Nov. 30, 2009

Maryland Head Coach Gary Williams

On what the team has learned after their games in Hawaii:

"Hawaii was interesting. I think our big guys learned a lot from their experience. They played against very good inside players from both Cincinnati and Wisconsin. That's what it takes. They only way to learn to go against somebody and you get taught a few things and then you bring them back and you work on them. You see for yourself what you have to work on rather than some coach telling you or whatever. I think for both Jordan (Williams) and James (Padgett) that was a good experience for them. We didn't shoot the ball well as a team. Our free throws were horrible. Where that comes from, you don't know as a coach. You go back and do the same drills as you've always done with free throw shooting when you shoot good free throws. We missed some shots that we'll make as the season goes on. We played two good teams, both Cincinnati and Wisconsin. I wouldn't be surprised if they're both Top 25 teams as time goes by.

On playing Indiana:

"We have another tough game at Indiana Tuesday night. They're a very young team. He's brought guys in and they're playing hard. They've won at home and they lost on a neutral court so far, that's what they've done. That's one of the great old places to play, where Indiana plays. When I was at Ohio State we played there every year, obviously, in the Big Ten with Bobby Knight there. It was a great experience."

On if his playing time will help freshman Jordan Williams develop quicker:

"He has a great opportunity in front of him that's for sure. You worry confidence-wise sometimes that you don't get beat up too much. It's like a rookie quarterback that's thrown in on a bad team. He gets sacked ten times and all of a sudden he gets gun-shy. You want to make sure his confidence is still there and he's done some really good things. Both James and Jordan have done really good things and scored in situations against good people."

On the ACC/Big Ten Challenge over the years:

"It's a good game to play in December. The ACC has won every time. I guess the Big Ten is the big favorite this year, but we'll see how it goes. They've been favorites before. The thing I think people should remember is it is the first week in December. I don't think these games have a tremendous effect on what takes place in February and March. There have been years where we've dominated and yet the Big Ten has had more teams in the NCAA Tournament. I think it depends on what you do from here on out after this game."

On memories playing at Indiana:

"They were really good. I think Indiana won it in 1987. We played there that year. That's when Keith Smart hit the jump shot to beat Syracuse. They have good fans. It's the Midwest, the Hoosiers, the whole thing. They really enjoy it and they're really good fans."

On how he thinks the team will respond to the long trip to Hawaii:

"Anytime you use something as a crutch, you lose ground in your season. We'll be ready to play tomorrow night. We practiced Saturday, Sunday - had two good practices. We'll practice well today and go play. That's a long time ago in terms of basketball seasons. Hawaii - that seems like a long time ago now."