Indiana basketball coach Mike Woodson, guards Anthony Leal and Trey Galloway, as well as forward Luke Goode, spoke with the media following Indiana's Senior Day win over Ohio State on Saturday.
Below are their full Q&As, as well as a transcript for each of their press conferences—once they become available.
Q. Your last home game this season, a loaded question, forgive me. The way people remember you as a player, certainly is pretty much set in stone. How do you want them to remember what you've done for this program over the last four years?
MIKE WOODSON: Well, you know, the one thing I look at it is, you know, we've been in the tournament a few years. We've been able to recruit players. Been able to graduate players.
You know, I just want the program to be successful. That's all. That's all I ever thought about when I took the job, and that's how I feel now, you know.
Q. Knowing the last game at assembly Hall, what were your emotions like today? Did you try to put that out of your head? If you would be willing, you haven't talked about it a ton, but what went into your decision to step down in the first place?
MIKE WOODSON: Say that again?
Q. What emotions today, did you try to put it out of your mind throughout the day or what were they like? And if you would be willing, you haven't talked about it much, what went into your decision to step down.
MIKE WOODSON: Just focused on the game. It's a very emotional game. You know, I think back to 1980 playing this same team for the Big Ten title. That's the only thing that was going through my head throughout the day, and wanted it so much for these seniors to win because I knew how special that night was for me my senior year, and walking off that floor as a Big Ten Champion.
You know, we still have an opportunity to win the Big Ten Tournament. Just like the other 14 teams that will be in it.
Is that's all I'm thinking about at this point. You know, nothing else.
Q. You mentioned what an emotional victory this was. Two-part question. First, what do you think about the offense going in in the last five minutes, and secondly, how does it feel to you that Trey Galloway, who has been here with you for the whole ride, was such a large part of it?
MIKE WOODSON: I couldn't be more proud because he's caught so much hell, and it was only fitting that he hit the biggest shot of the game tonight, you know, to really seal it and give us the cushion that we needed to win.
So I couldn't be more proud of Trey Galloway and his career he's had here on this basketball floor. You know, I mean, as a group, we haven't experienced very many losses in this building.
I mean, we've won a lot of games in this building, and Trey has been a big part of that because he's been with me from day one. Anthony has been a part of it from day one.
So I'm proud of all of our players, but I'm proud of those two guys, especially, because they have been with me the longest.
Q. I was actually going to ask you about that Galloway three at the end. First, it seemed like there was some confusion with the shot clock. What was going on there? What's it like to see Trey have a moment like that on senior day?
MIKE WOODSON: I think we got caught, you know, not really knowing the rule, you know what I mean. It was a loose ball. They came out -- went out on our end. All you get is 20 seconds on the clock. We were screaming that the clock was wrong, but Trey kept focused and once the pick-and-roll broke down and the guy kind of went up under the screen, he stepped up and made a big shot, which is kind of nice.
Q. How do you want Trey to be remembered here?
MIKE WOODSON: I mean, the only way -- thing you can remember Trey is that he plays hard. He competes. And you would be fooling yourself if you think anything else. That's all I've never known him as. I nicknamed him "Crazy Man" when I first started coaching him because he was all over the place. Didn't know what you were going to get from him but he competed. That's all he's ever done.
For the fans to sit in here and boo him during the time that they booed him, it just wasn't right. It just wasn't. Because that kid competes. He gives his heart. Have nothing but respect and love for Galloway.
Q. Speaking of competing on a day when shots were not falling for most of the day, you had Goode and Leal both had career-highs and rebounds with eight apiece. What does that speak to in terms of effort?
MIKE WOODSON: Seniors that didn't want to lose. You know, and I rode them. I've been riding them.
I wasn't going to take them out at the end. I mean, if you lose, you want to lose with your seniors on the floor. I wasn't thinking that way. I mean, I think once we -- Malik hit the two free throws to give us the two-point lead, we never looked back from that point on. Our defense really got stiff. We made play after play and made some good offensive plays. Made our free throws, a few of them, and enough to give us the cushion to win the game.
Q. Is your staff has been with you all four years, but specifically today, Rosemond on the score screaming and calling out plays. What has he meant to you this season and all four years?
MIKE WOODSON: All my coaches have been special. I took this job after spending 34 years of my life in the NBA, it was a different move for me. The fact that I had some college guys that had done it awhile, and they always reminded me of that, called me a rookie coach when I first started, and which I was like, hell, I coached a lot longer than a lot of you guys.
But at the end of the day, they have helped me recruit. They have helped me coach on the floor. They have helped me put film sessions together, practice sessions together.
I mean, there's a lot that goes into coaching, a lot that you guys will never, ever know because you don't sit in the day-to-day grind that we sit in. But it's a part of what we do.
But they have been very special to me, a big part of what we've done over the last four years.
Q. On the CBS broadcast, you said your first thoughts were, maybe I'm leaving too soon.
MIKE WOODSON: I mean, there's always going to be that thought. But you know at the end of the day, it's not -- it's not about me right now. It's still about this team, and us going up to Indianapolis and trying to win the Big Ten Tournament.
Q. Trey, can you walk us through that possession specifically, the three, how it unfolds, Coach Woodson said the bench was trying to get everybody's attention the shot clock was a little bit shorter than normal. What do you see when you put it up?
TREY GALLOWAY: Yeah, we didn't know the rule. I don't think anybody around the court really knew the rule that it resets to 20. So I thought it might have been a clock malfunction or something. That's why I was trying to get the ref's attention.
So we knew we had to go and then we just kind of called for a high ball screen. And then the play design kind of broke down and trusted my shot and it went in, so it was good.
Q. You guys have had to fight all year. How much does this day, this game, encapsulate the fight you guys have been to get into the NCAA picture?
TREY GALLOWAY: I mean, yeah, just the seasons, they are always so long, and like things -- there's times where things look worse and looked like everything is just not going your way, and there's times where you feel like you're on top of the world.
And so the good teams are able to balance that and able to stay even keel. We've done a great job of that recently to be able to bounce back from big wins or bounce back from big losses. And so we weren't doing that early on in the season, and now we're starting to figure that out. And it's helping us and we're winning games.
So we've just got to stick to that, and be ready to go because we're not done yet. That's a big win but we are going to the Big Ten Tournament, so we've got to focus on that?
ANTHONY LEAL: I'll just add, all three of us take a lot of pride in wearing this jersey and representing it the right way, and we know what it means growing up as kids here. We love that challenge and knowing that with us as leaders and us as a foundation, like we are going to be willing to overcome a lot of things if we just keep chipping away.
For us, it's almost like a dream come true, being senior guards coming down the end of the year going into March. It's the opportunity to make those sort of plays and trust in each other and all the work we've put in and give it our best.
Q. Anthony, before the flagrant foul, did you feel you guys needed something like a spark? And that play, is it a culmination of your effort on the defensive side throughout the game that leads to that moment that he gets frustrated and throws the elbow?
ANTHONY LEAL: Yeah, obviously we were dealing with them going on a run at the time, and we needed something to get things going the right way.
You know, for me, it's just trying to play as hard as I can and trusting that good things will happen in that moment, just causing a little bit of frustration throughout the game and eventually it leads to something good for us.
So that was able to turn the tides and get us momentum. And then Trey hits a huge shot down the stretch where we get some stops. It's a great way to go out.
Q. I want to say that Coach Woodson mentioned he felt it wasn't right how you were treated throughout the year and had kind of the crowd, the way the crowd handled you. Curious how you handled that and the way that it all turned on you at times throughout the year.
TREY GALLOWAY: I mean, I think just the biggest thing, like my dad's always telling me, if you listen to the crowd, you're going to be sitting with them.
ANTHONY LEAL: Oohh, that's good.
TREY GALLOWAY: That really hit home. I was like, you can't really worry about what's going on on the outside.
All I care about is what's in the locker room with me, and really just trusting that my teammates trust me to make plays and no matter what was said, or what was going on, it doesn't really matter.
Because all that matters is, like I said, my teammates and trying to help them be better and help myself get better.
Q. I'd like to get your perspective on this. Tonight Trey scores a thousand points for his career, and he's on a list now of 56 people who have done it at this school. You've been around him since you guys were kids, and you've seen his journey for five years. For him to accomplish that today and have his name on a list that will never go away or never get erased, what does that mean to you to see your friend do that?
ANTHONY LEAL: It's awesome. He knows I'm here supporting him through the highs and the lows, and we've had a lot of highs and a lot of lows through our career.
For him to continue working and doing what he does well and just being super reliable for our team has been really big, not just this year, but in previous years.
So I mean, I'm always supporting him trying to find ways to get him going, to make the game easier for him; and I know when he does what he does well, our team plays a lot better.
It's just a culmination of all the work he's putting in, and I'm really proud of him and I know he's going to do really good things coming down the stretch.
Q. 35 percent from the field, 25 percent from three-point range as a team. What does it say about you guys moving forward in postseason play if you guys can win ugly?
LUKE GOODE: Something that I tried to emphasize to the team early in the season when we were going through our scoring ruts was it doesn't matter how much we score, how well we shoot. We should still be able to win games when it's ugly.
For us to be in a must-win game for our postseason hopes, first, Senior Night at home, too, and to come out and play the defense we did. It's a testament to how much we've grown as a team together.
Q. You guys have been through a lot of adversity this year but on the court. Your last eight home games, you did not hold a lead at the half in any of those, yet you won half of those in the half that you didn't; they were games that you almost won. Is that going to help you guys as you go forward, having the toughness of being in those close games like that?
ANTHONY LEAL: Yeah, definitely. Obviously we wanted to win all those games. We put ourselves in positions to be in the game going down the stretch there.
But yeah, I mean, we hope to start playing our best basketball right now because this is when it really counts going into the Big Ten Tournament and March Madness. For us, it's learning from those little things and knowing our goals are all still right front of us.
Q. Obviously the win wasn't cemented yet but looking back now, do you think seeing that 30-footer just go through the net is a pretty fulfilling moment like on your career on Senior Night and to be able to have that moment?
TREY GALLOWAY: Yeah, it was great. I mean, happy that we got the win on senior day. That's what I'll remember the most is winning and going out as a winner at Assembly Hall. That's what I'll remember.
Q. When Trey hit that big shot at the end, what goes through your mind, and how cool is it for you to see him have a moment like that on Senior Night?
LUKE GOODE: Yeah, well, I didn't believe that. I said to myself out loud, I said, "Oh," and then "s-h-i-t," and I was pretty, you know, happy, because it was a big shot. I feel like some of the games we've lost earlier, other teams have hit big shots against us. You think Maryland. You know, you think Purdue with Trey Kaufman jumping up from the free throw line. It was good to see one of them go down for us.
And for Trey that's been here for five years, you know, through ups and downs, both these guys, I've only been here for a year. So I'm getting the back end of their careers at this university.
So I couldn't be more happy, more proud for these two guys, especially Trey, hitting that shot.
Q. The last time you were up here on this podium, it was after the Illinois game, and you were certain you guys were going to turn things around when it looked pretty bleak at that point. And now you've won four of five, up here after a win and closing in on an NCAA Tournament berth. What does it mean that you've been able to back up what you said that night?
LUKE GOODE: We've always known we have what it takes in the locker room. We have the guys with the right mentality, and coaches have really put a lot of trust in us; a lot of times in the huddles we're calling the plays, helping Coach out and telling him what we see.
When we have a collective effort from everybody involved, coaches, guys that are in the rotation, out of the rotation, walk-ons, it all comes together to be something good. Since that moment, we have all come together really well.
We all have a common goal now. I think everybody is all bought into what we want to do, and you know, we're reaping the benefits now.
ANTHONY LEAL: Quick shoutout to Coach. It was his last game here, too, before he steps down. We're just really happy for him to be able to send him out on a win. He means the world to us. Shoutout, Coach Woodson.
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