March 9, 2008

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Penn State Coach Ed DeChellis

Q: What does it mean to win this kind of game without [Geary] Claxton and [Jamelle] Cornley?

A: I just am really proud of our kids, they have been resilient all year. We have taken some hits, we had to re-do some things at times but I think that they have tried to stay the course and get better as a team as the year has gone on. We have gotten better for the most part and our young kids really stepped up today and did some wonderful things for us. Jeff Brooks was tremendous. D.J. Jackson seems to always make the big play. He seems to always be around the ball and he has done that a few times now. So I think our young kids did a good job and we fought and they have really been a resilient group.

Q: Jeff Brooks said that his mom asked him why does he always think before he does things...?

A: Jeff [Brooks] is a sensitive kid, so I have had to try to coach him a little different. He takes everything so personally. He just wants to do really well and sometimes he thinks too much instead of playing. I hope that this is the kind of game that gives him more confidence. We have seen this in practice out of him for a long time and we were just trying to transfer it to the game. We try to just continue to pump his tires because we think he can really be a special player.

Q: You seemed really loose out there...?

A: I told these guys, you know, we haven't had Geary [Claxton] for a long time and we lost Jamelle [Cornley] this week, I have full confidence in you and we are going to rise above and some guys are going to make some plays and we are going to go in there and play as hard as we can for 40 minutes. We got into overtime and I told them, `I lied to you. We have to play 45.' But the kids felt good about themselves. We knew we had to make a run back at them. There was no dwelling on the negative. I think it's about confidence, they really think that they should win at home and protect the home court and I think everyone was telling them that they couldn't beat Indiana and I kept telling them I thought they could do some things.

Q: Talk about D.J. [Jackson] making the big play?

A: You know, he is always around the ball and he makes big plays and big free throws down the stretch. He always finds the ball. D.J. [Jackson] does a lot of things that might now always add up on the stats sheet, he is a very cerebral player and he does some stuff like he did tonight when he gets a big rebound, sticks it back in there, gets fouled, makes his free throw and looks pretty good.

Q: Can you talk about your decision to shut down Jamelle [Cornley]?

A: Well, that was really Doc [Sebastianelli] and Jamelle [Cornley]. Jamelle [Cornley] just felt like he had given us everything he could give us. He has been very courageous and it just got to the point where it is just too painful for him. He wants to be out there as much as anybody but when you have a bad wheel, you can only run on a flat for so long before you have to get it fixed.

Q: With the way you are playing at home with young players, do you see a carryover into next year?

A: I think we have a great young nucleus of players. We started four freshmen tonight and the guys that basically played a lot of minutes tonight will be back. Mike [Walker] won't be back and Brandon [Hassell] won't be back but I think we have some other guys that hopefully will step into their shoes and help us. We are just going to continue to build.

Q: Can you talk about your guards going 6-of-24?

A: Talor [Battle] and Stanley [Pringle], we didn't have much production out of their offense but they did some things defensively and made some free throws. Sometimes you have to find a way to win and somehow we found a way. I thought that Danny [Morrissey] made a big shot, gave us some juice. It's like different guys do different things. Danny [Morrissey] makes a big shot at a crucial time, but he only made one or two shorts. D.J. [Jackson] makes his play, Jeff [Brooks] did some things. It was a total team effort. Talor [Battle] made his free throws down the stretch when he had to.

Q: What will the NIT do for a young team?

A: Anytime you can play extra games, I think it is important. Get some energy going into the Conference tournament. I think that anytime you can play in the postseason, it's different. It's postseason play. I think anytime you can get your young kids into that realm, it's important. We would welcome an opportunity to play."

Penn State Players- Talor Battle, Jeff Brooks and D.J. Jackson

Q: When did you first learn about Jamelle [Cornley] being out?

Talor Battle
A: We learned about it way back when we played Wisconsin. He didn't play that game and we knew he was kind of questionable. He didn't even travel, so it wasn't like one of those game-time decisions. Then we came back and he tried to practice, and it just wasn't going well and he kind of told me that he thought he was done and then we found out yesterday he wasn't playing. But Coach [DeChellis] warned us right when we got back from Wisconsin, with or without Jamelle Cornley we have to be ready to play and we came out right from the get-go and we did that.

Q: What was your first reaction to the news?

Talor Battle
A: It was like `Wow, now our second-leading scorer is down now." It was like we knew we had to step up as freshmen. There were four of us in the starting lineup, you don't really see that that much. I think we did a great job tonight, like Jeff [Brooks] here he just scored Jamelle's [Cornley] points and that's what someone had to do and he did it.

Q: Jeff, you seemed to be struggling, but tonight was your best game. What was different?

Jeff Brooks
A: I have to say a mindset. I came in tonight knowing that I had to be more aggressive and my confidence was at another level tonight. And, I was also playing loose and having fun instead of getting down about turnovers or missing rebounds. So, tonight I just had fun and played with my teammates and we had a win.

Q: You guys seem to be really calm down the stretch during these last couple games...?

Talor Battle
A: Me personally, I just try to have fun even when it was a tie game. I was smiling at the fans thinking if I could get a shot, that would be pretty good and things like that because the more tight and tense you get, that makes the game that much harder. So, I just try to stay as loose as possible and just try to stay relaxed out there.

Q: How far have you guys come as freshman?

Jeff Brooks
A: A journey.

Talor Battle
A: Yeah, we had to grow up fast. I remember watching college basketball and hearing the coaches and the commentary say that at this point, about halfway through the season and on, freshman become sophomores and so on. It was kind of what we had to do and maybe grow up even faster because we lost [Geary] Claxton early on and now with [Jamelle] Cornley out, even more guys have to step up.

Q: A month ago, could you have won this game?

Jeff Brooks
A: I don't think so.

Talor Battle
A: A month ago? No, probably not. Because, like you said, a month ago we were nervous and tight and now we are loose. This is five-straight home games in a row to end the season and that is pretty good.

Jeff Brooks
A: Yeah, that's big.

Q: Do you think of this as a good carry-over into next year?

Talor Battle
A: Never mind next year, we have the Big Ten Conference tournament and we just want to go in there and perform the best that we possibly can. I hate to look ahead for next year when we have so much season left. If we can get ourselves a couple wins in the tournament then maybe we can play our way into the [NCAA] Tournament or maybe the NIT.

Q: David, what did you see on the tip-in?

D.J. Jackson
A: Like I was telling Talor [Battle] earlier, when a guy shoots, as a rebounder, you have to think that it is going to miss. The only one who should think it is going in is the guy shooting it. I just saw it come off the rim and there were about three or four guys around and I just tried to get a hand on it to keep it alive. But, it just went in so I was just trying to be aggressive on the glass.

Q: How do you feel for Jamelle [Cornley]?

Talor Battle
A: It is definitely kind of tough but, in a way, I kind of feel good for him. He has been fighting through injuries this whole season and you just see him, day in and day out, can't practice or he is just struggling, making faces because he is hurting. So this is the best thing for him to just rest and get ready for next season.

Indiana Head Coach Dan Dakich

Opening statement:

"I always start out by saying what a great job the other team did. I mean they are playing with out Cormley and Claxton. They controlled the tempo of the game. I mean they are tough when they need to be tough. They got a three point play by Jackson to tie the basketball game. Morrissey starts to happen with a three and looked good doing it. They were tough and that enabled them to win the basketball game, but they were tough all day."

Q. Down the stretch there seems to be a lot of shots that were pretty early. Did you get the offensive possession that you wanted in OT?

A. I'll have to take a look. We got down four. We ran a play for Eric (Gordan) down three that I thought was a really good look. We practice that all the time and got a really good look, but we probably shot a little too quick. I just trust Armon (Bassett) to get the ball and shoot when it's in his hands.

Q. What led to that?

A. They were doing a good job of getting around D.J and keeping them out and I think our guys missed it truthfully. D.J was open a few times. We had a chance to, but we didn't.

Q. 15 offensive rebounds. Was that a key?

A. We talked about that and it was key. We wanted to make sure we dominated the backboard, and we didn't do that. We didn't do a good job rebounding

What was the biggest change without Jamarcus (Ellis)?

He's a really good player. He covers a lot of players. We were a little out of sink, but we should have been able to play better. His situation is his situation.

Q. Penn State was a surprise today, were you prepared?

A. There is always an upset in the last game, always. Last night we showed them film and tried to tell them and that's something we tried to fight as hard as we could as coaches. My hats off to Eddie (DeChellis) on a great win today.

Q. Do you expect Jamarcus (Ellis) to play in the Big Ten Tournment?

A. That's up to Jamarcus. Something he can do, but is based on his behavior and his reaction to things.