GRAHAM: NYC Calling. Banner Beckoning?
3/26/2019 9:28:00 AM | Men's Basketball
By Andy Graham, IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Monday afternoon marked Wichita State coach Gregg Marshall's first time inside Indiana University's Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.
But he had driven past it before, around a quarter-century ago. And had seen its most famous occupant exiting.
Marshall, at that time an assistant coach for the College of Charleston, had driven to Bloomington to scout prospects during an AAU event at the Twin Lakes Sports Complex.
"It was a good event, at a big center where they have like eight courts, somewhere in town," recalled Marshall, whose Wichita State Shockers play host IU in the NIT quarterfinals Tuesday at 7 p.m. "I drove over here on my own, grabbed a bite to eat.
"As I drove over by Assembly Hall, I actually saw Bob Knight walk out. It was in the evening. He was walking out of a practice, his office, whatever he was doing. Didn't know him at the time – I've met him since – but I did see him. I didn't speak to him.
"But I've never been inside. This is my first time inside. Quite a building. Quite an impressive building."
Knight's teams adorned that building with some banners during his 29-year IU tenure. One of those salutes Indiana's 1979 National Invitational Tournament champs.
A similar such banner beckons the two teams tipping off there Tuesday, three wins away. Tuesday's victor earns a trip to New York City's Madison Square Garden for NIT semifinal play April 2.
Earning that trip doesn't figure to be easy for either side. Both come in hot.
Indiana (19-15) has won six of its last seven games, including Saturday's 63-60 homecourt victory over Alabama. But Wichita State (21-14) is even warmer, having won eight of its last nine (and 13 of 16), with road NIT wins in its last two outings, 76-70 at Furman and 63-55 at Clemson.
"Wichita State is on a really good run right now," IU coach Archie Miller said Monday. "Finished the season really strong, then continued that into their conference tournament with a really hard-fought loss to Cincinnati (66-63 in the American Athletic Conference semis). Could have been in their championship game.
"Now have been on the road in the NIT for two wins, finishing up (Sunday) at Clemson. They're a really typical Wichita State team: play extremely hard, do a great job on both ends the floor, really rebound the ball.
"Markis McDuffie is one of the hardest covers (defensively) we'll see all season, as versatile as he is … McDuffie is the one guy that's been a mainstay in their program … all-conference player, (averaging around) 19 a game. Offensive rebounds. Drives. Made 77 3s on the season. He's a very, very difficult matchup."
The 6-foot-8 senior leads the Shockers with an 18.3 scoring average and routinely takes tall defenders outside. He shoots 35 percent from 3-point range. Fouling him isn't a good idea since he's .819 at the free throw stripe.
Senior classmate Samajae Haynes-Jones, a 6-0 guard, averages 11.9 points, shoots .824 at the foul line, and has 95 assists against 54 turnovers.
"Very good at ball screens," Miller said of Haynes-Jones. "Very quick, attacking guard. Plays hard defensively. Can really get up after you. He makes plays for them. Hit a huge shot late in the Clemson game to go from a one-possession game with 20 some seconds – he bangs a huge step-back three to put them up six. He makes plays.
"He is their guy at the end of the clock. He's going to make a lot of things happen. They set a ton of ball screens for him so he's constantly in attack mode. He's definitely one of tougher guards you're going to play against that we've seen."
Marshall appreciates how his two leading seniors helped a youthful roster festooned with freshmen and other newcomers mature over the course of a season that started 8-11.
"Markis McDuffie and Samaje Haynes-Jones have been invaluable for us," Marshall said. "Markis is used to winning 25 or more games, going to the NCAA tournament, having a lot of success. It didn't look like our season was headed that way early on. Those two guys never wavered. They didn't throw the young kids under the bus.
" … It's been fun to watch this team evolve. We've gotten a lot, lot better in the last eight weeks."
A trio of freshmen – Dexter Dennis, Erik Stevenson and Jamarius Burton – all average between 8.0 and 6.0 points, mostly from the perimeter, and Burton leads Wichita State in assists with 119.
Some of the Shocker newcomers are sizable.
Jaime Echenique – a 6-11, 258-pound Colombian junior transfer from Trinity Valley (Tex.) Community College – hit 7 of 8 shots and led the Shocker scoring at Clemson with 18. Morris Udeze, a 6-8 frosh, is out with a shoulder injury, but 6-9 classmate Isaiah Poor Bear-Chandler is in the rotation. So is 7-foot, 268-pound Danish sophomore Asbjorn Midtgaard.
"(Echenique) has played great in the tournament here, these last two games, averaging 17 points a game, giving them an offensive presence," Miller said. "He's a big guy, good touch around the basket. He can do some things.
"When you bring in Midtgaard, it is a whole different level (at) 7-2, 300 pounds, or whatever he is. His presence rolling to the basket reminds me a lot of (Michigan's) Jon Teske, gets a lot of rim runs at the basket, playing off the spacing they play with … they have true size at the five."
IU 6-7 frontliner Juwan Morgan is aware of the challenge ahead.
"They have a lot of low-post versatility, a lot of big guys," Morgan said. "They can play any which way, really. They have guys that are good around the basket, also good at altering shots without fouling.
"It's going to take a high-level focus, keying in on finishing around the basket, driving and kicking, not trying to challenge shot-blockers."
But Miller feels Morgan (averaging 15.4 points and a team-leading 8.3 boards) and De'Ron Davis have to hold some sway in the paint, regardless of the Shockers' size. Especially with IU scoring leader, freshman winger Romeo Langford (16.5) having missed the last two games and still perhaps unavailable with back issues.
"We're going to have to establish a low-post game in this game," Miller said. "With De'Ron and Juwan, we're going to have to establish some things around the basket because things are going to be tough on the perimeter. You're not going to get great shots. They do a good job of that.
"The physicality of the game is going to be way up. For us, we're going to have to find a way to establish the paint – (and) when we've established the paint here recently, good things have happened for us."
Miller said he customary needs to see about a dozen rebounds from the Hoosier guards – and he got a game-high 11, along with a co-game-high 18 points, from junior guard Devonte Green in Saturday's win over Arkansas.
"Rebounding the ball is huge," Miller said. "If we're rebounding the ball, our team has shown they're able to play with anyone. This is going to be one of those deals where our guards and everyone is going to have to be committed. They're bigger on the perimeter.
"They're very good. I mean, they're as good as any team here of late regardless of their record. They're playing as well as any team we played here of late. They give us problems with their size around the basket. Like I said, defensively they can get up after you."
Miller knows the character of Wichita State's program under Marshall, and vice versa. And both feel their programs share a common denominator: toughness.
That was evident in the 2017 NCAA first-round matchup when the Shockers edged Miller's Dayton Flyers, 64-58.
"We played a fantastic Wichita State team at Dayton in the NCAA tournament," Miller said. "Extremely hard-fought game. The team that they had was very balanced. They had a lot of weapons. I remember that game like it was yesterday, us not being able to score enough baskets at the end but (especially) how hard-fought the game was.
"When you play them, you just have to understand what's going on. If you're not ready to rebound and play hard. You're not ready to compete, they're going to get you. That's been their MO as long as Coach Marshall has been there. Their mantra is just toughness."
Marshall, with his scouting evaluation of Indiana unfinished early Monday afternoon after the quick turn-around from Sunday's win at Clemson, declined to compare Miller's current IU team with the 2017 Dayton club, but did say: "I will tell you his teams play really hard."
Langford's availability or lack thereof was on Marshall's mind.
"You got a lottery pick who has not played the last couple of games," Marshall said of Langford. "You start with him. Juwan Morgan, you're familiar with him if you watch college basketball the last several years. You'd start with those two guys. I mean, really, really good.
"But there's other players averaging between 8 and 11 or 12 points a game. All your starters. Your two guard (Green) really shoots it well, a tremendous scorer. Your point guard (Rob Phinisee) has tremendous acceleration going both ways. Your wing (Justin Smith) is a strong kid that drives it, gets to the rim. Looks very athletic."
Miller emphasized the ability of Green, Phinisee and others to get the offense into fast-break opportunities was a key Tuesday.
"We're going to have to find a way to get in transition," Miller said. "We are at our best when we are in transition. Defense-to-offense is going to be a huge thing in the game. We're going to have to find a way to get runs."
Green – out of North Babylon, NY – would dearly love to transition to NYC next week. "(That's) how I'd like to end the season," Green said with a grin, thinking of playing in front of family and friends. "There would be a lot of people there."
Wichita State's fan base has a deserved reputation for traveling well, but given the quick turn-arounds and inability to plan ahead in NIT play, Marshall doesn't necessarily expect to see lots of his people Tuesday at The Hall.
"I don't think it will be a predominant yellow and black crowd," Marshall said, referencing the Shocker colors, "based on how you guys draw."
IU, on short notice and without season-ticket allotments, drew upwards of 13,000 people Saturday. And they were boisterous in support of the Hoosiers. Miller appreciated that, and expects more of the same.
"I think it will be an electric atmosphere for our guys to play in as well as Wichita State," Miller said. "… Either one of these teams wins this game, you move on another week, you're in Madison Square Garden."
And that would help take some of the sting out of narrowly missing the NCAA tournament field.
Miller said his team moved past that with its NIT opener against St. Francis.
"That first one's always going to be tough," Miller said. "Clearly it's not what we wanted. You're now through that. You're back playing to win again. You have something to play for, which is a great opportunity on Tuesday.
"There's obviously a carrot at the end of this one because you're moving on to New York City. You get to New York City, it's good to be playing this time of year. Good for your experience level, good for guys to win games, to be on the spotlight again."
Spotlights are good for illuminating banners. Waiting to be hung.
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Monday afternoon marked Wichita State coach Gregg Marshall's first time inside Indiana University's Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.
But he had driven past it before, around a quarter-century ago. And had seen its most famous occupant exiting.
Marshall, at that time an assistant coach for the College of Charleston, had driven to Bloomington to scout prospects during an AAU event at the Twin Lakes Sports Complex.
"It was a good event, at a big center where they have like eight courts, somewhere in town," recalled Marshall, whose Wichita State Shockers play host IU in the NIT quarterfinals Tuesday at 7 p.m. "I drove over here on my own, grabbed a bite to eat.
"As I drove over by Assembly Hall, I actually saw Bob Knight walk out. It was in the evening. He was walking out of a practice, his office, whatever he was doing. Didn't know him at the time – I've met him since – but I did see him. I didn't speak to him.
"But I've never been inside. This is my first time inside. Quite a building. Quite an impressive building."
Knight's teams adorned that building with some banners during his 29-year IU tenure. One of those salutes Indiana's 1979 National Invitational Tournament champs.
A similar such banner beckons the two teams tipping off there Tuesday, three wins away. Tuesday's victor earns a trip to New York City's Madison Square Garden for NIT semifinal play April 2.
Earning that trip doesn't figure to be easy for either side. Both come in hot.
Indiana (19-15) has won six of its last seven games, including Saturday's 63-60 homecourt victory over Alabama. But Wichita State (21-14) is even warmer, having won eight of its last nine (and 13 of 16), with road NIT wins in its last two outings, 76-70 at Furman and 63-55 at Clemson.
"Wichita State is on a really good run right now," IU coach Archie Miller said Monday. "Finished the season really strong, then continued that into their conference tournament with a really hard-fought loss to Cincinnati (66-63 in the American Athletic Conference semis). Could have been in their championship game.
"Now have been on the road in the NIT for two wins, finishing up (Sunday) at Clemson. They're a really typical Wichita State team: play extremely hard, do a great job on both ends the floor, really rebound the ball.
"Markis McDuffie is one of the hardest covers (defensively) we'll see all season, as versatile as he is … McDuffie is the one guy that's been a mainstay in their program … all-conference player, (averaging around) 19 a game. Offensive rebounds. Drives. Made 77 3s on the season. He's a very, very difficult matchup."
The 6-foot-8 senior leads the Shockers with an 18.3 scoring average and routinely takes tall defenders outside. He shoots 35 percent from 3-point range. Fouling him isn't a good idea since he's .819 at the free throw stripe.
Senior classmate Samajae Haynes-Jones, a 6-0 guard, averages 11.9 points, shoots .824 at the foul line, and has 95 assists against 54 turnovers.
"Very good at ball screens," Miller said of Haynes-Jones. "Very quick, attacking guard. Plays hard defensively. Can really get up after you. He makes plays for them. Hit a huge shot late in the Clemson game to go from a one-possession game with 20 some seconds – he bangs a huge step-back three to put them up six. He makes plays.
"He is their guy at the end of the clock. He's going to make a lot of things happen. They set a ton of ball screens for him so he's constantly in attack mode. He's definitely one of tougher guards you're going to play against that we've seen."
Marshall appreciates how his two leading seniors helped a youthful roster festooned with freshmen and other newcomers mature over the course of a season that started 8-11.
"Markis McDuffie and Samaje Haynes-Jones have been invaluable for us," Marshall said. "Markis is used to winning 25 or more games, going to the NCAA tournament, having a lot of success. It didn't look like our season was headed that way early on. Those two guys never wavered. They didn't throw the young kids under the bus.
" … It's been fun to watch this team evolve. We've gotten a lot, lot better in the last eight weeks."
A trio of freshmen – Dexter Dennis, Erik Stevenson and Jamarius Burton – all average between 8.0 and 6.0 points, mostly from the perimeter, and Burton leads Wichita State in assists with 119.
Some of the Shocker newcomers are sizable.
Jaime Echenique – a 6-11, 258-pound Colombian junior transfer from Trinity Valley (Tex.) Community College – hit 7 of 8 shots and led the Shocker scoring at Clemson with 18. Morris Udeze, a 6-8 frosh, is out with a shoulder injury, but 6-9 classmate Isaiah Poor Bear-Chandler is in the rotation. So is 7-foot, 268-pound Danish sophomore Asbjorn Midtgaard.
"(Echenique) has played great in the tournament here, these last two games, averaging 17 points a game, giving them an offensive presence," Miller said. "He's a big guy, good touch around the basket. He can do some things.
"When you bring in Midtgaard, it is a whole different level (at) 7-2, 300 pounds, or whatever he is. His presence rolling to the basket reminds me a lot of (Michigan's) Jon Teske, gets a lot of rim runs at the basket, playing off the spacing they play with … they have true size at the five."
IU 6-7 frontliner Juwan Morgan is aware of the challenge ahead.
"They have a lot of low-post versatility, a lot of big guys," Morgan said. "They can play any which way, really. They have guys that are good around the basket, also good at altering shots without fouling.
"It's going to take a high-level focus, keying in on finishing around the basket, driving and kicking, not trying to challenge shot-blockers."
But Miller feels Morgan (averaging 15.4 points and a team-leading 8.3 boards) and De'Ron Davis have to hold some sway in the paint, regardless of the Shockers' size. Especially with IU scoring leader, freshman winger Romeo Langford (16.5) having missed the last two games and still perhaps unavailable with back issues.
"We're going to have to establish a low-post game in this game," Miller said. "With De'Ron and Juwan, we're going to have to establish some things around the basket because things are going to be tough on the perimeter. You're not going to get great shots. They do a good job of that.
"The physicality of the game is going to be way up. For us, we're going to have to find a way to establish the paint – (and) when we've established the paint here recently, good things have happened for us."
Miller said he customary needs to see about a dozen rebounds from the Hoosier guards – and he got a game-high 11, along with a co-game-high 18 points, from junior guard Devonte Green in Saturday's win over Arkansas.
"Rebounding the ball is huge," Miller said. "If we're rebounding the ball, our team has shown they're able to play with anyone. This is going to be one of those deals where our guards and everyone is going to have to be committed. They're bigger on the perimeter.
"They're very good. I mean, they're as good as any team here of late regardless of their record. They're playing as well as any team we played here of late. They give us problems with their size around the basket. Like I said, defensively they can get up after you."
Miller knows the character of Wichita State's program under Marshall, and vice versa. And both feel their programs share a common denominator: toughness.
That was evident in the 2017 NCAA first-round matchup when the Shockers edged Miller's Dayton Flyers, 64-58.
"We played a fantastic Wichita State team at Dayton in the NCAA tournament," Miller said. "Extremely hard-fought game. The team that they had was very balanced. They had a lot of weapons. I remember that game like it was yesterday, us not being able to score enough baskets at the end but (especially) how hard-fought the game was.
"When you play them, you just have to understand what's going on. If you're not ready to rebound and play hard. You're not ready to compete, they're going to get you. That's been their MO as long as Coach Marshall has been there. Their mantra is just toughness."
Marshall, with his scouting evaluation of Indiana unfinished early Monday afternoon after the quick turn-around from Sunday's win at Clemson, declined to compare Miller's current IU team with the 2017 Dayton club, but did say: "I will tell you his teams play really hard."
Langford's availability or lack thereof was on Marshall's mind.
"You got a lottery pick who has not played the last couple of games," Marshall said of Langford. "You start with him. Juwan Morgan, you're familiar with him if you watch college basketball the last several years. You'd start with those two guys. I mean, really, really good.
"But there's other players averaging between 8 and 11 or 12 points a game. All your starters. Your two guard (Green) really shoots it well, a tremendous scorer. Your point guard (Rob Phinisee) has tremendous acceleration going both ways. Your wing (Justin Smith) is a strong kid that drives it, gets to the rim. Looks very athletic."
Miller emphasized the ability of Green, Phinisee and others to get the offense into fast-break opportunities was a key Tuesday.
"We're going to have to find a way to get in transition," Miller said. "We are at our best when we are in transition. Defense-to-offense is going to be a huge thing in the game. We're going to have to find a way to get runs."
Green – out of North Babylon, NY – would dearly love to transition to NYC next week. "(That's) how I'd like to end the season," Green said with a grin, thinking of playing in front of family and friends. "There would be a lot of people there."
Wichita State's fan base has a deserved reputation for traveling well, but given the quick turn-arounds and inability to plan ahead in NIT play, Marshall doesn't necessarily expect to see lots of his people Tuesday at The Hall.
"I don't think it will be a predominant yellow and black crowd," Marshall said, referencing the Shocker colors, "based on how you guys draw."
IU, on short notice and without season-ticket allotments, drew upwards of 13,000 people Saturday. And they were boisterous in support of the Hoosiers. Miller appreciated that, and expects more of the same.
"I think it will be an electric atmosphere for our guys to play in as well as Wichita State," Miller said. "… Either one of these teams wins this game, you move on another week, you're in Madison Square Garden."
And that would help take some of the sting out of narrowly missing the NCAA tournament field.
Miller said his team moved past that with its NIT opener against St. Francis.
"That first one's always going to be tough," Miller said. "Clearly it's not what we wanted. You're now through that. You're back playing to win again. You have something to play for, which is a great opportunity on Tuesday.
"There's obviously a carrot at the end of this one because you're moving on to New York City. You get to New York City, it's good to be playing this time of year. Good for your experience level, good for guys to win games, to be on the spotlight again."
Spotlights are good for illuminating banners. Waiting to be hung.
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