INDIANA UNIVERSITY BASKETBALL MEDIA CONFERENCE

December 12, 2021

Mike Woodson

Postgame Media Conference

Indiana - 81, Merrimack - 49

MIKE WOODSON: Again, we're learning how to win. When you start trying to build a team and you put different pieces in place, you don't know how long it's going to take. And even though we've lost two games, those two games were winnable games.

But we still -- we're still a work in progress. We're still learning each other as players, me being the coach and the staff that I have around me. We just got to continue to work. That's all I can tell you.

I think I've seen some good play from our ball club, I've seen some bad play. Again, that's a part of it. And each practice we just got to keep improving. I mean, that's the name of the game when you're talking about building a team.

Q. One of those pieces today, Jordan Geronimo had an exceptional game, a double double, and you talk about adding pieces as you go along. He's one of the newer place pieces. How has his game come along, his rebounding? He's ferocious when he goes up to get the ball. He's using his jumping ability. He seems to be a player that wants to be on the court.

MIKE WOODSON: Well, he played extremely well for us tonight, and he has improved from his play a year ago. I can't help but think if he continues to work, he's going to continue to improve. That's how you get better as a young player. And it's my job to push him and try to steer him in the right direction.

Q. Mike, after Xavier didn't play so well in the second half, what did you talk to him about since that game and how do you think he did today?

MIKE WOODSON: I thought he played well today. I thought everybody pretty much played well. We had 17 turnovers tonight against zone play. And we had 25 to 26 turnovers against zone play in Syracuse. Those are things that we've got to clean up and figure out because those are opportunities to score the basketball that we don't give ourselves a chance.

So that's something that I got to stay on them and try to fix because you play offense, the thing about offense, you got to get shots and have fun about getting shots, so not give it back to your opponent.

Q. Going back to Jordan, in your mind as his coach, what turns him on in that way? What sparks him to a performance like that, his rebounding, his defense?

MIKE WOODSON: I look at Jordan, he's very athletic, and we think he's a pretty decent defender, and we know he can rebound and traffic and block shots and things of that nature.

But we're just trying to get him to do other things as well. Be patient in terms of how to score the basketball. And when you do have it, feel good about shooting the ball when it's time to shoot it. I thought he took one shot that was just not Jordan. And I let him know that. I want him taking shots -- I'm not telling him not to shoot the ball, but I want him taking good shots. That's how you learn as a player.

Q. Now that you've had several games against mid-majors, are you still happy with the way you set up the schedule --

MIKE WOODSON: I didn't set the schedule up.

Q. Well, the way the program set the schedule up.

MIKE WOODSON: The schedule is what it is. I came in here blindly as a head coach, thanks to my AD, and the schedule was pretty much set. So, hey, the schedule is what it is. You can think it's an easy schedule, hard schedule, whatever, but the schedule is what it is. We've got to play it. I can't run from it.

So, hey, tonight, the team tonight was I think a good team. I go into every game thinking that, hey, we've got to play hard for 40 minutes to win the game. There's no gimmes. I don't look at it like that. Hey, Notre Dame's next.

Q. You went on the glass tonight 54-16, a product of that is playing against the zone. What's to say about the guys, they took advantage of that, they saw an opportunity and maximized it.

MIKE WOODSON: Well, we were a bigger team versus this team. So I like to think that we should outrebound this team. I mean, we played all of our bigs, and we were pounding the ball inside, trying to get it inside to take advantage of our length and height. And it worked out in their favor, and some of the shots we did miss, we were able to go back and get them and put them back in.

I expected that out of our team tonight because were a much bigger team than our opponent tonight.

Q. After Wisconsin you said that you needed to find more ways to get Race and Trayce the ball. What was the difference today?

MIKE WOODSON: With their zone, the holes were there tonight in the zone. So if we got the ball in to them, they were basically one-on-one with their defenders. So I just kept telling them, hey, why kick it out, just go try to score the basketball. And they did that. They made plays at the rim.

And we got to continue that. If a team is going to play us zone and give us an opportunity to catch it within the zone, then we've got to take advantage of it.

Q. Also after the Wisconsin game you were asked about Christian and his role in that game. Today he came in about seven minutes to go, you guys were up about 20 points. How do you see his role? Has it progressed at all? Where do you see him fitting in right now?

MIKE WOODSON: He played seven minutes tonight. I thought he fit in just fine. I mean, we won the ball game. I mean, it's -- this is not about Christian, it's not about Rob or Xavier, it's about every individual that wears that uniform.

And my thing is whatever minutes you get, you better cherish them and make them the most important minutes to help us win ball games. That's what it's all about when you're talking about building a team.