Here's What Race Thompson Said After Indiana Dropped Its Second Home Game of the Season to Illinois
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — The Hoosiers fell 74-57 to No. 18-ranked Illinois for their second home loss of the season. Redshirt senior Race Thompson led the way for the Hoosiers with 13 points.
Although it was a strong first half for Indiana who were up by two at the buzzer, the second half was all Illinois as the Fighting Illini's Kofi Cockburn scored 12 points that contributed to his 17 overall on Saturday.
Here's what Thompson said in the post game press conference. Read the full transcript, or watch the attached video.
Q. On what Thompson thought was wrong offensively...
RACE THOMPSON: Got to give some credit to Illinois. They played us tough. So I really think that it comes with the defensive plan on us. And, again, we got to slow down and focus on making our shots. And, I mean, that's really all it is, being confident in our shots and running our sets.
Q. On if Thompson would like his missed shots back...
RACE THOMPSON: Yeah, definitely. I missed some chippies. I wish I could have them back. I'm frustrated with myself. We got to get back to work. I can't hang my head on that. So, really, that's all it is. I wish I could have them back, but it's late now. We got to go to Northwestern.
Q. On Kofi Cockburn being a challenge...
RACE THOMPSON: I mean, you see him. He's a big body down there. I mean, I didn't really have him in my way tonight.
But, I mean, on the defensive end, he's definitely tough. He's a big body. He's hard to get around. He's heavy, he's strong. So, I mean, respect to him. He's a good player.
Q. On slowing down Cockburn, especially in that first half...
RACE THOMPSON: Me, personally, I was just trying to give him different looks. Just kind of running circles around him, really.
I tried to tell Trayce and Mike that. I mean, they were doing it, too. But overall, I mean, he's a good player. So he was tough coverage today.
Q. On the defense breaking down over time...
RACE THOMPSON: Yeah, the first half we were playing really good on the three-point line and then the second half we faded away a little bit. And that's where we got to be better. It's happened before in the past with us.
And we really got to put 40 minutes together. The game's not over at halftime. So I think that's one our main things, putting two halves together and continuing to play the game.
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- NO. 18 ILLINOIS BURIES THE HOOSIERS: It took a while, but powerful Illinois finally got the best of Indiana on Saturday, surging to a 74-57 win with a furious second half rally to keep control of its lead in the Big Ten. CLICK HERE.
- INDIANA VS. ILLINOIS PHOTO GALLERY: Look at more than 15 photos from Indiana's matchup against Illinois at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. The Hoosiers won the first half but fell apart in the second and were beat 74-57 by the Fighting Illini. CLICK HERE
- WHAT WOODSON SAID: Here's what Indiana coach Mike Woodson said after the Hoosiers' loss to Illinois. CLICK HERE
