Baylor - 81, Creighton - 74
GREG MCDERMOTT: I didn't think defensively we were as hooked up as we needed to be the first half. We fought on the glass, I thought, for the first 15 or 16 minutes of the game. And after the last TV timeout in the first half, I didn't think we were great in that regard either.
In the second half, our first-shot defense was much better. We just couldn't get a rebound. And obviously when you're playing a good team like Baylor and you have that kind of differential and second-chance points, you have to be pretty perfect in every other area to have a chance to win. We just weren't.
Q. Josh, this was obviously your guys' first game without Jackson on the court. Where did you notice that the most in the lineup?
JOSH DIX: He does everything for us. So we felt it kind of in every aspect. And as a team, collectively, we knew we all had to step up to kind of fill that void.
But just the spacing that he brings to the floor, the way that teams have to guard him, we can feel that on the offensive end, and his ability to rebound at 6'10" and guard multiple positions.
Q. Second thing, it seemed like, especially in the second half, every time you guys found momentum, Baylor would respond. How tough were stretches like that, when you find your footing and then they do the same right back?
JOSH DIX: Yeah, it's tough. I think we just gotta keep our foot on the gas pedal a little better, use those runs, extend those runs instead of going run for run.
Q. Defensively, obviously, this group has some room to grow. I know Gonzaga's a really good opponent. And you had to play on the road against them. They were able to put up 90. Where do you see the best room for growth with you and your teammates in the near term, not just tomorrow, but over the next couple of weeks, where you know you're going to need to round into form well in advance of league play?
JOSH DIX: Yeah, I think physicality, on defense and on the glass, I think if we cut their offensive rebounds in half, that gives us a way better chance of winning. So if we can rebound, then that allows us to get out and run for our break.
Q. Greg, Hudson Greer, as of three weeks ago he was kind of scheduled to redshirt and then plays a little bit against North Dakota, and then now he was a key player especially in the second half. Just how much has he grown and developed over the last couple of weeks. How impressed are you by his response to just kind of all the changes over the past couple weeks?
GREG MCDERMOTT: I appreciate the roller coaster ride that he kind of went on with me on this. He brings us a little grit, and he brings us a little toughness. Obviously still learning as a freshman, but he's not afraid. We needed some of that in our lineup. Obviously with Jackson getting hurt, we'd have made the decision then anyway. He's going to be a really good player for us. He can defend. He can rebound. He can make shots. I thought he changed the game when he went in the game the first half.
Q. Coach, due to Jackson's injury and Hudson's breakout, I know you don't have a crystal ball, if he continues this pace, are we going to see him in the starting lineup in the near future, you think?
GREG MCDERMOTT: Yeah, I mean, I have no idea -- who starts the game doesn't make a lot of difference to me. We didn't get off to a good start to start the game, and then we got off to a really good start with the same five guys in the second half. We just need some sort of consistency there. Obviously Owen, he's a long ways from being back to himself. We've got to try to push the envelope there to try to get him back and more ready. And then Kerem's still learning and Jasen gave us some comfort at that position. Certainly not our preference to play that many minutes with him at the 5. But we felt like it gave us the best chance today.
Q. Might seem like an obvious one, but I've got to ask, because I do wonder how it applies. You have the unexpected rematch with Iowa State, because you scheduled obviously that exhibition before you knew for sure you'd play them here. Now that you're on the doorstep of going to play them, who knows what's going to happen right now over the next two hours. Benefits from having faced them. I'm curious just in terms of you and your staff how much that has an impact on your prep tomorrow.
GREG MCDERMOTT: T.J. and I have played each other the last four or five years in scrimmages. We do it because we're kind of the polar opposite of each other. It's great for us to see what they do; it's good for them to play against someone like us.
I don't think any of us showed much when we played each other. I think there is a benefit for us in having played against that pressure and understanding what's going to happen when you drive a baseline, what's going to happen when you throw it in the post. You know how you have to combat that.
Now, would I love to have a couple days to shore some of that up? Absolutely. But the key with Iowa State, you take care of the basketball. You've got to rebound a little, you have to make a few shots, because if you get out of that pressure, there's shots to be had. You know, you just gotta knock them down.
I don't know if that game makes a ton of difference. I mean, it's not a fun game for me. T.J.'s one of my best friends, and, you know, I cheer for him every single game except for tomorrow.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports