Indiana University Athletics
Zeisloft, Indiana Step Up In Johnson's Absence
2/26/2016 9:40:00 PM | Men's Basketball
By: Sam Beishuizen, IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Indiana - Indiana is a better team with sophomore guard Robert Johnson. The Hoosiers won't debate that much.
But they didn't miss him much Thursday night.
The No. 18 Hoosiers (23-6, 13-3) passed their first test without Johnson, a usual starter out with an ankle sprain, upending Illinois 74-47 at the State Farm Center in Champaign, Illinois. After a slow start led to a 28-27 halftime deficit, IU scored 47 points in the second half to equal the Illinis' total for the entire game.
"We all just needed to step up for Rob," senior guard Nick Zeisloft said. "It was really a team effort tonight."
Zeisloft entered the starting lineup in place of Johnson, eating up a season-high 32 minutes. The sharpshooter finished with 14 points on 4-of-7 shooting from long distance.
The majority of Zeisloft's production came in the second half. After being held to just three points in the opening 20 minutes, Zeisloft found his shooting stroke as the second half wore on.
As Zeisloft heated up, so did the rest of the Hoosiers' offense. By the time he connected on his second 3-pointer in a matter of 96 seconds with a little over six minutes left, Indiana's lead had ballooned to 17 points.
"I had to step up," Zeisloft said. "We all had to step up."
Zeisloft's production reflected the "next man up" mentality senior guard Kevin Yogi Ferrell said the Hoosiers would need to adopt in the minutes following Johnson's injury. In the case of Zeisloft, it wasn't as much "next man up" as it was another role player taking on a significant role.
Though Zeisloft's minutes and production increase stood out on the score sheet, he wasn't alone in shouldering an additional load.
Ferrell scored a game-high 27 points on 11-of-18 shooting, walk-on freshman guard Harrison Niego ate up eight minutes to help Indiana's depleted back court and freshman center Thomas Bryant took care of the post with 14 points on a perfect 5-for-5 shooting.
It wasn't as much a matter of new faces stepping up as it was familiar names making up for Johnson's absence.
"I'm proud of the resiliency of this team," head coach Tom Crean said.
Adjusting to life without Johnson was a process for Indiana that appeared to get easier with time. How much longer they'll have to continue on without him is still largely uncertain.
Johnson travelled with the team to Illinois and sat on the Indiana bench wearing a red polo and khakis. The latest updates from Crean are that there's really no updates and he's continuing to be monitored but is getting better with time.
With the Big Ten regular-season championship firmly on the line, the Hoosiers won't want to wait any longer for Johnson's return than they have to.
But if they can replace his production like they did Thursday night, there's not much reason to rush.
"It's our first time playing without Robert Johnson," Crean said. "That's always going to cause a lot of fear for the coach, but the players miss him when he's not out there. For us to play without him tonight and have the guys step up the way that they did says a lot about the way they're improving, it says a lot about their desire to get better and it says a lot about the resiliency and the comradery that they carry amongst each other as a group."
BLOOMINGTON, Indiana - Indiana is a better team with sophomore guard Robert Johnson. The Hoosiers won't debate that much.
But they didn't miss him much Thursday night.
The No. 18 Hoosiers (23-6, 13-3) passed their first test without Johnson, a usual starter out with an ankle sprain, upending Illinois 74-47 at the State Farm Center in Champaign, Illinois. After a slow start led to a 28-27 halftime deficit, IU scored 47 points in the second half to equal the Illinis' total for the entire game.
"We all just needed to step up for Rob," senior guard Nick Zeisloft said. "It was really a team effort tonight."
Zeisloft entered the starting lineup in place of Johnson, eating up a season-high 32 minutes. The sharpshooter finished with 14 points on 4-of-7 shooting from long distance.
The majority of Zeisloft's production came in the second half. After being held to just three points in the opening 20 minutes, Zeisloft found his shooting stroke as the second half wore on.
As Zeisloft heated up, so did the rest of the Hoosiers' offense. By the time he connected on his second 3-pointer in a matter of 96 seconds with a little over six minutes left, Indiana's lead had ballooned to 17 points.
"I had to step up," Zeisloft said. "We all had to step up."
Zeisloft's production reflected the "next man up" mentality senior guard Kevin Yogi Ferrell said the Hoosiers would need to adopt in the minutes following Johnson's injury. In the case of Zeisloft, it wasn't as much "next man up" as it was another role player taking on a significant role.
Though Zeisloft's minutes and production increase stood out on the score sheet, he wasn't alone in shouldering an additional load.
Ferrell scored a game-high 27 points on 11-of-18 shooting, walk-on freshman guard Harrison Niego ate up eight minutes to help Indiana's depleted back court and freshman center Thomas Bryant took care of the post with 14 points on a perfect 5-for-5 shooting.
It wasn't as much a matter of new faces stepping up as it was familiar names making up for Johnson's absence.
"I'm proud of the resiliency of this team," head coach Tom Crean said.
Adjusting to life without Johnson was a process for Indiana that appeared to get easier with time. How much longer they'll have to continue on without him is still largely uncertain.
Johnson travelled with the team to Illinois and sat on the Indiana bench wearing a red polo and khakis. The latest updates from Crean are that there's really no updates and he's continuing to be monitored but is getting better with time.
With the Big Ten regular-season championship firmly on the line, the Hoosiers won't want to wait any longer for Johnson's return than they have to.
But if they can replace his production like they did Thursday night, there's not much reason to rush.
"It's our first time playing without Robert Johnson," Crean said. "That's always going to cause a lot of fear for the coach, but the players miss him when he's not out there. For us to play without him tonight and have the guys step up the way that they did says a lot about the way they're improving, it says a lot about their desire to get better and it says a lot about the resiliency and the comradery that they carry amongst each other as a group."
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