Indiana University Athletics
Unselfish Hoosiers Spark Second Half Comeback
12/20/2020 4:44:00 PM | Men's Basketball
INDIANAPOLIS - Unselfish basketball is winning basketball, and the Hoosiers' win over Butler at the Crossroads Classic in Indianapolis was a clinic in unselfish basketball.
The Hoosiers recorded 19 assists on 25 made baskets en route to a 68-60 victory over the Bulldogs. Freshman Trey Galloway led the way with five assists off the bench, but six of the eight Hoosiers who saw time handed out assists in the win. The unselfish play allowed IU to shot 53.2 percent from the floor overall and 43.8 percent from 3-point range.
"I think we're going to be a better consistently shooting team as we continue to embrace sharing the ball," head coach Archie Miller said. "I think you saw some guys make some really great passes in transition, and I think we had some great drives today where we were unselfish and had the ability to deliver a pass on time where we got rhythm shots."
The Hoosiers trailed at halftime, 37-32, but they rallied by keeping the ball—and Butler's defense—moving to create open looks.
"I think we've had a lot of these looks throughout the course of the season, but when the ball is not hitting a shooter's hands on time, on target, in rhythm, you're going to have inconsistent percentages," Miller said. "You're going to have jumbled offense.
And I think here in the last few games, I'm not sure how many assists we had in the North Alabama game, but most of our threes, if you watch us play, they're coming off of unselfish driving, passing, one mores, extra passes inside out of the post. They know where they are supposed to be getting them, and they're hitting them on time."
Guard Armaan Franklin scored 20 points on 7-of-12 shooting, and he made five three pointers for the second-straight game. That shooting performance, which was helped by teammates making the extra pass, loosened Butler's defense, opening room for forward Trayce Jackson-Davis to operate.
Jackson-Davis finished with 21 points on 7-of-9 shooting, and he added eight rebounds and five blocks.
"The more we can stop our team from taking tough, challenged two-point shots where we land on the ground and the more we can spray the ball and move it and share it, the better our team is going to be," Miller said. "You're going to see that we have guys who are going to be able to step up and make more shots. I'm happy with our team. We've just got to keep getting better. We have a coachable group. They're in it for the right reasons. We've worked hard."
Indiana committed 15 turnovers in the win—more than Miller would like, to be sure—but nine of the miscues came from two players. The key for IU was the steady play of guards Al Durham and Rob Phinisee, and Galloway, who combined to record 12 assists vs. just one turnover.
"Our guards did a good job," Miller said. "If you look at Al being four (assists) vs. one (turnover) today, and Rob 3-0, and I believe Galloway was 5-0, those guys can do some really good things."
Indiana's defense improved as the game went on, and Miller liked the way his team responded to being challenged at halftime.
"I thought our guys were really disappointed in the way we played (in the first half)," Miller said. "I thought in the second half, we came out with a much better approach. Our attitude was much different. It started on the defensive end. We were able to get stops throughout the course of the game. That helped us get some easy (baskets)."
The attitude Miller spoke about was not only about each individual player dedicating himself to improving his effort defensively. It was about doing what they needed to do to help one another, another sign of unselfishness.
Indiana closed out the non-conference portion of its schedule with the win, and now, the Hoosiers' attention turns to the rough-and-tumble Big Ten. Miller knows his team has room for improvement, but he also is encouraged by what he has seen in IU's first seven games.
"We're proud of our group and what we've been able to do," Miller said. "Non-conference schedule is over. This was an important game for us. … We play in the fiercest league in college basketball this year. It's going to start up very quickly, and the mental challenge it's going to take to get through it with no real time off is going to be something that we're going to have to be ready for."
The Hoosiers recorded 19 assists on 25 made baskets en route to a 68-60 victory over the Bulldogs. Freshman Trey Galloway led the way with five assists off the bench, but six of the eight Hoosiers who saw time handed out assists in the win. The unselfish play allowed IU to shot 53.2 percent from the floor overall and 43.8 percent from 3-point range.
"I think we're going to be a better consistently shooting team as we continue to embrace sharing the ball," head coach Archie Miller said. "I think you saw some guys make some really great passes in transition, and I think we had some great drives today where we were unselfish and had the ability to deliver a pass on time where we got rhythm shots."
The Hoosiers trailed at halftime, 37-32, but they rallied by keeping the ball—and Butler's defense—moving to create open looks.
"I think we've had a lot of these looks throughout the course of the season, but when the ball is not hitting a shooter's hands on time, on target, in rhythm, you're going to have inconsistent percentages," Miller said. "You're going to have jumbled offense.
And I think here in the last few games, I'm not sure how many assists we had in the North Alabama game, but most of our threes, if you watch us play, they're coming off of unselfish driving, passing, one mores, extra passes inside out of the post. They know where they are supposed to be getting them, and they're hitting them on time."
Guard Armaan Franklin scored 20 points on 7-of-12 shooting, and he made five three pointers for the second-straight game. That shooting performance, which was helped by teammates making the extra pass, loosened Butler's defense, opening room for forward Trayce Jackson-Davis to operate.
Jackson-Davis finished with 21 points on 7-of-9 shooting, and he added eight rebounds and five blocks.
"The more we can stop our team from taking tough, challenged two-point shots where we land on the ground and the more we can spray the ball and move it and share it, the better our team is going to be," Miller said. "You're going to see that we have guys who are going to be able to step up and make more shots. I'm happy with our team. We've just got to keep getting better. We have a coachable group. They're in it for the right reasons. We've worked hard."
Indiana committed 15 turnovers in the win—more than Miller would like, to be sure—but nine of the miscues came from two players. The key for IU was the steady play of guards Al Durham and Rob Phinisee, and Galloway, who combined to record 12 assists vs. just one turnover.
"Our guards did a good job," Miller said. "If you look at Al being four (assists) vs. one (turnover) today, and Rob 3-0, and I believe Galloway was 5-0, those guys can do some really good things."
Indiana's defense improved as the game went on, and Miller liked the way his team responded to being challenged at halftime.
"I thought our guys were really disappointed in the way we played (in the first half)," Miller said. "I thought in the second half, we came out with a much better approach. Our attitude was much different. It started on the defensive end. We were able to get stops throughout the course of the game. That helped us get some easy (baskets)."
The attitude Miller spoke about was not only about each individual player dedicating himself to improving his effort defensively. It was about doing what they needed to do to help one another, another sign of unselfishness.
Indiana closed out the non-conference portion of its schedule with the win, and now, the Hoosiers' attention turns to the rough-and-tumble Big Ten. Miller knows his team has room for improvement, but he also is encouraged by what he has seen in IU's first seven games.
"We're proud of our group and what we've been able to do," Miller said. "Non-conference schedule is over. This was an important game for us. … We play in the fiercest league in college basketball this year. It's going to start up very quickly, and the mental challenge it's going to take to get through it with no real time off is going to be something that we're going to have to be ready for."
Players Mentioned
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