INDIANA UNIVERSITY BASKETBALL MEDIA CONFERENCE

November 6, 2024

Mackenzie Mgbako

Trey Galloway

Postgame Media Conference

Indiana 80, SIUE 61

THE MODERATOR: Questions.

Q. Mackenzie, what made this your night? What got you into rhythm so early?

MACKENZIE MGBAKO: Just playing within the offense and playing with my team. Just being aggressive, playing with what they gave me.

Q. Trey, as one of the leaders on this team, what is it like to see Mackenzie's breakout, a monster game like that where he's hitting every shot?

TREY GALLOWAY: Yeah, I mean, it's great to see. People don't see it, but we all see. He puts in the work. He's very efficient in his work. He's a guy that can score for us, and we know that. He did that tonight. We're going to need him to do it a lot of times.

I think whenever it's anybody's night, just making sure we keep finding that person. It's going to be a lot of guys' nights throughout the season that can get out and score. Tonight was Mackenzie's night and he played really well for us.

Q. Trey, speaking of that, it seemed like at the last stretch of the game and you Ballo were finding each other. What did you see with him being able to get open?

TREY GALLOWAY: You said Ballo?

Q. Yes.

TREY GALLOWAY: We were stagnant early on and throughout the game. We needed to move in a pace that we've been doing in practice and stuff.

I think just creating some movement that we were able to kind of find some things, get some open gaps. He got behind the defense, we were able to score. I think continuing that on to the next game and playing with pace.

I think our pace was good towards the end of the game. We got to have that pace for all 40 minutes on offense and defense.

Q. Mackenzie, you showed a lot of diverse looks, cutting to the basket, midrange. What did you work on this off-season to try to find different ways to score?

MACKENZIE MGBAKO: Yeah, most definitely worked on defense. A big thing is defense creating offense. Being able to know the reads on the defensive side, that leads to offense.

Q. Trey, with so many new faces on this team, what are some of the challenges you fight to find chemistry?

TREY GALLOWAY: I think just getting and finding and being comfortable with new rotations that we really haven't had yet. In practice, just getting those game-like reps and doing everything at game speed is going to be huge for us.

This is only our third game together. My second game. Everyone else. It's coming together, doing it at game speed. It shows. It's a different game when you're out there on court.

I think continuing to get better in practice and trust in each other and keep building that trust within each guy, it's going to help us.

Q. Trey, you've been here for five years. How does this team differ offensively from some of the past years?

TREY GALLOWAY: I think just a lot of the weapons that we have. There's so many guys that can do so many things. Like I said previously, it's going to be a lot of guys' nights. We're going to have to sacrifice that all season. I mean, if one guy is really playing well, we got to be unselfish and find them.

I think we'll continue to get better as we get into the season and keep growing together. I think just with that being said, we got to continue to do it every day in practice and continue to find each other.

Like I said, we got so many weapons that can create for others and create for themselves.

Q. Trey, as one of the leaders on the team, how do you go about managing expectations, getting everybody ready to handle some of the high expectations?

TREY GALLOWAY: I think it's great because we have high expectations for ourselves, as well. We've really come together and shared our goals together. We all know what our goals are.

As a collective group, we've got to come together and find ways to keep doing those every day. Like I said, I always go back to practice. That's our main thing. Our focus is getting better in practice and being ready to go for those games.

I think taking it one game at a time and trusting our work. Obviously there are expectations. We're Indiana. The history of this place is phenomenal.

I think just like I said, taking it one game at a time and coming together, it's going to be huge for us.

Q. It seemed like it took a little bit more time last year to become a full cohesive unit. Tonight seemed like you figured it out quicker. What are some of the differences between last year and this year that have helped you come together quicker?

TREY GALLOWAY: It's a different team. Every year is a different team. I think just like I said, we got a lot of experience with guys that have played a lot of minutes in the Big Ten, the Pac-12, older guys. I think with that being said, we got to find ways to come together quicker. The season goes quick. Before we know it, we'll be in the Big Ten playing.

I think we have to work out some kinks and keep coming together and figuring everything out.

Q. McKenzie, you had 13 points in a four-minute window. Are you one of those get-hot, stay-hot guys? When you got the first couple, were you looking for some more?

MACKENZIE MGBAKO: I was just going with what the team gave me. It was like moving the ball, finding the right shots, and just taking them.