UNIVERSITY OF IOWA BASKETBALL MEDIA CONFERENCE

January 25, 2022

Filip Rebraca

Men's Basketball Press Conference

Q. You obviously know what you are up against on Thursday. You have been there already.

FILIP REBRACA: Yes, I got to experience playing against Zach Edey and Trevion already, so I kind of know what is coming. Trying to fix my errors that I made last time, so we can see if I can do better.

Q. Without giving away your game plan, do you see things on film that you can do differently this time against them?

FILIP REBRACA: I think the first game I did pretty well on Zach Edey. I did get fouls. People can argue if these were ticky-tack fouls or not. People. Not me. I feel like there are areas I can always improve in, so I've definitely been watching film by myself, and I'm sure the coaches will bring it up during film today and whatnot, places I can improve in, so we'll see how it goes.

Q. He is such a large individual that it's almost like you're just going to bump into him.

FILIP REBRACA: For sure. You can't miss the guy really. Like you just said, he is a very big individual, and it's going to take a lot out of me to stop him from getting hit. It's not only going to be a physical battle. It's going to have to be a battle of IQ. Where can I get this spot before he does? Can I front him here? Can I three-quarter him here so he gets the ball maybe two feet off the lane or what not? All those battle of inches matters when you are playing a guy like him.

Q. I hope I'm not grasping at straws here. Do you have any sort of relationship with Stefanovic -- (inaudible)

FILIP REBRACA: Yes. I actually have -- I met Sasha before. It was when I was in high school. He was also in high school. We were playing for the -- we weren't playing, but it was the national team camp for Serbia for the Student Olympic Games, and we were in Denver, Colorado, and both of us got invited, and everyone else was a college player, so we were only, like, two out of three or four high school guys there, and so I got to meet him there, and we talked a lot. Then my Godfather also knows his father so, we know of each other. I talked to him during the game the last time we played, and it's cool to see another fellow Serbian doing really well in college basketball.

Q. As daunting as the challenge is as a competitor, how excited and anticipated are you to get another crack at a match-up like this?

FILIP REBRACA: I'm always excited. That's the competitiveness in me. I feel like last game we kind of -- I felt like we kind of had them. It was a very close game until the end when I fouled out. It just irritates me as a player and as a competitor, and I'm itching, scratching to get another chance to play these guys. I'm very excited, and now we're doing it at home, and so hopefully we can walk out of here with a win.

Q. Does your game change much when it's Edey or Trevion Williams? Do you change how you play?

FILIP REBRACA: I think I will change it. I'm not going to tell you how much, but I feel like you guys can guess what differences I might make depending on the match-up. One is a lot taller than the other guy, so it will make a difference in styles of play.

Q. How much do you have to make them work on the offensive end when you have the ball?

FILIP REBRACA: I think that's going to be a very big thing. For me if I let this guy rest on defense, he is just going to come on offense and just put all of his energy and effort into that. That's very dangerous for any guy, but especially him. Always making him wary of where I am, guarding me, and he has to have full focus to not letting me score as well. I feel like that's another key thing to this game.

Thank you, guys.