DES MOINES, Iowa – Tre’ McLean, Justin Tuoyo and Matt McCall addressed the media at the podium following Chattanooga’s 99-74 loss to Indiana in the 2016 NCAA tournament first round at Wells Fargo Arena.
Watch the full press conference below:
Quotes are available after the jump.
THE MODERATOR: We have Chattanooga here with us now. Opening statement, Coach?
MATT McCALL: I want to make sure our players understand that this one game doesn’t define our season. What they have accomplished this year because they had a terrific year. We just ran into, by far, hands down, the best team that we’ve played all year. No question the most talented team we’ve played all year and all the credit goes to Coach Crean and Indiana on how well they played tonight.
We had no answer for anything they were doing offensively, we had some chances I thought we could cut into the lead. We got it down to 13 and 12 and they always seemed to have an answer and that’s by far the best team that we’ve faced all year and we’ve played some really, really good ones. So give Coach Crean and Indiana credit as far as how they played and prepared and came into this game. There is no question that I think they’re going to make a really deep run into this thing with how talented with the ball, and Yogi Ferrell did an unbelievable job controlling the game. And that’s why he is one of the best point guards in the country.
So give Indiana credit the year they had. It’s no question they won the Big Ten for a reason because of how good they are and I could see those guys making a deep run into this thing so give them credit.
THE MODERATOR: Questions for our student-athletes?
Q. Coach made the comment that he feels IU is the best team you’ve played. Is that something you agree with?
JUSTIN TUOYO: Yes, sir, yes, that’s the best team we’ve played.
Q. Can you talk about — they seem bigger in person maybe than they do sometimes auto TV. How did their length affect y’all?
TRE McCLEAN: That’s kinda tough to answer, but I personally — I don’t think they felt any bigger in person than they did on film. I mean, they — I think it was really just us, we had some turnovers and stuff, just really weren’t focused, but they did a pretty good job with your scouting report, I guess.
Q. When you guys get into a game with their type of offense, does it feel like you almost have to maybe not shut them down but try to find a way to keep up with them in terms of scoring.
TRE McCLEAN: Say that again.
Q. With how they were shooting the ball did you have to feel like you had to stop them instead of trying to keep up scoring with them?
TRE McCLEAN: Not really,, it shouldn’t bother you that will, it’s just tough overall, great offense beats a good defense any day so when a team is hooting the ball that well, I mean, you just gotta close out the shooters better than we — than you have been.
I think — I think — I don’t know, it’s just — I say just tough right now, man, to really answer anything.
Q. Tré, talk about the bench. In the first half they were really big in terms of kind of at least keeping you all in the game. Talk about their performance?
TRE McCLEAN: Our bench, that’s been the heart and soul of our team all year, when we’ve been down, the starters have been down, in foul trouble, Duke, Dee, Burroughs stepped up in a lot of games and they did again today. Those guys, they played excellent and they kept us in it in the first half.
Q. Tuoyo, with six seniors on next season’s team and you finally getting a taste of the NCAA atmosphere, how will you use tonight to maybe you further going into next season?
JUSTIN TUOYO: We know how it feel. We know what it takes to get here, and with everybody returning, we got the same feel we had leading up to this season. We’re not satisfied with what we did this year. I mean, we had a great run. But we’re not done next year we’re going to be in the same grind, when the game is over, you’re not playing with E. Rob or Duke or AB and that really hurts.
So, you know, next year, when we get here, we’re not going to want it to end because it will be our last game in our college career so we just know when we get back, we’re not going to want it to end.
THE MODERATOR: Okay, gentlemen, thank you.
Q. Matt, OG Anunoby, I’m sure you knew a little bit about him, but what did you know before tonight?
TRE McCLEAN: Watching him on film I have the utmost respect for him as a player. I feel like he impacts winning in some of the things he does that don’t always show up in the stat sheet. But he can affect the game in so many ways.
When they put I am at that power forward spot he can put it down, his length, his athleticism. I feel like all the teams we played, they’re by far the longest team and most athletic and moving and when we tried to get into our offense they’re in passing lanes and help off and he impacts the game in so many ways. I have a tremendous amount of respect for him as a player, because, I think, again, sometimes the things that he does doesn’t show up in the stat sheet. But as a coach you can see how much he has an impact on Indiana’s team and really impacts winning.
Q. Matt, just how key was Greg going out with two fouls in the first half?
MATT McCALL: You know what, I thought foul trouble hurt us in the first half. I don’t think by any means that cost us the game. They were just too good at the end of the day but obviously we weathered — I felt like we weathered the storm in the first half and we could not get stops especially to start the second half we gave up 46 points in the first half and 53 in the second.
I mean, you gotta give them a tremendous amount of credit, you know, just beat us top to bottom the entire game. The foul trouble I felt like hurt, but we weathered some storms there and we turned the ball over too much, fifteen times, and, again, I thought they were the longer teams that we played and we kept trying to drive down there and their length was causing us problems and they forced us into 15 turnovers, which I thought was big.
You know, those turnovers, they converted. Seemed like every time we turned the ball over they converted on the other end ask it’s hard to win that way. You know, it kinda got the game a little bit out of hand at the end of the day, too.
THE MODERATOR: Okay, Coach, thank you.
MATT McCALL: Thank you very much.
Filed to: 2016 NCAA tournament, Chattanooga Mocs