really comes down to the teams with the skill and the will are the high level teams. But, at some point in the game it's really not as much about the skill, it's truly about the will. It just becomes something that's a multiplier. You get your teammates so engrained that `We're going to find a way to win this game.' That's our youth; we've got to learn how to do that. We're not there yet, so this is a great trip for us to experience some of that."
On if this tempo be kept up with a 35-second shot clock:
"It's too early to tell. We're missing an important piece on the front line. At the same time, Nick Zeisloft has only practiced with us for a couple of days before we got out here, literally because of his graduation. So he has not been with us that whole time. We'll keep getting better and better. The key for us to is to be able to dictate pace. There's certain teams that play really fast, they come play us at Assembly Hall and they don't play fast. They slow it down. Michigan at times, who's known for their pace and all of a sudden that game's going down to the shot clock numerous times when we play them. Ohio State's done the same thing. For us to take the next step, as a program as we grow up, how do we dictate that pace even on the defensive end? We're throwing things at them defensively but we got beat on concepts today more than we did on any scheme. You're so used to help, help, help, help and recover, help and recover, when you're playing in the Big Ten, that's not the way that it is. If you help and recover too much, Nik Stauskas shot 74 percent on open three's last year. You're dealing with some of the better shooters in the nation in our league so you have to be able to adjust your three-point defense to that and to the penetration. It takes a while to learn how to do that the way we're trying to do it, so it caught us a little bit today."
On if there's any updates on the availability of Hanner Mosquera-Perea or Jeremiah April:
"No. It is what it is right now in the sense of just waiting for Hanner's paperwork to come through. We have contingency plans everyday for him to be here. Obviously today doesn't play in to that, but we'll wait again for tomorrow."
"(Jeremiah)'s not ready to play yet. He felt a little bit better today and this morning, but he's not ready to play yet and not ready to run."
On the impact of not having Hanner Mosquera-Perea or Jeremiah April in the lineup:
"As you've seen, with #11, we put Troy Williams on him and changed the game a little bit because the length bothered him. Those two guards are really, really good and that's not enough the best player they had in Terry Thomas - those are three really good guards. Vikas Gill just kept knocking it in. They're an excellent team and they are so well coached. I thought the team the other night was extremely well coached, I thought this one was too. When you're sitting there saying ` I like this, I like this concept, I could see us running that,' I love that. But they're well coached because they know how to play at that pace and they knew how to defend at that pace. Again, we were getting to the rim when we wanted to get to the rim, but (Mosquera-Perea and April) would change it somewhat. We've been able to do more with Hanner this summer defensively, which is good. But, the biggest things for us were the three-point defense and we needed more defensive rebounds, especially from our guards. We have to be a team-rebounding team all the way across the board and the guards have to be as big of part of that as anybody."
On the team's ability to jump back from an early deficit:
"It's a long game. Even when we were down nine - long game. That (shot) clock, it just changes so much for you with the possessions - when you foul, when you don't foul, when you use your timeouts, the whole thing. We enjoyed that part of it and just getting that across to them. They stayed with that because we made a good comeback. We don't have our full court traps in, we've been so concerned with getting a good standard of half-court defense down and we will continue to do that and get the full-court pressure in during the season and in the preseason. But, that was good. There's always a tipping point in the game and the more you understand that it comes from staying true to the fundamentals and not getting away from your concepts, your base. I keep emphasizing that it's three-point defense for us. If you're a great help defensive team in the Big Ten and you think people are going to pass the ball, move the ball, get open three's, it's not going to happen. You really have to be able to stop penetration with the man that's guarding the ball and not over-help off the shooters. This was a great, great example of that and they shot the ball phenomenally well. Some of it, they were open but they made tough shots as well. There will be a lot to learn from this, just like there was from the three-point shooting the other night."
On Stanford Robinson taking shots right-handed:
"It's something he's been working on. It's a little more natural for him. He's a little but more of a naturally right-handed player. If you look at it, it's much smoother coming off his guide hand. It's all about his guide hand. A lot of times his right hand flicks and when he shoots it with the left, the right hand comes inside of it. When he shoots it with his right, the guide hand is staying - I wouldn't say picture-perfect - but it's getting there. The one shot he shot in the corner where he went up with the left hand, that's what we want away from. We want to be able to score with both hands around the rim, but not change direction - not yet. That's something he's worked very hard at. We haven't made a big deal about it and it's got to be something that he works himself in to and hopefully he will. He's definitely shooting it better in our drills and our practices and things like that he spends a lot of time on his shot. But, it's certainly still a work in progress."
On how important is for all the guards to lead the offense:
"Absolutely, that's what they were recruited to do. The only thing I've said about the point guard position is the guy who throws it up the court the best on the break - especially after the made basket - that will be the guy who brings up the ball on the break after a made basket, our blitz offense. The fast break, the getting it out and running and being able to do multiple things, that's all by design. I'd like it to get to the point where it looks like you've got three interchangeable parts out there. As we go down the line in our running game, young guys still don't understand how hard you have to run the court every time. But, this is their second game and I love it. I love the pace we're playing at because we need to learn a lot about it. We need to learn what's expected. We need to learn how to get over walls. When you're playing at this pace, and you're playing fast like this, there's numerous walls you have to get over inside the game. It's not about getting your second wind, it's about getting your eighth wind, that's just the way that it is. We'll be very interchangeable as you go down the line. The fact that they can all shoot the ball and with Stanford Robinson's hopeful improvement in that area, that will be big. Troy Williams just becomes such a versatile player for us and you're seeing the effects of that. He's moving extremely well without the ball, he's getting better with the ball. We didn't lose the game today because of our offense wasn't where it needed to be, we just didn't defensive rebound enough and we didn't defend the three enough and couple one-on-one drives got us at the very end."
On how turnovers affected the game in relation to the increased number of possessions:
"The faster you play, there's always that. I'm not real wrapped up in all that. I'm more wrapped up in are we getting good shots? Are we going from a good to a great shot? Robert Johnson makes a drive late in the game - and this is where I was talking the other day about fundamentals - there's all kinds of options out of that set for us late game. Rob goes down the lane - and this is where the eyes have to stay up the whole way - lift it, get it high off the board, so if he doesn't make it, we have a chance to offensive rebound it. He's used to not having to play against that length, but getting it up high, keeping your eyes up, finishing with your eyes - we always talk about `finish with your eyes' - that's all part of the growth process. I could see it was going to be short because his head wasn't up the whole way. But, that's a play when we get into the season, that he will be making, he'll be making it against high-level competition. Those kinds of plays will help us win games."
On Nick Zeisloft bringing a veteran presence:
"He's feeling his way. It doesn't matter if you're 21, 22, 42, 52, you walk in a new environment and it's going to be different. But we have high expectations for Nick, extremely high expectations for him. Like I said when we started studying his film when this became a possibility, we felt there was a lot on the table left for him. There is and we're going to keep pushing him, but I think he really wants it and he's an extremely hard worker. I'll give you an example, we leave the other morning and they need to leave the gym at 8:00, Robert Johnson and Nick were there at 6:45 on Thursday morning to work out before they took a shower and got on the bus to leave for the airport and fly out at 9. That's what you want. No one told them to do that. That's the level of commitment you want and I think Nick is going to be a fantastic leader. It's going to take him a little while to get used to and get comfortable and all those things with the team, but we're highly confident that he will."
On the benefit of Nick Zeisloft having two years of eligibility remaining:
"It helps immensely because there's a long-term plan for him. He can make shots, he shot 42 percent from three and 90 percent from the line. The problem is he didn't get enough attempts of either. But that's a new day now. Whatever he did at Illinois State he did and he did well, he was the team captain - think about that, that's a leader - and Illinois State is a fine program. He will be a real factor for us, I have no doubt about that. A couple weeks ago we weren't sure if this was going to happen, if he was going to play on this trip. The way things have been sped up for him and what he's done with his academics is pretty impressive."
