DIPRIMIO: Time To Finish – IU Aims for Unbeaten Non-Conference Record
12/28/2019 11:35:00 AM | Men's Basketball
By Pete DiPrimio
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- How good are these Indiana Hoosiers?
In fact, the question is, how good do they want to be?
The 11-1 record hasn't earned them a national ranking (although they are getting votes in the Associated Press and coaches' polls), but it does suggest they are ready to make a Big Ten run.
Given the fact their remaining schedule rates as the nation's toughest according to ESPN's BPI, there will be plenty of opportunities to impress.
First comes Sunday's final non-conference game against Arkansas, and it just might come down to player accountability.
"At some level," coach Archie Miller says, "the players have to own the team."
In other words, take charge by word and deed.
"When things aren't going well, that's when your alpha dogs, your leaders, step up and rally the troops," Miller says. "You don't even have to be in the game to have a great voice in the locker room or in the huddle."
IU didn't have that in the lopsided loss at Wisconsin earlier this month, and the result was an 84-64 loss.
Consider it lesson learned.
The Hoosiers bounced back with tough-minded victories over Connecticut and Notre Dame on neutral sites, and Nebraska at home in overtime.
"Since then, some guys are way more noticeable in approaching it, 'We're OK. Hang in there,' " Miller says.
"There's a voice. It's move on to the next play. There's much more of that kind of talk, which is a big component to becoming a good team."
And you'd better believe, after three straight seasons outside the NCAA tourney, IU is committed to becoming a very good team.
"There's a togetherness and players grabbing each other by the jerseys and holding each other accountable," Miller says.
"That didn't happen (against Wisconsin). It happened in the Connecticut game and in the Nebraska game and (against Notre Dame). We're finding different ways to gut it out, ways to make a key stop, a key play, and different guys are doing it."
For instance, guard Armaan Franklin did it against Notre Dame last Saturday and earned co-Big Ten freshman-of-the-week honors in the aftermath. He scored a career-high 17 points and made 4-of-5 three-pointers, including the game winner with 15 seconds remaining.
Not bad for a guy who was 4-for-28 on three-pointers for the season entering the game.
The next step, Miller says, is talk.
"He's got to become a more vocal kid. He's quiet on the court.
"He's a vibrant kid, so if he has the ability to show some of that on the floor, it would be infectious. We've encouraged him to do that and he's done that.
"He's also gotten better defensively. He's going to get even better as he gets older, bigger and stronger."
Franklin averages 5.4 points and 1.9 rebounds. His 26 assists rank second on the team to guard Aljami Durham's 36. He does it with an approach all great players have.
"There's no bad days with him," Miller says.
The same is true for fellow freshman Trayce Jackson-Davis, who leads IU in scoring (15.0), rebounding (8.9) and shooting (65.6 percent). He also leads in blocked shots (24).
"(Franklin) and Trayce play vital roles for us," Miller says. "They have a lot of room to grow."
The Hoosiers also have gotten strong play from forward Justin Smith (12.7 points, 5.3 rebounds, 52.3 percent shooting), and guards Devonte Green (12.3 points) and Durham (12.2 points, team-leading 36 assists).
Don't forget guard Rob Phinisee (8.3 points) and forward Joey Brunk (7.6 points, 5.5 rebounds).
Brunk credits IU's strong response from the Wisconsin loss to a positive approach.
"There's a lot of belief between all of us and our coaching staff," he says. "We knew we had to stay the course when stuff wasn't going our way. That's sports. There are ups and downs. We had to stay connected through all of that."
The Hoosiers did, and now have to keep connected into 2020.
That means players continuing to embrace their roles despite limited minutes.
"It's tough," Miller says. "We have 11 guys trying to play more minutes, and when the games get tight, the minutes can go down. For the most part, we've been able to hang tough and show no cracks in the armor in terms of team over individual.
"That's probably the biggest challenge as a group in returning from Christmas. No outside distractions. Try to find a way to stay collectively in the moment."
That starts with an Arkansas team that brings plenty of challenges under first-year coach Eric Musselman.
The Razorbacks are 10-1, including a 62-61 overtime win at Georgia Tech. Their only loss came 86-79 in overtime at Western Kentucky.
Despite that record, they didn't receive a single vote in the AP poll.
IU, on the other hand, got 45 votes. Iowa is ranked 25th with 125 votes.
Arkansas is led by guard Mason Jones, who averages 19.6 points and 6.2 rebounds with 20 steals. He thrives on the free throw line, making 66 of 71 attempts. He's also made 18 three-point baskets, including a couple down the stretch in last week's comeback win over Valparaiso.
Guard Isaiah Joe averages 16.8 points and 4.6 rebounds. Guard Jimmy Whitt Jr. averages 14.1 points and 5.8 rebounds. He shoots 52.7 percent from the field.
The Razorbacks have more turnovers (151) than assists. They average 75.1 points and allow 59.5.
Musselman came to Arkansas after going 110-34 in four seasons at Nevada. Before that, he was a NBA head coach at Golden State and Sacramento.
As for IU, it is looking for its best start since opening 15-1 in the 2012-13 season, and its first unbeaten non-conference record since going 13-0 in 2011. It has a 10-0 non-conference mark, 1-1 in Big Ten action.
"We have to find a way to finish the non-conference," Miller says, "because when you get into conference play, every game is going to be so hard."
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- How good are these Indiana Hoosiers?
In fact, the question is, how good do they want to be?
The 11-1 record hasn't earned them a national ranking (although they are getting votes in the Associated Press and coaches' polls), but it does suggest they are ready to make a Big Ten run.
Given the fact their remaining schedule rates as the nation's toughest according to ESPN's BPI, there will be plenty of opportunities to impress.
First comes Sunday's final non-conference game against Arkansas, and it just might come down to player accountability.
"At some level," coach Archie Miller says, "the players have to own the team."
In other words, take charge by word and deed.
"When things aren't going well, that's when your alpha dogs, your leaders, step up and rally the troops," Miller says. "You don't even have to be in the game to have a great voice in the locker room or in the huddle."
IU didn't have that in the lopsided loss at Wisconsin earlier this month, and the result was an 84-64 loss.
Consider it lesson learned.
The Hoosiers bounced back with tough-minded victories over Connecticut and Notre Dame on neutral sites, and Nebraska at home in overtime.
"Since then, some guys are way more noticeable in approaching it, 'We're OK. Hang in there,' " Miller says.
"There's a voice. It's move on to the next play. There's much more of that kind of talk, which is a big component to becoming a good team."
And you'd better believe, after three straight seasons outside the NCAA tourney, IU is committed to becoming a very good team.
"There's a togetherness and players grabbing each other by the jerseys and holding each other accountable," Miller says.
"That didn't happen (against Wisconsin). It happened in the Connecticut game and in the Nebraska game and (against Notre Dame). We're finding different ways to gut it out, ways to make a key stop, a key play, and different guys are doing it."
For instance, guard Armaan Franklin did it against Notre Dame last Saturday and earned co-Big Ten freshman-of-the-week honors in the aftermath. He scored a career-high 17 points and made 4-of-5 three-pointers, including the game winner with 15 seconds remaining.
Not bad for a guy who was 4-for-28 on three-pointers for the season entering the game.
The next step, Miller says, is talk.
"He's got to become a more vocal kid. He's quiet on the court.
"He's a vibrant kid, so if he has the ability to show some of that on the floor, it would be infectious. We've encouraged him to do that and he's done that.
"He's also gotten better defensively. He's going to get even better as he gets older, bigger and stronger."
Franklin averages 5.4 points and 1.9 rebounds. His 26 assists rank second on the team to guard Aljami Durham's 36. He does it with an approach all great players have.
"There's no bad days with him," Miller says.
The same is true for fellow freshman Trayce Jackson-Davis, who leads IU in scoring (15.0), rebounding (8.9) and shooting (65.6 percent). He also leads in blocked shots (24).
"(Franklin) and Trayce play vital roles for us," Miller says. "They have a lot of room to grow."
The Hoosiers also have gotten strong play from forward Justin Smith (12.7 points, 5.3 rebounds, 52.3 percent shooting), and guards Devonte Green (12.3 points) and Durham (12.2 points, team-leading 36 assists).
Don't forget guard Rob Phinisee (8.3 points) and forward Joey Brunk (7.6 points, 5.5 rebounds).
Brunk credits IU's strong response from the Wisconsin loss to a positive approach.
"There's a lot of belief between all of us and our coaching staff," he says. "We knew we had to stay the course when stuff wasn't going our way. That's sports. There are ups and downs. We had to stay connected through all of that."
The Hoosiers did, and now have to keep connected into 2020.
That means players continuing to embrace their roles despite limited minutes.
"It's tough," Miller says. "We have 11 guys trying to play more minutes, and when the games get tight, the minutes can go down. For the most part, we've been able to hang tough and show no cracks in the armor in terms of team over individual.
"That's probably the biggest challenge as a group in returning from Christmas. No outside distractions. Try to find a way to stay collectively in the moment."
That starts with an Arkansas team that brings plenty of challenges under first-year coach Eric Musselman.
The Razorbacks are 10-1, including a 62-61 overtime win at Georgia Tech. Their only loss came 86-79 in overtime at Western Kentucky.
Despite that record, they didn't receive a single vote in the AP poll.
IU, on the other hand, got 45 votes. Iowa is ranked 25th with 125 votes.
Arkansas is led by guard Mason Jones, who averages 19.6 points and 6.2 rebounds with 20 steals. He thrives on the free throw line, making 66 of 71 attempts. He's also made 18 three-point baskets, including a couple down the stretch in last week's comeback win over Valparaiso.
Guard Isaiah Joe averages 16.8 points and 4.6 rebounds. Guard Jimmy Whitt Jr. averages 14.1 points and 5.8 rebounds. He shoots 52.7 percent from the field.
The Razorbacks have more turnovers (151) than assists. They average 75.1 points and allow 59.5.
Musselman came to Arkansas after going 110-34 in four seasons at Nevada. Before that, he was a NBA head coach at Golden State and Sacramento.
As for IU, it is looking for its best start since opening 15-1 in the 2012-13 season, and its first unbeaten non-conference record since going 13-0 in 2011. It has a 10-0 non-conference mark, 1-1 in Big Ten action.
"We have to find a way to finish the non-conference," Miller says, "because when you get into conference play, every game is going to be so hard."
Players Mentioned
Forward
/ Men's Basketball
Guard
/ Men's Basketball
Guard
/ Men's Basketball
Guard
/ Men's Basketball
Forward
/ Men's Basketball
Guard
/ Men's Basketball
Forward
/ Men's BasketballFB: Aiden Fisher Media Availability (9/23/25)
Tuesday, September 23
FB: Pat Coogan Media Availability (9/23/25)
Tuesday, September 23
FB: Under the Hood with Indiana Football - Week 4 (Illinois)
Wednesday, September 17
FB: Kellan Wyatt Media Availability (9/16/25)
Tuesday, September 16