GRAHAM: Hoosiers Bloodied But Unbowed
11/23/2018 12:15:00 PM | Men's Basketball
By: Andy Graham, IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - "The Thin Red Line" phrase originated from 500 crimson-coated Sutherland Highlanders repulsing 2,000 Russian cavalry at the Battle of Balaclava (which also featured the infamous, immortal "Charge of the Light Brigade.")
Indiana men's basketball can perhaps relate right now.
The crimson-clad ranks are thin. The brigade of available players is light.
IU (4-1) will host Cal-Davis (1-5) at 7 p.m. Friday, but reading too much into the records is probably unwise.
Cal-Davis, coached by former Bradley coach and star Jim Lis (who played seven seasons in the NBA), has won three of the past four Big West Conference titles and won a NCAA tournament game before falling to Kansas in 2017.
And the Aggies return sophomore guard T.J. Shorts, who achieved a remarkable combo last season by being named both the Big West Newcomer of the Year and the Big West Player of the Year.
Plus Indiana is presently far from full strength at due to a rash of injuries.
Coach Archie Miller's Hoosiers have already spent most of the season without a pair of projected starters in senior co-captain Zach McRoberts (back spasms) and junior point guard Devonte Green (thigh contusion) along with redshirt-freshman Race Thompson (concussion) and freshman Jerome Hunter (who had surgery last week for an undisclosed condition.)
The Hoosiers started Tuesday's 78-64 win over Texas-Arlington without 6-10 pivot De'Ron Davis (Achilles soreness) and then saw the exit of starting guards Al Durham (who landed hard on his hip and back when fouled while converting the game's first bucket) and Romeo Langford (whose nose was smashed into and bloodied with 4:25 left.)
Langford, the 2018 McDonald's All-American and Indiana Mr. Basketball from New Albany, leads the Hoosiers in scoring (18.2) and was the Big Ten Freshman of the Week after averaging 22 points, 7.5 boards, 3.5 assists, 2.0 steals and 1.5 blocks against Marquette and Arkansas.
But Langford's availability for Friday remains uncertain, as is the case with Durham, making the already somewhat alarming depth issue in the Hoosier backcourt potentially much more pronounced.
All of which makes freshman point guard Rob Phinisee's steady play that much more crucial.
Phinisee has 19 assists against just six turnovers so far this season. He's averaging 9.0 points while shooting .545 from the field (including .417 from 3-point range) and .800 at the foul line.
But Phinisee has shined in less tangible areas, too. He pays attention. And stays aware.
To cite but one example, transpiring with 9:14 left in the first half Tuesday, he knew UTA's shot-clock was winding down and knew his man, Brian Warren, had to get up a shot. He knew Warren was left-handed. So he anticipated the ball coming up for a shot, stole it and drew a foul.
Phinisee played 39 minutes Tuesday. Not just because he played well.
"Without question, Rob couldn't come out of the game," Miller said. "He's fatigued, he's guarding their best player. Romeo is fatigued, couldn't come out of the game. That's where our defense really started to get lax (as UTA made its second-half run, fueled by 3s). We couldn't apply the constant pressure."
But the Hoosiers responded well to pressure after UTA closed to within 61-60 with 6:30 to play, led by senior frontliner and co-captain Juwan Morgan on both ends. Morgan hit 9 of 11 shots from the field while posting game-high totals of 23 points, 10 boards and three blocks and a co-game-high four assists.
"I thought, maybe the last five or six minutes, he took over on both ends of the floor," Miller said of Morgan. "Our rotations were a little different, just in terms of our lineups, so we were uncomfortable offensively. Once we figured out how to get him the ball a little bit better down the stretch, he was able to give us a bit of a cushion."
Big Ten Network analyst Jess Settles put it this way post-game to BTN studio host Dave Revsine: "Juwan Morgan was a man tonight. And when he's on the floor, Indiana is a contender.
"This is a game, last year, Dave, they probably would have lost. They turned the ball over. They didn't guard the 3. But the senior leadership down the stretch, and the impact of the freshmen, has been enormous."
But just how many seniors or freshmen or anybody else are available Friday for the Hoosiers remains unknown.
"I've never seen anything like it … seven guys not available to finish that (Tuesday) game," Miller said. "I don't know if I've been around that too much.
"But we'll give it a go with the guys we have … we'll have to figure out who is ready. And UC-Davis is a good team, and we'll have to be ready for them."
Shorts leads the Aggies in scoring (11.0), rebounding (5.3) and assists (3.8). Siler Schneider, a 6-3 senior, is averaging 9.8 points and 6-3 junior Joe Mooney is at 8.2. The Aggies have some significant size is 6-11 junior Matt Neufeld and 6-10 senior Colin Russell.
Miller's team, despite the injuries, is one tip-in from being undefeated and has posted some impressive overall numbers so far this season.
The Hoosiers lead the Big Ten in field goal percentage (.554, ranking third nationally) and have help opponents to just .221 shooting from 3-point range (even though UTA shot .412 from there after halftime Tuesday).
Settles likes the Hoosier intangibles, too.
"This is a tough team," Settles said of the Hoosiers. "They are physically tough. They are mentally tough. This (UTA game) is a game last year, when things get tight, they panic – but not tonight. A great experience when you win these games … a lot of guys had to step up and they did.
"When Langford went down with the bloody nose, the could have panicked, but they didn't. They went to 'old reliable' (Morgan.)"
Morgan intends to remain reliable, however many able-bodied teammates are available to help Friday.
"If it gets to the point where we have to play five people 40 minutes a game," Morgan said, "then that's what we'll do. Our bodies are in condition well enough to do it."
The Hoosiers may be bloodied, but they are unbowed.
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - "The Thin Red Line" phrase originated from 500 crimson-coated Sutherland Highlanders repulsing 2,000 Russian cavalry at the Battle of Balaclava (which also featured the infamous, immortal "Charge of the Light Brigade.")
Indiana men's basketball can perhaps relate right now.
The crimson-clad ranks are thin. The brigade of available players is light.
IU (4-1) will host Cal-Davis (1-5) at 7 p.m. Friday, but reading too much into the records is probably unwise.
Cal-Davis, coached by former Bradley coach and star Jim Lis (who played seven seasons in the NBA), has won three of the past four Big West Conference titles and won a NCAA tournament game before falling to Kansas in 2017.
And the Aggies return sophomore guard T.J. Shorts, who achieved a remarkable combo last season by being named both the Big West Newcomer of the Year and the Big West Player of the Year.
Plus Indiana is presently far from full strength at due to a rash of injuries.
Coach Archie Miller's Hoosiers have already spent most of the season without a pair of projected starters in senior co-captain Zach McRoberts (back spasms) and junior point guard Devonte Green (thigh contusion) along with redshirt-freshman Race Thompson (concussion) and freshman Jerome Hunter (who had surgery last week for an undisclosed condition.)
The Hoosiers started Tuesday's 78-64 win over Texas-Arlington without 6-10 pivot De'Ron Davis (Achilles soreness) and then saw the exit of starting guards Al Durham (who landed hard on his hip and back when fouled while converting the game's first bucket) and Romeo Langford (whose nose was smashed into and bloodied with 4:25 left.)
Langford, the 2018 McDonald's All-American and Indiana Mr. Basketball from New Albany, leads the Hoosiers in scoring (18.2) and was the Big Ten Freshman of the Week after averaging 22 points, 7.5 boards, 3.5 assists, 2.0 steals and 1.5 blocks against Marquette and Arkansas.
But Langford's availability for Friday remains uncertain, as is the case with Durham, making the already somewhat alarming depth issue in the Hoosier backcourt potentially much more pronounced.
All of which makes freshman point guard Rob Phinisee's steady play that much more crucial.
Phinisee has 19 assists against just six turnovers so far this season. He's averaging 9.0 points while shooting .545 from the field (including .417 from 3-point range) and .800 at the foul line.
But Phinisee has shined in less tangible areas, too. He pays attention. And stays aware.
To cite but one example, transpiring with 9:14 left in the first half Tuesday, he knew UTA's shot-clock was winding down and knew his man, Brian Warren, had to get up a shot. He knew Warren was left-handed. So he anticipated the ball coming up for a shot, stole it and drew a foul.
Phinisee played 39 minutes Tuesday. Not just because he played well.
"Without question, Rob couldn't come out of the game," Miller said. "He's fatigued, he's guarding their best player. Romeo is fatigued, couldn't come out of the game. That's where our defense really started to get lax (as UTA made its second-half run, fueled by 3s). We couldn't apply the constant pressure."
But the Hoosiers responded well to pressure after UTA closed to within 61-60 with 6:30 to play, led by senior frontliner and co-captain Juwan Morgan on both ends. Morgan hit 9 of 11 shots from the field while posting game-high totals of 23 points, 10 boards and three blocks and a co-game-high four assists.
"I thought, maybe the last five or six minutes, he took over on both ends of the floor," Miller said of Morgan. "Our rotations were a little different, just in terms of our lineups, so we were uncomfortable offensively. Once we figured out how to get him the ball a little bit better down the stretch, he was able to give us a bit of a cushion."
Big Ten Network analyst Jess Settles put it this way post-game to BTN studio host Dave Revsine: "Juwan Morgan was a man tonight. And when he's on the floor, Indiana is a contender.
"This is a game, last year, Dave, they probably would have lost. They turned the ball over. They didn't guard the 3. But the senior leadership down the stretch, and the impact of the freshmen, has been enormous."
But just how many seniors or freshmen or anybody else are available Friday for the Hoosiers remains unknown.
"I've never seen anything like it … seven guys not available to finish that (Tuesday) game," Miller said. "I don't know if I've been around that too much.
"But we'll give it a go with the guys we have … we'll have to figure out who is ready. And UC-Davis is a good team, and we'll have to be ready for them."
Shorts leads the Aggies in scoring (11.0), rebounding (5.3) and assists (3.8). Siler Schneider, a 6-3 senior, is averaging 9.8 points and 6-3 junior Joe Mooney is at 8.2. The Aggies have some significant size is 6-11 junior Matt Neufeld and 6-10 senior Colin Russell.
Miller's team, despite the injuries, is one tip-in from being undefeated and has posted some impressive overall numbers so far this season.
The Hoosiers lead the Big Ten in field goal percentage (.554, ranking third nationally) and have help opponents to just .221 shooting from 3-point range (even though UTA shot .412 from there after halftime Tuesday).
Settles likes the Hoosier intangibles, too.
"This is a tough team," Settles said of the Hoosiers. "They are physically tough. They are mentally tough. This (UTA game) is a game last year, when things get tight, they panic – but not tonight. A great experience when you win these games … a lot of guys had to step up and they did.
"When Langford went down with the bloody nose, the could have panicked, but they didn't. They went to 'old reliable' (Morgan.)"
Morgan intends to remain reliable, however many able-bodied teammates are available to help Friday.
"If it gets to the point where we have to play five people 40 minutes a game," Morgan said, "then that's what we'll do. Our bodies are in condition well enough to do it."
The Hoosiers may be bloodied, but they are unbowed.
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