Indiana University Athletics
Evolving Hoosiers Look for Consistency
1/26/2021 2:58:00 PM | Men's Basketball
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Consistency.
Easy to imagine, tougher to realize.
Indiana's up-and-down season continued with a 74-70 loss to Rutgers at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, and it didn't come via a familiar script. The Hoosiers drained 10 3-pointers. They made 70 percent of their free-throw attempts. They outrebounded the Scarlet Knights on the offensive glass 8-6.
It wasn't enough.
Rutgers found too many easy looks and managed to take advantage of IU's miscues in the second half to keep the Hoosiers at arm's length down the stretch. The defense that was so, so impressive at Iowa earlier in the week broke down time and time again, keeping the Hoosiers from stringing together the stops they needed to rattle Rutgers.
Head coach Archie Miller is searching for answers. Miller said he liked the Hoosiers' preparation for the Rutgers game, but IU just was a different team once the ball was tipped than expected.
"We got whipped straight on," Miller said. "We also had some real break downs in communication on execution of switches and on execution of switching up certain types of coverages. I thought we were bad in the execution of our system. That has been a part of our problem. We were much better against Iowa in being able to execute. We weren't as good today in being able to communicate and talk and keep the ball in front."
The Hoosiers' win over then-No. 4 Iowa on the road—IU's first-ever win over a top-four team on the road when the Hoosiers were unranked—showcased what's possible for this year's team when it's playing at its potential. But each game is an island, and what happened at Iowa had no bearing on what happened vs. Rutgers.
Just the same as a loss to Rutgers will be meaningless the next time the Hoosiers take the floor.
"Every single game in this league requires you to play not only hard and tough and all that stuff, smart, but you have to play well, too," Miller said. "You have to play well to be in these games. … It is one of 20, like the Iowa game was, like I told them after the Iowa game. Everyone is going to talk about how great it was, but the bottom line is Rutgers is just as good, and the next one is going to be just as good. They all count the same."
The Hoosiers saw three players score in double figures, three more score at least seven points, and four players knock down at least a pair of 3-pointers. There was balance to the offense, the kind that hasn't always been part of IU's attack.
But whereas Indiana was solid with the ball in the first 20 minutes, turning the ball over just three times, the Hoosiers were sloppy after halftime. IU finished the game with 12 turnovers, including a stretch of five straight possessions early in the second half that allowed Rutgers to build some momentum.
"The game really changed with five turnovers in the first four or five minutes," Miller said. "Ended up having nine turnovers in the second half, which to me was the big difference in the game. Finishing the game with 12 turnovers after having three at the half is a big difference in the complexion of the game."
In other words, IU was inconsistent from half to half. It also was inconsistent inside the half. The Hoosiers trailed by as many as 14 with 11:54 left in the game, but they rallied in the span of four minutes to pull within three at 62-59 with 7:53 left. Then, just as quickly, Rutgers scored five of the next six points to rebuild the lead to seven.
Sophomore Armaan Franklin, who scored 14 points in the loss, doesn't have an answer about the team's lack of consistency.
"In this league, I do not think it is anything about momentum," Franklin said. "You play a good team every night. Some games go your way. Some games do not. The ball bounces your way, sometimes it does not. So, I think with this one, it just did not bounce our way, and they made enough plays at the end to put themselves in a position to win."
One bright spot for the Hoosiers was the play of freshmen Anthony Leal, Jordan Geronimo, and Khristian Lander, who combined for eight points on 3-of-five shooting and four assists. If that trio can build on their outing vs. Rutgers, IU's depth will take a step forward.
Miller has a simple hope for his team.
"I just want our guys to believe in how much room we continue to have to grow," Miller said. "You can see it in our bench. You can see it in our young guys coming in. They are playing better. Jerome (Hunter) is playing better. Anthony, Khristian, and Jordan are playing better. We are getting a lot of contributions; we just need to get a little more consistency."
Easy to imagine, tougher to realize.
Indiana's up-and-down season continued with a 74-70 loss to Rutgers at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, and it didn't come via a familiar script. The Hoosiers drained 10 3-pointers. They made 70 percent of their free-throw attempts. They outrebounded the Scarlet Knights on the offensive glass 8-6.
It wasn't enough.
Rutgers found too many easy looks and managed to take advantage of IU's miscues in the second half to keep the Hoosiers at arm's length down the stretch. The defense that was so, so impressive at Iowa earlier in the week broke down time and time again, keeping the Hoosiers from stringing together the stops they needed to rattle Rutgers.
Head coach Archie Miller is searching for answers. Miller said he liked the Hoosiers' preparation for the Rutgers game, but IU just was a different team once the ball was tipped than expected.
"We got whipped straight on," Miller said. "We also had some real break downs in communication on execution of switches and on execution of switching up certain types of coverages. I thought we were bad in the execution of our system. That has been a part of our problem. We were much better against Iowa in being able to execute. We weren't as good today in being able to communicate and talk and keep the ball in front."
The Hoosiers' win over then-No. 4 Iowa on the road—IU's first-ever win over a top-four team on the road when the Hoosiers were unranked—showcased what's possible for this year's team when it's playing at its potential. But each game is an island, and what happened at Iowa had no bearing on what happened vs. Rutgers.
Just the same as a loss to Rutgers will be meaningless the next time the Hoosiers take the floor.
"Every single game in this league requires you to play not only hard and tough and all that stuff, smart, but you have to play well, too," Miller said. "You have to play well to be in these games. … It is one of 20, like the Iowa game was, like I told them after the Iowa game. Everyone is going to talk about how great it was, but the bottom line is Rutgers is just as good, and the next one is going to be just as good. They all count the same."
The Hoosiers saw three players score in double figures, three more score at least seven points, and four players knock down at least a pair of 3-pointers. There was balance to the offense, the kind that hasn't always been part of IU's attack.
But whereas Indiana was solid with the ball in the first 20 minutes, turning the ball over just three times, the Hoosiers were sloppy after halftime. IU finished the game with 12 turnovers, including a stretch of five straight possessions early in the second half that allowed Rutgers to build some momentum.
"The game really changed with five turnovers in the first four or five minutes," Miller said. "Ended up having nine turnovers in the second half, which to me was the big difference in the game. Finishing the game with 12 turnovers after having three at the half is a big difference in the complexion of the game."
In other words, IU was inconsistent from half to half. It also was inconsistent inside the half. The Hoosiers trailed by as many as 14 with 11:54 left in the game, but they rallied in the span of four minutes to pull within three at 62-59 with 7:53 left. Then, just as quickly, Rutgers scored five of the next six points to rebuild the lead to seven.
Sophomore Armaan Franklin, who scored 14 points in the loss, doesn't have an answer about the team's lack of consistency.
"In this league, I do not think it is anything about momentum," Franklin said. "You play a good team every night. Some games go your way. Some games do not. The ball bounces your way, sometimes it does not. So, I think with this one, it just did not bounce our way, and they made enough plays at the end to put themselves in a position to win."
One bright spot for the Hoosiers was the play of freshmen Anthony Leal, Jordan Geronimo, and Khristian Lander, who combined for eight points on 3-of-five shooting and four assists. If that trio can build on their outing vs. Rutgers, IU's depth will take a step forward.
Miller has a simple hope for his team.
"I just want our guys to believe in how much room we continue to have to grow," Miller said. "You can see it in our bench. You can see it in our young guys coming in. They are playing better. Jerome (Hunter) is playing better. Anthony, Khristian, and Jordan are playing better. We are getting a lot of contributions; we just need to get a little more consistency."
Players Mentioned
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