IU Concludes Indiana Challenge with 64-50 Victory Over South Dakota State

Saturday, November 30

Bloomington, Ind.

4:00 pm

Indiana University

7-0,0-0Big Ten

South Dakota State

6-4,0-0Summit League

South Dakota St.

Indiana

IU Concludes Indiana Challenge with 64-50 Victory Over South Dakota State

11/30/2019 6:03:00 PM | Men's Basketball

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BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – IU head coach Archie Miller has been pushing his team to turn up the intensity on the defensive end this season, imploring them to make teams work harder to find open shots.

His message seems to be getting through.

Indiana held South Dakota State to just 33.9 percent shooting and dominated on the glass in a 64-50 win over the Jackrabbits at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. IU moved to 7-0 on the season for the first time since the 2012-13 campaign, and the Hoosiers posted an undefeated month for the second time in two seasons.

The Hoosiers got a combined 37 points and 22 rebounds from freshman center Trayce Jackson-Davis and junior forward Justin Smith.

"Good win for our team," Miller said. "South Dakota State, have a lot of respect for them. Looking at the stat sheet, I thought our team did a really nice job against their best two guys, and it was really the difference in the game. Our rebounding, obviously from an offensive perspective, Trayce and Justin did a great job. Trayce, in particular, was very dominant on the glass, and we were able to make enough plays to hold a lead."

The Hoosiers built an 11-point lead by halftime by playing tight defense on the perimeter, keeping the Jackrabbits off the free-throw line, and turning 11 South Dakota State turnovers into baskets on the other end.

Indiana built a nine-point lead in the first 7:30 of the game behind 3-pointers from guards Al Durham, Devonte Green (who drained a pair), and Damezi Anderson. The Jackrabbits put together a 9-2 run to slice into the lead, and Indiana led 20-18 following a 3-pointer from South Dakota State's Alou Dillon with 7:39 to play in the half.

That's when the Hoosiers came alive.

Green scored on a jumper, and after a Jackrabbits miss, forward Justin Smith converted a pair of free throws to give Indiana a 24-18 lead. Jackson-Davis then wiped out a South Dakota State shot on the defensive end, and Smith scooped up the ball and took it the distance for a dunk. Smith then converted a traditional three-point play a couple minutes later to put Indiana up 11 points, and Jackson-Davis grabbed an offensive rebound and scored on the putback with 3:52 to play to give IU a 31-18 advantage with 3:52 to play in the half.

IU went into the break up 37-26.

Indiana kept the Jackrabbits at arm's length throughout the second half by making South Dakota State work harder on offense to find an open look, which has been a point of emphasis for Miller. The Jackrabbits were held to 30.0 percent shooting after halftime and scored 27 points below their season average of 77.8 points per game.

"We were better tonight defensively," Miller said. "We were a little better defensively in transition at times, and I thought they methodically ran their offense. They tried to get good looks, but I thought we did a nice job of taking away easy ones. We didn't get too spread out."

Indiana allowed South Dakota State to hang around thanks to some turnovers, including 11 in the second half alone. But the Hoosiers' defense was clicking.

"We focused a lot on defense, especially ball screen defense, knowing that they really like to do that," Smith said. "So, we were able to key in on our schemes and get it done defensively today."

Indiana also used a 45-29 edge on the glass to keep the Jackrabbits at bay. South Dakota State came into the game No. 1 in the country in terms of total rebounds, but IU managed to grab as many defensive rebounds (29) as South Dakota State did on both ends of the floor.

"We emphasize it a lot in practice," Green said. "We do a bunch of rebounding drills, and fortunately, we just had a size advantage on our opponents, so I think that's part of it."

Jackson-Davis finished with 19 points and 14 rebounds, including nine offensive boards, and he went 9-of-17 from the field. Smith added 18 points on 6-of-11 shooting, and he grabbed eight rebounds. Green came off the bench to score 11 points on 4-of-8 shooting, including making 3-of-6 shots from 3-point range.

"It's a good group," Miller said. "Our team has to keep getting better. I think as we continue to evolve here, I think you're starting to see a lot of different guys contribute, which I'm happy about, but we can make a big, big jump."

Indiana's next outing will come Dec. 3 vs. Florida State at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall as part of the Big Ten/ACC Challenge.