Rob Senderoff, Jalen Sullinger and Miryne Thomas addressed the media following Indiana’s 71-60 win towards Kent State on Friday within the 2023 NCAA match first spherical at MVP Enviornment in Albany, New York.
Watch their postgame feedback beneath:
Transcript through ASAPSports:
THE MODERATOR: Media, we’re joined by Kent State College Coach Rob Senderoff and the 2 athletes to my left Miryne Thomas and Jalen Sullinger.
ROB SENDEROFF: I do know it’s late or early, nevertheless you take a look at it. Upset in how our season ended right here tonight. We misplaced to an excellent workforce. Give Indiana a ton of credit score. They performed actually arduous and performed nicely. Clearly dissatisfied in the way it ended for us as a result of we took — it was a nasty evening for us to have a nasty evening.
And it wasn’t for a scarcity of effort in any respect. It simply — you realize, pictures didn’t fall. There have been lots of 4 level swings that we miss a layup, they get a 3. Or we miss a layup, they get a layup. Simply an excessive amount of for us to beat. It’s clearly disappointing with the way it ended, however an unbelievable season for certain.
Q. Rob and Jalen, simply discuss their dimension and the way a lot it actually prompted you guys issues tonight. Photographs have been altered. Clearly Trayce went off within the second half. How a lot did that dimension actually play a job in tonight?
ROB SENDEROFF: I’ll say from my level, after which I’ll let Jalen reply. There actually have been occasions when their size impacted pictures on the rim, and there have been additionally some occasions the place I felt like we simply missed pictures that we usually would make. So a mix of each.
Once more, Trayce Jackson-Davis had 5 blocks, and his presence down there, I’m certain, impacted a few of these misses as nicely.
JALEN SULLINGER: Like Coach stated, we picked a nasty evening to have a nasty evening. I simply wish to say I really like all my brothers and I’m joyful we left all of it on the market.
Give credit score to them. I imply, such as you stated, the large, he dominated tonight. So props to him.
Q. Miryne, all season you guys have been in a position to create lots of turnovers and rating off of these turnovers. What was Indiana in a position to do tonight to sort of forestall that from you guys?
MIRYNE THOMAS: I actually wouldn’t give credit score to them. I’d simply say we actually weren’t at our greatest, and that mirrored in them having the ability to make performs. In order that was it.
Q. Race Thompson at first was hitting from the skin. How a lot did that actually change issues up and actually allow them to — enable them to do what they did?
ROB SENDEROFF: I don’t know that it essentially modified issues up, however credit score to him. He’s made 12 threes going into the sport on the season, and he stepped up and made them.
Once more, you’ve acquired to credit score him for stepping up and making them in a giant second for them, nevertheless it didn’t essentially change how we performed. It simply — it actually impacted the sport as a result of these are massive pictures for him to make, and he performed a heck of a sport tonight, considered one of his higher ones, I believe, of the yr, I believe he’d let you know.
Q. Actually for each you guys, what are the challenges when you may have such a late sport and have to attend round all day to play?
MIRYNE THOMAS: I’d simply say the preparation. Staying targeted all through the day and ensuring that we key in on matchups and defensive belongings that we’ve acquired to ensure we’re targeted on and simply make certain we’re fired up when the ball goes within the air.
JALEN SULLINGER: Taking part in within the NCAA Match, I don’t assume it issues what time you play, you’re going to be fired up and prepared for the sport. It simply didn’t go our approach tonight. That’s it.
THE MODERATOR: Thanks to the student-athletes.
Questions for the coach.
Q. It appeared like there was some sort of mishap within the shootaround with Honest. What precisely occurred? Was he affected in any respect?
ROB SENDEROFF: In shootaround as we speak, he took a knee to the thigh and went down. I don’t know if it impacted him or not. Wanting on the stat sheet, I’d say it in all probability did based mostly upon the stat sheet.
He performed 39 minutes. I believe I took him out 57 seconds to go. He would have needed to have his leg minimize off for him to not haven’t performed tonight. That’s the underside line.
When he acquired hit, I used to be fearful that it was severe. He came visiting right here early and acquired remedy with our coach, who did an incredible job, Brent. Once more, I do know he wasn’t going to overlook this chance.
I’m dissatisfied for him as a result of I don’t know. I don’t know if it impacted him or not. However once more, I take a look at the stat sheet, and I say he had been taking part in so nicely main into this sport, it’s arduous for me to assume that it didn’t impression him. On the identical time, that takes away from Indiana and what they did, and I don’t wish to try this.
He was in a position to play, and simply as a workforce we didn’t play in addition to we would have liked to, interval. We performed actually arduous. It was a nasty evening to have a nasty evening. That’s what we talked about within the locker room.
Q. Each time they pulled away with ten, you guys stored chipping it again to single digits. Are you able to simply discuss what your message was to your workforce each time they went up by double digits to sort of get them again in to maintain preventing?
ROB SENDEROFF: That’s the resiliency of the group. That was them. That was the fellows within the huddle. Once more, we didn’t play nicely tonight, however no one might sit right here and watch the sport and say, boy, these guys didn’t compete. We competed actually arduous.
That’s what we’ve completed all yr. Once more, it simply wasn’t our evening tonight. We shot 31 p.c from the sector. We had 19 offensive rebounds within the sport and solely had 9 turnovers. Like we performed actually, actually arduous. We simply didn’t play nicely.
In every of these timeouts, guys within the huddle have been saying, hey, we simply have to get a pair extra stops. We name them kills. Three stops in a row. And we have been getting them, after which we simply weren’t changing.
Q. We talked slightly bit Tuesday earlier than you guys got here out, this season how a lot can you utilize this, not solely subsequent yr, however the subsequent 4 years, and sort of make this prefer it was, the place it was an annual run for Kent State?
ROB SENDEROFF: Clearly the fellows we lose with Malique and Sin and Miryne, these guys are robust to switch. These guys don’t come round day-after-day, particularly Sin and Malique, who’ve been right here the final two years.
So we’ll need to recruit right here within the spring. Hopefully there shall be some guys who take a look at the success they’ve had and say, hey, this can be a nice alternative. It’s an incredible college, nice program, and we are able to appeal to some guys that may assist us.
Then the returning guys like Von, who performed nicely, Cli’Ron, who he got here on this yr. Tonight, I assumed within the first half, he actually guarded nicely. Chris, Jalen, Julius, people who select to return — and once more, we don’t know due to the best way this switch portal is. However the guys that select to return, we’ve simply acquired to maintain getting higher and enhancing.
We’re going to do our greatest to attempt to get again right here. This was lots of enjoyable.
Filed to: 2023 NCAA match, Kent State Golden Flashes, Rob Senderoff