Postgame Quotes vs. UIndy
10/29/2023 4:30:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Postgame Quotes
Indiana vs. UIndy (Exhibition)
Oct. 29, 2023
MIKE WOODSON | INDIANA HEAD COACH
Q. On the effort in the second half…
WOODSON: Well, we had a nice halftime talk. But I thought, to start the game, I thought we were a little tight. Guys not really familiar the first time playing in front of a crowd.
And I'm not using that as an excuse. We missed so many layups, our bigs, around the rim, and we couldn't make free throws. And you've got to give them credit. That team plays hard.
They won 26 games last year. Pretty much got everybody back. And they came in here and they played their butts off the first half. And I thought we adjusted and finally started playing Indiana basketball. And it started with our defense.
I thought our second unit was fantastic. I thought Gabe came in and got that group around him, and they started to really defend and got the lead that we needed to have.
Q. On the length of the defense…
WOODSON: That's a big emphasis in getting the ball out. And the way we try to play is X is not always the guy that's got to lead the break.
That's why we work on ball handling every day. Our bigs can push it. But whoever is pushing it, we have to get ahead of the ball and then make the passes up the floor and create offense that way.
And I just don't want to live in a half-court game this season. And I think we've got enough talent out there that guys can make plays. We only had 10 turnovers tonight. So I was pleased in that category as well.
Q. On Payton Sparks…
WOODSON: He's going to be fine. He's a tough dude. He'll be back on the floor, I'm sure, for the Marian game.
Q. On the second unit…
WOODSON: Again, if you followed me closely in the NBA, I've always stressed that the second unit is just as important as the first unit. And I've tried to build teams that way, where if you're not getting it from the first unit, you can go get it from the second unit.
And I think we're deep enough, we can stay away from injuries, that we can sustain that over the course of a season. I know this is just one game, and we hadn't even talked about Kansas and Auburn and all the big-time schools that we've got to play -- Connecticut, UConn, rather.
I'm just trying to build a team of guys that, when called upon, they're ready to play. And I thought the second unit, they really responded tonight in that regard.
Q. On the play in the paint…
WOODSON: You're that close to the rim, you've got a 7-footer and 6'9" kid and a 6'8" kid in Mackenzie, the ball just wasn't going in.
I told our guys we were too soft. We've got to be tougher. You've got to will the ball in. Put it in the bucket. Don't hope that it goes in; you've got to put it in there. I thought the second half we were better in that regard.
Q. On the 3-point shooting…
WOODSON: Again, I don't put a lot of emphasis on it. If we've got them, you've got to take them. I'm not telling guys to pass up the 3-point shot. And we had a few good looks, but their defense was pretty good the first half that really stymied us from just offensive movement.
Again, a lot of that is on me. I've got to get us comfortable in terms of running offense. And I thought the second half we was much better. Our defense kind of generated some easy buckets for us.
Q. On the expectations of the game…
WOODSON: Just trying to see if the two units could play. We had been kind of playing pretty good in practice with two different units, and granted we don't have Banks, Kaleb Banks, with us, and he's a big piece to the puzzle. We want him in the mix as well.
But I thought Anthony Leal played a great game today, and he's been pretty good in practice as well. I want to be able to play nine to 10 guys. I mean, I think if I can do that, we can have something in the tank as we finish the season.
Q. On Anthony Walker…
WOODSON: We brought him on board because we thought he does a little bit of everything. I had to get on him in the one timeout because they were in the zone and we threw it a couple times to him and he looked like he was hesitant.
And then he came right back after me getting on him and he responded with two buckets inside the zone. He's been scoring and doing a lot of different things for us in practice, and I don't want that to go the other way.
I mean, I brought him here to play. And what he did at Miami is behind him. He's just got to worry about what he's going to do here for us.
CJ GUNN | SOPHOMORE GUARD & ANTHONY WALKER | FIFTH-YEAR SENIOR FORWARD
Q. On playing well in the first half…
GUNN: It was just, you know, it's a blessing to be back out there on the court. We've been beating up on each other all summer. Finally, to go against another team to showcase what we can do as a team out there, it was a great time. Had a lot of fun.
Q. On the halftime adjustments…
WALKER: Yeah, I mean, he is who he is. Real Coach Woody came out. He wanted us to play Indiana basketball like he's been coaching us all summer and the way he's coached since he's been here. That's exactly what I feel like we did in the second half.
Q. On the defensive length…
WALKER: For sure. That's something Woody stated at the beginning of the year when he assembled this team, put the team together. This team is a lot taller than last year and a lot longer. We plan to use it to the best of our ability on offense and defense.
GUNN: We've just got to help each other, be in the gaps on defense and get deflections. As a team, I feel everybody on the floor can guard the 1 through 4, and as a team that's a capability that differentiates us from everybody else.
Q. On the learning points…
WALKER: Me, personally, I think that first half that we played was probably the best thing that could have happened to us coming out as our first game, knowing that we need to play basketball to the best of our ability against everybody. We need to play as hard as we can against everybody.
So, us being able to take that punch that they gave and come together and work as a team in the second half and pull it through, I think it was something that was really important.
Q. On the difference between this year and last year…
GUNN: Of course, I'm definitely more comfortable just practicing and being out there with the guys. Like we said, this is a whole different team. I'm as comfortable as ever out on the floor. We missed a couple shots, but that's not much, we are just going to keep going. We've got Marian on Friday. That's where my head's at.
Q. On Gabe Cupps…
GUNN: We just need it every night. His effort and his defensive pressure, that does nothing but it's contagious to all of us. Seeing him work and seeing him apply pressure on the ball, it makes us want to get stops and get deflections and get steals. We need that type of energy coming off the bench to lift us up as a team.
WALKER: Especially coming from a freshman. For him to come out his first game, apply the pressure he did made a statement for the team and other guards and our perimeter players on defense. So, it was very important for him to do that.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports
PAUL CORSARO | UINDY HEAD COACH
Q: On what went well in first half and what changed in second half…
Corsaro: I thought we defended incredibly well in the first half, and I still think we defended pretty well in the second half too. Ultimately, we had some costly turnovers in the second half that led to even more points for them. We also didn't get shots due to those turnovers. They turned up the pressure, credit to Indiana, and that was the change of the game.
Q: On what stuck out that Indiana did in the game…
Corsaro: Defensively, their length wore us down. They have NBA length, and coach Woodson did a really good job out of timeouts, attacking what we were doing defensively.
PAUL ZILINSKAS | UINDY FORWARD
Q: On some takeaways from today going into the regular season…
Zilinskas: I'm really excited. If we can put two halves together like that, I don't think anyone can compete against us. They turned it up in the second half and got a few fast break points, and we lost a little bit of gas. Overall, I'm really excited to keep playing with these guys. It was fun to compete out there today.
Indiana vs. UIndy (Exhibition)
Oct. 29, 2023
MIKE WOODSON | INDIANA HEAD COACH
Q. On the effort in the second half…
WOODSON: Well, we had a nice halftime talk. But I thought, to start the game, I thought we were a little tight. Guys not really familiar the first time playing in front of a crowd.
And I'm not using that as an excuse. We missed so many layups, our bigs, around the rim, and we couldn't make free throws. And you've got to give them credit. That team plays hard.
They won 26 games last year. Pretty much got everybody back. And they came in here and they played their butts off the first half. And I thought we adjusted and finally started playing Indiana basketball. And it started with our defense.
I thought our second unit was fantastic. I thought Gabe came in and got that group around him, and they started to really defend and got the lead that we needed to have.
Q. On the length of the defense…
WOODSON: That's a big emphasis in getting the ball out. And the way we try to play is X is not always the guy that's got to lead the break.
That's why we work on ball handling every day. Our bigs can push it. But whoever is pushing it, we have to get ahead of the ball and then make the passes up the floor and create offense that way.
And I just don't want to live in a half-court game this season. And I think we've got enough talent out there that guys can make plays. We only had 10 turnovers tonight. So I was pleased in that category as well.
Q. On Payton Sparks…
WOODSON: He's going to be fine. He's a tough dude. He'll be back on the floor, I'm sure, for the Marian game.
Q. On the second unit…
WOODSON: Again, if you followed me closely in the NBA, I've always stressed that the second unit is just as important as the first unit. And I've tried to build teams that way, where if you're not getting it from the first unit, you can go get it from the second unit.
And I think we're deep enough, we can stay away from injuries, that we can sustain that over the course of a season. I know this is just one game, and we hadn't even talked about Kansas and Auburn and all the big-time schools that we've got to play -- Connecticut, UConn, rather.
I'm just trying to build a team of guys that, when called upon, they're ready to play. And I thought the second unit, they really responded tonight in that regard.
Q. On the play in the paint…
WOODSON: You're that close to the rim, you've got a 7-footer and 6'9" kid and a 6'8" kid in Mackenzie, the ball just wasn't going in.
I told our guys we were too soft. We've got to be tougher. You've got to will the ball in. Put it in the bucket. Don't hope that it goes in; you've got to put it in there. I thought the second half we were better in that regard.
Q. On the 3-point shooting…
WOODSON: Again, I don't put a lot of emphasis on it. If we've got them, you've got to take them. I'm not telling guys to pass up the 3-point shot. And we had a few good looks, but their defense was pretty good the first half that really stymied us from just offensive movement.
Again, a lot of that is on me. I've got to get us comfortable in terms of running offense. And I thought the second half we was much better. Our defense kind of generated some easy buckets for us.
Q. On the expectations of the game…
WOODSON: Just trying to see if the two units could play. We had been kind of playing pretty good in practice with two different units, and granted we don't have Banks, Kaleb Banks, with us, and he's a big piece to the puzzle. We want him in the mix as well.
But I thought Anthony Leal played a great game today, and he's been pretty good in practice as well. I want to be able to play nine to 10 guys. I mean, I think if I can do that, we can have something in the tank as we finish the season.
Q. On Anthony Walker…
WOODSON: We brought him on board because we thought he does a little bit of everything. I had to get on him in the one timeout because they were in the zone and we threw it a couple times to him and he looked like he was hesitant.
And then he came right back after me getting on him and he responded with two buckets inside the zone. He's been scoring and doing a lot of different things for us in practice, and I don't want that to go the other way.
I mean, I brought him here to play. And what he did at Miami is behind him. He's just got to worry about what he's going to do here for us.
CJ GUNN | SOPHOMORE GUARD & ANTHONY WALKER | FIFTH-YEAR SENIOR FORWARD
Q. On playing well in the first half…
GUNN: It was just, you know, it's a blessing to be back out there on the court. We've been beating up on each other all summer. Finally, to go against another team to showcase what we can do as a team out there, it was a great time. Had a lot of fun.
Q. On the halftime adjustments…
WALKER: Yeah, I mean, he is who he is. Real Coach Woody came out. He wanted us to play Indiana basketball like he's been coaching us all summer and the way he's coached since he's been here. That's exactly what I feel like we did in the second half.
Q. On the defensive length…
WALKER: For sure. That's something Woody stated at the beginning of the year when he assembled this team, put the team together. This team is a lot taller than last year and a lot longer. We plan to use it to the best of our ability on offense and defense.
GUNN: We've just got to help each other, be in the gaps on defense and get deflections. As a team, I feel everybody on the floor can guard the 1 through 4, and as a team that's a capability that differentiates us from everybody else.
Q. On the learning points…
WALKER: Me, personally, I think that first half that we played was probably the best thing that could have happened to us coming out as our first game, knowing that we need to play basketball to the best of our ability against everybody. We need to play as hard as we can against everybody.
So, us being able to take that punch that they gave and come together and work as a team in the second half and pull it through, I think it was something that was really important.
Q. On the difference between this year and last year…
GUNN: Of course, I'm definitely more comfortable just practicing and being out there with the guys. Like we said, this is a whole different team. I'm as comfortable as ever out on the floor. We missed a couple shots, but that's not much, we are just going to keep going. We've got Marian on Friday. That's where my head's at.
Q. On Gabe Cupps…
GUNN: We just need it every night. His effort and his defensive pressure, that does nothing but it's contagious to all of us. Seeing him work and seeing him apply pressure on the ball, it makes us want to get stops and get deflections and get steals. We need that type of energy coming off the bench to lift us up as a team.
WALKER: Especially coming from a freshman. For him to come out his first game, apply the pressure he did made a statement for the team and other guards and our perimeter players on defense. So, it was very important for him to do that.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports
PAUL CORSARO | UINDY HEAD COACH
Q: On what went well in first half and what changed in second half…
Corsaro: I thought we defended incredibly well in the first half, and I still think we defended pretty well in the second half too. Ultimately, we had some costly turnovers in the second half that led to even more points for them. We also didn't get shots due to those turnovers. They turned up the pressure, credit to Indiana, and that was the change of the game.
Q: On what stuck out that Indiana did in the game…
Corsaro: Defensively, their length wore us down. They have NBA length, and coach Woodson did a really good job out of timeouts, attacking what we were doing defensively.
PAUL ZILINSKAS | UINDY FORWARD
Q: On some takeaways from today going into the regular season…
Zilinskas: I'm really excited. If we can put two halves together like that, I don't think anyone can compete against us. They turned it up in the second half and got a few fast break points, and we lost a little bit of gas. Overall, I'm really excited to keep playing with these guys. It was fun to compete out there today.
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