#IUBB Media Availability – Dec. 16
12/16/2021 1:00:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Below is a full transcript of the Zoom press conference with Indiana head men's basketball coach Mike Woodson on Thursday, Dec. 16, 2021.
Head Coach Mike Woodson
Q. On the importance of playing in Indianapolis…
WOODSON: It's very important. That's home for me, man. That's where I grew up. It would give my family an opportunity, and friends, to come out and see us play. Not that they don't come down the road to see us here in Bloomington.
For me, it's sentimental. I love Indianapolis and everything that it has to offer. It would be nice if we could get a game here in the future. I don't know how that's going to pan out. We're working on some things. We'll just have to wait it out and see where we go after we finish this weekend.
Q. On Khristian Lander's playing time…
WOODSON: I would never discuss with any fan or media member playing time. Khristian Lander is wearing an IU uniform, and if I see fit to put him in the game, I just hope that he's ready to play whatever minutes he gets. And he's done that for me.
I don't know, that's a hard question to answer because, as a coach, I'm going to do what I think is right for the team, and that's not to say playing him is wrong. He has played some, maybe not as much as he wants to play, and that's good too because I want 17 guys who want to play.
That's what playing basketball is all about. I'd be disappointed if he sat over there and didn't give a damn about playing.
Khristian has just got to keep working, which he's doing that, doing all the necessary things on and off the floor, and just got to wait and see where it leads us.
Q. On the matchup with Notre Dame…
WOODSON: First of all, they're well coached. Mike Brey has done a hell of a job over the years there at Notre Dame. They've got a veteran ball club that's been together a while, so their system is in place. They know each other really well. We'll have to combat that as well.
Their perimeter play is what drives them. I think, when I watch film on them, they're very organized. I like the way they play on both ends of the floor. We got to commit ourselves for 40 minutes to come out of Gainbridge Fieldhouse with the win. It's not going to be a game where we go in and think it's going to be easy. We've got to compete for 40 minutes and see what happens.
Q. On the offensive tempo this season…
MIKE WOODSON: Everybody wants to run in basketball. I don't care what level it is. I hear that all the time. We need to run more, run more, run more. Well, you got to get stops. You got to create your chances of being able to get out in transition and run.
You can dribble the ball up quick when it's slow time and milk possession or take quick, early shots and play fast that way. Listen, we're scoring almost 80 points a game, and we're giving up 62, 63 points a game. My thing is I look at the plus-minuses. That's a pretty good plus. I like to get easier buckets, but the only way you get those is you've got to get stops and create turnovers where you can get out and do things early.
That might speed the process up, but I don't buy in to, well, we've got to play quicker and this and that. I just want to be more efficient. That's what's important to me.
Q. On the balance between instilling confidence and being hard on the team…
WOODSON: Coaching is coaching. I tell these guys all the time, it's never going to ever be personal with me. Sometimes when I'm loud and boisterous, it's the message that you probably need to ring in on, not because I'm screaming. Listen to the message.
That's kind of how I was coached, and I'm not saying it works all the time, but I know when to pat guys [on the back] and when to push guys. I've learned that as a coach over the years.
I think all players want to be coached. I do. It's just finding the right buttons to push. There are days I'm sure they walk off the court saying that this guy's crazy as hell, but then there are days that they say, hey, man, Coach really is a good dude, and he loves me, and he wants nothing but the best for me. Because at the end of the day, that's what it's all about. It's nothing more than that.
I'd be foolish to think anything differently, man. I need these guys to win. I need them to play hard and do the things that I think they can do to put us in a position to win. I don't want to screw that up. But I'm still going to coach. That's what I do. That's what I like to do. It's a balancing act, put it that way.
Q. On Race Thompson and Trayce Jackson-Davis playing defense on the perimeter…
WOODSON: I think they've done a good job in that regard. We don't switch a whole lot, and when they do switch, there's some times they get caught in a bad way, and they have to switch out on a smaller guy. That's just basketball. You can't play a 40-minute game and that not happen. It can happen in transition where you didn't get back and you might have to play somebody that's smaller than what you're accustomed to playing.
That's the whole beauty, I think, about our ball club when I took over. Those are things that I try to teach. It isn't going to be perfect every time down the floor, so do you just say, well, I'll take this possession off because I'm not guarding my man. I'll make up the next possession. It doesn't work like that. You're going to get caught in bad situations, and you're going to have to just man up and play.
I think, for the most part, they've done a pretty good job in that area. I have no complaints there.
Q. On scheduling Kansas…
WOODSON: Look at both programs. Kansas has great tradition, man, have a great coach in Bill Self down there. I just think fans want to see games like that. It used to be that way here. Somehow if I can get the Kentucky series back, I would love to get that back with John Calipari because I just think that's what fans want to see. Maybe we get a game with UCLA or somebody out west.
I think, as you build your program, you've got to put teams in play just to test your team, man, just to see what your program is about. That's important moving forward. Coach [Bob Knight] always did it, and it didn't hurt. After you did that two or three times, you had to run into the tough Big Ten. It all goes hand in hand.
I think you've got to challenge your team as you move forward. As we're building this, we've got to challenge ourselves with big time programs, and Kansas sits right at the top.
Q. On the point guard position…
WOODSON: I still think it's a work in progress with all of our point guards. It's a tough position, man. I'm demanding when it comes to that. There are certain things they've got to be able to do to get us over the hump, and we're still in the learning stages, me being the head coach and our point guards being players for our ball club. We've still got a ways to go in that regard.
I'm going to keep pushing Xavier Johnson, Rob Phinisee and Khristian Lander to be better because, as they get better, we'll benefit from it as a ball club.
Q. On the preparation for a road/neutral site game…
WOODSON: We just try to put them in the best position possible to win. We've had the Syracuse and Wisconsin game [on the road]. The only other game we had was Belmont, where we went to Louisville and played there. Until you learn how to win and know what it's like -- that Wisconsin game would have been a beautiful win for our ball club because it would have put us in a different light, just as a team in general, I think.
They really don't know what it's like to win yet on the road although Belmont was a pretty good test because they're a pretty good team. I've just got to get them over that hump.
To answer your question, we're not doing a whole lot -- times are different. You eat differently when you're out on the road. But our preparation is still the same in terms of how we go about preparing our guys to play.
I always told our guys, even in the pros, when you go out on the road, you've got to have a totally different mentality because you don't have your fan base that's there like a sixth man that's rooting you on. So your whole makeup has got to be totally different. Once the game starts, you can't turn it over. You've got to get shots, and then you've got to get stops and rebound the ball. That all goes hand in hand every time you play, but on the road you've got to be a little bit more deliberate about how you play. You can't take chances.
I thought in the Syracuse game we got down so early that scared the hell out of me because I didn't really know how we'd respond because we hadn't been in that position. And then we did respond. Then in the Wisconsin game, losing the big lead, I think our guys know that they can compete on the road but we've got to finish it. That's the name of the game. You've got to finish to get that feel of what it's like to win on the road.
Q. On how often academics are talked about…
WOODSON: All the time. I talk to the academic counselor all the time. Basketball is basketball, I get it, but academics, education is first. It's more important than just basketball.
I think we put so much emphasis on sports in general, and I get it, but you've got to get an education around me because that's going to take you, I think, a lot further than this sport. We give them time to do what they need to do, and I work around their schedule for practice time because that's important.
Q. On Jordan Geronimo…
WOODSON: Just continue to work. He's gotten better. The big thing, when he's challenged defensively, be it in traffic defensively with the basketball in his hands, he's got to get more comfortable in that area because he shrinks. Those are things that will come with more time, more practice, where he's more comfortable in doing things because I'm not -- I won't ever take the ball out of his hands and say you can't do that. My job is to get you to do it.
He has made major strides from the time we started some months ago together, and he's getting better. He's a good kid, he works, but he comes to the gym. He's a proud kid, and he puts his time in. So, he's just got to keep working, I guess to answer your question. My job is to push him to get better.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports
Head Coach Mike Woodson
Q. On the importance of playing in Indianapolis…
WOODSON: It's very important. That's home for me, man. That's where I grew up. It would give my family an opportunity, and friends, to come out and see us play. Not that they don't come down the road to see us here in Bloomington.
For me, it's sentimental. I love Indianapolis and everything that it has to offer. It would be nice if we could get a game here in the future. I don't know how that's going to pan out. We're working on some things. We'll just have to wait it out and see where we go after we finish this weekend.
Q. On Khristian Lander's playing time…
WOODSON: I would never discuss with any fan or media member playing time. Khristian Lander is wearing an IU uniform, and if I see fit to put him in the game, I just hope that he's ready to play whatever minutes he gets. And he's done that for me.
I don't know, that's a hard question to answer because, as a coach, I'm going to do what I think is right for the team, and that's not to say playing him is wrong. He has played some, maybe not as much as he wants to play, and that's good too because I want 17 guys who want to play.
That's what playing basketball is all about. I'd be disappointed if he sat over there and didn't give a damn about playing.
Khristian has just got to keep working, which he's doing that, doing all the necessary things on and off the floor, and just got to wait and see where it leads us.
Q. On the matchup with Notre Dame…
WOODSON: First of all, they're well coached. Mike Brey has done a hell of a job over the years there at Notre Dame. They've got a veteran ball club that's been together a while, so their system is in place. They know each other really well. We'll have to combat that as well.
Their perimeter play is what drives them. I think, when I watch film on them, they're very organized. I like the way they play on both ends of the floor. We got to commit ourselves for 40 minutes to come out of Gainbridge Fieldhouse with the win. It's not going to be a game where we go in and think it's going to be easy. We've got to compete for 40 minutes and see what happens.
Q. On the offensive tempo this season…
MIKE WOODSON: Everybody wants to run in basketball. I don't care what level it is. I hear that all the time. We need to run more, run more, run more. Well, you got to get stops. You got to create your chances of being able to get out in transition and run.
You can dribble the ball up quick when it's slow time and milk possession or take quick, early shots and play fast that way. Listen, we're scoring almost 80 points a game, and we're giving up 62, 63 points a game. My thing is I look at the plus-minuses. That's a pretty good plus. I like to get easier buckets, but the only way you get those is you've got to get stops and create turnovers where you can get out and do things early.
That might speed the process up, but I don't buy in to, well, we've got to play quicker and this and that. I just want to be more efficient. That's what's important to me.
Q. On the balance between instilling confidence and being hard on the team…
WOODSON: Coaching is coaching. I tell these guys all the time, it's never going to ever be personal with me. Sometimes when I'm loud and boisterous, it's the message that you probably need to ring in on, not because I'm screaming. Listen to the message.
That's kind of how I was coached, and I'm not saying it works all the time, but I know when to pat guys [on the back] and when to push guys. I've learned that as a coach over the years.
I think all players want to be coached. I do. It's just finding the right buttons to push. There are days I'm sure they walk off the court saying that this guy's crazy as hell, but then there are days that they say, hey, man, Coach really is a good dude, and he loves me, and he wants nothing but the best for me. Because at the end of the day, that's what it's all about. It's nothing more than that.
I'd be foolish to think anything differently, man. I need these guys to win. I need them to play hard and do the things that I think they can do to put us in a position to win. I don't want to screw that up. But I'm still going to coach. That's what I do. That's what I like to do. It's a balancing act, put it that way.
Q. On Race Thompson and Trayce Jackson-Davis playing defense on the perimeter…
WOODSON: I think they've done a good job in that regard. We don't switch a whole lot, and when they do switch, there's some times they get caught in a bad way, and they have to switch out on a smaller guy. That's just basketball. You can't play a 40-minute game and that not happen. It can happen in transition where you didn't get back and you might have to play somebody that's smaller than what you're accustomed to playing.
That's the whole beauty, I think, about our ball club when I took over. Those are things that I try to teach. It isn't going to be perfect every time down the floor, so do you just say, well, I'll take this possession off because I'm not guarding my man. I'll make up the next possession. It doesn't work like that. You're going to get caught in bad situations, and you're going to have to just man up and play.
I think, for the most part, they've done a pretty good job in that area. I have no complaints there.
Q. On scheduling Kansas…
WOODSON: Look at both programs. Kansas has great tradition, man, have a great coach in Bill Self down there. I just think fans want to see games like that. It used to be that way here. Somehow if I can get the Kentucky series back, I would love to get that back with John Calipari because I just think that's what fans want to see. Maybe we get a game with UCLA or somebody out west.
I think, as you build your program, you've got to put teams in play just to test your team, man, just to see what your program is about. That's important moving forward. Coach [Bob Knight] always did it, and it didn't hurt. After you did that two or three times, you had to run into the tough Big Ten. It all goes hand in hand.
I think you've got to challenge your team as you move forward. As we're building this, we've got to challenge ourselves with big time programs, and Kansas sits right at the top.
Q. On the point guard position…
WOODSON: I still think it's a work in progress with all of our point guards. It's a tough position, man. I'm demanding when it comes to that. There are certain things they've got to be able to do to get us over the hump, and we're still in the learning stages, me being the head coach and our point guards being players for our ball club. We've still got a ways to go in that regard.
I'm going to keep pushing Xavier Johnson, Rob Phinisee and Khristian Lander to be better because, as they get better, we'll benefit from it as a ball club.
Q. On the preparation for a road/neutral site game…
WOODSON: We just try to put them in the best position possible to win. We've had the Syracuse and Wisconsin game [on the road]. The only other game we had was Belmont, where we went to Louisville and played there. Until you learn how to win and know what it's like -- that Wisconsin game would have been a beautiful win for our ball club because it would have put us in a different light, just as a team in general, I think.
They really don't know what it's like to win yet on the road although Belmont was a pretty good test because they're a pretty good team. I've just got to get them over that hump.
To answer your question, we're not doing a whole lot -- times are different. You eat differently when you're out on the road. But our preparation is still the same in terms of how we go about preparing our guys to play.
I always told our guys, even in the pros, when you go out on the road, you've got to have a totally different mentality because you don't have your fan base that's there like a sixth man that's rooting you on. So your whole makeup has got to be totally different. Once the game starts, you can't turn it over. You've got to get shots, and then you've got to get stops and rebound the ball. That all goes hand in hand every time you play, but on the road you've got to be a little bit more deliberate about how you play. You can't take chances.
I thought in the Syracuse game we got down so early that scared the hell out of me because I didn't really know how we'd respond because we hadn't been in that position. And then we did respond. Then in the Wisconsin game, losing the big lead, I think our guys know that they can compete on the road but we've got to finish it. That's the name of the game. You've got to finish to get that feel of what it's like to win on the road.
Q. On how often academics are talked about…
WOODSON: All the time. I talk to the academic counselor all the time. Basketball is basketball, I get it, but academics, education is first. It's more important than just basketball.
I think we put so much emphasis on sports in general, and I get it, but you've got to get an education around me because that's going to take you, I think, a lot further than this sport. We give them time to do what they need to do, and I work around their schedule for practice time because that's important.
Q. On Jordan Geronimo…
WOODSON: Just continue to work. He's gotten better. The big thing, when he's challenged defensively, be it in traffic defensively with the basketball in his hands, he's got to get more comfortable in that area because he shrinks. Those are things that will come with more time, more practice, where he's more comfortable in doing things because I'm not -- I won't ever take the ball out of his hands and say you can't do that. My job is to get you to do it.
He has made major strides from the time we started some months ago together, and he's getting better. He's a good kid, he works, but he comes to the gym. He's a proud kid, and he puts his time in. So, he's just got to keep working, I guess to answer your question. My job is to push him to get better.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports
Players Mentioned
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