Indiana basketball coach Mike Woodson and players spoke to the media following No. 9 Indiana's loss to No. 8 Oregon on Thursday in Indianapolis.
Woodson, guard Trey Galloway and forward Malik Reneau were made available in the post game press conference. Their full Q&As, as well as a transcript are available below.
Guards Anthony Leal and Myles Rice, forwards Luke Goode and Mackenzie Mgbako, as well as big man Oumar Ballo, were made available in the locker room following the game. Their full Q&As can be found below as well.
MIKE WOODSON, TREY GALLOWAY AND MALIK RENEAU
MODERATOR: We're joined by Indiana. We'll start with opening comments from Coach Woodson.
MIKE WOODSON: You've got to give Oregon and their group a lot of credit because they come all the way across country and they played great tonight. It's a tough loss. I thought we competed in stretches, but we just couldn't finish it. They were the better team tonight, I thought.
Q. For Trey and Malik, one of the things you guys struggled with this year, scoring droughts that hit four minutes or so. What do you think were the issues when those droughts came in certain games?
TREY GALLOWAY: I would just say just not executing. There's a lot of times where even today there's just some missed execution opportunities that we have. So I've just got to be able to clean up on that, and that's the biggest thing.
MALIK RENEAU: I think when we go on our little scoring droughts, it's definitely just execution where you've got to go out there and execute the play at a high level. We failed to do that in a couple of spots, and they got steals, blocks, et cetera, and they came down court and was able to execute on their side. So we've got to be able to execute and defend on our side too.
Q. You had 59 points tonight, the Oregon guys mentioned, having played you guys last week, defensive preparation for them, they felt like they had a good handle on what you were doing. Were you guys finding looks hard to come by? You shot only 36 percent from the field.
MALIK RENEAU: I don't think it was because we were getting open shots. We had plays at the basket. We missed a couple. I don't think it was not having the shot. We've just got to be able to have confidence and know we're going to put the ball on the rim every time we shoot the ball. I think that was the case there.
TREY GALLOWAY: They're a good defensive team, but I think just being able to finish around the rim, we had a lot of open, easy looks that we normally make, and we didn't. Then 50 percent from the free-throw line, we didn't shoot the free throw well, same thing from 3. It's just being able to make shots and shoot them with confidence.
Q. Trey, it seemed like a lot of times in that second half, you guys had it down to one possession, kind of one or two points. What led to finally not being able to get over that, get through that, and take that lead in the second half?
TREY GALLOWAY: We were right in it. Multiple times we kept cutting the lead. But you've got to give them credit, they were able to make big time shots. Like I said, the execution on defense, we just had some miscues that we can't have. Like I said, they made some tough ones. Just got to give them credit.
Q. Malik and Trey, I saw you beat the Big Ten champion on their court. Can you make the case to the selection committee why Indiana should get a bid to the NCAA Tournament?
MALIK RENEAU: I think we should be in the Tournament because we got some big solid wins not only against Michigan State, but we got Purdue at home, then we swept OSU too. I think we had some solid wins. We also had some not bad losses, but we had some good losses where it came down to the wire and we just couldn't get over that hump. I feel like they give us a chance, we'll try and make a run in the tournament and give it our all every time we step on the court.
TREY GALLOWAY: We know that we should be a tournament team. There's a lot of opportunity for that. I think just those crucial losses that we had that were just so tight, one-possession games. The way we've been playing the last month and a half, we've been playing like a tournament team. I just think us just coming together and finding ways to get better. We haven't played our best basketball until now. So I think it's been good.
Q. Mike, same question. Can you make the case, a good case for why you guys belong in the NCAA Tournament?
MIKE WOODSON: I think we're playing some of our best basketball. This afternoon wasn't an indication of how we've been playing. We've been very competitive. Even in the games that we've lost -- I can go back to the Maryland game at home, the UCLA game, the Michigan game at home -- they were all competitive, one or two possession games. We beat Purdue, had a shot to beat Purdue at their spot. So we've had a lot of close games that we just weren't able to make the play here or there. But these last two weeks, I think we've been playing some pretty damn good basketball. Again, I've got to give Oregon a lot of credit because, again, they played well today.
Q. Mike, you give up 10 straight points in the loss to them just a week ago, and they went on a 10-0 run to end the first half and a 16-5 run to end the game. Is there any one thing you can pinpoint as to why those sort of stretches and droughts happen to you guys?
MIKE WOODSON: We've had them off and on in this seven, eight-game stretch, we haven't had -- our defense has been the one that has carried us. But you've got to give them credit. I thought right before the half, that was a big momentum builder for them. Then we regroup, we came out after the half, and we were back in the ballgame. It's just the little things. We missed two front ends of a one-and-one, a two-possession game, those are huge. They come down, and they make us pay for it on both possessions. I tip my hat to our guys because they have been competitive these last two, three weeks and has put us in position to even be talking about a tournament bid.
Q. I guess to follow on that, whether it's talking about this game or talking about a lot of these close losses, how do you keep this team focused when they are kind of getting themselves to those moments and just not quite getting over the hump, whether it's a string of close losses you talked about or it's a game like this where you get a lot of shots at the rim, force a lot of turnovers, you just can't quite create enough off of those moments?
MIKE WOODSON: Well, they have been focused. We were dead in the water 2 1/2 weeks ago, so they have been focused. When you go 5 out of your last 7 games, and the Big Ten is no joke. We ended up winning 10 out of the 20 games. We expected more this season, but we didn't get it done. Coming down this homestretch, this team hasn't quit. They've been very, very competitive.
Q. When you know you'll be done at the end of this season and you aren't quite sure what the selection committee is going to decide on Sunday, how does this weigh on you just not knowing what's next?
MIKE WOODSON: All I'm concerned about is the players. It's not really about me. It's been a good run since I've been here, and I'm just hoping that it's not over with yet. But I'll spend time with our players until the selection committee makes a decision on what they're going to do. So I'll still be in Bloomington.
Q. Shooting percentages today not up to standard -- 36, 2, 25, and 50. Any idea why, and did you like the looks you were getting?
MIKE WOODSON: No, I thought they had a lot to do with it, although we missed a lot of chippies around the rim with Ballo and Malik. I thought that was a big difference. Them not leaving Goode and Mack and giving you the looks that sometimes we've been accustomed to getting with those two guys, you got to make plays around the rim. Again, a two-possession game, we missed two front ends of a one-and-one, that was huge. Getting back into it, I thought that was the big difference in the game because they made us pay both possessions back down the court offensively where we couldn't get the stop.
Q. How do you feel like -- this team was under a lot of pressure throughout the season, whether it's the pressure to win, the pressure to stop losing, however you want to put it, external pressures. How do you feel like this team handled it through the course of the season and as you may continue playing?
MIKE WOODSON: All basketball seasons are dealt with ups and downs. It's just a part of the sport. I've been doing this a long time, and I've seen it go all kinds of ways. I've seen it go in your favor sometimes, like we've had this season, ups and downs. But when I look at how we've been competing the last 2 1/2, 3 weeks, I tip my hat to our guys because they could have thrown in the towel and they didn't. It hasn't been easy for them based on what we've gone through as a team, but I'm still pushing for the committee to see fit to put us in. If they do, we'll prepare and get ready for that.
Q. When the Oregon players were out, they said one of the things they looked at your stats and saw Luke Goode, no doubt a very good shooter percentage-wise and all that, and they definitely wanted to shut him down, which they were very successful at doing. Also your comment on Luke's play today and Anthony with eight rebounds out there for your senior guard.
MIKE WOODSON: I thought Anthony, he's been competing extremely well. Goode, he just didn't get very many looks tonight. I wouldn't leave him either. The way they defended tonight and forced us to make plays inside, which I thought we got the ball inside and had opportunities, but we just came up short. I didn't think Ballo and Malik played particularly well. They carried some of the load, but I just thought some of the chippy shots they missed around the rim were huge in a low-scoring game like this.
Q. Do you feel like you need to campaign for your team the next couple days to the committee?
MIKE WOODSON: I'm going to always campaign for my team. That's how much I love my team. Like I said earlier, we're playing some of our best basketball. I don't think that there's a team in the country that we can't beat if we come ready to play and compete for 40 minutes. We've had a lot of dry spots this season, but here of late we've been playing some pretty good basketball. I don't think today's game is an indication of how we've been playing the last 2 1/2, 3 weeks.
ANTHONY LEAL
LUKE GOODE
OUMAR BALLO
MACKENZIE MGBAKO
MYLES RICE
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