Indiana University Athletics
Ohio State Game Notes
1/20/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
January 20, 2005
Bloomington, Ind. - Indiana will remain home to host Ohio State (12-6, 1-3 Big Ten) on Jan. 22 at 8 p.m., on Branch McCracken Court at Assembly Hall (17,456) in Bloomington, Ind.
Each Indiana basketball game can be heard live on the IU Radio Network. WHCC (105.1 FM in Bloomington) is the flagship station for the network that has more than 50 stations broadcasting Hoosier basketball all season long. Don Fischer (play-by-play), former Indiana guard Todd Leary (color commentary) and Joe Smith (pregame, halftime and postgame host) call all of the action.
The game will be locally-televised on ESPN Plus, and is the 11th of 16 games the Hoosiers will have on ESPN Plus. Dick Bremer will do play-by-play, while Bill Hosket will handle the color commentary.
On A Roll
With a 62-53 victory over Michigan, Indiana captured its third consecutive victory and sixth win over the last seven contests. It marks the first time since the 2002-03 season that the Hoosiers have gone on such an impressive run. That season, the Hoosiers finished 21-13 overall and made its last appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
Heating Up
Going through what is arguably one of the toughest schedules in the nation, the Hoosiers began the campaign with a 2-6 record, with the sixth setback - Dec. 22 against Charlotte - resulting in a desperation buzzer beater to down the Hoosiers, 74-73. However, IU has since won six of its last seven contests, including three consecutive Big Ten victories. Much of the success can be attributed to the defensive performance. In the last seven games alone, Indiana has allowed opponents to shoot just .375 from the floor and .304 from behind the arc. In comparison through the first eight games, the Hoosier defense allowed .417 from the floor and .365 from three-point range. Over the seven-game span, Indiana has won by an average of 4.6 points (67.3-62.7), outrebounded its opponents, 32.4 to 32.3, and shot an impressive .452 from the floor.
Make it Seven
With a 62-53 win over Michigan last Wednesday, Indiana extended its winning streak in the series to seven straight and 10 of the last 12 over the Wolverines.
Additionally, Indiana head coach Mike Davis improved his all-time record against U of M to 7-1. Davis' lone loss came in his first meeting against Wolverines, when the Hoosiers dropped a 70-64 decision on Jan. 9, 2001 in Ann Arbor, Mich.
Wright Reaches Milestone
With 16 points, to go along with a team-high nine boards, against Michigan last Wednesday, junior guard Bracey Wright became the 22nd player in school history to reach the 1,300-point plateau, and the first to achieve the feat since Kirk Haston did so during the 2000-01 campaign. He now has 1,305 points for his career and is 32 points shy of passing former IU great Ted Kitchell (1978-83).
The Wright Stuff
Junior guard Bracey Wright continues to show why he is considered one of the top players in not only the Big Ten, but in the country. Recently coming off his second 30-point performance this season and fifth of his career with 30 points in the, 74-61, win over Wisconsin on Jan. 5, Wright continues to lead the Big Ten in scoring with 18.9 points per game. The last Hoosier to lead the Big Ten in scoring was Kirk Haston who did so in 2001 (20.3 ppg). In fact, over his last seven contests, Wright has averaged 20.7 points, 5.6 rebounds, while shooting .437 (45-of-103) from the floor and .797 (47-of-59) from the charity stripe. During that span, IU has gone 6-1.
Sharing The Wealth
The newcomers (seven freshmen and two transfers) are starting to learn Mike Davis' system and how to play together as a team. That is no more evident than looking at the stats from the Michigan game on Jan. 19. The Hoosiers collected 12 assists, which was the third-best total this season. In addition, Bracey Wright and D.J. White collected 16 points each, while Robert Vaden chipped in with 15 to lead IU to the 62-53 victory. It marked the first time on the campaign that three IU players scored 15 or more points in one game.
Comeback Kids
After not coming back from a halftime deficit to win a game on 17 consecutive occasions, the Hoosiers have now done so in back-to-back games against Purdue (Jan. 15) and Michigan (Jan. 19). This marks the first time since the EA Sports Maui Invitational on Nov. 26 and 27, 2002 that Indiana has won consecutive games despite trailing at the half. On Nov. 26, 2002, Indiana trailed Gonzaga, 36-35 before coming back to win, 76-75. On Nov. 27, the Hoosiers trailed Virginia, 33-32 at intermission before coming back to win the EA Sports Maui Invitational title.
Ironically, just as the win over Michigan is Indiana's third straight win, the 2002 Virginia game marked the third game of an eight game winning streak that saw the Hoosiers ranked as high as sixth in the country.
White Nights
For a second consecutive game, D.J. White scored less than five points heading into the half and then led the team in scoring over the final 20 minutes. Against Purdue, the Tuscaloosa, Ala., native had one point and erupted for 15 second-half points, including eight in the two overtimes, to lead IU to a 75-73 double overtime win. White answered that performance with another 16-point effort, this time scoring 12 in the final stanza. In fact, when IU held a slim, 41-39 advantage over Michigan with just under 10 minutes remaining, White kicked it into high gear, scoring 11 straight points to push his team to a 51-41 lead with 5:29 left. White now has reached double figures in nine consecutive contests, the longest such streak on the team this year.
Tough Tandem
Junior guard Bracey Wright and freshman center D.J. White are proving that they can be a tough tandem for opponents to deal with. Against Michigan, the duo was again the difference, combining for 32 points, 12 rebounds and four assists to lead IU to a 62-53 win. On the season, the duo combines for 31.8 points, which ranks as the third-best duo in the Big Ten, and 9.9 rebounds per contests.
