Postgame Quotes: vs. Harvard
11/26/2023 7:50:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Postgame Quotes
Indiana vs. Harvard
Nov. 26, 2023
MIKE WOODSON | INDIANA HEAD COACH
Q. On Mackenzie Mgbako…
WOODSON: He's a freshman. He has been working. Hopefully there will be a nice carryover to the next game.
Q. On how the team responded to the Xavier Johnson injury…
WOODSON: It is a big loss. Xavier is a big piece to the puzzle. My theme has always been next man up. Guys have to stay ready to play. Whoever is called up has to step up and play. I thought Anthony Leal came in and gave us some positive minutes. Gabe Cupps brought it home down the stretch. It is what it is. When I go back in, I will see where we are with Xavier. I have no idea at this point, but we are going to need Xavier to be healthy to help us win basketball games.
Q. On Mgbako's offensive performance…
WOODSON: Mackenzie was doing what he was doing when he first got here. He had a game where he figured it out. He has to continue to grow, continue to work, and then let it happen.
MACKENZIE MGBAKO | INDIANA FORWARD & KEL'EL WARE | INDIANA CENTER
Q. On getting into the offensive flow…
MGBAKO: I stayed locked in and stayed aggressive. I stayed true to my game, saw what the defense was giving me, and responded with that.
Q. On Magbako's big day…
WARE: It does not just help me it helps the whole team. It helps open up the floor. The defenders have to get out there to the 3-ball, especially when we have guys that can make the shots. As long as we are playing hard, I think we are going to be good.
Q. On the rebounding advantage…
WARE: Staying in shape, definitely staying in shape. Constantly working. We have this box out drill that we do in practice, so we are constantly working on that. We work on getting a body on a body, getting physical, and getting the rebound.
TOMMY AMAKER| HARVARD HEAD COACH
Q. Opening Statement…
AMAKER: We were outmanned with the size department. (Indiana) is so big and their frontline is athletic. We didn't have Justice (Ajogbor) in the second half for us. It really made it difficult on our end, but I'm so proud of our effort and how we fought. They have a very talented team and are going to be hard to beat, especially if they are getting the perimeter shooting like they were getting here this afternoon.
Q. On the zone defense giving Indiana trouble…
AMAKER: We knew we had to play some because of their frontline and their size. We knew we were going to play some zone, so we worked on it. It didn't do enough for us because they shot it better than we hoped they would. The game really clicks on for them when the ball is in the air with how well they can get it out of the air, off the backboard, and even off of free throw block outs. We didn't do enough of our job to keep them off, but they are very talented, athletic and hard to keep off the glass.
Q. On Malik Mack's start to the season…
AMAKER: He's a really good player. I think he really enjoys the system that we have, how we allow him to play. He wants that. He's earned that. He's creative, dynamic, a floor leader in addition to being an outstanding scorer. He was very well coached throughout his time in high school and in AAU. We knew what we were getting in recruiting him, but his shot making and play making has been much needed for our team.
Indiana vs. Harvard
Nov. 26, 2023
MIKE WOODSON | INDIANA HEAD COACH
Q. On Mackenzie Mgbako…
WOODSON: He's a freshman. He has been working. Hopefully there will be a nice carryover to the next game.
Q. On how the team responded to the Xavier Johnson injury…
WOODSON: It is a big loss. Xavier is a big piece to the puzzle. My theme has always been next man up. Guys have to stay ready to play. Whoever is called up has to step up and play. I thought Anthony Leal came in and gave us some positive minutes. Gabe Cupps brought it home down the stretch. It is what it is. When I go back in, I will see where we are with Xavier. I have no idea at this point, but we are going to need Xavier to be healthy to help us win basketball games.
Q. On Mgbako's offensive performance…
WOODSON: Mackenzie was doing what he was doing when he first got here. He had a game where he figured it out. He has to continue to grow, continue to work, and then let it happen.
MACKENZIE MGBAKO | INDIANA FORWARD & KEL'EL WARE | INDIANA CENTER
Q. On getting into the offensive flow…
MGBAKO: I stayed locked in and stayed aggressive. I stayed true to my game, saw what the defense was giving me, and responded with that.
Q. On Magbako's big day…
WARE: It does not just help me it helps the whole team. It helps open up the floor. The defenders have to get out there to the 3-ball, especially when we have guys that can make the shots. As long as we are playing hard, I think we are going to be good.
Q. On the rebounding advantage…
WARE: Staying in shape, definitely staying in shape. Constantly working. We have this box out drill that we do in practice, so we are constantly working on that. We work on getting a body on a body, getting physical, and getting the rebound.
TOMMY AMAKER| HARVARD HEAD COACH
Q. Opening Statement…
AMAKER: We were outmanned with the size department. (Indiana) is so big and their frontline is athletic. We didn't have Justice (Ajogbor) in the second half for us. It really made it difficult on our end, but I'm so proud of our effort and how we fought. They have a very talented team and are going to be hard to beat, especially if they are getting the perimeter shooting like they were getting here this afternoon.
Q. On the zone defense giving Indiana trouble…
AMAKER: We knew we had to play some because of their frontline and their size. We knew we were going to play some zone, so we worked on it. It didn't do enough for us because they shot it better than we hoped they would. The game really clicks on for them when the ball is in the air with how well they can get it out of the air, off the backboard, and even off of free throw block outs. We didn't do enough of our job to keep them off, but they are very talented, athletic and hard to keep off the glass.
Q. On Malik Mack's start to the season…
AMAKER: He's a really good player. I think he really enjoys the system that we have, how we allow him to play. He wants that. He's earned that. He's creative, dynamic, a floor leader in addition to being an outstanding scorer. He was very well coached throughout his time in high school and in AAU. We knew what we were getting in recruiting him, but his shot making and play making has been much needed for our team.
Players Mentioned
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