Highlights From Mike Woodson on 'Inside Indiana Basketball' Radio Show

On the 'Inside Indiana Basketball' radio show, coach Mike Woodson talked with play-by-play announcer Don Fischer about Indiana's win over Nebraska, loss to Arizona in Las Vegas, upcoming matchup with Kansas and more. Here are the highlights.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Indiana coach Mike Woodson appeared on the weekly radio show 'Inside Indiana Basketball' with Don Fischer on Monday night at Southern Stone Restaurant.

Woodson stayed in Las Vegas for an extra day to host a charity golf tournament at Shadow Creek Golf Course on Sunday. He said the event sold out and money went to the Boys and Girls Club of Las Vegas. Although weather cut the outing short, Woodson was happy to see about 90 percent of the participants were Indiana fans

“We were only able to get 9 holes in, but that didn’t stop the festivities and having a good time," Woodson said. "We came back in and had drinks and some food and everything was mellow and smooth at that point.”

Here are some notable comments from Woodson on Monday night.

On Indiana's 81-65 win over Nebraska...

• “I just think our comfort level playing here at home is where it should be."

• “You could easily lose the Rutgers game and then come back home and feel sorry for yourself and lose at home, but we had a couple days of practice, good practices, and our guys responded.”

• “They were really locked in and did everything asked from a game plan standpoint.”

On Indiana's 3-point shooting...

• "Tamar Bates is starting to chip in. Miller has been great. X is capable of making them and then Race finally found his stride in the Arizona game. He had been struggling until that point.”
• Kopp is 23 for 47 on 3-point attempts this year, good for 48.9 percent. Bates is 14 for 34 (41.2 percent), Johnson is 10 for 26 (38.5 percent), Thompson is 7 for 25 (28 percent) and Galloway is 6 for 13 (46.2 percent).
• “I think [Kopp] is comfortable now. I think he’s finally figured out what Indiana basketball is about. I thought coming in it was an eye opener for him ... I think his comfort level is sky high."
• Woodson also noted Kopp's improvements handling the ball and driving to the basket, which he believes is a result of letting everyone handle the ball and be creative in practice. "I think a lot of our guys have gotten better in that area.”
• Woodson said Tamar Bates is looking more confident this season. “He’s starting to figure it out, which is kind of nice ... He’s making shots, and I’ve got to get him better defensively."

On Indiana's 89-75 loss to Arizona...

• “I thought there were a lot of loose ends, and we didn’t connect the dots that caused us to lose that game.”
• “They smacked us early, and I was kind of shocked basked on how we’ve been playing."
• Woodson pointed out that Arizona's combination of Oumar Ballo and Azuolas Tubelis out played Trayce Jackson-Davis and Race Thompson. Ballo and Tubelis combined for nine more points and five more rebounds. 
• “We had so many game plan mistakes that we had not been having, and that’s kind of alarming for me because I take pride as a coach, it’s on me to make sure when we step on the floor, we can’t make game plan mistakes. We made them the first 2-3 minutes, and it carried on for a stretch then it got better. We got back to what we were supposed to be doing."
• “They were the aggressor."
• “I look at the foul situation, 25 to 9, again, that’s lopsided when you’ve got that many bigs on the floor banging around, bodies flying around. It shouldn’t be that big of a difference, but I’m not blaming it on that. I’m blaming it on us not following the game plan.”
• “I can’t fault effort because they gave effort.”
• Don Fischer asked if Woodson thought Indiana had a casual attitude going into the game, to which Woodson responded, "Not at all."
• “The game plan is not always going to go perfect, but you’ve got to minimize it. It can’t be 20 game plan mistakes. It can be 5 to 10 a game because you’re going to make mistakes and I get that, but it was too many.”
• “It didn’t help us that we had 8 turnovers that led to 18 points. That’s the difference with the free throws and turnovers and not rebounding the basketball. I’m surprised we were even in the game, really."
• “If you take the goal tend away, then we cut it to 3. Then we come back and we give up a game plan mistake by going under the screen, and they hit a big 3 that put them back up six that give them the cushion they needed."
• Woodson said Indiana needed a strong performance from Race Thompson because he knew that Arizona would collapse on Trayce Jackson-Davis in the post. Thompson finished with 16 points and nine rebounds, including a 4-for-7 night from 3-point range. "He got in a groove, and he started to make shots that we think he can make.”
• “I’ll say this. In a physical game like that, we’ve got to shoot more than nine free throws versus 25. That’s so not right. I might get a phone call about making that statement, but I really don’t care. That’s just too lopsided of a game with that much contact going on. It can’t be that lopsided.”
• Woodson said Arizona is a great team. "There’s a a reason why they’re a top 10 team. They’ve got big time size and they’re big out front, they’re huge out front …. I like everything about them. They’re well coached, he’s done a hell of a job.”
• Woodson was very impressed with Arizona's front court duo. "[Tubelis] incredible too, his skillset is awfully high. They’ve got a one two punch inside that’s hard to defend.” Woodson said he didn’t want to double team because of Arizona’s outside shooters.

On Indiana's practice on Monday...

• “We sat and watched a lot of film today and had a grueling practice. We hadn’t had one. They’re probably not happy with me tonight after practice today because I was trying to make a point in terms of we’ve got to pay attention to detail."
• Woodson said he put a lid on the basket at practice to emphasize rebounding. “Bob knight never worried about injuries."
• “We’ve gotten a reputation around college basketball of a team that plays hard and gets after it. We’ve just got to get better rebounding the ball as a unit, we don’t do that well and it’s cost us.”
• When asked how a team can improve at rebounding, Woodson responded, “Let them knock the hell out of each other. Listen, man, it’s not scientific. When the shot goes up you’ve got to go find a body and put your body on that body to keep them from rebounding the basketball. Since the invention of basketball that’s how it’s always been done, and it ain’t no different today.”

On Trey Galloway...

• “He’s been solid, man. I’m somewhat playing him out of position based on the fact that we’re shorthanded not having Jalen Schifino around. But we kind of prepared and groomed him for this journey.” Woodson said he's had Galloway handle the ball and make more plays in practice in order to help replace Hood-Schifino.

On Jalen Hood-Schifino's health...

• “He’s back on the floor a little bit now shooting and moving around a little bit, kind of gingerly, but just the fact that he’s on the floor. I couldn’t even get him on the floor over the past four games, so it was kind of nice to see him out today shooting and moving around.”
• “He does a lot of good things for our ball club … It would be nice to get him back eventually, we’re not rushing it. Just got to take it a day at a time and see how he feels, but he is feeling much better and that’s good for our ball club."

On Malik Reneau...

• “I got to find more minutes for him meaning when he picks two fouls up, I can’t take him out. Just let him go get three because I think we have enough support around him with Race and Trayce and then Geronimo playing that spot, too, that we can be okay with him getting three fouls. But he’s got to be a lot smarter about it because he picks them up so quickly that he doesn’t even give himself a chance to even play, so I mean I don’t know if they’re picking on him or not. I’m always on the officials when they blow two quick fouls on a freshman. It’s like ‘Give the guy a chance to play a little bit.’

On upcoming final exams...

• "Everything is centered around their schedule based on how I conduct practice.” Woodson said the players have tutoring and work stations to help with their classes.
• Woodson said he talks about academics with the team all the time. 
• "It’s vital. A lot of these guys, they’re not going to play NBA basketball, that’s just being realistic. That’s not to bust anybody’s bubble, but you have to go to school and get an education so you can make sure when it’s all said and done you’ve got something to fall back on and go off in the work place and be able to compete and do what you do."
• When Woodson returned to Indiana, he hired Anitra House, whose title is Assistant to the Head Coach. When Woodson was a student, House was his tutor. 
• “Anitra was huge for me in terms of tutoring me and my wife Terri on a day-to-day basis, especially to help me get where I needed to go, and that’s why she’s back with me now."

On social media...

• “I wish you could do away with social media. That’s just wishful thinking on my part. Maybe it might keep them more focused, but it’s what it is. You’re not going to get around social media, and I try to tell these guys to trim it down, stay away from it, but again, I’m not around them 24/7 and just you’ve got to be smart about what you do and say when it comes to social media because you do the wrong thing or say the wrong thing, you’re exposed and it’s across the county. Social media is what it is. I just tell our guys to be careful with what they do.”
• "It’s amazing, after the game the first thing they do is they grab their phone before they even go and take a shower. Social media is what it is, but I wish I could throw all their phones away for a year and let them just focus in on playing basketball and going to class and studying."

On Indiana's game at Kansas on Saturday...

• “Well-coached. I know Bill [Self] very well. I’ve watched him work over the years. As an NBA coach we used to do some clinics together way back in the day. He always has his teams ready to play.” 
• Woodson said Indiana needs to follow the game plan and play 40 minutes “Because they’re not going to let you off the hook.”
• Woodson watched the Missouri game on Sunday and Kansas' 64-50 loss to Tennessee on Nov. 25 “The difference between the Missouri and the Tennessee game was Tennessee was really physical, and it was a struggle in that area a little bit.”

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