BIG TEN CONFERENCE MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT

March 13, 2022

Matt Painter

Zach Edey

Trevion Williams

Jaden Ivey

Gainbridge Fieldhouse

Purdue Boilermakers

Postgame Press Conference

Iowa – 75, Purdue - 66

MODERATOR: We'll welcome here to the media center Jaden Ivey, Zach Edey and Trevion Williams. We'll be joined by Coach Painter momentarily. He's with live television.

Q. Zach and Trevion, you guys kind of played for each other, one comes in, one comes out. Can you just speak to your -- each other's strengths, so Zach, you for Trevion and Trevion, you for Zach?

ZACH EDEY: We've both been -- both bring things to the game. Trevion's always been a great passer, everyone knows that. He has a great post-game where he can back you down, hit you with the shimmy shake. I'm just more power, I can kind of back you down, get you down really low and score over the top of you.

TREVION WILLIAMS: I guess just to bounce off that, we're two different types of bigs. I think I'm more of -- just because of size difference, I'm more a mobile big, I can probably move on the perimeter a little better and he's better obviously down the low post. He's more of a power big, so we just kind of feed off each other and we try to go that way.

Q. Explain what it was like last year as you went off the court and you guys got beat by North Texas and what you guys think you may have taken from that game. Any lessons in particular?

TREVION WILLIAMS: Man, you don't -- you respect everybody you play in March Madness and that's what it came down to for us. I think a lot of times we look at ourselves and we -- obviously we know we're a talented team and nobody -- we beat ourselves a lot of times. Purdue beats Purdue. Man, in March, man, it's about respecting every team you play and I don't think we gave North Texas the respect that they deserve.

Everybody's in the tournament for a reason. Man, like I said, it just comes down to respecting each team you play. Nobody expected to come -- obviously people look at that game and say Purdue's going to win, but, you know, that's why you respect the teams.

So I guess the lesson is just respect every team and I guess the change that we can make this year is just come in with a focus and understand that every possession counts.

Q. Jaden, your mom was here today. I don't know if you got a chance to talk to her after the game about what she's going to be going through with the selection show coming up later tonight. What's this week going to be like for the two of you?

JADEN IVEY: I would say it's a big week for us. Obviously we get to play the game we love and do it at a high level. I think she's focused on trying to win and lead her team, and so am I.

I did a horrible job today just leading and just trying to get us back in the game. I felt like I made some bad reads and my turnovers, you know, I feel like they lost us the game today. But other than that, we still get to play in the game we love and we have, you know, a lot of games left to play. So yeah, we're just focused on the next chapter.

Q. Question for all you guys. What is the biggest takeaway you guys have going into the tournament after this tough loss today?

JADEN IVEY: I think the biggest thing is just trying to just have a short memory of this game and just move on and focus on, you know, what we can control in those games. I felt like today we turned the ball over and it lost us games. We just got to correct it and don't let it happen when we play Yale.

Q. Jaden, Trey had said obviously Purdue sometimes beats Purdue. The turnovers, they seem to come in bursts. Is there anything you can do going into the NCAA tournament to sort of stem that? I know we've been talking about it a lot this season. Is there anything going into the postseason now that can be done to counteract that?

JADEN IVEY: I think just keeping it simple. I think we tried to do too much today. Sometimes we try to, you know, make flashy passes or just not make the right, reads and I think what's going to help us down the road is just trying to be simple as a team and play together and just give everything we have, you know. And that's what we have to do to win because it's going to be tough down the road and each team's going to play with heart and we've just got to play even harder.

Q. Zach, Trevion, what you guys did in the middle today, what kind of springboard can that be for both of you going into the tournament?

ZACH EDEY: Obviously we feel like against any team we can really do what we did in the paint today. We feel like we always have a matchup advantage when we go to the middle in terms of rebounding and getting quality looks. We kind of have done it most of the season, but it's good for us to build on over this tournament because we've done it pretty consistent during this tournament. We obviously need to limit our turnovers and knock down our open looks, but we feel like pretty confident when we go to the middle.

MODERATOR: We'll continue on here with Coach Painter.

Q. Matt, two things: First, what do you think your guys took out of last year's NCAA experience, and secondly, what do you know about Yale?

COACH MATT PAINTER: Well, we really talked about -- I don't know how many years ago it was when we played Arkansas at Little Rock and how good Arkansas Little Rock was and obviously well-coached by Chris Beard, who went to Texas Tech and obviously is at Texas. I thought our guys were pretty mature. A lot of times people look at when you get upset by somebody that you didn't respect them and I thought both times we got beat by Little Rock and got beat by North Texas, I thought our players really respected them. That just wasn't it, we just got beat. They played better than us. Obviously the one game went to overtime.

I just think the experiences that you go through and as a coach, I can continue on with players. Like you get kind of to the end and it's a little bit different, but I think really what we learn is just you've got to lay it on the line. You get yourself in close games, especially on a neutral court, like anything can happen, but you've got to play better. You've got to be more efficient, you've got to be able to defend.

Your question about Yale, obviously I know Coach Jones and he's an excellent coach. We were watching them -- obviously I was writing on the board before this game and that game was on, so I was watching them that last three minutes of the game and they have a good team, man. Everybody earns their way in this one. There might be a couple teams that got left out but deserve to be in there and we all understand that, but everybody that got in this tournament earned their way in this tournament and everybody is good and we'll have our hands full.

Q. There have been a couple instances this season where it seemed like the turnover thing has kind of gotten better --

COACH MATT PAINTER: Right.

Q. -- and it's gotten worse. Can it be fixed at this point or do you have to just go into the NCAA Tournament just kind of with it hanging over your head?

COACH MATT PAINTER: It's not that it hangs over your head. that's not the way to actually phrase it because we just played Penn State and Michigan State and we didn't turn the ball over. So if we had a problem with it, we would have turned the ball over every team that we played, what it does -- I always say this about rebounding and turnovers. If you think you've got it figured out, it will rear its ugly head. Even though we out-rebound them, you know, by 18, we still had a tough time keeping them off the glass, especially to start the game like we did in Iowa City. So you've got to be able to secure that, but you should win a game when you out-rebound somebody by 18. You just should. You're dominating the glass right there. I know they're going small, but it's not like they went small and scored 112 points. They went small and made 17 threes. They've done that before. They didn't do that today.

So if we take care of the basketball and handle the glass the way we did, you win the basketball game and we didn't do that. It was right there for us. Obviously I always say this, but it's my perspective because I'm coaching Purdue's team, but you can't beat yourself. Just because you took care of the ball against Penn State and you took care of the ball against Michigan State doesn't mean you're going to take care of the ball against Iowa.

With that being said, you've got to give Iowa credit, but you're always working on those two areas. Those are the pillars of the game, man. Take care of the ball and rebound because those are your possessions. If you can have more possessions, you're going to give yourself a chance. That's why I always talk about our shots. We were so fortunate to be down three at half. we were so fortunate to be down three and we have nine turnovers and they have one. I don't care what the rebounds are like, they got eight more cracks at it right there. So I thought we were in a great position, but we didn't take advantage of it.

Q. Similar to what Brian was saying, when the turnovers start to come in bunches, do you look to your point guards to kind of get the team settled down? And when Iowa has a guard like Tony Perkins who had four assists and zero turnovers, is that kind of a steadying presence that they can turn to that you would need today?

COACH MATT PAINTER: If you look at us, like Eric Hunter, he has two turnovers, Isaiah has two turnovers. I don't think it's a point guard issue with us. Those guys have done a good job of taking care of the ball. I think it was a team issue. It's one of those deals, obviously J.I. has five with it, but he has his ball in his hands more than anybody. Our bigs have the ball in their hands more than anybody, so those guys have more cracks at it, have more opportunities.

But I think it's a team issue. Like that stretch in the first half where we kept getting in good positions and then we got them two on one, it's advantageous and you're driving to a lane and then we just kept throwing it to them and being careless with the basket. You just can't have that and we were just too careless.

But it's everything. Like I always talk about like when you throw the ball inside, you're going to get a three-second call every now and then, you're going to get an offensive foul every now and then and now it's not always just bad passes. Well, today was more bad passes, it was more decisions, getting in there. But also with that, that's why I always say it's my perspective, it's also Iowa's active hands. You've got to give Iowa credit. I think they had a hand in that and they've pressed us before and really gotten after us and they didn't press as much today. I don't know if it was because it was four games in four days for them. I thought it was just our inability to be fundamentally sound. And then at times that comes off hokey from a coach, but that's what wins the race, man, being simple, taking care of the ball and getting quality shots.

Q. You mentioned yesterday that Keegan didn't play against you guys the first time, Keegan Murray, and he was in foul trouble the second time. What did you see from him today?

COACH MATT PAINTER: Right. I thought he was -- you know, he plays the whole game, first of all. I thought we did a pretty good job on him. He got away from us, one got loose on like a random loose ball, long rebound, got tipped a couple times, he gets a three off of that. We lose him one time, he gets another three off of that when we didn't want to switch there, but then Zach ended up on him and he hits that three.

But I thought we did a good job on him. He's one of those guys that's going to score the basketball. That's been proven. You just want to make it difficult. He's 6-16 and he gets 19 points. We'll live with that. We just had to be better in other areas.

Q. Just what your bigs did with Trevion and Zach, not that they need a springboard going into the tournament, but what kind of foundation can this be for them as you get into Friday?

COACH MATT PAINTER: Those guys have been great all year and obviously substituting for each other and come in and bringing energy and playing, being able to rebound the ball. We've got to finish a little bit better. I thought we had some good looks there at the basket, especially late, and it just didn't go for us. But they were good shots. You've got to stay process-based, in my opinion, and just take good shots and just get good shots. I thought they were getting pretty good cracks at it. We've just got to finish a little bit better.

But you look at a springboard for guys in terms of playing, I think it's just our team being connected. When we're really connected, I think we're a tough out. And sometimes when things don't go our way and shots aren't going, now we don't stay as connected, especially offensively, and I think that's where you see the turnovers. But, no, both of our bigs did some good things for us today.