Post-Game Quotes: Maryland

Head Coach Tom Izzo

Opening statement...
It would be nice to have more of those kinds of games, to be very honest with you, but first thing I want to say is that I... I'm really proud of my guys, because we came off that trip, and last year when we did, we were 15 down to Oregon a couple days later, and we made a big deal about that. We tried to look at practice; we tried to get them some rest. We tried to have more film sessions and meetings. But the one thing that was great about having a reunion, as I said, this program's been built on physical toughness, mental toughness, and some accountability, and there's a lot of guys that came back today that busted their way through weather, some couldn't make it because of the weather. And I said, 'You owe it to them, your teammates, to at least play hard'. And because that's what they did. And I thought that was maybe as hard and sharp as we could play. Maryland did not play well. I'm sure Buzz [Williams] is upset, but he is a very competitive guy, and they didn't quit, and I just know that we had to raise our level of physicality, because that was a very physical team. I thought we did, and it started with Jeremy [Fears Jr.]. You know, it was so good to see him, even when he turned it over a couple times. He blamed himself. That's a big step. He blamed himself, but he had some incredible assists. I told him that the two to Coen [Carr] aren't as good as he thought, because he could throw the ball into the rafters, and Coen would dunk it, but they really were incredible plays by both people. I thought to shoot 60%, to execute like we did, to outrebound them by 11, to only have eight turnovers when he had four himself. But 17 points, 17 assists with a couple other guys with double doubles right on the cusp of the double-double. I thought one of the young guys that played well was Jordan Scott, came in and gave us some really good minutes at a critical time. So, you know, it was one of those days. I've been on the other side of one of those days, so I appreciate. That's not as good as we are, probably, and it's not definitely as bad as they are. But it was great to win a game that way in front of our former guys. And now I can go upstairs and enjoy a little reunion instead of what I would have done if we wouldn't have won.

On this team's maturity…
I think growth. I think it means some growth and the players talked about it at halftime. Because we had done that 2 or 3 times early in the year, and so they talked about it, and I felt good about that, you know? Then they started setting goals on defense and things like that. Sometimes I close my eyes and I say, 'Where is this coming from?' But our attention to detail. They cover a scouting report and give Doug [Wojick] credit on this. You know, he had them, and I thought, did a great job at the ball screen coverage, because [David] Coit as a player, that can get you 40. And I thought we were on him every time he came off something, you know? So, I thought, out of bounds plays, we hold them to two that they don't even get it in. I just thought we did a good job, and that goes for my staff, for the players, and nice to have Jaxon (Kohler) bounce back after a rough weekend. When really, he was in foul trouble, and he was a little sick, so he bounced back and looked more like the Jaxon Kohler that I know. It was nice that Coop [Carson Cooper] sat here through the wars, didn't leave, didn't go anywhere, and he makes his first three. He's probably playing his best basketball of his career. So, a lot of basketball left, and here's the one thing I would like to say to all of you. When I walked out and saw the fans, because a cold day, I figured a lot of empty seats, right? And I didn't see one. It's just incredible, you know, what our people do, and tickets, and what our fans do is special, but I really felt good that we are where we are. But there's a realistic approach now. So don't get carried away. I mean, the part of our schedule's coming up, it gets tougher now, we're gonna play a lot of the top three teams, four teams, we're gonna play them. So, we still got a lot, a lot of basketball left, but it's good to go into Rutgers, go on the road again feeling good. I don't think feeling cocky. I think our players, with the maturity of those four guys, and the age of the coach, I think, we're all a little more mature than I was years ago, so I'm approaching it in a sound way, and hopefully, it will continue to grow.

On being 'the hunter vs. the hunted'…
Well, I personally like being the hunted. You know, because that means you're somebody. And you should be if you're at Michigan State, always hunted. But, you know, we've got a kind of funny team, you know? It is not one that is as imposing as some that I've had. And, which is almost more rewarding in a lot of ways, and I think our fans kind of appreciated as who we are. I'm sure our new football coach appreciates what we are. I know Adam [Nightingale] went through a tough time. I watched, Robyn [Fralick], had a big lead, and went through a tough time, but found ways to win. I mean, that's kind of who we are here, and I'd rather be the hunted. But I don't always know if players can handle it, media can handle it, fans can handle it, parents can handle it. Now, let's see, agents can handle it. NCAA can... I mean, a lot of people are gonna handle it now. And yet, that's my job. My job is to make sure we do handle it, and I can promise you, in tomorrow's meeting, it'll get turned right back around, and we go into Rutgers with the same mentality.

On what has led to Jeremy Fears' offensive explosion…
You know, he's not necessarily shooting the ball from range that good. He's making a few more, but he kind of started working on his midrange a little bit more. He started using that little bank shot. When he's driving, I think he's feeling more of the control. He's been fun, you know? It's odd that a scoring point guard especially in this system, in Cassius [Winston], Kalin [Lucas] were probably the two guys that did it, but it's not the norm. And he's not really a scorer coming out, but what he is, is he's been very, very efficient. And that's what I like most. And I think honestly, his defense is now starting to rise up. He did a much better job defensively, and I told him, I told you guys, I did not think we were defending sometimes at the guard spots the way we need to. And it's fun when guys take challenges, and maybe it's the stick it. To me, maybe it's the... stick it to somebody else. Hell, maybe it's the stick it to my mother. You know, who knows what the reason is, and who really cares what the reason is. The bottom line is, do we get it done? And we are getting better. Today we got better defensively with each and every player.

On the starting 5's performance today…
I mean, who would love the way you play when you win by that? That's stating the obvious, but I like the huddles. I like the approach.
I like the halftime. I like the players taking over. like the players talking about making our defensive goals. We got to do this. We can't turn the ball over. We got to be under 10. Players start coaching the team, it's a better team. I think Jeremy's doing that a little more than Coen. Coen, for a quiet guy, has really stepped up in that. Coop's always been good and those guys hold each other accountable now. But like I said, Hang on, because it's going to get a little rougher here. I don't think anybody's going undefeated the rest of the way, neither us or other teams. I think there's five or six teams that got one or less losses or two or less losses now in the league. There's a lot of pretty good teams.

On the focus and intensity of the lead/fast breaks…
Especially on his team, who is athletic, and we were worried about their break. I think our guys in two days, prepped really well. That's what's exciting, because if you can do that after a road trip getting in at 6 in the morning, that's going to help you later on, whether it's the Big 10 tournament, the NCAA tournament. You have to be able to prep and you have to be able to get a lot done in a short period of time. The out of bounds plays told you that even down to an out of bounds play. I thought they were very focused on what they had to do. I talked to Buzz for a minute after, but they did not play well. That is not how they play. That is not how they've been playing. They've struggled some, but today I think it was a little bit of everything. Maybe their trip from Illinois, maybe the fact that our guys were hungry, maybe our former players, maybe our crowd was great, maybe all the above? I don't think we're 40 points better than Maryland. I think today we were.

On the three large runs the team had…
Well, if you defend and you stop people, the runs get better. Then if you score at all, you keep adding points. And I thought we put it together. I thought early we were good, and then all kidding aside, when Jordan Scott came in, he made a couple of plays, got a rebound, hit a three, and its kind of just ignited us even more. Yeah, those runs on the break, and we thought it too, one of the things we've got to do is wear down a couple of those shooters, especially the little guy (David Coit), because he's electric, man. I mean, if you watch film on him, it's like watching Coen (Carr) dunk. He's making long threes. It's scary. But I thought we maybe did wear him down a little bit, and I thought Buzz (Williams) tried, his team must have been tired because he did a lot of subbing. He subbed 30 seconds, 20 seconds into the game. So, maybe his guys were a little rundown too, but those runs were big and if Jeremy's (Fears Jr) is running the team and guys are running their lanes. We haven't been doing that, but we did do it today.

On how aware of Jeremy Fears Jr. assists totals and if Carson Cooper has a green light from behind the arc…
I found out about Jeremy (Fears Jr) with about seven minutes, he had 14. Okay, because I look at the sheet once in a while too, just to figure out what we're doing, and I mentioned it in the huddle. I said, 'if you're running down the court, I know you like to score, but you're within reach of a record', and then he went and got to 16. It's a fine line, if he was at 19, I might have left him in, because I think players deserve some of those things once in a while as Mateen (Cleaves) in my humble opinion, but it goes with some things that I don't believe in either. We've got enough problems in our profession right now. I don't need to be running it up on somebody. And when I said it, because they have goals. And now, 20 was not one of his goals, but it was getting close. And when Jaxon Kohler is one or two off from a double-double, or Coop (Carson Cooper) wanted to, they want to obtain those goals, and I want them to want them to obtain those goals. But when I told them that, five minutes left, we're not going to do that. I got players down there. I've been on that side of it and they were absolutely great. And that made me feel good about my program, the type of guys I got in my program. The (Carson) Cooper three? Does he have a green light? Are you on drugs or what? No. Depends on what the score it. But it was, I was happy for Coop (Carson Cooper). I mean, like I said, those guys have given me a lot. And seeing them have some joy once in a while because it's not going to happen very often. And it wasn't like it was screw around time. It was still in the game. But I will say this, all kidding aside, Carson Cooper has improved his shot and free throws. I don't know what he was tonight. Five for five. He's done a hell of a job. So, if he wants to negotiate with me and say that, cover the ball screens and get 10 rebounds if I let him shoot a three this year. So, maybe we can negotiate that. Nowadays everything's negotiable."

On the offense clicking…
Yeah, I was mad at Nick (Sanders) because I wanted him to take that shot on the side, but then one of the twins had that one down low, but it's great. It reminds me of when my son (Steven Izzo) played. There's nothing better than the players that understand what those scout team guys do for you. And when they are the biggest fans, that's a special, that means no one sell to the 15,000. But when the players on the bench are pulling for guys to score, that's a special feeling. So, I was really proud of them. I mean, the other guy, some people question, but it isn't because of his dad. Denham Wojcik did a hell of a job. He made some passes and guarded the hell out of his guy. And we're just getting better because we are getting some continuity. My 2 guards made some progress, and they keep making some progress. I really believe that. So, we'll just keep pushing them and the other guys are playing pretty well and see if we can keep it going a little bit.

On Coen Carr's efficiency the past two games…
Well, I interviewed with Raf (Bill Raftery) after the game, I love Bill Rafferty, he's one of the best, it was a hell of crew here with him and Robbie (Hummel). Raf said he came out of his chair on a couple of those dunks. Well, there were people up in the euchre section that came out of their chair. Coen (Carr) can bring something that very few people can bring. I mean, everybody loves a long three, but those two dunks, when the first one, I go 'woah', the second one, I went 'woahhh', even myself and see him every day. But I love the fact that I'm mad at them about the free throws. Because like I said, he works so hard on them, and it's got to be a little bit mental, but you didn't see me tell him not shoot a 3 or whatever, I love the kid. He's just grown so much, he's grown as a leader. He works his tail off. He's working on things. He's not as good at it, he's getting better at the things that he wasn't at. And he's the politest, most honest, most regular guy. That's it. That's the last good things I'm saying now, we've got another game coming up. But I'd give my right arm to have more Coen Carr's.

On the development of senior center Carson Cooper…
The only thing I said wrong on that because, and I mean it, he was, he's great. But try to remember that my old boss, Jud Heathcote, once told me that 'a good deal is a good deal for you and a good deal for me.' And he stuck with us. But there were a couple of years, I stuck with him more than he stuck with us. And that's what relationships are all about in this screwed up, transactional world that they're trying to live in. And it's been interesting if you watch the media, social media, which I don't do, but I have people tell me, there's a lot of things moving right now. There's a lot of people questioning a lot of things. So, I appreciate that my guys hung tight. I'll be able to tell other people that. And I don't know that, and I really don't care. I'm going to keep coaching when I'm coaching. I'm going to keep pushing them. I'm going to keep telling them. I am disgusted with what's going on, and I think a lot more people are starting to get that way, but I will not beg a guy to stay here. That's a promise. I mean, you gotta want to be here. And you've got to realize that it is a privilege to be here. I got 100 and something guys other there that know it's a damn privilege to be here. And it's not because of me. It's because of we. It's because of this whole place. It's because of what happened at Washington and Oregon. Because of our people and everybody loves the winter, but there was a time I didn't win here, and people still supported me. So, I'm lucky to have Coop (Carson Cooper). In an arrogant, Coops (Carson Cooper) lucky to have me and us. And that's the way I'll stay with.

On the work Carson Cooper puts in behind the scenes…
Yeah, the best part about Coop (Carson Cooper) is the scoring is great, but it's his defense that makes him special, and his rebounding. Rebounding has a stat. Scoring has a stat. Defense usually doesn't have a, how he's up on those ball screens and he's helping Jeremy (Fears Jr), how he's doing this for Coen (Carr). Coop (Carson Cooper) is one of my smarter guys. Academically, and he's one of my smartest guy's basketball wise. And so, he's just grown. I mean, the shame of it is Coop's (Carson Cooper) is 21 years old. We go freshman now that are 21 years old. The stupid coach that red shirted him in his first year, but I actually played him and needed him. Like I said, his best basketball is ahead of him, and i'm happy for him, proud of him, got hurt a little bit. It looked like it was a serious ankle sprain. He says, 'I'll be back out in a minute. Just give me a minute'. Take your time. I mean, the guy wants to play. So, all in all, I'll close it by saying, it was on our best performances in years. But I don't think Maryland was at its best. I think that we've got to be a cognizant now that, cautiously excited. Because we've got a road game now at Rutgers (1/27) and then, the gambit gets tougher and tougher. But going into it to sit here and being 18-2? That's a hell of a start. One of our best starts in the history of the school getting close to. My goal for teams is always do something that is different than somebody else has done that's been here, so you have your own legacy. Well, maybe we can break the best start. Who knows? We've got a lot of work to do, but love our fans today, man. Give them the credit. Cold weather, hopefully everybody stayed healthy. Like I always say to recruits when I get ripped on post California or Florida, it was 72 and it was really hot in the gym today, so it was great.

Head Coach Buzz Williams
Thoughts on how to play against MSU...
They play with so much gravity. It's not one player, it's the entire team. Really fast, make or miss. Incredible pressure at the rim when the ball is in the air. Most of their shots, they want to be at the rim. So, with the physicality, mentality, strength, and aggressiveness that they play with, in order for it to be a game, you have to match. That match starts as soon as they gain possession, however, that is. You scored, it starts right then. You missed, and they got the defensive rebound; it begins right then. Too often, we exhaled at the moment and time of a possession change. Entering today's game and Big Ten play, 62 percent of their shots were taken in the first 12 seconds. I don't have the analytics on that for our game yet, but I anticipate that it will be sparkly similar. In some ways, we competed on the glass in their range. We didn't get completely demolished. They had nine offensive rebounds. We have nine offensive rebounds. There was some growth in that regard since Wednesday in Champaign. As we talked about postgame in Illinois, and as I mentioned to Johnny (Holiday) in pregame, the force they play with is phenomenal.

On regaining focus ahead of next game...
There's probably some better ways than what I'll do. The same things that I tell you, the same things that I tell Johnny, the same things that I say postgame to the other media. It's the same things that I tell them. Team rule number one: always tell the truth. No matter your emotional state, secrets are always lies. I'm not going to keep a secret. We have millions of miles to go in every possible way on the floor and off the floor. I am grateful for the 97 years of experience of our staff. They're continuing to find the right words, the right pictures, the things we're trying to improve in, the things that we're deficient in, and there are multiple things. We've got to continue to find growth. Whether it's Purdue, whether it's the next game, whether it was the last game, when you're competing against the best, a lot of those things translate, regardless of opponent. Some of the same things that we struggled with on Wednesday night are some of the same things that we struggled with tonight. So, we've got to continue to find ways to have improvement, whether that's in the film room, skill development, weight room, or recruiting. We've got a long way to go, and that's the truth. All I know to do is tell the truth.

Michigan State redshirt sophomore guard Jeremy Fears Jr.

On assists leading to career day...
They all led to a win, so that's really the best part. Coop (Carson Cooper) hitting a big-time three. Shout out, Coop. Coen (Carr) getting his dunks. Jordan (Scott) hit a big-time three. Cam (Ward) getting it done. It was just a lot of plays that were made. They finished it for me. I'm just grateful for them.

On one's own scoring ability creating more shots for teammates...
Lately, I've been trying to find the balance. Me taking a shot, but also getting a guy a shot. Just trying to keep teams honest of respecting a score, and also respecting a pass. It makes it a lot harder. Overall, I had an open drive, the lane collapsed, and I saw Jordan (Scott) out. He knocked the shot down. He's been shooting really well lately. It was big-time for him.

On playing with a noticeable energy...
It's something we work on. That's drilled every day. One of our goals and things we want to do is we want to get the ball out and run, whether they miss or make it. Every time I try to push the ball and create opportunities or advantages for us. The guys are running, and I trust them. I see them, and if they're open, I'll make the pass, and they'll make the pass or shot. It keeps life simple and easy, and just as quick as they scored, we scored. They're focused on getting back now.

Michigan State senior forward Jaxon Kohler

On the team's offensive start to the game...
That's part of our offensive execution. When they play a zone against us, we focus on the specific points in the half court on where we want to attack it. It was good to get some paint touches and help the offense get off to a good start. Once they started going man, we started going to a different offense, and that's kind of our strongest suit. It was a good first couple of minutes. Honestly, it was a great game. We've been working a lot on our zone offense because there are some teams that want to go zone against us, and we have to get more comfortable.

On state of the team right now...
We have a really good record right now, but we have a lot more we can do. I'm not going to sit down and think we're doing so good. We are, but the most important thing is to acknowledge what we could be doing better. There are teams right now that have better records than us, and we want to be the best. We're not thinking like we were last year, since we're not all the way up there. We're focusing on things we can get better at and how to beat some good teams that are coming up. That's where our mindset is at. It's onto the next game, onto the next scout, and just trying to achieve greatness.

Michigan State junior forward Coen Carr

On Jeremy Fears Jr.'s performance...
Just him being him. I mean, I know he is capable of that in the game. So I just feel like he is doing what we know he can do. I feel like everybody made shots, you know, everybody made shots for him. He was giving everybody good passes, when the pass is good and it's in your pocket I feel like the shot has a way higher chance of going in. That's what he did all day.

On his dunks with assists from Fears...
It was just me running and him seeing me and passing it. It's been a second since we got one of those and the timing of it being his last two assists is just good. I'm always ready for him and he's always looking for me.

On the connection he has with Jeremy Fears Jr...
Yeah it's fun out there today. It's always fun. This is the type of thing we were looking forward to when we both came here together. It's just fun to see it play out.

On Coach Izzo not giving up on him...
I mean, I know that. He says stuff like that all the time. So I know he got me, and I got him. It wasn't really a surprise to me for him to say something like that.

Michigan State freshman forward Jordan Scott

On coming off the west coast trip and preparing for Maryland...
Just knowing player personnel really. They have a lot of talent, especially with their point guard. He can go for 40 a night, so we knew it wasn't going to be easy. We knew we just had to have five guys all locked in on defense, moving with one another. All five people just needed to be locked in.

On keeping his foot on gas after the first half...
We got off to a big start in the first half, but we knew that in the second half, new 20 minutes, so we had to keep our foot on the gas and just keep pushing and kind of wait for the wind. They're going to make their own run. That's how basketball works, and we knew that they would respond.

On knowing the number of Jeremy Fears Jr.'s assists...
I'm pretty sure I looked it up at half, and I want to say he had nine before halftime. So, I knew there was still half and he could double that and try to go for 20 at that. We knew he was trying to get those assists. We just got to be ready to hit those shots for him.

On what makes Jeremy Fears Jr. so talented...
I think it's just his aggression. Just wanting to get after his matchup both offensively and defensively. Defensively, he is going to guard you full and give 100 percent on defense. On offense, he's going right back to you. I think it's his conditioning and everything just really helps him with that.

Michigan State senior center Carson Cooper

On his three-pointer...
It's kind of a load off my shoulders. It's all good fun. I wasn't stressed about not making one, but it was kind of one of those things where I feel like with time it was going to come eventually. Today just happened to be that day. I think being in the position we were in, you could take a little more comfortably, a little more like understanding what the time or score is. Like I said, I'll be sleeping good tonight, and I'm sure my parents are going to have a fun time at lunch that we're going to later.

On his growth...
I mean, it's been a long journey. I think that every year, I've continued to make good strides. You know, early this year I don't think I was playing necessarily as consistently or efficiently as I could have. We had a lot of talks and that's just part of why he's (Head Coach Tom Izzo) the best coach in the Big Ten. He cares, he spends time with us and he really wants to pull us into the one-on-one meetings to try and see how we feel. We did that. We had a lot of meetings, and since that, I've been playing a lot better, a lot more consistent. When you keep coach happy and when you play well, a lot of the other things kind of handle themselves.

Michigan State University Athletics

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Players Mentioned

Coen Carr

Carson Cooper

Jeremy Fears Jr.

Jaxon Kohler

Jordan Scott

Denham Wojcik

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