INDIANA UNIVERSITY BASKETBALL MEDIA CONFERENCE

December 21, 2024

Mike Woodson

Postgame Media Conference

Indiana 74, Chattanooga 65

Q. Coach, obviously you guys won. All wins are good, especially around the holidays. Wondering your thoughts. That stretch in the second half, I think six minutes without scoring, eight minutes without a basket. What do you think needs to change to avoid that happening against good Big10 teams?

MIKE WOODSON: Again, that's two games in a row we've had stretches like that. Again, I don't know if guys are just looking over their shoulders based on the Nebraska game. We didn't play bad in Nebraska. Just that last six minute mark couldn't make shots.

Tonight we started down that same road again, you know, looking, and not being sharp offensively. As a coach, I got to get us over that hump, get them comfortable knowing you're going to be in close games and you got make plays coming down the home stretch.

Q. Chattanooga made ten threes today. Had a lot of good looks from out there. What do you guys need to tighten up, especially weak-side shooters getting too good of easy looks?

MIKE WOODSON: Well, I thought just their movement caused problems for us tonight. You know, the back door cuts and things of that nature. Then we got -- just got stale. We had one stretch where we went up 10 our defense was pretty solid, but then we give up a three. That 10, 11 point leads goes back to 7, 8.

Those are things you got to eliminate, especially against good teams. And this is a good team. They played St. Mary's great. After watching them on film against St. Mary's I knew they would come here ready to play.

I didn't think our starting unit was right tonight. I thought our bench played well and basically secured the game for us tonight.

Q. You mentioned the back door cuts causing you a lot of problems. Kind of been a theme through the year with the weak-side alertness urgency. What can you do to correct that and what went wrong tonight?

MIKE WOODSON: Well, we just got to keep working at it. Man, that is something -- we prepared all week for this team. Worked on a lot of things. I didn't see a lot of good things from my work that we put in this week. That's kind of discouraging.

The bottom line is we got to keep working through it and keep pushing guys and get them better. That's my job to do that.

Q. Coach, seems like a common theme throughout the season has been an inability to play 40 minutes, like just maintain a high level throughout a game. What's the one or two --

MIKE WOODSON: I don't agree with that. We had games we played for 40 minutes and had big leads and won big.

So I don't agree with that statement. Again, talking about playing elite teams where we haven't played great, I thought the South Carolina game was a great game for us; Providence was a good game for us.

But I just got to get it fixed, keep working, and pushing they guys that's what coaches do, and basketball players got to get better and do their job as well.

Q. Started out slow this afternoon, especially defensively. What was your assessment of the practice and what practice was like the last week after that Nebraska loss?

MIKE WOODSON: Practice has been tough, brutal. A lot of running and work put in. You know, I thought our bench -- I can't blame everyone. Hell, our bench was pretty good tonight for us. They came in and played solid I thought. Probably should have played them the whole game and sat the starting unit down.

At the end of the day, I got to get all guys that are -- get them all clicking when they're on the floor playing. It's a work in progress still, but we still have a long way to go. I got to keep pushing.

Q. You stressed the importance this season about assisting, and tonight was 16 assists. How pleased or displeased are you with your ball movement tonight?

MIKE WOODSON: Not good. I mean, we had 16 assists, but at the end of the day we could have had probably 26 assists, because I thought the next pass wasn't there. Guys were still trying to do to themselves.

You know, I got to get us over that.

Q. Coach, it was another good defensive half in the second half for the most part. How do you get your team to start games with that same intensity we see in the second half?

MIKE WOODSON: Well, I mean, that's been a mystery. We have had games where we have jumped on teams and we've had games where we started slow. So I got to find an even ground somewhere where they come out and start out well and sustain it and the bench comes in and sustains it.

We've had games like that. I got to go back and find them.

Q. Couple months into the season now. Do you feel like the progression has been there from this team from the start of the season to where you are right now?

MIKE WOODSON: Again, I mean, when you go back to our practice game against Tennessee we were very competitive, and I'm trying to get us there on a 40-minute basis every night they step out on the floor.

We're not there yet with. Nowhere near it. So I got a lot of work still ahead.

Q. Mike, Christmas in a couple days. What's the plan between now and then?

MIKE WOODSON: Well, guys have a few days off. We come back on the morning of the 26th and we'll practice that evening and get ready for our next opponent.

Wishing them all a merry Christmas and I hope they have a good time. Get two days and got to come back and go to work. That's what it's all about during this time.

Hey, guys, Merry Christmas to everyone.