Previewing Tuesday's Game Against Illinois

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Indiana head coach Archie Miller and junior Rob Phinisee met with the media Monday to preview tomorrow's game against Iowa. Below are videos and a transcript from the availability.

Junior Rob Phinisee

Indiana Head Coach Archie Miller

Opening Statement
MILLER: We are excited to get back on the floor. It is difficult to have these types of long pauses in the middle of conference play. I think every once in a while, a deep breath and the ability to work on yourself is good, but I also think that longs days and a long season can really wear on your guys. So, we are anxious to get back to the court and play. Illinois, having a terrific season. They are a great team. We played them, realistically about a month ago. The day after Christmas, and it was a tightly contested game. They were able to make some plays in transition in particular late in that game coming down the stretch that gave them some breathing room, and they were able to pull it out. Looking back on that game, they are some things we can take from it. There are some things that we obviously have to do a lot better at. And watching them play here recently, they are continuing to play at a high level. Especially their two big guns with Ayo (Dosunmo) and big Kofi (Cockburn) inside. They are two of the premiere players in the country, and they are getting the job done. But they have a slew of other guys continuing to contribute. (Andre) Curbelo is one of the best freshmen in the conference. I think (Jacob) Grandison's addition to what they are doing right now has given them more depth, and they are always a tough team to prepare for because of the unique one-two punch especially inside.

Q. On comparing prep for this game with prep for the Iowa game…
MILLER: I think just from a practice standpoint we are continuing to hone in on our fundamentals defensively. We had a great opportunity against Iowa, played extremely hard and it was not the same against Rutgers. So, I think consistency is a big thing, and our effort level just in general has not been as consistent on that end of the floor. It is something that as we head into February here, and with a lot of games left we are going to have to be better in that end. But you know, preparing to play against Illinois you really have to be smart. I think Ayo is a guy that can really hit you a lot of different ways. There is no single way that you can really hone in on him. He is great in transition. Shoots the ball extremely well in transition. In the half court with his size, and athleticism and talent he gets to the basket when he wants. And then he is a good reader of the defense. He makes good plays. He knows how teams are playing him, and their spacing is one of which he knows exactly where his reads are to make his outlets and his passes. So, he is tough to contain. I think the biggest thing is our offense. Our offense has to not do what it did against Rutgers in the second half. And that will bury us, a lot like it did in the Rutgers game, it will bury us against Illinois. If you turn the ball over nine times in the second half, you are going to give a team of this caliber an opportunity to get out of transition in where they thrive. In our first game I think we may have only had nine turnovers when we played at Illinois and that helped the cause of keeping the game right there for us to have an opportunity to win. But, offensively as much as anything, taking care of the ball is something we spent some time talking about here in the last week.

On any discussions about the Big Ten Tournament being so close to the NCAA tournament…
MILLER: I think the Big Ten Tournament is something that is very special especially for our league. In a normal year, it is one of the most competitive and toughest things to do to play 20 conference games and go right into the tournament and have a chance to advance. And if you do that in the conference tournament especially in our league and playing in venues like Chicago that we do, you set yourself up for a good postseason run. This year is a lot different especially with the NCAA tournament roughly days away. Teams having some setbacks or what it may be with COVID protocols and what not jeopardize your standing in the NCAA tournament, I think there is some concern. I think from our league's perspective It's a go. I think from all of our coach's standpoints, as we have conversed about it, I do think it is an important element to our league because our league which is going to beat each other up through the course of these 20 games and with the different types of non-conference schedules and profiles that you have, a game here or there could really mean the difference who is in the middle bottom third playing for a tournament bid. I think it is something we are all cognitive of that its important at the end of the year. I also think there are some teams here who have gone through some things the last couple of weeks and look at it and say this could really be something that could derail us as we have an opportunity to approach post-season. I think as it gets closer each day will give us more information on what the right thing is to do. I know we will do the right thing as coaches and be on the same page whenever that happens. But as of right now, it is something that we are planning on doing and excited to get to it.

On having some extended time off…
MILLER: I think our biggest thing here these last couple of weeks has been our health. We have a banged-up team. Armaan has been playing realistically since the Maryland game with a hobbled ankle. He has reaggravated it multiple times in the games that he has returned. He has had a hard time practicing, so trying to get a guy like him back. Galloway has also been out with a back injury and has yes really to resume activity. We are trying to get him as fresh as we possibly can. Then, you have your normal wear and tear as you head into February with guys who have played a lot of minutes. I think resting and trying to get recovered is something we try to do a good job of here in the last week or so especially after this one. After this game starts on Tuesday, it is going to be an on slot the next 30 something days to get the remainder of our schedule in with two games that our yet to be added. Health has been something we have concentrated on and try to be mindful of. We have also tried to work. I think it is important to continue to work even though it is shorter times to try and stay sharp and keep competing and working on your stuff. Teams that are coming to practice this time of year that have purpose and work tend to play better at the end of the year and that is what we hope to do.

On if it makes sense to have the Big Ten Tournament in Indianapolis…
MILLER: I think it does make sense if that were to happen. It protects the team who are in the tournament with less travel. I think the city of Chicago in general right now is very difficult to navigate with hotels, their social distancing protocols, their eating, just a lot things that people probably aren't think about that requires you to go to a city for multiple days and be together that just isn't doable in that type of a setting when you are playing in a conference tournament as much as you are together meeting, doing all that stuff. So, I think it makes sense. It is practical for the teams that are moving on. I think Indianapolis being where everything is going to be held makes some sense if that were to happen. I think that is defiantly something that has been discussed and has been thrown around that if it happens it will be a good move.

On the play of Kofi Cockburn and his shot-blocking…
MILLER: It is difficult because he doesn't come outside of around the basket regardless of who they play. I don't necessarily know if our roster dictates if he is going to move around a ton. But he doesn't move around a ton in any game even if you watched him play in the Iowa game, and he is guarding Luka Garza. Garza is as good of a 3-point shooting big that you will see in the entire country. In terms of how they play, he is not moving past 15 or 16 feet. That is why their defense is good. It's unique. Everything is funneled to the rim. Everything is forced to practically make you shoot two-point shots. In the first game, he had a significant impact on Trayce in and around the basket. Very similar to the Rutgers game where two-point shots are hard to come by with him being in front. I think the unique thing is with those guys is that they don't foul either. They do a really great job at playing hard, but at the same time they do a great job of keeping things in between the basket where there aren't a lot of fouls called. In our first game that we played the, our free-throw rate in general in just getting to the foul line and generating free-throws is a big part of our offense. It was something that was non-existent in our first game. If you watched them play against Iowa the other night, there wasn't a personal foul called in the last 10 minutes of the game. It is difficult. They are a tough team to score on. They have great personnel and quickness on the perimeter. They force things into the paint, and when you have a guy that is that big in and around the basket who is that athletic and timing as well, he challenges, alters and bothers shots. I think the unique thing for us is maybe not to move him around as much and to find the ability to play stronger at the basket. We have to find a way to generate free-throws. We have to find a way to generate, on our drives, second shot opportunities, earlier offensive transitions, easier post catches, and easier attacks to the paint when they are not set. It is something that they do a great job of it and we are going to have to be much better in game two in terms of our efficiency. We are going to have to find a way to get some easier baskets in transition off the glass and at the free throw line.

Players Mentioned

Rob Phinisee

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