Postgame Quotes: Indiana vs. Maryland
2/24/2022 9:50:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Postgame Quotes
Indiana vs. Maryland
Feb. 24, 2022
MIKE WOODSON | INDIANA HEAD COACH
Q. Talk about challenging Race Thompson
WOODSON: He's been that guy kind of all season for us. I know he was a little down after the -- we all were after the Ohio State game. And for him to bounce back like he did and have the kind of game he had tonight, man, we're going to need that from everybody as we finish the season off. I mean, you know, this was a big -- big win for our team tonight I thought. I mean, you lose five straight, man, and you're searching a little bit, you know, trying to figure out when you're going to stop the bleeding. And I thought tonight, boy, we stepped up and did what we had to do.
Q. How good did that feel to come out and close that thing out the way they did…
WOODSON: Well, it felt good. You know, I don't know how it's -- I mean, we've had some games where we've come out in the second half and been great. But as of late, I mean, man, when you lose five games in a row, man, you're searching as a team. These guys are not quitting. I'm telling you that now. They just -- they're competing every night. And that's all we can ask for, man. We try to put them in the best position possible. And I thought tonight they answered the bell big time.
Q. It seems like they've reached a point of being angry, tired of losing and sort of took it out on Maryland…
WOODSON: Our attitude has been great. Even in the five game skid, mean. I mean, guys you don't come out and, you know, take Ohio State on the road to overtime if you're not mentally and physically ready to compete. I mean, we've been competing. I mean, we lost a close game here at home against Wisconsin. I mean, our guys are competing. And that's -- from a coaching standpoint and our staff, that's all you can ask for, man. I mean, a play or two here or there, those two games we probably wouldn't be having this conversation. But at the end of the day, they're not quitting. And that's nice to see.
Q. Talk about your two foul strategy with Trayce Jackson-Davis and Xavier Johnson…
WOODSON: Listen, it's kind of a feel. I mean, I'm still learning these guys. I mean, I don't know -- I think sometimes coaches have to have trust to make sure -- you know, Trayce has never really fouled out of the -- I can't recall in past years Trayce even being in foul trouble. But, you know, at the end of the day, it's a long game early. So for him to pick up three or X. I can't go anywhere with X. You know, I don't have another point guard out there. So you got to sit him down. So I think it was the right move for both of them. Give other guys an opportunity to step up and play.
Q. On the bench play tonight…
WOODSON: Well, again, I can't play Trayce and Race, you know, even X, I mean, I can't play them 40 minutes. So those guys -- again, I've always said everybody's a part of this team that wears a uniform plays a role. And if you play two minutes, you better make it the most important minutes to help us win games, you know. And I thought in that stretch when we had the second unit in there -- we couldn't rebound the ball -- and they were able to take an 8 point lead and I believe they tied it. You know, I mean, we go in three -- up three at half, and they're right there. But for the most part, again, it was a total team effort, man, and I'm pleased as hell.
Q. Do you feel like Xavier is someone that puts like a lot of pressure on himself…
WOODSON: Well, I think all these young players put pressure on themselves. If they could just stay out of the paper and leave social media alone, they might be a lot better. You know, I mean, again, X means well. He wants to be great. He plays -- he competes, man. He's a competitor. That's what he does. And he's had his ups and downs, man. But for the most part, man, listen, this is the first time he and I have had an opportunity as coach/player to get together, man. I'm pleased at how he's played this year. He's come a long way from the beginning when we started to where he is today. When I see things like that, that means he's put in time and he's working.
Q. How much have you been able to get through to any of your guys on not looking at social media…
WOODSON: No, really not a lot. I don't know how the social media thing works because, guys, I don't -- you know, I think the university kind of handles my thing. And I couldn't tell you what they -- what people are saying or what's being said on our part. I don't have time for that. My time is watching film and trying to get prepared to play basketball. And these guys should do the same. I mean, you know, I tell them all, leave social media alone, man. Concentrate on your studies and playing basketball. That's what you came to school for. But it's not that easy.
RACE THOMPSON | INDIANA FORWARD & XAVIER JOHNSON | INDIANA GUARD
Q. On getting in the post tonight…
JOHNSON: We know when Trayce or Race are going, we're going to go back to them. And as a point guard, that's on me for running the play for them. When they're going, we're going to give them the ball. And coach, he preaches that.
Q. How much did that hurt to miss that last free throw…
JOHNSON: It hurt. I was tired, but it hurt.
Q. Talk about slowing down…
JOHNSON: I mean, like I said, when I got downhill, called the ball screens early, I mean, I saw it was opening up. And I got my teammates involved early. And they were actually hitting shots. Me and Parker will have a talk. But I know he'll be ready for next game. I'll be getting the ball to him.
Q. Talk about Xavier Johnson having nights like tonight…
THOMPSON: We're definitely going to be hard to beat. When you get X going, that's the head of a snake, for real. You might say Trayce is the head of the snake, but it's really X. We really go as he goes because he gets everybody involved. He gets everybody shots. And then when he goes 7 for 7 from the field, I mean, that's really tough to beat. Your point guard is getting whatever he got, 24 points or whatever, it's just going to be a hard team to beat.
Q. What does it mean to break the losing streak…
THOMPSON: Definitely a little bit of weight off of our shoulders. We've got to play with a chip though. But we've got to keep building. We played well tonight. I think in the past we had been playing good basketball, but we just had to play 40 minutes, not 38 minutes, not 39 minutes. We put a full 40 together tonight. But, I mean, definitely feels good to get off that streak. And hopefully we can put a couple more together.
Q. How much has being doubted kind of act as a source of motivation for you…
JOHNSON: I mean, as a person, as a kid, as it goes around social media, I see a lot of what a lot of people say. And I'm an emotional player. I see it a lot. I know it really doesn't matter, you're not supposed to read it. But at the end of the day, I mean, I'm a person, and I'm going to read it. But it's a matter of how you use it. That's what I'm going to say.
Q. Talk about getting the ball inside….
THOMPSON: That's our game plan a lot of the time. Go to me and Trayce. And then once, hopefully, we can get going, one of us gets going, then once we get going, it opens up the court for everybody because then the defense starts crowding down on us. We're unselfish players, so we're going to kick it out to our open teammates. They either knock down the shot or like X did not tonight, get downhill and find somebody else that's open and they get an open shot or he gets a lay-up even. So it definitely helps our team out a lot.
Q. On getting back in the win column as the regular season concludes…
RACE THOMPSON: I mean, we want to play in the tournament. None of us have ever played in the tournament. And that's a goal we're all trying to reach as a unit. But, I mean, yeah, we definitely knew we were on a little five game skid. It was hard every single day coming to practice working. And we know we're right there, right there to win the game. So I think that that just gave us motivation in practice yesterday. And we came in today and we showed up ready to play. And that's how we got the win.
DANNY MANNING | MARYLAND HEAD COACH
Opening Statement…
MANNING: You must give Indiana credit. They played really well. They go on a 13-0 run to space us out. I thought we competed at times, but not enough in this tough environment to get a win. We must do a better job of getting stops in the second half. We've got a quick turnaround. We've got to get ready for Ohio State. I thought Fatts (Russell) played hard. A lot of other guys played hard, but for me, for Fatts to play 37 minutes, shoot the ball 27 times without getting one dang free throw. I mean he's a top ten free throw getter in the league. I mean, that's mind boggling to me. But that's not the reason we lost the game.
Q. On Fatts Russell's game tonight…
MANNING: Well obviously he had the hottest hand for us tonight. We tried to ride him tonight. You know, 5-9 from three, he gave us the chance to have some type of success in a tough environment. Like I said, it's just mind boggling to me that he's a top ten free throw shooter in this league, he shoots 21 shots and not one free throw.
Q. On if Fatts Russell's hot hand was viewed as a spark of offense...
MANNING: I thought Hakem (Hart) played well early on, especially in the first half. He's been really settled in for us. Julian (Reese) came in and scored the ball at a good clip. But it comes down to defense. We weren't stout enough with our defensive intensity and they got comfortable, especially in the second half making shots. You guard Xavier Johnson. I've known Xavier for quite some time. Going into the ball game, we knew he was going to be able to get downhill and attack. So, for us to pick the poison was make him shoot threes and he made them tonight. And kudos to him he can knock down three threes. But that was all on me as far as game planning.
Indiana vs. Maryland
Feb. 24, 2022
MIKE WOODSON | INDIANA HEAD COACH
Q. Talk about challenging Race Thompson
WOODSON: He's been that guy kind of all season for us. I know he was a little down after the -- we all were after the Ohio State game. And for him to bounce back like he did and have the kind of game he had tonight, man, we're going to need that from everybody as we finish the season off. I mean, you know, this was a big -- big win for our team tonight I thought. I mean, you lose five straight, man, and you're searching a little bit, you know, trying to figure out when you're going to stop the bleeding. And I thought tonight, boy, we stepped up and did what we had to do.
Q. How good did that feel to come out and close that thing out the way they did…
WOODSON: Well, it felt good. You know, I don't know how it's -- I mean, we've had some games where we've come out in the second half and been great. But as of late, I mean, man, when you lose five games in a row, man, you're searching as a team. These guys are not quitting. I'm telling you that now. They just -- they're competing every night. And that's all we can ask for, man. We try to put them in the best position possible. And I thought tonight they answered the bell big time.
Q. It seems like they've reached a point of being angry, tired of losing and sort of took it out on Maryland…
WOODSON: Our attitude has been great. Even in the five game skid, mean. I mean, guys you don't come out and, you know, take Ohio State on the road to overtime if you're not mentally and physically ready to compete. I mean, we've been competing. I mean, we lost a close game here at home against Wisconsin. I mean, our guys are competing. And that's -- from a coaching standpoint and our staff, that's all you can ask for, man. I mean, a play or two here or there, those two games we probably wouldn't be having this conversation. But at the end of the day, they're not quitting. And that's nice to see.
Q. Talk about your two foul strategy with Trayce Jackson-Davis and Xavier Johnson…
WOODSON: Listen, it's kind of a feel. I mean, I'm still learning these guys. I mean, I don't know -- I think sometimes coaches have to have trust to make sure -- you know, Trayce has never really fouled out of the -- I can't recall in past years Trayce even being in foul trouble. But, you know, at the end of the day, it's a long game early. So for him to pick up three or X. I can't go anywhere with X. You know, I don't have another point guard out there. So you got to sit him down. So I think it was the right move for both of them. Give other guys an opportunity to step up and play.
Q. On the bench play tonight…
WOODSON: Well, again, I can't play Trayce and Race, you know, even X, I mean, I can't play them 40 minutes. So those guys -- again, I've always said everybody's a part of this team that wears a uniform plays a role. And if you play two minutes, you better make it the most important minutes to help us win games, you know. And I thought in that stretch when we had the second unit in there -- we couldn't rebound the ball -- and they were able to take an 8 point lead and I believe they tied it. You know, I mean, we go in three -- up three at half, and they're right there. But for the most part, again, it was a total team effort, man, and I'm pleased as hell.
Q. Do you feel like Xavier is someone that puts like a lot of pressure on himself…
WOODSON: Well, I think all these young players put pressure on themselves. If they could just stay out of the paper and leave social media alone, they might be a lot better. You know, I mean, again, X means well. He wants to be great. He plays -- he competes, man. He's a competitor. That's what he does. And he's had his ups and downs, man. But for the most part, man, listen, this is the first time he and I have had an opportunity as coach/player to get together, man. I'm pleased at how he's played this year. He's come a long way from the beginning when we started to where he is today. When I see things like that, that means he's put in time and he's working.
Q. How much have you been able to get through to any of your guys on not looking at social media…
WOODSON: No, really not a lot. I don't know how the social media thing works because, guys, I don't -- you know, I think the university kind of handles my thing. And I couldn't tell you what they -- what people are saying or what's being said on our part. I don't have time for that. My time is watching film and trying to get prepared to play basketball. And these guys should do the same. I mean, you know, I tell them all, leave social media alone, man. Concentrate on your studies and playing basketball. That's what you came to school for. But it's not that easy.
RACE THOMPSON | INDIANA FORWARD & XAVIER JOHNSON | INDIANA GUARD
Q. On getting in the post tonight…
JOHNSON: We know when Trayce or Race are going, we're going to go back to them. And as a point guard, that's on me for running the play for them. When they're going, we're going to give them the ball. And coach, he preaches that.
Q. How much did that hurt to miss that last free throw…
JOHNSON: It hurt. I was tired, but it hurt.
Q. Talk about slowing down…
JOHNSON: I mean, like I said, when I got downhill, called the ball screens early, I mean, I saw it was opening up. And I got my teammates involved early. And they were actually hitting shots. Me and Parker will have a talk. But I know he'll be ready for next game. I'll be getting the ball to him.
Q. Talk about Xavier Johnson having nights like tonight…
THOMPSON: We're definitely going to be hard to beat. When you get X going, that's the head of a snake, for real. You might say Trayce is the head of the snake, but it's really X. We really go as he goes because he gets everybody involved. He gets everybody shots. And then when he goes 7 for 7 from the field, I mean, that's really tough to beat. Your point guard is getting whatever he got, 24 points or whatever, it's just going to be a hard team to beat.
Q. What does it mean to break the losing streak…
THOMPSON: Definitely a little bit of weight off of our shoulders. We've got to play with a chip though. But we've got to keep building. We played well tonight. I think in the past we had been playing good basketball, but we just had to play 40 minutes, not 38 minutes, not 39 minutes. We put a full 40 together tonight. But, I mean, definitely feels good to get off that streak. And hopefully we can put a couple more together.
Q. How much has being doubted kind of act as a source of motivation for you…
JOHNSON: I mean, as a person, as a kid, as it goes around social media, I see a lot of what a lot of people say. And I'm an emotional player. I see it a lot. I know it really doesn't matter, you're not supposed to read it. But at the end of the day, I mean, I'm a person, and I'm going to read it. But it's a matter of how you use it. That's what I'm going to say.
Q. Talk about getting the ball inside….
THOMPSON: That's our game plan a lot of the time. Go to me and Trayce. And then once, hopefully, we can get going, one of us gets going, then once we get going, it opens up the court for everybody because then the defense starts crowding down on us. We're unselfish players, so we're going to kick it out to our open teammates. They either knock down the shot or like X did not tonight, get downhill and find somebody else that's open and they get an open shot or he gets a lay-up even. So it definitely helps our team out a lot.
Q. On getting back in the win column as the regular season concludes…
RACE THOMPSON: I mean, we want to play in the tournament. None of us have ever played in the tournament. And that's a goal we're all trying to reach as a unit. But, I mean, yeah, we definitely knew we were on a little five game skid. It was hard every single day coming to practice working. And we know we're right there, right there to win the game. So I think that that just gave us motivation in practice yesterday. And we came in today and we showed up ready to play. And that's how we got the win.
DANNY MANNING | MARYLAND HEAD COACH
Opening Statement…
MANNING: You must give Indiana credit. They played really well. They go on a 13-0 run to space us out. I thought we competed at times, but not enough in this tough environment to get a win. We must do a better job of getting stops in the second half. We've got a quick turnaround. We've got to get ready for Ohio State. I thought Fatts (Russell) played hard. A lot of other guys played hard, but for me, for Fatts to play 37 minutes, shoot the ball 27 times without getting one dang free throw. I mean he's a top ten free throw getter in the league. I mean, that's mind boggling to me. But that's not the reason we lost the game.
Q. On Fatts Russell's game tonight…
MANNING: Well obviously he had the hottest hand for us tonight. We tried to ride him tonight. You know, 5-9 from three, he gave us the chance to have some type of success in a tough environment. Like I said, it's just mind boggling to me that he's a top ten free throw shooter in this league, he shoots 21 shots and not one free throw.
Q. On if Fatts Russell's hot hand was viewed as a spark of offense...
MANNING: I thought Hakem (Hart) played well early on, especially in the first half. He's been really settled in for us. Julian (Reese) came in and scored the ball at a good clip. But it comes down to defense. We weren't stout enough with our defensive intensity and they got comfortable, especially in the second half making shots. You guard Xavier Johnson. I've known Xavier for quite some time. Going into the ball game, we knew he was going to be able to get downhill and attack. So, for us to pick the poison was make him shoot threes and he made them tonight. And kudos to him he can knock down three threes. But that was all on me as far as game planning.
Players Mentioned
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