Indiana University Athletics
Postgame Quotes: vs. Michigan State
1/22/2023 2:00:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Postgame Quotes
Indiana vs. Michigan State
Jan. 22, 2023
MIKE WOODSON | HEAD COACH
Q. On Trey Galloway…
WOODSON: Trey. It started back again this summer when he was on the second unit. He and Tamar Bates had a lot of duties in terms of handling the ball when X was playing, so I had X and Jalen matched up against those two, and they had to bring the ball up the floor like point guards do, and you know, they had to be -- they had to be basketball players, that's kind of how I look at it, and we look at a lot of ball handling drills with our -- with all of our players, to make them feel comfortable about handling the basketball when they get on the game floor and they start playing for real.
So it's the work that he's put in this summer that's put him in the position to be able to get the trust from me and the coaching staff to let him run our point.
Q. On not always having to depend on Trayce Jackson-Davis
WOODSON: Well, again, this team was put together from last season for that reason alone where everybody had to play a role, and you know, we've had our ups and downs in terms of guys stepping up but these last three games, man, everybody that's played, has played a major, major role in us winning, and it's not just Trayce.
Trayce is kind of the guy that's driving the car, but the supporting cast has really pitched in and done their job as well.
Q. On Jackson-Davis' decision making…
WOODSON: Well, again, they didn't really double. They kind of just dropped everybody and was in and out from a defensive standpoint. I thought early on, he missed about three or four when I call "chippies" that he normally makes but make no mistake about it. It was our defense that held us. At the ten-minute mark, I think they had 7 points.
So I just thought from a coaching standpoint if we could find some offense eventually, we would get back in the basketball game, and we did.
Q. On the level of play from Jackson-Davis…
WOODSON: I think you're looking at a complete player, man, for four years that has done it at a high level. I mean, can't a lot of players say they have averaged 18, 19, 20 a game every year in college.
You add his rebounding, his ability to block shots, his assists, his ability to handle the ball and pushing him to initiate the break, I mean, there's nothing the guy can't do on the basketball floor. He's making his free throws. I mean, he's a beautiful player to watch and he's done -- I'm just glad he's on our ballclub, put it that way.
Q. On the team's recent success and difference in play…
WOODSON: Well, guys, when you lose two starters, and I go back to the Iowa game, you lose two starters, it's a shellshock to everybody, and especially when now you've got to depend on the Malik's and CJs and Jalen who has never played at this level a long period of time. And that's where we were.
I'm not using it as an excuse. You know, those guys, mentally, we were smacked in the face. When we started to go into the tailspin, the only way to get out of a tailspin, I've always believed this as a coach, you've got to work your way out of it.
So practice became even harder. And I became more demanding. I wanted more. We needed more, and we responded in the Wisconsin game and it's been a nice carryover to Illinois and now today. That's kind of where we are.
Q. On the response after a three-game losing streak…
WOODSON: It says a lot. They are not quitters. I've been a part of teams that just shut it down and say I'm done. But these guys, they are playing for something. The Big Ten Championship and title is still out there. Somebody's got to win it.
They are still competitive and they have got to stay competitive and stay humble and practice hard and do all the things that's necessary before you get ready for a ballgame to play.
Q. On the impact of Tamar Bates and Trey Galloway…
WOODSON: It's all about trust. You know, Tamar, he had been struggling the last few games, and he stepped up and played tonight. Gallo has been solid. He's been solid from day one. I like Gallo because he plays hard and does all the intangible things, things guys don't like to do. The trust factor is there. Jalen took a big blow and he was kind of hobbling around, so hell, I didn't think he had much in the tank at that time, so I rolled those guys.
Q. On the extra energy and competition between the teams…
WOODSON: I don't think it's by design. It's competition, man. Both teams are competitive. Any time you play an Izzo team there's well-coached by Izzo, they play hard and they push you to play hard. If you don't, you lose. I thought tonight, our guys stepped up, matched their energy and we were able to come out of here with the win.
Q. On the shift defensively late in the game…
WOODSON: Well, they made some shots. Hauser made some tough shots off the bounce as well as post-up play. Trey gave up a couple of buckets underneath on post-up plays.
So those are things I was screaming about the rest of the game, not giving up, and I thought we did a pretty good job on their perimeter play. So it was a solid team effort I thought.
TRAYCE JACKSON-DAVIS | FORWARD
Q. On his impact offensively…
JACKSON-DAVIS: It just opens the floor early. I missed a few bodies early and they were sitting but we were moving the ball around and they were sitting shots.
In the second half, spaced the floor and allowed me to go one-on-one. I feel like there's not a person in the country that can honestly guard me. So it is what it is when we hit shots, and everything is clicking. We're a great team and we're tough to beat.
Q. On what's changed with the team…
JACKSON-DAVIS: I think we have finally got acclimated to the new unit that we had in and only, we're just playing for each other and that's the biggest thing for us. Like I said about JG didn't have a great game today but Malik came in and stepped up. That's what we've got to do. Guys are starting to step up.
Race came back, so that's good. We're going to try to get him in, and with X hopefully coming back here soon, we've just got to keep rolling and guys have to keep stepping up.
TREY GALLOWAY | GUARD
Q. On his development and ability to handle the ball…
GALLOWAY: Just running that second unit -- helped me out to get ready for the season. It was really hard going against Jalen and Xavier in the fall. They made me a lot better, being able to handle the ball and practice against each other and getting that experience in practice, really helped out and it showed today.
Q. On what it's like playing with Trayce Jackson-Davis…
GALLOWAY: I mean, it's a good question, it's pretty special. I mean, because just the improvement that he's made from last year, just taking the pressure and handling it so well, I think just -- because our backs are against the wall early in the Big Ten season and he stayed composed. I know he was hurting and he's battling through that, and now he's finally kind of healthy. It's showing.
So I think just him sticking with it and I think just him being a willing passer, too. They can't -- they are not doubling as much. He's been able to create so much more options for himself or others. I think it's honestly just incredible just to watch him keep performing like this, and I'm glad he's on my team.
Q. On what has changed for the team…
GALLOWAY: We just kind of looked at ourselves in the mirror and knew what we had to do, and it was play defense and play harder. I think getting back to what we did last year, we were really good defensively last year, and we watched some of those games and we saw some of that. But obviously it's a new team but we had to go back to our principles and what Coach Woodson preaches, and that's defense. We weren't doing that in those losses.
Now we are finally coming together and playing harder on the defensive end and it's leading to more offense since we are getting stops.
Q. On the conversations with the team after three-straight losses…
GALLOWAY: I mean, we all just kind of came together. Nobody panicked because like I said, there was no reason to panic because it's a long Big Ten season and there's still a lot of games left. We can't get too high and we Kent get too low. We just have to stay even keel the whole time and know that we have a lot more games to be played. We just have to take it one game at a time and keep focusing on the task at hand.
TAMAR BATES | GUARD
Q. On his daughter winning the halftime race…
BATES: I did see -- the comeback win, and really because she was ready to get picked up. I seen she was crying the whole time but we'll take it, first competition ever. She's undefeated.
Q. On his preparation level before the game…
BATES: No doubt. And the way Trayce is playing, we knew we had to stay ready whether it's to be able to shoot or drive but more so just being ready on the defensive end because we knew with them playing three guards. Our three guards had to be able to make up for everything that they bring on both ends of the floor. We were all definitely ready to go.
Q. On the atmosphere of the game…
BATES: It's literally what we do it for, all the work we put in as individuals and as a team up to this point. That's what you play college basketball for. We look forward to every game, but especially when we have a really good opponent coming in, every raises their level of play.
Q. On how the team keeps things going…
BATES: For us, it's about staying locked in, solely focusing in on every opponent one at a time and then just sticking to what's working. We can tell from playing a game and watching film what's winning us these games and everything is starting on the defensive end. Just sticking to our habits and like you said, controlling what we can control. I feel like if we do what we do best, we'll live with the results.
TOM IZZO | MICHIGAN STATE HEAD COACH
Opening Statement…
IZZO: Disappointed, Encouraged. A lot of things to think about. Got to give Indiana credit. (Tamar) Bates comes off the bench and hits five threes out of six, and (Trey) Galloway hits three for three. That's the pick your poison. For our writers, you can maybe understand why sometimes pick not to double or not to dig. It just depends which way you want to go. I thought we did a heck of a job early. We mixed it up, we came at them different ways, he wasn't hurting us, and then AJ (Hoggard) got that foul at the 10 minute mark. We played 10 minutes without AJ. He fouls on the three. It was not a good foul, and eight minutes without (Jaden) Akins, and without Malik Hall that's just not a good thing. Pierre (Brooks II) had some good looks, just didn't make them. We played a couple times in the second half, but it was at the end of the first half when we had those three freshmen in there, not an easy place to play three freshmen. I thought they took advantage of us, and they got that lead in the second half and we just couldn't cut it down. They played well, give them credit. Trayce (Jackson-Davis) is playing his best basketball. We did a decent job on (Jalen Hood) Shifino. It was (Tamar) Bates that came in. We didn't think (Trey) Galloway would hit those, but they're a 68 percent free throw shooting team and they shoot 90. They did what they had to do to win it, we did what we had to do to lose it.
Q. On the struggles from Pierre Brooks II…
IZZO: It's tough, and some of it when he did double, we were supposed to get rotations too. I'm not sure who's fault, but we understand that Pierre is going to be limited defensively a little bit, but we hoped that could make shots and he's not making shots. It's tough but he played harder today. I thought Joey (Hauser) got the hell beat out of him. They did a nice job. They were physical with him, grabbing him, clutching him and I didn't think we handled that real well for a while. Later on we started driving the ball, and when we did I thought we had some success through that. When you're playing on the road, a couple mistakes can really change things, a couple of foul situations can change things. We still have no substitution pattern. Tyson Walker got sick two nights ago and didn't practice or eat. This morning we didn't even think he was going to play at breakfast. I give him a lot of credit. He hadn't shot a ball, he hadn't touched a ball. His stomach virus and this and that got a little better. But they put things in his veins last night and today. We're just not deep enough to go through those things. I was impressed because I think when I got Ty, if he had a little injury he was out. He grew up as a man today. He played as hard as he could today under the circumstances. We just didn't have enough guys to go.
Q. On the team's fatigue…
IZZO: I think the six games in 16 days caught up to us a little bit too, especially guys like Joey (Hauser), AJ (Hoggard) a little bit. Although AJ got a lot of rest in the first half. He still played 27 minutes, but he was out 10 minutes. That's what I mean about rotations. We're playing him almost the whole second half. Tre (Holloman) did soe uncharacteristic things when we told him what to do. We didn't feel as comfortable with him in the second half. Aden didn't do a bad job, but he's been playing pretty well. Jaxon (Kohler) did some nice things on offense and struggles a little bit on defense. If he can score you can do that. Those guys are getting better, him and Carson (Cooper). I think we needed AJ and Jaden in the game, and we needed Tyson to be 70 percent.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports
Indiana vs. Michigan State
Jan. 22, 2023
MIKE WOODSON | HEAD COACH
Q. On Trey Galloway…
WOODSON: Trey. It started back again this summer when he was on the second unit. He and Tamar Bates had a lot of duties in terms of handling the ball when X was playing, so I had X and Jalen matched up against those two, and they had to bring the ball up the floor like point guards do, and you know, they had to be -- they had to be basketball players, that's kind of how I look at it, and we look at a lot of ball handling drills with our -- with all of our players, to make them feel comfortable about handling the basketball when they get on the game floor and they start playing for real.
So it's the work that he's put in this summer that's put him in the position to be able to get the trust from me and the coaching staff to let him run our point.
Q. On not always having to depend on Trayce Jackson-Davis
WOODSON: Well, again, this team was put together from last season for that reason alone where everybody had to play a role, and you know, we've had our ups and downs in terms of guys stepping up but these last three games, man, everybody that's played, has played a major, major role in us winning, and it's not just Trayce.
Trayce is kind of the guy that's driving the car, but the supporting cast has really pitched in and done their job as well.
Q. On Jackson-Davis' decision making…
WOODSON: Well, again, they didn't really double. They kind of just dropped everybody and was in and out from a defensive standpoint. I thought early on, he missed about three or four when I call "chippies" that he normally makes but make no mistake about it. It was our defense that held us. At the ten-minute mark, I think they had 7 points.
So I just thought from a coaching standpoint if we could find some offense eventually, we would get back in the basketball game, and we did.
Q. On the level of play from Jackson-Davis…
WOODSON: I think you're looking at a complete player, man, for four years that has done it at a high level. I mean, can't a lot of players say they have averaged 18, 19, 20 a game every year in college.
You add his rebounding, his ability to block shots, his assists, his ability to handle the ball and pushing him to initiate the break, I mean, there's nothing the guy can't do on the basketball floor. He's making his free throws. I mean, he's a beautiful player to watch and he's done -- I'm just glad he's on our ballclub, put it that way.
Q. On the team's recent success and difference in play…
WOODSON: Well, guys, when you lose two starters, and I go back to the Iowa game, you lose two starters, it's a shellshock to everybody, and especially when now you've got to depend on the Malik's and CJs and Jalen who has never played at this level a long period of time. And that's where we were.
I'm not using it as an excuse. You know, those guys, mentally, we were smacked in the face. When we started to go into the tailspin, the only way to get out of a tailspin, I've always believed this as a coach, you've got to work your way out of it.
So practice became even harder. And I became more demanding. I wanted more. We needed more, and we responded in the Wisconsin game and it's been a nice carryover to Illinois and now today. That's kind of where we are.
Q. On the response after a three-game losing streak…
WOODSON: It says a lot. They are not quitters. I've been a part of teams that just shut it down and say I'm done. But these guys, they are playing for something. The Big Ten Championship and title is still out there. Somebody's got to win it.
They are still competitive and they have got to stay competitive and stay humble and practice hard and do all the things that's necessary before you get ready for a ballgame to play.
Q. On the impact of Tamar Bates and Trey Galloway…
WOODSON: It's all about trust. You know, Tamar, he had been struggling the last few games, and he stepped up and played tonight. Gallo has been solid. He's been solid from day one. I like Gallo because he plays hard and does all the intangible things, things guys don't like to do. The trust factor is there. Jalen took a big blow and he was kind of hobbling around, so hell, I didn't think he had much in the tank at that time, so I rolled those guys.
Q. On the extra energy and competition between the teams…
WOODSON: I don't think it's by design. It's competition, man. Both teams are competitive. Any time you play an Izzo team there's well-coached by Izzo, they play hard and they push you to play hard. If you don't, you lose. I thought tonight, our guys stepped up, matched their energy and we were able to come out of here with the win.
Q. On the shift defensively late in the game…
WOODSON: Well, they made some shots. Hauser made some tough shots off the bounce as well as post-up play. Trey gave up a couple of buckets underneath on post-up plays.
So those are things I was screaming about the rest of the game, not giving up, and I thought we did a pretty good job on their perimeter play. So it was a solid team effort I thought.
TRAYCE JACKSON-DAVIS | FORWARD
Q. On his impact offensively…
JACKSON-DAVIS: It just opens the floor early. I missed a few bodies early and they were sitting but we were moving the ball around and they were sitting shots.
In the second half, spaced the floor and allowed me to go one-on-one. I feel like there's not a person in the country that can honestly guard me. So it is what it is when we hit shots, and everything is clicking. We're a great team and we're tough to beat.
Q. On what's changed with the team…
JACKSON-DAVIS: I think we have finally got acclimated to the new unit that we had in and only, we're just playing for each other and that's the biggest thing for us. Like I said about JG didn't have a great game today but Malik came in and stepped up. That's what we've got to do. Guys are starting to step up.
Race came back, so that's good. We're going to try to get him in, and with X hopefully coming back here soon, we've just got to keep rolling and guys have to keep stepping up.
TREY GALLOWAY | GUARD
Q. On his development and ability to handle the ball…
GALLOWAY: Just running that second unit -- helped me out to get ready for the season. It was really hard going against Jalen and Xavier in the fall. They made me a lot better, being able to handle the ball and practice against each other and getting that experience in practice, really helped out and it showed today.
Q. On what it's like playing with Trayce Jackson-Davis…
GALLOWAY: I mean, it's a good question, it's pretty special. I mean, because just the improvement that he's made from last year, just taking the pressure and handling it so well, I think just -- because our backs are against the wall early in the Big Ten season and he stayed composed. I know he was hurting and he's battling through that, and now he's finally kind of healthy. It's showing.
So I think just him sticking with it and I think just him being a willing passer, too. They can't -- they are not doubling as much. He's been able to create so much more options for himself or others. I think it's honestly just incredible just to watch him keep performing like this, and I'm glad he's on my team.
Q. On what has changed for the team…
GALLOWAY: We just kind of looked at ourselves in the mirror and knew what we had to do, and it was play defense and play harder. I think getting back to what we did last year, we were really good defensively last year, and we watched some of those games and we saw some of that. But obviously it's a new team but we had to go back to our principles and what Coach Woodson preaches, and that's defense. We weren't doing that in those losses.
Now we are finally coming together and playing harder on the defensive end and it's leading to more offense since we are getting stops.
Q. On the conversations with the team after three-straight losses…
GALLOWAY: I mean, we all just kind of came together. Nobody panicked because like I said, there was no reason to panic because it's a long Big Ten season and there's still a lot of games left. We can't get too high and we Kent get too low. We just have to stay even keel the whole time and know that we have a lot more games to be played. We just have to take it one game at a time and keep focusing on the task at hand.
TAMAR BATES | GUARD
Q. On his daughter winning the halftime race…
BATES: I did see -- the comeback win, and really because she was ready to get picked up. I seen she was crying the whole time but we'll take it, first competition ever. She's undefeated.
Q. On his preparation level before the game…
BATES: No doubt. And the way Trayce is playing, we knew we had to stay ready whether it's to be able to shoot or drive but more so just being ready on the defensive end because we knew with them playing three guards. Our three guards had to be able to make up for everything that they bring on both ends of the floor. We were all definitely ready to go.
Q. On the atmosphere of the game…
BATES: It's literally what we do it for, all the work we put in as individuals and as a team up to this point. That's what you play college basketball for. We look forward to every game, but especially when we have a really good opponent coming in, every raises their level of play.
Q. On how the team keeps things going…
BATES: For us, it's about staying locked in, solely focusing in on every opponent one at a time and then just sticking to what's working. We can tell from playing a game and watching film what's winning us these games and everything is starting on the defensive end. Just sticking to our habits and like you said, controlling what we can control. I feel like if we do what we do best, we'll live with the results.
TOM IZZO | MICHIGAN STATE HEAD COACH
Opening Statement…
IZZO: Disappointed, Encouraged. A lot of things to think about. Got to give Indiana credit. (Tamar) Bates comes off the bench and hits five threes out of six, and (Trey) Galloway hits three for three. That's the pick your poison. For our writers, you can maybe understand why sometimes pick not to double or not to dig. It just depends which way you want to go. I thought we did a heck of a job early. We mixed it up, we came at them different ways, he wasn't hurting us, and then AJ (Hoggard) got that foul at the 10 minute mark. We played 10 minutes without AJ. He fouls on the three. It was not a good foul, and eight minutes without (Jaden) Akins, and without Malik Hall that's just not a good thing. Pierre (Brooks II) had some good looks, just didn't make them. We played a couple times in the second half, but it was at the end of the first half when we had those three freshmen in there, not an easy place to play three freshmen. I thought they took advantage of us, and they got that lead in the second half and we just couldn't cut it down. They played well, give them credit. Trayce (Jackson-Davis) is playing his best basketball. We did a decent job on (Jalen Hood) Shifino. It was (Tamar) Bates that came in. We didn't think (Trey) Galloway would hit those, but they're a 68 percent free throw shooting team and they shoot 90. They did what they had to do to win it, we did what we had to do to lose it.
Q. On the struggles from Pierre Brooks II…
IZZO: It's tough, and some of it when he did double, we were supposed to get rotations too. I'm not sure who's fault, but we understand that Pierre is going to be limited defensively a little bit, but we hoped that could make shots and he's not making shots. It's tough but he played harder today. I thought Joey (Hauser) got the hell beat out of him. They did a nice job. They were physical with him, grabbing him, clutching him and I didn't think we handled that real well for a while. Later on we started driving the ball, and when we did I thought we had some success through that. When you're playing on the road, a couple mistakes can really change things, a couple of foul situations can change things. We still have no substitution pattern. Tyson Walker got sick two nights ago and didn't practice or eat. This morning we didn't even think he was going to play at breakfast. I give him a lot of credit. He hadn't shot a ball, he hadn't touched a ball. His stomach virus and this and that got a little better. But they put things in his veins last night and today. We're just not deep enough to go through those things. I was impressed because I think when I got Ty, if he had a little injury he was out. He grew up as a man today. He played as hard as he could today under the circumstances. We just didn't have enough guys to go.
Q. On the team's fatigue…
IZZO: I think the six games in 16 days caught up to us a little bit too, especially guys like Joey (Hauser), AJ (Hoggard) a little bit. Although AJ got a lot of rest in the first half. He still played 27 minutes, but he was out 10 minutes. That's what I mean about rotations. We're playing him almost the whole second half. Tre (Holloman) did soe uncharacteristic things when we told him what to do. We didn't feel as comfortable with him in the second half. Aden didn't do a bad job, but he's been playing pretty well. Jaxon (Kohler) did some nice things on offense and struggles a little bit on defense. If he can score you can do that. Those guys are getting better, him and Carson (Cooper). I think we needed AJ and Jaden in the game, and we needed Tyson to be 70 percent.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports
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