Postgame Quotes vs. Marian
10/29/2022 6:00:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Postgame Quotes
Indiana vs. Marian
Oct. 29, 2022
MIKE WOODSON | HEAD COACH
Q. On Jalen Hood-Schifino earning a starting spot…
WOODSON: He's competing. He competed when we first started five months ago, and he's put himself in that position. You know, I didn't know who was going to start but you know, I thought having two guards that can handle the ball and make plays, and then you can take them out and play them with the second unit.
I played a lot of Xavier and Jalen together, not a lot, but some. But I played Tamar Bates and Trey Galloway together, a lot, as one, two, however way you guys perceive positions.
Q. Tamar Bates?
WOODSON: Tamar Bates and -- not tonight. I'm just talking about since we've been together. And the reason I did that was to give Tamar Bates and Galloway more experience in handling the basketball and bringing it up the floor and being decision-makers, and you know, my coaches probably thought I was crazy in doing that.
But it's been good for us because I think it's going to pay off in the long run. I'm not saying that I'll play -- I'll play them two together, but probably with a point guard, either X or Jalen. But Jalen earned the right to start. He's put in the work.
Q. On the defense and the newcomers fitting into that…
WOODSON: That's going to come more and more with practicing games, but I thought tonight, everybody was pretty much on par in terms of how we defended. I look at Jalen and Malik Reneau, they came out of a system in Montverde that that coach is a damned good coach, and he pushes guys to play hard and do the right things on both ends of the floor. I think the transition for them coming in, especially for Jalen has been easy for him because the kid works.
Malik, I thought tonight was fantastic. He did a lot of good things defensively. He rebounded the ball, and we know he can score the ball. So, I mean, it was kind of nice. I mean, starting those two guys, first time at the college level, I thought they passed with flying colors tonight.
Q. On Logan Duncomb's growth…
WOODSON: Well, he's working. You know, he's putting in work but he's got to work more. I mean, and I'm on him about that, and I know I'll never make guys work where and get in where the class work gets in the way. Class is first.
But when you have a minute, ten minutes, 15 minutes where you can get in the gym and get shots and do some things that can enhance what you do to help us, he's got to do that. So that's what I'm on him about more.
But I thought tonight, I told him after the game and in front of everybody, I was just so proud of him because he's hung in there with me and he's caught a lot of help, and he responded.
Q. On the availability of the roster…
WOODSON: Yesterday I knew that they weren't going to play today once I got to practice. So you just go to Plan B. It's next guy up. That's kind of how I look at it. You know I can't, wait on guys. I mean, I've got to build a team to win, and you know, we'll get Trayce and Tamar back eventually, and then we'll fit them in and do what we need to do.
Q. On what impressed from the game…
WOODSON: Our defense, in terms of how we communicated. You know, it's tough when you add your young guys to your team, and they have to be a big part of it this season and I'm on them constantly. You guys have to be a sponge. You have to absorb everything that we are trying to get done on both ends of the floor. I thought tonight they did a hell of a job in terms of our switching. We got beat a few times but for the most part, they were competitive, and that's all I can ask.
Q. On Race Thompson's perimeter shooting…
WOODSON: Makes me feel good, because again, when I came in, I was told he couldn't shoot threes, you didn't want him shooting threes, you didn't want him handling the basketball, and now, he's a player. He's a basketball player now. It's kind of nice.
Q. On the closed scrimmage versus exhibition format…
WOODSON: Well, again, it was new for me last year. That was already in play. I had nothing to do with that.
Marian, Steve Downing who is the AD there is a great, great friend of mine for many, many years. I always give him -- I talk about it all the time. In '76 when IU was playing for the national title, I sat at his house. His wife cooked a big-ass pot of chili and man, I probably eight four, five, six bowls of that chili, man. I've been starving ever since. So, I'm going to see her here in a few and I'm going to tell her, she's going to get that chili going again.
But no, Steve and I have been friends for a long time, and I'm proud of the job he's done as an AD at Marian and giving them an opportunity. I'm going to do it every year that I'm here; that they can come in here and play.
Q. On the play of the freshman class…
WOODSON: No, it is impressive. But a lot of it is the fact that they are so in tune in what we are doing, and that's valuable, man, in terms of building a winning team. Everybody has to be on board, and it can't be just about Jalen or about Malik. You know, this is a team, man, and I'm trying to push these guys, along with my staff, to do all the necessary things on and off the court to help us win basketball games.
Q. On the importance of getting all available players minutes…
WOODSON: It's important for everybody to play because from a coaching standpoint, I'm still learning and trying to figure out who can do what, even though we've been together five months, you know, practice is different than the game, actually. I've always believed that if you practice well, you play well. And I thought yesterday's practice, we didn't do a whole lot but it was pretty sharp, and the carryover was nice.
Now, if you would have said that two or three days ago and we walked into a game, I would not be making that statement, you know, because we had a terrible practice.
I thought yesterday, everybody was in tune, knowing that we had this game today, and they all came out and performed.
Q. On areas of improvement…
WOODSON: Well, you can always get better. Defending and rebounding the ball, that's got to stay consistent every time you step out on the floor. Because I know -- I mean, I know it works. Man, if you defend and rebound the ball, you will be in every ballgame. Every game.
Now, if you're making shots and you're making free throws, then it really enhances what you do from a team standpoint. So yeah, we've still got a lot of work to do, man. I've still got to get Trayce back and I've got to get Tamar in the mix. We've got some work still left to be done, a lot of work.
JORDAN GERONIMO | JUNIOR FORWARD & LOGAN DUNCOMB | SOPHOMORE CENTER
Q. On having a double-double…
DUNCOMB: It felt awesome. It's super rewarding because I felt like I put in a lot more effort this year, over the summer, trying to get better to be able to go out there and play and contribute. So super rewarding, super exciting. I had a giant smile on my face after the game.
Q. On how he played…
GERONIMO: I felt I played decent. The first half I had some trouble with fouls but I feel like I picked it up in the second half. I was able to do what I do, shoot a three, straight line drives to the bucket and get rebounds, offensive rebounds. I feel like my game is coming long.
Q. On getting minutes early in the season…
DUNCOMB: Just being able to go out there and play minutes in a real game, it makes you more comfortable for games ahead.
So, like I feel better about where my game is at right now. But yeah, play or not, I mean, all the guys, you do what you can. You do what you can with the minutes you're given and do what the coaches asked you to do.
Q. On the newcomers…
GERONIMO: They will help a great deal. As you see tonight, Malik was able to contribute a lot, so was fine oh, and Logan got in there and got a double-double. We have more depth to the team, you know what I mean, and we have a lot more options to go to, and I feel great about that because with a couple more weapons on the team, you're a better team. I feel great about that.
Q. On the summer work…
DUNCOMB: Well, just last year, I didn't get a ton of playing time because I didn't put in all the work I needed to, do all the things I had to, and so just wanting to be out there on the court to contributing to our team, to do something to help out.
Q. On the coaching emphasis this game…
DUNCOMB: Yeah, just like this is the first step in like a long journey and go out here and do what we've been working on doing for like five months, just do what we've been doing in practice and win this game, and it's the first step in a long journey of the season.
Q. On the difference the summer work made…
DUNCOMB: Mostly putting on, like, weight. Putting on weight over the off-season, Coach Clif Marshall had --
GERONIMO: Funky Monkeys.
DUNCOMB: Funky Monkeys. After practice, so I could hold my own in there and then getting in extra shots before or after practice. Not a whole lot but something to work on my game.
Q. On the depth of the team…
GERONIMO: Well, Coach Woodson always says the people on the bench are just as important as the people who start the game. So, you know, we kind of -- every time we practice against each other starters versus bench players, it's always like a competition, you know what I mean. The team is full of competitors.
You always want to win, and so with everybody wanting to win, we just make each other better, you know what I mean. We just really push each other to be great and practice always us encouraging each other and playing hard, and it's at a point where we have enough depth and talent to that the second squad is as good as good as the first squad, you know what I mean.
Q. On Hood-Schifino…
GERONIMO: He plays like a vet a little bit, I would say. He plays with great pace. He knows when to take shots, take good shots. He knows when to pass the ball and he passes the ball really well. He plays like he's been in college for a while you know what I mean but he's only a freshman so that's really impressive to see as a junior.
Q. On Reneau…
GERONIMO: Malik is a great man with a great touch, you know what I mean, and he can do everything, you know what I mean. As you've seen it, he can bring the ball up himself. He can shoot the ball. He can work in the post as you all saw tonight. Malik, he can do everything, you know what I mean, at I believe like 6-9, I think he's like 235. He's a monster down there.
SCOTT HEADY | HEAD COACH
Q. Opening Statement…
HEADY: I thought we battled. We got off to a slow start, and they get that 10-0 run and we missed a layup, missed a put back, got a steal, got a turnover. We had an opportunity to score a little bit there in the first. We struggled and got into a little hole there, but I felt like the middle of the first half, they were up 10-0 and at one point it was maybe 21-10, 21-12. Those middle six or eight minutes I we kind of came back a little bit and battled. Then in the second half, same thing we said at half time, we just, defensively, I thought we did the things we needed to do. But it was on the offensive end where we struggled a little bit. We missed some open shots, they got on our shooters, they didn't give (Hayden) Langkabel and (Josh) Bryan a lot. Those guys went 10 for 16 in our first game last Thursday from three. They were switching on them and they didn't give them threes. It was difficult for us to get anything around the basket with their size and athleticism. Offensively, it was just difficult, and when we did get open looks, we just didn't hit them.
Q. On the difficulty to shoot over the defense…
HEADY: They switched everything on shooters. They switched on our shooters and just got out and pressured the ball, made it difficult for us. They're just really good. They're really good on both ends, they're deep, they're good defensively, they're really active, long, athletic. They just made it difficult for us. When we did get open looks and we did execute, I thought our execution wasn't bad. When we get did get open looks, we just didn't convert. If we're going to score any more than 42, we've got to hit some open shots.
Q. On the positives from the game…
HEADY: I thought defensively, the things we wanted, I don't know if it was take away from them. But we knew we were going to have to battle defensively in the post. We, for the most part, kept them out of the lane. They didn't hurt us on a lot of penetration. Transition wise, they got a few things, but I don't know that it was anything where it really hurt us. They scored 78 points. I'm sure they are going to 78 points on a lot of teams or more. I thought, defensively, I'm pretty happy with what we did. It was difficult for us to hit shots today.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports
Indiana vs. Marian
Oct. 29, 2022
MIKE WOODSON | HEAD COACH
Q. On Jalen Hood-Schifino earning a starting spot…
WOODSON: He's competing. He competed when we first started five months ago, and he's put himself in that position. You know, I didn't know who was going to start but you know, I thought having two guards that can handle the ball and make plays, and then you can take them out and play them with the second unit.
I played a lot of Xavier and Jalen together, not a lot, but some. But I played Tamar Bates and Trey Galloway together, a lot, as one, two, however way you guys perceive positions.
Q. Tamar Bates?
WOODSON: Tamar Bates and -- not tonight. I'm just talking about since we've been together. And the reason I did that was to give Tamar Bates and Galloway more experience in handling the basketball and bringing it up the floor and being decision-makers, and you know, my coaches probably thought I was crazy in doing that.
But it's been good for us because I think it's going to pay off in the long run. I'm not saying that I'll play -- I'll play them two together, but probably with a point guard, either X or Jalen. But Jalen earned the right to start. He's put in the work.
Q. On the defense and the newcomers fitting into that…
WOODSON: That's going to come more and more with practicing games, but I thought tonight, everybody was pretty much on par in terms of how we defended. I look at Jalen and Malik Reneau, they came out of a system in Montverde that that coach is a damned good coach, and he pushes guys to play hard and do the right things on both ends of the floor. I think the transition for them coming in, especially for Jalen has been easy for him because the kid works.
Malik, I thought tonight was fantastic. He did a lot of good things defensively. He rebounded the ball, and we know he can score the ball. So, I mean, it was kind of nice. I mean, starting those two guys, first time at the college level, I thought they passed with flying colors tonight.
Q. On Logan Duncomb's growth…
WOODSON: Well, he's working. You know, he's putting in work but he's got to work more. I mean, and I'm on him about that, and I know I'll never make guys work where and get in where the class work gets in the way. Class is first.
But when you have a minute, ten minutes, 15 minutes where you can get in the gym and get shots and do some things that can enhance what you do to help us, he's got to do that. So that's what I'm on him about more.
But I thought tonight, I told him after the game and in front of everybody, I was just so proud of him because he's hung in there with me and he's caught a lot of help, and he responded.
Q. On the availability of the roster…
WOODSON: Yesterday I knew that they weren't going to play today once I got to practice. So you just go to Plan B. It's next guy up. That's kind of how I look at it. You know I can't, wait on guys. I mean, I've got to build a team to win, and you know, we'll get Trayce and Tamar back eventually, and then we'll fit them in and do what we need to do.
Q. On what impressed from the game…
WOODSON: Our defense, in terms of how we communicated. You know, it's tough when you add your young guys to your team, and they have to be a big part of it this season and I'm on them constantly. You guys have to be a sponge. You have to absorb everything that we are trying to get done on both ends of the floor. I thought tonight they did a hell of a job in terms of our switching. We got beat a few times but for the most part, they were competitive, and that's all I can ask.
Q. On Race Thompson's perimeter shooting…
WOODSON: Makes me feel good, because again, when I came in, I was told he couldn't shoot threes, you didn't want him shooting threes, you didn't want him handling the basketball, and now, he's a player. He's a basketball player now. It's kind of nice.
Q. On the closed scrimmage versus exhibition format…
WOODSON: Well, again, it was new for me last year. That was already in play. I had nothing to do with that.
Marian, Steve Downing who is the AD there is a great, great friend of mine for many, many years. I always give him -- I talk about it all the time. In '76 when IU was playing for the national title, I sat at his house. His wife cooked a big-ass pot of chili and man, I probably eight four, five, six bowls of that chili, man. I've been starving ever since. So, I'm going to see her here in a few and I'm going to tell her, she's going to get that chili going again.
But no, Steve and I have been friends for a long time, and I'm proud of the job he's done as an AD at Marian and giving them an opportunity. I'm going to do it every year that I'm here; that they can come in here and play.
Q. On the play of the freshman class…
WOODSON: No, it is impressive. But a lot of it is the fact that they are so in tune in what we are doing, and that's valuable, man, in terms of building a winning team. Everybody has to be on board, and it can't be just about Jalen or about Malik. You know, this is a team, man, and I'm trying to push these guys, along with my staff, to do all the necessary things on and off the court to help us win basketball games.
Q. On the importance of getting all available players minutes…
WOODSON: It's important for everybody to play because from a coaching standpoint, I'm still learning and trying to figure out who can do what, even though we've been together five months, you know, practice is different than the game, actually. I've always believed that if you practice well, you play well. And I thought yesterday's practice, we didn't do a whole lot but it was pretty sharp, and the carryover was nice.
Now, if you would have said that two or three days ago and we walked into a game, I would not be making that statement, you know, because we had a terrible practice.
I thought yesterday, everybody was in tune, knowing that we had this game today, and they all came out and performed.
Q. On areas of improvement…
WOODSON: Well, you can always get better. Defending and rebounding the ball, that's got to stay consistent every time you step out on the floor. Because I know -- I mean, I know it works. Man, if you defend and rebound the ball, you will be in every ballgame. Every game.
Now, if you're making shots and you're making free throws, then it really enhances what you do from a team standpoint. So yeah, we've still got a lot of work to do, man. I've still got to get Trayce back and I've got to get Tamar in the mix. We've got some work still left to be done, a lot of work.
JORDAN GERONIMO | JUNIOR FORWARD & LOGAN DUNCOMB | SOPHOMORE CENTER
Q. On having a double-double…
DUNCOMB: It felt awesome. It's super rewarding because I felt like I put in a lot more effort this year, over the summer, trying to get better to be able to go out there and play and contribute. So super rewarding, super exciting. I had a giant smile on my face after the game.
Q. On how he played…
GERONIMO: I felt I played decent. The first half I had some trouble with fouls but I feel like I picked it up in the second half. I was able to do what I do, shoot a three, straight line drives to the bucket and get rebounds, offensive rebounds. I feel like my game is coming long.
Q. On getting minutes early in the season…
DUNCOMB: Just being able to go out there and play minutes in a real game, it makes you more comfortable for games ahead.
So, like I feel better about where my game is at right now. But yeah, play or not, I mean, all the guys, you do what you can. You do what you can with the minutes you're given and do what the coaches asked you to do.
Q. On the newcomers…
GERONIMO: They will help a great deal. As you see tonight, Malik was able to contribute a lot, so was fine oh, and Logan got in there and got a double-double. We have more depth to the team, you know what I mean, and we have a lot more options to go to, and I feel great about that because with a couple more weapons on the team, you're a better team. I feel great about that.
Q. On the summer work…
DUNCOMB: Well, just last year, I didn't get a ton of playing time because I didn't put in all the work I needed to, do all the things I had to, and so just wanting to be out there on the court to contributing to our team, to do something to help out.
Q. On the coaching emphasis this game…
DUNCOMB: Yeah, just like this is the first step in like a long journey and go out here and do what we've been working on doing for like five months, just do what we've been doing in practice and win this game, and it's the first step in a long journey of the season.
Q. On the difference the summer work made…
DUNCOMB: Mostly putting on, like, weight. Putting on weight over the off-season, Coach Clif Marshall had --
GERONIMO: Funky Monkeys.
DUNCOMB: Funky Monkeys. After practice, so I could hold my own in there and then getting in extra shots before or after practice. Not a whole lot but something to work on my game.
Q. On the depth of the team…
GERONIMO: Well, Coach Woodson always says the people on the bench are just as important as the people who start the game. So, you know, we kind of -- every time we practice against each other starters versus bench players, it's always like a competition, you know what I mean. The team is full of competitors.
You always want to win, and so with everybody wanting to win, we just make each other better, you know what I mean. We just really push each other to be great and practice always us encouraging each other and playing hard, and it's at a point where we have enough depth and talent to that the second squad is as good as good as the first squad, you know what I mean.
Q. On Hood-Schifino…
GERONIMO: He plays like a vet a little bit, I would say. He plays with great pace. He knows when to take shots, take good shots. He knows when to pass the ball and he passes the ball really well. He plays like he's been in college for a while you know what I mean but he's only a freshman so that's really impressive to see as a junior.
Q. On Reneau…
GERONIMO: Malik is a great man with a great touch, you know what I mean, and he can do everything, you know what I mean. As you've seen it, he can bring the ball up himself. He can shoot the ball. He can work in the post as you all saw tonight. Malik, he can do everything, you know what I mean, at I believe like 6-9, I think he's like 235. He's a monster down there.
SCOTT HEADY | HEAD COACH
Q. Opening Statement…
HEADY: I thought we battled. We got off to a slow start, and they get that 10-0 run and we missed a layup, missed a put back, got a steal, got a turnover. We had an opportunity to score a little bit there in the first. We struggled and got into a little hole there, but I felt like the middle of the first half, they were up 10-0 and at one point it was maybe 21-10, 21-12. Those middle six or eight minutes I we kind of came back a little bit and battled. Then in the second half, same thing we said at half time, we just, defensively, I thought we did the things we needed to do. But it was on the offensive end where we struggled a little bit. We missed some open shots, they got on our shooters, they didn't give (Hayden) Langkabel and (Josh) Bryan a lot. Those guys went 10 for 16 in our first game last Thursday from three. They were switching on them and they didn't give them threes. It was difficult for us to get anything around the basket with their size and athleticism. Offensively, it was just difficult, and when we did get open looks, we just didn't hit them.
Q. On the difficulty to shoot over the defense…
HEADY: They switched everything on shooters. They switched on our shooters and just got out and pressured the ball, made it difficult for us. They're just really good. They're really good on both ends, they're deep, they're good defensively, they're really active, long, athletic. They just made it difficult for us. When we did get open looks and we did execute, I thought our execution wasn't bad. When we get did get open looks, we just didn't convert. If we're going to score any more than 42, we've got to hit some open shots.
Q. On the positives from the game…
HEADY: I thought defensively, the things we wanted, I don't know if it was take away from them. But we knew we were going to have to battle defensively in the post. We, for the most part, kept them out of the lane. They didn't hurt us on a lot of penetration. Transition wise, they got a few things, but I don't know that it was anything where it really hurt us. They scored 78 points. I'm sure they are going to 78 points on a lot of teams or more. I thought, defensively, I'm pretty happy with what we did. It was difficult for us to hit shots today.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports
Players Mentioned
Guard
/ Men's Basketball
Center
/ Men's Basketball
Guard
/ Men's Basketball
Guard
/ Men's Basketball
Forward
/ Men's Basketball
Forward
/ Men's BasketballFB: Fernando Mendoza & Elijah Sarratt - at Iowa Postgame Press Conference (09/27/25)
Sunday, September 28
FB: Pat Coogan - at Iowa Postgame Press Conference (09/27/25)
Sunday, September 28
FB: Aiden Fisher - at Iowa Postgame Press Conference (09/27/25)
Sunday, September 28
FB: Week 5 (at Iowa) - Curt Cignetti Post Game Press Conference
Sunday, September 28