Indiana University Athletics
Postgame Quotes: USC
1/8/2025 9:00:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Postgame Quotes
Indiana vs. USC
Jan. 8, 2025
MIKE WOODSON | INDIANA HEAD COACH
Q. On what made the offense better in the second half…
WOODSON: Defensive stops, rebounding the basketball, and getting out, getting quick strikes. Thought we came out, started the game very slow, sluggish, and they played great early.
That's why they built a ten-point lead and we were able to sub some and get back into the game.
Q. On the sluggish starts…
WOODSON: I'm not going to dwell on it. The bottom line is we won today. You know, I mean, our team has shown that they don't quit. You got to give Southern Cal, their team, credit because they came ready to play.
I thought they were the most physical team starting the game. Once we got going and met their physicality, then we got back into the game and started playing Indiana basketball, which was nice to see.
Q. On only playing with one big and the success it allows…
WOODSON: Well, it gives us better space, but make no mistake about it, Malik is a big part of what we do, so he's not going anywhere.
Q. On the stretch of 11 quad one opponents…
WOODSON: Iowa is the next team up. I'm not looking at the 11 games. I'm looking at Iowa. They're next on our list, you know, in terms of who we got to play.
They're well-coached. They won a big game the other night coming from behind. We are going to have to go down there and play for 40 minutes to beat Iowa. That's how good they are at home.
Q. On Oumar's strong three-game stretch…
WOODSON: He's playing better. He's gotten being better. We're featuring him. He's a big piece to the puzzle. That's why we brought him here to play center for us.
No, he's played well. You know, he's going to have to continue to play well the rest of the way through the Big Ten. Teams are going to force him to play.
Q. On what Indiana Basketball is right now…
WOODSON: Well, when we're scrappy and defending and rebounding the ball as a unit and able to get out and play a little faster instead of staying in the half court game, that's Indiana basketball.
We've had some glimpses of it off and on. I thought the last three, four games we were playing much better now, shooting the ball better from the three-point line. Didn't shoot it well tonight but had good looks.
We got to continue to take those shots when we have them.
Q. On any adjustments after the under-12-minute timeout in the first half and the success to get in the rim after…
WOODSON: No, we ran a few plays that kind of opened it up a little bit that we had just put in today, and they executed it well.
I mean, (Trey) Galloway got a layup; (Oumar) Ballo got a dunk off of it. So I mean, execution out of a timeout is critical. You know, I mean, I didn't like the last timeout I called and Gallo threw the ball away on the inbound pass.
You know, I mean, we got to be sharper in that regard.
Q. On the five-game winning streak…
WOODSON: Well, again, guys, we have seven new players on our ball club. We're still trying to figure it out just like every Big Ten team, every college basketball team in the country.
When you make drastic changes to your ball club roster, that takes time.
You know, we are starting to grow and learn one another and guys are feeling comfortable about who can do what and who can't do what. Makes a big difference. Still got a long way to go and still growing.
Q. On having multiple players make big contributions…
WOODSON: No, it is. I mean, that's kind of the makeup of our ball club. Every Big Ten team is talented and deep, well-coached. When someone is struggling, Mack (Mackenzie Mgbako) was struggling tonight. You know, I can't -- I got to search too as a coach. That's what we do.
No knock against Mack. He'll be back in there tomorrow. He'll be ready to go hopefully for the Iowa game. I got to lean on everybody. You know, it's what you do with the minutes you get. I thought the guys that came in off the bench gave us some positive minutes tonight; that set us up to win a ballgame.
Q. On Oumar Ballo being able to use his body to his advantage tonight…
WOODSON: No, I mean, Ballo is a pretty big guy. You know, their center that started tonight wasn't as big as Ballo, but I thought they played Ballo early. He couldn't really touch the ball that much. They were top siding him, and we did a poor job trying get to to him early.
As the game wore on, everything kind of loosened up and where were able to utilize him a little bit more. He delivered for us.
TREY GALLOWAY | SENIOR GUARD & LUKE GOODE | SENIOR FORWARD
Q. On the chemistry between him and Myles Rice…
GALLOWAY: I think it's great. I think just we're continuing to get better and grow as a team. I think that connection between him and I is getting there.
I got to think I missed the whole summer, so it was very tough for me to miss that time with the guys on the court. I didn't really get to start playing until end of October, September time. So just missing that time, it was tough beginning the year to have that connection.
Now since the I've been on the court, we're starting to be able to feed off other guys and stuff, so just learn how we play and it's been good.
Just continue to build on that.
Q. On Oumar's dominant three-game stretch…
GALLOWAY: I think it's everything. We knew what we were getting with him and we knew how dominant he was and how he has been in the past, so just him getting back to that and being able to dominate games with his size in not only scoring, but just affecting shots on the defensive end and be a leader and talking on the defensive end, those things have been so huge and it's carried over to him playing better.
I think it's been great to see that and it's making us better as a team obviously.
Q. On Mackenzie's highs and lows this season…
GALLOWAY: Yeah, I mean, he's a guy that can get it going whenever, so I think just knowing that, I mean, obviously there will be times it's not your night. That's what good teams are all about.
It's teams that can win when guys are not playing as well and other guys can pick it up for them. So just knowing that next game we're going to need him to step it up and he's going to be ready, and to continue to build that confidence with him. He's a confident player and makes shots and he's a shotmaker for us.
We know he's going to do that for us and we just got to continue to get him in the right spots to make shots. Just continuing to tell him he's going to be fine. It's one game. We won, so as long as we win, at the end of the day it doesn't matter. We're trying to win as a team so it's good.
Q. On the key to having success in the upcoming difficult stretch…
GALLOWAY: One game at a time, I think. I mean, when you go on the road we're focused on our next game, which is Iowa. Whenever you go on the road it's always challenging, and you got to bring it. Just focusing in on Iowa and knowing we got to do, and it starts tomorrow with our preparation.
We got two-day prep to focus on them and go in there and see what we can do.
GOODE: I think personally, it's defense and rebounding. At the beginning the season, you go back to the trip down to the Bahamas, the biggest issue for us was guarding. We were getting killed by Louisville and Gonzaga. Couldn't guard anybody. The last ten games I think we've outrebounded our opponents.
I think to be able to continue to be successful in the Big Ten in a physical league, we got to keep defending and rebounding. I think what we've been doing in the past, what is it, five Big Ten games now, last three, has been great.
Q. On how the strong defense has helped the offense…
GOODE: Yeah, helps big time, especially when we out-rebound the other time. Something we emphasize in practice is going to get offensive rebounds. I know our numbers have definitely gone up big time since the middle of the season or early season.
But it just helps us by getting easy looks. Myles (Rice) is a one of the more dynamic guards in the open court in the country. Not even the Big Ten, the country.
So if we can get the ball in his hands after a missed shot, get it to Gallo who's a great decision maker, me, Mack, Tuck, all the guys that can make plays, whether it's shooting the ball or get to go the rim, just spacing the floor and being able to play off a defensive rebound after a great defensive possession has been really important to us.
Q. On what sparked the comeback from being down 22-12 to 24-24…
GALLOWAY: I mean, they came out the gate pretty physical. I mean, I think it shocked us a little bit. The way we responded was great. I think just punching back was big for us. The way we responded was great.
Obviously made some shots, but we started to defend and got back in transition. I think they hurt us a little bit early on with them getting quick stops. Our shot selection wasn't great beginning of the game. We started to get open looked we wanted and were able to turn it around.
Q. On what he has learned playing with Oumar Ballo…
GALLOWAY: Yeah, I think just knowing his game and knowing what he can do, and our spacing has been better, too. Just the way we can find him inside and the way he is able to seal guys is great.
So just knowing that his size is an advantage and we're using that to our advantage. He sets screens, and that's one thing we try to emphasize is him setting screens, because he's going to be open. When he knocks guys off, we're going to find ways to get downhill or find him with that lob or drop-offs and stuff.
He's done a great job of that. Also, just the impact he's made on the offensive glass, just tip-outs and everything. He's going to get rewarded for that because he's playing harder, and the way he's dominating the glass has been great.
Q. On his shooting success over the last three games…
GOODE: Yeah, I think it's a little bit of everything you listed honestly. Something the coaches always says is water finds its level. I came into a season as a career 40% guy and people knew that, and when I'm not there it's going to find its level.
So I had the confidence and my teammates had the confidence in me to know when I'm out there it's going to go up. I'm not going to lose that confidence in myself.
Coach Wallace actually played a similar role to me and college so he understands the shooting slumps and ups and downs and having that role on a team. He actually gave me a book that I've been reading it. It's really helped. I started reading it three games ago since I've started shooting the ball] well.
I think that helps a little bit, but it's just a whole lot everything. Staying in the gym, staying consistent to the process and what I do.
When you got teammates that have trust in you and a coaching staff that never loses faith in what you do, good things happen.
Q. On the book that helped his mental focus…
GOODE: It's called something mind. It's about a guy that he worked in the MLB and can he was a like a sports psychologist. It's just about clearing your mind and letting everything happen, so, yeah.
Q. On the confidence has gotten from his expanded role…
GOODE: Yeah, I'm super comfortable. My teammates make it easy for me. When I'm starting in the game the offense looks a little bit different. I think that helps everybody that's involved. Able to get (Oumar) Ballo looks, spacing the floor with another shooter has been great for our team.
Been the story of my career. In and out of the lineups playing what I need to play. When my teammates have confidence in me, whatever role they want me to play, I'm going to do to the most I can.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports
ERIC MUSSELMAN | USC HEAD COACH
Q. On what changed after the good start…
MUSSELMAN: I think Indiana did a great job in the second half. We're down two guys that are super important to us in Terrance Williams and that's not going to change. He's out for a while. For the year, maybe. Matt Knowling and our depth was an issue for us tonight, for sure.
Q. On why they went away from scoring in the paint…
MUSSELMAN: I thought we took too many threes. As soon as (Indiana) got the lead and we're playing catch up on the road, I thought we settled way too much. For us to take 26 threes is way too much. I thought we went to the basket a couple of times, but we didn't get free throws attempted, and I thought that that affected our approach.
Q. On the gameplan for defending Oumar ballo…
MUSSELMAN: I thought he played a hell of a game. He went 9-for-11. He didn't miss a foul shot. He was pretty damn dominant.
Indiana vs. USC
Jan. 8, 2025
MIKE WOODSON | INDIANA HEAD COACH
Q. On what made the offense better in the second half…
WOODSON: Defensive stops, rebounding the basketball, and getting out, getting quick strikes. Thought we came out, started the game very slow, sluggish, and they played great early.
That's why they built a ten-point lead and we were able to sub some and get back into the game.
Q. On the sluggish starts…
WOODSON: I'm not going to dwell on it. The bottom line is we won today. You know, I mean, our team has shown that they don't quit. You got to give Southern Cal, their team, credit because they came ready to play.
I thought they were the most physical team starting the game. Once we got going and met their physicality, then we got back into the game and started playing Indiana basketball, which was nice to see.
Q. On only playing with one big and the success it allows…
WOODSON: Well, it gives us better space, but make no mistake about it, Malik is a big part of what we do, so he's not going anywhere.
Q. On the stretch of 11 quad one opponents…
WOODSON: Iowa is the next team up. I'm not looking at the 11 games. I'm looking at Iowa. They're next on our list, you know, in terms of who we got to play.
They're well-coached. They won a big game the other night coming from behind. We are going to have to go down there and play for 40 minutes to beat Iowa. That's how good they are at home.
Q. On Oumar's strong three-game stretch…
WOODSON: He's playing better. He's gotten being better. We're featuring him. He's a big piece to the puzzle. That's why we brought him here to play center for us.
No, he's played well. You know, he's going to have to continue to play well the rest of the way through the Big Ten. Teams are going to force him to play.
Q. On what Indiana Basketball is right now…
WOODSON: Well, when we're scrappy and defending and rebounding the ball as a unit and able to get out and play a little faster instead of staying in the half court game, that's Indiana basketball.
We've had some glimpses of it off and on. I thought the last three, four games we were playing much better now, shooting the ball better from the three-point line. Didn't shoot it well tonight but had good looks.
We got to continue to take those shots when we have them.
Q. On any adjustments after the under-12-minute timeout in the first half and the success to get in the rim after…
WOODSON: No, we ran a few plays that kind of opened it up a little bit that we had just put in today, and they executed it well.
I mean, (Trey) Galloway got a layup; (Oumar) Ballo got a dunk off of it. So I mean, execution out of a timeout is critical. You know, I mean, I didn't like the last timeout I called and Gallo threw the ball away on the inbound pass.
You know, I mean, we got to be sharper in that regard.
Q. On the five-game winning streak…
WOODSON: Well, again, guys, we have seven new players on our ball club. We're still trying to figure it out just like every Big Ten team, every college basketball team in the country.
When you make drastic changes to your ball club roster, that takes time.
You know, we are starting to grow and learn one another and guys are feeling comfortable about who can do what and who can't do what. Makes a big difference. Still got a long way to go and still growing.
Q. On having multiple players make big contributions…
WOODSON: No, it is. I mean, that's kind of the makeup of our ball club. Every Big Ten team is talented and deep, well-coached. When someone is struggling, Mack (Mackenzie Mgbako) was struggling tonight. You know, I can't -- I got to search too as a coach. That's what we do.
No knock against Mack. He'll be back in there tomorrow. He'll be ready to go hopefully for the Iowa game. I got to lean on everybody. You know, it's what you do with the minutes you get. I thought the guys that came in off the bench gave us some positive minutes tonight; that set us up to win a ballgame.
Q. On Oumar Ballo being able to use his body to his advantage tonight…
WOODSON: No, I mean, Ballo is a pretty big guy. You know, their center that started tonight wasn't as big as Ballo, but I thought they played Ballo early. He couldn't really touch the ball that much. They were top siding him, and we did a poor job trying get to to him early.
As the game wore on, everything kind of loosened up and where were able to utilize him a little bit more. He delivered for us.
TREY GALLOWAY | SENIOR GUARD & LUKE GOODE | SENIOR FORWARD
Q. On the chemistry between him and Myles Rice…
GALLOWAY: I think it's great. I think just we're continuing to get better and grow as a team. I think that connection between him and I is getting there.
I got to think I missed the whole summer, so it was very tough for me to miss that time with the guys on the court. I didn't really get to start playing until end of October, September time. So just missing that time, it was tough beginning the year to have that connection.
Now since the I've been on the court, we're starting to be able to feed off other guys and stuff, so just learn how we play and it's been good.
Just continue to build on that.
Q. On Oumar's dominant three-game stretch…
GALLOWAY: I think it's everything. We knew what we were getting with him and we knew how dominant he was and how he has been in the past, so just him getting back to that and being able to dominate games with his size in not only scoring, but just affecting shots on the defensive end and be a leader and talking on the defensive end, those things have been so huge and it's carried over to him playing better.
I think it's been great to see that and it's making us better as a team obviously.
Q. On Mackenzie's highs and lows this season…
GALLOWAY: Yeah, I mean, he's a guy that can get it going whenever, so I think just knowing that, I mean, obviously there will be times it's not your night. That's what good teams are all about.
It's teams that can win when guys are not playing as well and other guys can pick it up for them. So just knowing that next game we're going to need him to step it up and he's going to be ready, and to continue to build that confidence with him. He's a confident player and makes shots and he's a shotmaker for us.
We know he's going to do that for us and we just got to continue to get him in the right spots to make shots. Just continuing to tell him he's going to be fine. It's one game. We won, so as long as we win, at the end of the day it doesn't matter. We're trying to win as a team so it's good.
Q. On the key to having success in the upcoming difficult stretch…
GALLOWAY: One game at a time, I think. I mean, when you go on the road we're focused on our next game, which is Iowa. Whenever you go on the road it's always challenging, and you got to bring it. Just focusing in on Iowa and knowing we got to do, and it starts tomorrow with our preparation.
We got two-day prep to focus on them and go in there and see what we can do.
GOODE: I think personally, it's defense and rebounding. At the beginning the season, you go back to the trip down to the Bahamas, the biggest issue for us was guarding. We were getting killed by Louisville and Gonzaga. Couldn't guard anybody. The last ten games I think we've outrebounded our opponents.
I think to be able to continue to be successful in the Big Ten in a physical league, we got to keep defending and rebounding. I think what we've been doing in the past, what is it, five Big Ten games now, last three, has been great.
Q. On how the strong defense has helped the offense…
GOODE: Yeah, helps big time, especially when we out-rebound the other time. Something we emphasize in practice is going to get offensive rebounds. I know our numbers have definitely gone up big time since the middle of the season or early season.
But it just helps us by getting easy looks. Myles (Rice) is a one of the more dynamic guards in the open court in the country. Not even the Big Ten, the country.
So if we can get the ball in his hands after a missed shot, get it to Gallo who's a great decision maker, me, Mack, Tuck, all the guys that can make plays, whether it's shooting the ball or get to go the rim, just spacing the floor and being able to play off a defensive rebound after a great defensive possession has been really important to us.
Q. On what sparked the comeback from being down 22-12 to 24-24…
GALLOWAY: I mean, they came out the gate pretty physical. I mean, I think it shocked us a little bit. The way we responded was great. I think just punching back was big for us. The way we responded was great.
Obviously made some shots, but we started to defend and got back in transition. I think they hurt us a little bit early on with them getting quick stops. Our shot selection wasn't great beginning of the game. We started to get open looked we wanted and were able to turn it around.
Q. On what he has learned playing with Oumar Ballo…
GALLOWAY: Yeah, I think just knowing his game and knowing what he can do, and our spacing has been better, too. Just the way we can find him inside and the way he is able to seal guys is great.
So just knowing that his size is an advantage and we're using that to our advantage. He sets screens, and that's one thing we try to emphasize is him setting screens, because he's going to be open. When he knocks guys off, we're going to find ways to get downhill or find him with that lob or drop-offs and stuff.
He's done a great job of that. Also, just the impact he's made on the offensive glass, just tip-outs and everything. He's going to get rewarded for that because he's playing harder, and the way he's dominating the glass has been great.
Q. On his shooting success over the last three games…
GOODE: Yeah, I think it's a little bit of everything you listed honestly. Something the coaches always says is water finds its level. I came into a season as a career 40% guy and people knew that, and when I'm not there it's going to find its level.
So I had the confidence and my teammates had the confidence in me to know when I'm out there it's going to go up. I'm not going to lose that confidence in myself.
Coach Wallace actually played a similar role to me and college so he understands the shooting slumps and ups and downs and having that role on a team. He actually gave me a book that I've been reading it. It's really helped. I started reading it three games ago since I've started shooting the ball] well.
I think that helps a little bit, but it's just a whole lot everything. Staying in the gym, staying consistent to the process and what I do.
When you got teammates that have trust in you and a coaching staff that never loses faith in what you do, good things happen.
Q. On the book that helped his mental focus…
GOODE: It's called something mind. It's about a guy that he worked in the MLB and can he was a like a sports psychologist. It's just about clearing your mind and letting everything happen, so, yeah.
Q. On the confidence has gotten from his expanded role…
GOODE: Yeah, I'm super comfortable. My teammates make it easy for me. When I'm starting in the game the offense looks a little bit different. I think that helps everybody that's involved. Able to get (Oumar) Ballo looks, spacing the floor with another shooter has been great for our team.
Been the story of my career. In and out of the lineups playing what I need to play. When my teammates have confidence in me, whatever role they want me to play, I'm going to do to the most I can.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports
ERIC MUSSELMAN | USC HEAD COACH
Q. On what changed after the good start…
MUSSELMAN: I think Indiana did a great job in the second half. We're down two guys that are super important to us in Terrance Williams and that's not going to change. He's out for a while. For the year, maybe. Matt Knowling and our depth was an issue for us tonight, for sure.
Q. On why they went away from scoring in the paint…
MUSSELMAN: I thought we took too many threes. As soon as (Indiana) got the lead and we're playing catch up on the road, I thought we settled way too much. For us to take 26 threes is way too much. I thought we went to the basket a couple of times, but we didn't get free throws attempted, and I thought that that affected our approach.
Q. On the gameplan for defending Oumar ballo…
MUSSELMAN: I thought he played a hell of a game. He went 9-for-11. He didn't miss a foul shot. He was pretty damn dominant.
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