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INDIANA UNIVERSITY BASKETBALL MEDIA CONFERENCEDecember 8, 2018Romeo LangfordJuwan MorganRobert PhiniseeJustin SmithIndiana - 68, Louisville - 67 THE MODERATOR: Questions for the players. Q. Romeo, early on guys weren't doing a whole lot offensively. You seemed to really make a determination that you were going to have to step up today and be that guy. Did you feel that or are you letting the game come to you? ROMEO LANGFORD: Yeah, I saw we were starting up a little slow. I took it in my hands to get the team going. I felt like that's what got us going ultimately to win the game. Q. Rob, Hoosiers didn't lead till you rose up from the right wing to hit a three, then hit another three. Talk about both of those plays, what you saw, why you felt you had to rise up and take the shot. ROB PHINISEE: The play really wasn't designed for that. I saw my guy drop back in. I just took the open shot and made it. Q. Juwan, I think this is three straight wins with five total points. The cliffhanger type thing, are you embracing that now? Are you comfortable when it comes down to that type of situation? JUWAN MORGAN: We're definitely comfortable in that situation. I think the hard work we put in in the off-season has prepared us for that. Last time around this time last year we were losing those games. I think this time we're coming together as a group, doing a better job on both sides of the ball, knocking down free throws, also getting stops to put us over the top. Q. What is different about this team in those close games? How much do you feel maybe you're approaching them differently as a senior? JUWAN MORGAN: I just think everybody is taking their own matchup personally. When it comes down to it, they don't want to be the guy that is known for letting their man score in the last possessions. I think everybody is taking that pride. I think everybody is really taking that to heart. Q. Juwan, you played from behind most of the game. When was the mindset during that stretch when you couldn't quite get over the hump, what changed down the stretch? JUWAN MORGAN: We just had to keep fighting. We were right there. We knew if we stayed within striking distance, we really put ourselves in a position to win the game. I think we did that. Q. Justin, your second straight game with nine rebounds. You also defensively had to guard Lamar Stevens. Today you had a really tough matchup. Talk about what made him tough as a player today. JUSTIN SMITH: He's a great shooter, great scorer. He was able to shoot the ball pretty much anywhere on the floor. Closing out way past the three-point line was difficult, especially when we try to keep the floor tight. They really tried to spread us out. I mean, he was definitely a key for us defensively. I mean, he had 24 points. He had to work for those 24. We made it difficult for him. We were able to do enough to get the win. Q. Juwan, just the first month, some of the close calls you were in, having to will out games late, how much has that equipped you to win games now and down the road? JUWAN MORGAN: It's equipped us well. It's put us in a position to get those wins. I just think it makes us a tougher team. Going through those things really makes a team more together on both sides of the ball. As we go into January and into February, into March, it just will be natural for us in those games. Earlier we were kind of struggling, but I think we'll be ready. Q. Romeo, your first double-double as a Hoosier. Were the rebounds coming to you today? Was that an emphasis for you? ROB PHINISEE: He had one rebound (laughter). Q. Romeo, you had a couple missed free throws early. Were able to hit the two. What were the challenges there? ROMEO LANGFORD: I really didn't think too much while I was on the line. Cleared my head. I knew the last two free throws I shot were crucial and I had to knock them down. That's what I did. Q. Romeo, what was the experience like for you playing Louisville? Was this one you had kind of been pointing to, knowing you were going to get a school from near your hometown? What happened to your eye? ROMEO LANGFORD: The experience was really good. I felt like the crowd was really into it, got loud at a couple points in the game. I didn't really pay too much attention to just me being close to Louisville, where I'm from. That didn't play too much of a factor in the game for me. I got elbowed up here in my eye in the Penn State game. Q. Justin, you were able to be more assertive going towards the basketball tonight. What allowed you to do that? Juwan found you a couple times on cuts. Do you feel like you cut harder, with more energy, playing off a guy who can get you the ball? JUSTIN SMITH: Yeah, I think we made some changes offensively, get the ball moving a little bit more, which moved the defense a little bit more, which opened up some driving lanes. When Juwan gets the ball in the post, yeah, I mean, he's always looking to pass. He's really looking to pass, I wouldn't say first, but majority of the time he is looking to make plays out of the post. It gives me incentive definitely to dive knowing there's a possibility. It does open the floor time sometimes for him or somebody else, but it's definitely a part of our offense. Q. Facing a team that really relies on the three-pointer, the team was struggling with three, Rob, how big was it for you to be able to hit some very clutch threes? ROB PHINISEE: Really I just tried to, I mean, make the shot for my team so we can do whatever we can to win. I just took the open shot. Q. Juwan, what is it about this freshman class that has let them step up and make big plays without being fazed? JUWAN MORGAN: Started in the summer when they came in willing to work, willing to learn. Closer and closer to the Big Ten, they're becoming more like veterans. We can't call them freshmen any more because the plays they're making down the stretch are big plays for us. They still have mistakes here or there, but they always make up for them. Q. What got better defensively in the course of this game? JUWAN MORGAN: I just think we stayed together more in the second half. I just think as they made a couple runs here and there, we just buckled down, said, This is what we need to do, get a stop. Each person just took that challenge to stop their man from scoring. We all had each other's back, even if it was an emergency switch sometimes. We weren't trying to switch, but talking it out, communication, we came out and did what we needed to do on that side. Q. Romeo, loading up on you the first half, you took jump shots. How were you able to find more space in the second half? ROMEO LANGFORD: Just the way I play, I really just take what the defense gives me. In the first half, they were giving me jump shots in my step-back. They spaced out a little bit in the second half, led me to drive, pass it off to guys like Juwan and Justin. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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