Indiana basketball coach Mike Woodson told reporters at Big Ten Media Days on Thursday he wants his team to get off to a “blazing start” this season.
“We got to come out playing at a high level,” Woodson said. “There’s no reason why we shouldn’t is kind of how I look at it.”
Woodson feels like the influx of talent from the transfer portal — Oumar Ballo (Arizona), Myles Rice (Washington State), Kanaan Carlyle (Stanford) and Luke Goode (Illinois) — combined with some key returning veterans (Trey Galloway, Malik Reneau and Mackenzie Mgbako) gives the Hoosiers no excuse to struggle out of the gate like they did last year.
Indiana faces a series of close calls at Assembly Hall in wins over Florida Gulf Coast, Army and Morehead State in games all decided by eight points or less that were the cause for some concern. The Hoosiers would go on to miss the NCAA tournament with a 19-14 record.
“We could have lost the games,” Woodson said. “Those guys, the Maliks, Gallos, and Mackenzie, they found ways to win along with Ware. I’m just hoping this year we don’t put ourselves in that position.”
Here’s what we heard about the new-look Hoosiers at Big Ten Media Days on Thursday:
Myles Rice earned the right to represent Indiana at Big Ten Media Days with his vocal leadership throughout the team’s offseason workouts.
“From day one, the way he came in and just took over as a leader, it’s amazing to see,” Galloway said. “…There’s no one like him that I’ve played with ever. The way he’s able to talk to guys, and be that influencer on the court is very special to see.”
Rice, who was sitting right next to Galloway, reacted with a wide smile.
“I appreciate that, big dawg,” he said.
The camaraderie on display is what both players said it’s been like in the locker room for IU in recent months despite adding seven new faces to the fold. Rice’s willingness to speak up as a newcomer played a key role in the group quickly developing chemistry.
“It’s hard for guys to speak up cause everyone is kind of new, people are shy obviously, but he’s not,” Galloway said. ”That’s a good quality to have, he’s able to kind of bring guys together. That’s one thing I’ve noticed, there’s plenty of times this summer we needed someone to be vocal and he was that guy.”
The Washington State transfer’s impressive resume and play style doesn’t hurt either. He was named Pac-12 Freshman of the Year, set more than a half dozen freshman school records and led all freshmen in the conference in scoring just months removed from finishing treatment for Hodgkin’s Lymphoma.
At that position, you got to demand respect from the players and the players will respect what you do on the floor,” Woodson said. “Myles has been a nice addition cause he’s a game changer with his ability to push the ball up and down the floor and make shots.”