Indiana University Athletics
Indiana Looks to Navigate Road Challenges
1/16/2020 2:11:00 PM | Men's Basketball
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Life on the road in the Big Ten is never, ever easy.
It gets even tougher when shots aren't falling. It gets even tougher still when mistakes with the ball start to spiral out of control.
Indiana ran into both of those issues Wednesday night in a 59-50 loss at Rutgers, a game that saw IU shoot just 31.7 percent from the field overall and 2-of-19 from the 3-point line. IU also committed 16 turnovers, and the Hoosiers struggled to put together lengthy stretches of solid basketball.
The vastly improved Scarlet Knights certainly played a part in IU's issues as did the packed crowd at the Rutgers Athletic Center. The fans fed Rutgers' 12-0 run to open the game, and it helped spur the team again in the closing minutes to keep the Hoosiers at arm's length down the stretch.
Indiana held a one-point lead for just a few ticks over three minutes, and an inability to put the ball in the basket on two, three, or four straight possessions kept IU from building momentum.
"Rutgers deserves a lot of credit," head coach Archie Miller said. "They play extremely hard, and that's why they're one of the best teams in the league. They really are. They're impressive with their effort level and especially in here. They get this place charged up. … You have to be able to cash in the ones that you can. We had some point-blank shots and those got to go down. You got to get to the foul line, which we didn't."
IU went 10-of-12 from the free-throw line, but for a Hoosier squad that ranks among the best in the Big Ten and the country in free-throw attempts, a dozen wasn't quite enough.
But it's the shooting woes that keep biting the Hoosiers. In a loss to Maryland Jan. 4, they shot 36.1 percent from the field and 22.2 percent from beyond the arc. In a loss to Arkansas Dec. 29, IU made just 5-of-21 shots from distance, a percentage of just .238.
Indiana is at its best when its scoring inside and getting to the line. Efficiency in the name of the Hoosiers' game, and when things are working, IU can beat anyone in the country. Miller's team needed just 49 shots from the field to beat Ohio State last weekend, and his team went to the free-throw line 36 times. In the win vs. Northwestern, IU took just 54 shots while going to the line 30 times.
In a Dec. 3 win over Florida State, IU took just 45 shots and went to the charity stripe 38 times.
You notice a trend.
When Rutgers shut down the Hoosiers' inside game and IU wasn't earning trips to the line, the perimeter game failed to step up. For the seventh time in the last eight outings, the Hoosiers shot less than 30.0 percent from 3-point range. Early vs. Ohio State, sophomore Rob Phinisee drained three 3-pointers that gave Indiana some confidence. None of that confidence was with the Hoosiers at Rutgers.
"We got very few easy ones," Miller said. "And we were 2-for-19 from three. That's definitely not going to get it done. We have to be able to find a way to make a couple of the open ones, especially on the road. That keeps you in the game and helps you."
As much as anything, Indiana—like every other team in the conference—is finding it difficult to play away from home.
"The environments that you go in in the Big Ten are second to none," Miller said. "They're as hard as it's going to get, and every team is good. So, it's not as if you're running into a place that's kind of like sleepwalking. Every place is charged up, and it's difficult to go on the road and win in this league. You have to really do a great job of taking care of the ball, and you're going to have to find a way to generate some points off your defense."
Miller was pleased with his team's overall effort vs. Rutgers, and he credited his ballclub for not getting down when Rutgers opened the game on a 12-0 run. The Hoosiers bounced back to take a lead later in the first half, and even when they found themselves down 17 in the second half, they kept battling. Indiana cut that edge down to eight points following a free throw from junior Justin Smith with 3:39 to play, but IU could get no closer.
Now, the challenge is for Indiana to put this loss behind it. Mistakes were made and picking themselves up off the floor to fight again will be critical going forward, especially with a road trip to Nebraska coming up this weekend.
"Our guys will bounce back," Miller said. "We've got to learn from it. On the road right now in this league is brutal, and every game that you play feels like this. You got another opportunity on Saturday. We got to regroup, focus, and just lock in, and move on to the next one."
It gets even tougher when shots aren't falling. It gets even tougher still when mistakes with the ball start to spiral out of control.
Indiana ran into both of those issues Wednesday night in a 59-50 loss at Rutgers, a game that saw IU shoot just 31.7 percent from the field overall and 2-of-19 from the 3-point line. IU also committed 16 turnovers, and the Hoosiers struggled to put together lengthy stretches of solid basketball.
The vastly improved Scarlet Knights certainly played a part in IU's issues as did the packed crowd at the Rutgers Athletic Center. The fans fed Rutgers' 12-0 run to open the game, and it helped spur the team again in the closing minutes to keep the Hoosiers at arm's length down the stretch.
Indiana held a one-point lead for just a few ticks over three minutes, and an inability to put the ball in the basket on two, three, or four straight possessions kept IU from building momentum.
"Rutgers deserves a lot of credit," head coach Archie Miller said. "They play extremely hard, and that's why they're one of the best teams in the league. They really are. They're impressive with their effort level and especially in here. They get this place charged up. … You have to be able to cash in the ones that you can. We had some point-blank shots and those got to go down. You got to get to the foul line, which we didn't."
IU went 10-of-12 from the free-throw line, but for a Hoosier squad that ranks among the best in the Big Ten and the country in free-throw attempts, a dozen wasn't quite enough.
But it's the shooting woes that keep biting the Hoosiers. In a loss to Maryland Jan. 4, they shot 36.1 percent from the field and 22.2 percent from beyond the arc. In a loss to Arkansas Dec. 29, IU made just 5-of-21 shots from distance, a percentage of just .238.
Indiana is at its best when its scoring inside and getting to the line. Efficiency in the name of the Hoosiers' game, and when things are working, IU can beat anyone in the country. Miller's team needed just 49 shots from the field to beat Ohio State last weekend, and his team went to the free-throw line 36 times. In the win vs. Northwestern, IU took just 54 shots while going to the line 30 times.
In a Dec. 3 win over Florida State, IU took just 45 shots and went to the charity stripe 38 times.
You notice a trend.
When Rutgers shut down the Hoosiers' inside game and IU wasn't earning trips to the line, the perimeter game failed to step up. For the seventh time in the last eight outings, the Hoosiers shot less than 30.0 percent from 3-point range. Early vs. Ohio State, sophomore Rob Phinisee drained three 3-pointers that gave Indiana some confidence. None of that confidence was with the Hoosiers at Rutgers.
"We got very few easy ones," Miller said. "And we were 2-for-19 from three. That's definitely not going to get it done. We have to be able to find a way to make a couple of the open ones, especially on the road. That keeps you in the game and helps you."
As much as anything, Indiana—like every other team in the conference—is finding it difficult to play away from home.
"The environments that you go in in the Big Ten are second to none," Miller said. "They're as hard as it's going to get, and every team is good. So, it's not as if you're running into a place that's kind of like sleepwalking. Every place is charged up, and it's difficult to go on the road and win in this league. You have to really do a great job of taking care of the ball, and you're going to have to find a way to generate some points off your defense."
Miller was pleased with his team's overall effort vs. Rutgers, and he credited his ballclub for not getting down when Rutgers opened the game on a 12-0 run. The Hoosiers bounced back to take a lead later in the first half, and even when they found themselves down 17 in the second half, they kept battling. Indiana cut that edge down to eight points following a free throw from junior Justin Smith with 3:39 to play, but IU could get no closer.
Now, the challenge is for Indiana to put this loss behind it. Mistakes were made and picking themselves up off the floor to fight again will be critical going forward, especially with a road trip to Nebraska coming up this weekend.
"Our guys will bounce back," Miller said. "We've got to learn from it. On the road right now in this league is brutal, and every game that you play feels like this. You got another opportunity on Saturday. We got to regroup, focus, and just lock in, and move on to the next one."
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