Postgame Quotes - Arkansas at Indiana - Indiana University Athletics

INDIANA HEAD COACH ARCHIE MILLER

ARCHIE MILLER: It was a highly contested game. We knew it was going to be hard. Having played Arkansas one time already, and having a little familiarity with them helped. With them having their big guy out makes it a little different game plan. I thought in the half court when we were working, I thought we defended well and we challenged the 3-point line, which is a huge thing. When we took care of the ball, we didn't give up as many transition baskets. When we didn't take care of the ball, that's where I think they made a killing with transition baskets.

All in all, if you are able to play this time of year and win it and we have another one coming next week. Today was a great atmosphere and we really appreciate the fans that came out to the game. We probably don't win that game without that type of crowd.

We are a game away from New York and when you are in this thing, you try to win it. We will either have Clemson or Wichita State, which both teams are really good, and it'll be a really hard game on the next one, as well, but we're really thankful to win.

Q. I know you had some turnovers, but Devonte --
ARCHIE MILLER: He's good. He's our most important sort of cog in the wheel right now. He's making a lot of plays. He's shooting the ball extremely well with great confidence. He had 11 defensive rebounds at the guard slot tonight. He also had three steals. But he's really turned it on here at the end. I think we've won six out of seven, and we probably don't win any of them without Devonte's ability on both ends of the floor, and I give him credit. He only practiced one day this week. He was sick all week long, the flu bug or whatever it was, so he really sort of rose up today when we needed him, and he again kind of showed up and made some plays for us.

Q. Where does that come from? Is it something you see in practice?
ARCHIE MILLER: He's just playing the game right now with freedom. I don't think he's worrying a whole lot about coming in the game or out of the game. I think right now he's just playing to win, and he knows he needs to make plays for us, and the one thing that he's giving us, I think everyone would say it, but you make some shots, it makes the game a lot easier, and he's helped us get over the hump here recently just with his ability to make some shots. Tough ones, too. First half he kept us going. Second half, again, hit a big one on the inside out that De'Ron kicked out to him. But he's playing as well as he has since I've been here.

Q. Obviously Al was really big last game. Green this game, Phinisee is really steady. What do you like about those three guards and how they're playing right now?
ARCHIE MILLER: They're giving you everything they've got. We've never played all season long with those three players on the court at one time, so it changes your offense. But I think all three guys are hanging in there defensively. We haven't played a real big physical team at the wing spot yet, so we've been able to get away with it. But Al, Rob and Devonte give you your highest play-making ability, especially in transition, and I think Al obviously had great looks tonight that didn't go down. He scores 22 the other game, and I thought Rob had a key stretch in the game where he made plays as a point guard, whether it was baskets or dumped balls, and Devonte, again, for a second game, like I said, he's continued to give us an added valued offensive player. If we could ever get sort of the three-point line really clicking with two guys or three guys, that just makes a world of difference for our team.

Q. Juwan and De'Ron were able to stay out of foul trouble in the first half so you were able to go to them in the second half. How effective is that lineup with both of them in there?
ARCHIE MILLER: It's very effective. De'Ron obviously played 20 minutes today and had a big impact on the game with 10 points. He got fouled and shot free throws so he was good, and then he and Juwan together give us our most physical presence where we can throw the ball inside, and they do a good job obviously on the offensive glass for us, as well. So that was big, and this next game I'm assuming without knowing either team, we're going to need our biggest, strongest guys ready to go for these next two.

Q. What were you looking at fouling up three and then not fouling on that last possession? Or did you want to foul that last possession?
ARCHIE MILLER: Absolutely. We called time-out to foul, and it's just the way it goes sometimes. We definitely wanted to foul on the catch in the quarter court, and we got that one. Took the ball out, executed press offense, got the foul, Devonte goes to the line and stretches it three. We call time-out and obviously wanted him to catch it in the front court and then have to dribble across half court and smack it down at half court. Devonte didn't foul, and obviously the guy got a shot off. But we were definitely looking to foul. We've always tried to do that under 11 and between 5 and 11, and you learn from the future. If that thing banks in there's some guys looking around funny. We got lucky.

Q. You played all year with Romeo, past couple of games without. The fact that the lineup moved or changed all through the year, how do you think that prepared this team to just be without one of their guys?
ARCHIE MILLER: Yeah, I mean, we've played so many games without so many guys available, I think different guys have stepped up, and now that Romeo is not involved, that's a heavy window of minutes, which last game Damezi and Zach played a little bit, and then today we were able to play the three guards and Zach gave good minutes. We'll see. We just keep plugging in the guys. We've got to go with it. Players at this time of year want to play, so they're excited.

Q. De'Ron seems to be moving pretty well. He was making -- diving on the floor. Do you feel like he's as healthy as he's been all season long?
ARCHIE MILLER: Mm-hmm, yeah, I think he's been playing pretty good basketball for us the last month and a half. He's had big games, he's had really key games for us. Today was another one. He was able to get 20-some minutes. I thought he worked really hard after the St. Francis game, putting himself in a good spot mentally to be ready to go today, and he's going to have to be ready to go whether we play Tuesday or Wednesday of next week because the size that we'll play with these next two teams will be more like a Big Ten game.

Q. There were people lined up outside before the doors opened at 10:30, big crowd for an NIT game. What was the impact of the crowd today?
ARCHIE MILLER: Oh, man, can't thank our fans enough. The environment in there was as good as we've had, the fans that are coming here want to be here, and our players really benefitted from it today. To be able to win that type of a game without that type of road advantage for the opponent, definitely without question can't thank them enough, and I'm assuming and hopefully we play this next one, we'll have a similar version of it. But it's incredible to watch them all stand up, line up, doors open and fill in, and we had an excellent, excellent crowd today. They were very, very helpful.

Q. I thought Zach looked a little more active today --
ARCHIE MILLER: He did, yeah.

Q. How much progress has he made health-wise?
ARCHIE MILLER: He's probably about 60 percent, 65 percent. I mean, his back isn't as bad anymore, but his foot is really limiting him from being able to really cut and move, but here the last couple games I think he's just -- he's went with it, and in particular today, I thought he had a good bounce about him. Hustle rebound, deflected balls, made a couple baskets, and he was good.

Q. What's the latest on Romeo's status? Do you think he's possible for Tuesday or Wednesday?
ARCHIE MILLER: It's potentially -- yeah, it's potential. He's had more doctors' appointments here in the last couple days, we're getting him some more clarity, some X-rays, some MRIs and some things just to make sure we're good, and I think that we feel good that he's making progress and he's feeling better. But until he says I feel great, we're not going to play -- he's not practicing. So we'll see. I do think he's making progress. We're getting a lot of information from the doctors and whatnot, and he's taking his time with his rehab and making sure that he's doing his part trying to get back, but he's sore. His pain is moving around a little bit, whether that's alignment or SI, but I don't think it's anything long-term that's going to be serious. The kid has logged a lot of minutes this season, and any time you have your back is jarred or it doesn't feel good. Anyone who's ever experienced that, you're very uncomfortable. So he's not going to be able to do anything until he gets that thing feeling pretty good. So we're hopeful. Got a couple more days to see where he's at. If he's not there, we'll play the game without him, and if longer it goes, the better chance he has of coming back.

Juwan Morgan

Can you talk about what looked like another slow start?
"I don't think it was so much of a slow start on our part this time, I think it was they were hitting some tough shots. Two or three of their threes we had a man right there with a hand in their face. They're D-1 players. They're going to hit tough shots. So I don't think it was as much of us having a slow start today, but it was just they were hot. I think we really dialed in and started making them uncomfortable. Isaiah Joe was a really great three-point shooter, and we got him out of his comfort zone of being able to toy with the ball and then shoot it."

Everyone talks about what this team might lose next year, but what about the guys that are coming back?
The team is in great hands. With Devonte and De'Ron being seniors, Al being a year older, Justin being a year older, and Rob. There are just not enough good things to say about Rob. Jerome he is definitely coming back, and you know you have guys like Jake (Forrester). I think they're going to surprise a lot of people. They may think they're losing a lot, but they're gaining just as much.

Are you thinking at all about this next game being your last game here in Bloomington?
I'm not thinking about it as much as I was before. We're here and today's crowd was amazing, and I think it'll be even better when we play next. I'm just excited to play and ready to play.

De'Ron Davis

A little bit of a slow start before you came in. Do you think you gave the team a little bit of a spark when you entered the game?
"Yeah, I feel like every time coach puts me into the game I just try to come off and pick up the slack in whatever way I can and contribute."

Was that missed tip in the regular season on your mind at all entering the game today?
"Yeah it definitely was. I said if I had the opportunity again I was not missing it. So yeah I was thinking about it, but I was just trying to play my game. I just wanted to play as hard as I can because I wanted to be ready. Obviously, the first game we played, I came into the game and then that tip happened, so you know I wasn't mentally ready. This game I just tried to be ready, and as soon as coach put me into the game I tried to add a spark to it."

What did you think about the team's effort as a whole?
"It just shows how together we are, how resilient we are, and we're in it to win it. A lot of teams don't like playing in the NIT, but we're going to use it to get better and continue how to learn how to win in the post season for next year."

Devonte Green

How much of an urgency do you and Rob have on the offensive end with Romeo out?
"Our minutes might go up and we might have to play a little longer, but it's always next man up. We lose a lot of scoring and shots with Romeo out so it's just going to create more opportunities for everyone else to hit shots."

What does it say about you guys to persevere these last two games and now play for the opportunity to go to New York?
"It says that just because we lost a tough one and didn't make the NCAA tournament that we have don't have to be done playing or be counted out in any way."

You and Rob are playing a lot more with Romeo being out. How would you say you two complement each other?
"We're like Batman and Robin right now. Actually, more like Batman and Batman. We play well together. He sees the floor well. I see the floor well. We're always talking to each other and communicating. Defensively, we both keep our man in front of us. I think we play really well together."

Whether you come off the bench or start do you have any different approach or do you keep the same mindset?
"I definitely do try to keep the same mindset. Coming off the bench though you can see what is going on in the game before you get into the game. It makes it a little bit easier to make an adjustment coming off the bench, but I do always try to keep the same mindset."

ARKANSAS HEAD COACH MIKE ANDERSON

MIKE ANDERSON: Coming in, obviously we talked about coming in and having an opportunity to participate in this tournament. We were in it to win it, and kind of ran out of time. Indiana, they did what they were supposed to do here at home. They took advantage of the home court, made some free throws going down the stretch. We missed some free throws, had a couple lay-ups there at the end, and when you play a road game, you've got to be able to make plays to keep yourself in position, and we were right there. I thought the game went back and forth, and they got a little cushion there, we had a little cushion early on, but it went until the final horn, so just proud of the effort of our guys. I thought they fought. We matched their physicality, I thought, inside. Made Morgan and De'Ron work for everything. I thought the guys that made a big difference in the game was the Green kid. I thought he had some clutch baskets for them.

Q. In a way it sort of feels like the story of the game, so many close games that went both ways all season.
MIKE ANDERSON: Right, it seemed like -- I talked about our team going on runs. It seemed like the games were streaks, it seemed like. We were in almost every game we played this year, so we'll use that, going through that. The inexperience caught up with it now and hopefully we can gain some experience so we can win those kind of games. We've been in enough of them. But I was proud of, like I say, our guys. They held their poise, even going down the stretch in this game, and with all the things that have taken place, you lose your best player, a guy that went for 29 and 12 against these guys, and now you've got to do it with other guys. But I was proud of -- you think about Isaiah, you think about Desi, I thought all those guys -- I thought Gabe gave us everything he had. They gave me everything they had.

Q. It was a tough shot obviously for Jalen, but he got it up --
MIKE ANDERSON: It was good. I thought it had a chance.

Q. Does your heart sink when you realize --
MIKE ANDERSON: Yeah, more so for the guys. I thought they played hard enough, and at times I thought we played well enough to win. Coming in here, I thought we had a great chance of putting it all. But you've got to be able to make plays. Like I said, free throws, loose balls going down the stretch. We had a couple lay-ups that we missed right point blank. You get that and-one, it just changes the whole complexion of the game.

But give Indiana credit. I thought those guys, they rose to the occasion and made some plays for them. Green even knocking those down, knocking down those free throws.

Q. When you look at Desi's game and the way he was playing, how tough was it not to have him the last four --
MIKE ANDERSON: He was a guy that had it going on, whether it be attacking the basket, making passes or stepping up, knocking shots down. I thought he played his heart out. He was trying to take charges. Even I think his last foul was trying to take a charge. As I said, these guys have learned a lot of things, and it was -- he was a guy that had it going on for us. But we've got multiple guys that are capable of doing it.

Q. Morgan does a lot of dirty work around the rim, but how effective is he in establishing the --
MIKE ANDERSON: He's good. He's good. That's one of the things we really talked about. What he tries to do is lock you in and seal you, and I thought for the most part -- he's got a great pair of hands. He's a senior. I mean, you think about it, he's been around a while. He's pretty crafty. But I thought we made him work for everything. We made him work for everything.

Q. What did you learn about your team these last two games?
MIKE ANDERSON: We have a team. I think we have a team that's going to get better, and the off-season, they're going to have a tremendous off-season. I think they aspire to be -- to be better than they were this year. There are some games there where we let slip because of our inability to make plays or make the right decision. Even in this game here, you could just see it. You could see that sometimes where the inexperience comes in. We got a 1 on 5 and we still try to get to the basket as opposed to just bringing it out and making them execute.

But I think for the most part, this team has heart. I think they want to be coached. As long as you've got that and you want to be coached and we've got some guys that will be better, though. The off-season, whether it be in the weight room, whether it be getting reps up, in the gym, working on your individual skill, the gym will be open. The lab -- that's what we call it, the lab. The lab will be open. I think it's going to be a great off-season. But right now I want them just to get away from it. We've been going since June, 1st of June, so now these guys will get a chance to hopefully catch their breath and catch up in school. A little bit over a month of school left, month and a half, so they've got to finish up and finish up strong.

Q. What would you say about your team given the fact that this was a hostile environment and they gave it a good run? And also talk about just the atmosphere.
MIKE ANDERSON: That's the thing I said; they're not intimidated. We've played in a lot of great environments, when you think about even an SEC, playing at Texas Tech. We've played in some environments, and I think that's why -- what impressed me more than anything else was even without a guy that was the leading rebounder in the conference, third leading scorer, and we come in, and our guys were right there until the horn. So that shows me the growth. We go to Providence and play well.

So these games to me, obviously gives these guys the blueprint of what's in store for this team, and we've got to get better. I think we've got to get better.

Q. They outscored you in the paint. Is that where you really --
MIKE ANDERSON: Well, that's their strength. That's their strength. They play power basketball. We made them work for everything, you know, and some of that was at the free-throw line. But I think on the other end of it, I think we did a good job of spacing the floor and getting in the gaps and getting to the lanes. We didn't get many free throws in the first half, but in the second half I thought we did a much better job, and now you've just got to capitalize. In a game of this magnitude, it's going to be a possession here, a free throw there, a steal or a stop there, but you've got to be able to capitalize and make the play. But that's their strength, and I thought we made them work on scoring.

Q. Every game when you were a player at Tulsa, an assistant coach at Tulsa, UAB, Arkansas, every time you've been involved in the NIT, the next year you actually went to the NCAA Tournament. I don't think that's a coincidence. How good do you feel with this experience if you guys --
MIKE ANDERSON: Like I say, you think about what we just did. Obviously coming off a disappointing season, but we have a chance to have a new life in the NIT, and with this type of team, whether it be practice or games, that's going to be so instrumental in your development because what you're doing, you're developing their mindset, a plan for a championship. But to go to the Big East and play at Providence, that's going to pay off big, big dividends, and then coming here to a hostile environment, and they're playing much, much better than they were in the beginning of the year, and so what that signals to our guys is we can play with anybody. Just get a little more seasoning, get a couple more pieces to go with what we've got, we will be better. I know that.

Q. Isaiah tied the NCAA freshman record, Jamal Murray's record --
MIKE ANDERSON: Did he? Okay.

Q. And then Isaiah the last eight games was 18 of 28 on threes. What did you think about what Desi did, and what did you think of (inaudible)?
MIKE ANDERSON: It tells you the potential of those guys and our team. I think we got the right guys. And obviously throughout the year, they've gotten better. Even Isaiah, as people start challenging him, he was out on a record pace early on, and then people really started -- once he got the confidence, really getting into him, and I think you saw his savvy starting to take place and him learning from that and getting away from people and creating, getting to the basket. So now you put in an off-season where he can get in the weight room and get stronger, eat a little bit more, he's going to be even better, I think.

Desi obviously got the opportunity to really impact the team even more so. I thought he took the ball, he ran with it, and you can just see the confidence is soaring right now. They feel like they have some of the better players, not necessarily just on this team but in the country, and I think that's huge for the individual development of a player. The mental part of it and the physical part of it, and having an opportunity to go out and showcase it. I think that's the beauty of it, and that's going to make us an even much better basketball team as those guys get better.

Q. All the fouls today, was that because Indiana is so good inside or was it just a rough day?
MIKE ANDERSON: A different game. It was a different type game. If you think the tempo was more at their pace -- they had some opportunities, they just didn't score. It was other guys scoring. I'm sure Indiana had a little bit to do with that, but even our guys. They had some open looks, but they just didn't knock them down.

Indiana University Athletics

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