Saturday, December 16
Bloomington, Ind.
12:30 PM
Indiana University
7-3,2-0Big Ten
71
vs
75
.png&width=60&height=60&type=webp)
Kansas
10-1,0-0Big 12
1
2
F
Kansas
32
43
75
Indiana
40
31
71
Indiana Falls Late to No. 2/2 Kansas
12/16/2023 2:00:00 PM | Men's Basketball
By Pete DiPrimio
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Trey Galloway attacked. Boy, did he attack. Indiana's senior guard drove the lane as if it was his birthright Saturday afternoon, as if Kansas defenders were a myth, as if he had channeled Isiah Thomas and nothing would stop him except his own hesitancy.
He didn't hesitate.
It was almost enough.
On Saturday afternoon, amid a rocking, sold-out Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, Galloway led a Hoosier onslaught that pushed No. 2 Kansas to the limit, but not beyond.
A 13-point second-half lead became a painful 75-71 defeat that fueled thoughts of what might have been.
"Kansas is a great team with a lot of experienced guys, a lot of championship DNA," Galloway said. "We'll learn from this.
"It hurts and stings, but there are a lot of good things to take away."
A victory would have blasted away any lingering doubts from earlier Connecticut and Auburn disappointments, and demonstrated this was a team to be reckoned with on the Big Ten and national stages.
The Hoosiers (7-3) might still get there, but work remains.
"We didn't make the plays defensively we needed to make in a game like this," coach Mike Woodson said, "but this is a game we can build on.
"After the Auburn game, I didn't know which way we'd go. Kansas did everything it needed to do down the stretch to win. We just didn't get it done."
For most of the game, IU did. It attacked, attacked and attacked some more. It scored by layup, dunk, free throw and, yes, 3-pointer (it made six of them, double its season average).
Galloway was the catalyst with 28 points on 12-for-17 shooting. That was basically the same number of points he'd scored in his previous three games combined.
"He had a good game," Woodson said. "That was good to see. He's had his ups and downs this season. I hope he can build on this."
Galloway took advantage of the extra defensive attention Kansas put on IU inside players Kel'el Ware, Malik Reneau and Mackenzie Mgbako.
"The big thing was for our guards to be aggressive," Galloway said. "We saw what they did to our bigs. We had to step up. I got downhill.
"Overall, there were many things I could improve on."
Woodson said he didn't tell Galloway to be more aggressive for this game.
"I encourage him to play hard and do the things he's capable of doing. He finally displayed that. Nobody is holding him back."
Kansas (10-1) never led until the closing few minutes. In the end, it made two more free throws and one more basket, and made the key down-the-stretch plays while holding the Hoosiers to 33% second-half shooting. Center Hunter Dickinson, the former Michigan standout, bounced back from a 3-point airball to total 17 points and 14 rebounds.
Fatigue might have played a part.
Woodson shortened the rotation, basically going with seven players. All the starters played at least 24 minutes. Galloway and freshman guard Gabe Cupps played the entire second half.
"I thought fatigued set in," Woodson said, pointing to Galloways three second-half turnovers. "That's normally not him. I think (playing the starters so many minutes) hurt us a little bit."
Galloway didn't want to use that as an excuse.
"You can say that, but you can't focus on that," he said. "Their starting five played a lot of minutes, and played through foul trouble."
Heavy starter minutes is typical for Kansas (four of its five starters played at least 36 minutes). Woodson entering the game planning on matching that.
"We knew it would be our starting five against their starting five," he said. "Their starting five won out."
Kansas came in as the nation's best passing team. IU negated that with defensive ferocity that squeezed off the passing lanes and contested everything but breathing. It forced 11 turnovers that helped it have a 14-9 edge in points off turnovers.
It was almost enough.
"We rebounded (from the Auburn loss), but didn't win," Woodson said. "We'll go back to work and get ready for our next two games."
That would be Tuesday against Morehead State and Thursday against North Alabama, both at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.
"We'll watch the film and learn," Galloway said. "The great thing is we have another opportunity on Tuesday to bounce back."
Mgbako finally missed a free throw. He opened his career with 23 straight, including his first two against Kansas, before missing. He finished with 14 points.
Ware had 11 points and 15 rebounds. Reneau had 13 points.
For the first time in a decade, IU coordinated a "stripe out" to boost a crowd that lacked its typical student numbers because of semester break.
Before the game, IU honored Hoosier legend George McGinnis (a former ABA and NBA superstar), who passed away last week.
Multiple ex-Hoosiers attended, including Christian Watford, Race Thompson, and Rob Phinesee.
At the start, IU unleashed its full-throttle attack -- can you say slashing Galloway? -- for an 8-2 lead to force an early Kansas timeout.
The Hoosiers continued to attack with Ware, Reneau and Mgbako boosting them to an 18-11 advantage after eight minutes.
Kansas closed to 24-21. IU responded with an 8-0 run and a 32-21 lead.
By halftime, the Hoosiers led 40-32 with Galloway and Mgbako combining for 24 points. They led in shooting (54 to 34%), rebounding (22-17), points in the paint (22-18), and fast-break points (11-4).
A frantic four minutes to open the second half included Reneau and Mgbako each picking up his third foul, and Mgbako and Galloway hitting 3-pointers, followed by a Galloway layup.
The result -- a 50-37 Hoosier lead.
Kansas cut it to 56-50, drawing Mgbako's fourth foul in the process. Ten minutes remained. Two minutes later, the lead was three. Two minutes after that, it was 59-58.
A Dickinson hook shot over Ware gave the Jayhawks their first lead, at 62-61with 4:45 left. Fifteen seconds later, Reneau got IU back in front with his own inside basket.
A 3-pointer pushed Kansas ahead 69-64 as the clock ticked under three minutes.
A layup and a 3-pointer from Galloway made it a two-point game at 71-69 with 55 seconds left.
The Hoosiers couldn't get any closer.
"I don't think our defensive intensity was there in the second half like it was in the first half and the start of the second half," Woodson said. "They picked up their defensive intensity.
"We played a solid game, but they made the solid plays down the stretch. That was the difference."
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Trey Galloway attacked. Boy, did he attack. Indiana's senior guard drove the lane as if it was his birthright Saturday afternoon, as if Kansas defenders were a myth, as if he had channeled Isiah Thomas and nothing would stop him except his own hesitancy.
He didn't hesitate.
It was almost enough.
On Saturday afternoon, amid a rocking, sold-out Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, Galloway led a Hoosier onslaught that pushed No. 2 Kansas to the limit, but not beyond.
A 13-point second-half lead became a painful 75-71 defeat that fueled thoughts of what might have been.
"Kansas is a great team with a lot of experienced guys, a lot of championship DNA," Galloway said. "We'll learn from this.
"It hurts and stings, but there are a lot of good things to take away."
A victory would have blasted away any lingering doubts from earlier Connecticut and Auburn disappointments, and demonstrated this was a team to be reckoned with on the Big Ten and national stages.
The Hoosiers (7-3) might still get there, but work remains.
"We didn't make the plays defensively we needed to make in a game like this," coach Mike Woodson said, "but this is a game we can build on.
"After the Auburn game, I didn't know which way we'd go. Kansas did everything it needed to do down the stretch to win. We just didn't get it done."
For most of the game, IU did. It attacked, attacked and attacked some more. It scored by layup, dunk, free throw and, yes, 3-pointer (it made six of them, double its season average).
Galloway was the catalyst with 28 points on 12-for-17 shooting. That was basically the same number of points he'd scored in his previous three games combined.
"He had a good game," Woodson said. "That was good to see. He's had his ups and downs this season. I hope he can build on this."
Galloway took advantage of the extra defensive attention Kansas put on IU inside players Kel'el Ware, Malik Reneau and Mackenzie Mgbako.
"The big thing was for our guards to be aggressive," Galloway said. "We saw what they did to our bigs. We had to step up. I got downhill.
"Overall, there were many things I could improve on."
Woodson said he didn't tell Galloway to be more aggressive for this game.
"I encourage him to play hard and do the things he's capable of doing. He finally displayed that. Nobody is holding him back."
Kansas (10-1) never led until the closing few minutes. In the end, it made two more free throws and one more basket, and made the key down-the-stretch plays while holding the Hoosiers to 33% second-half shooting. Center Hunter Dickinson, the former Michigan standout, bounced back from a 3-point airball to total 17 points and 14 rebounds.
Fatigue might have played a part.
Woodson shortened the rotation, basically going with seven players. All the starters played at least 24 minutes. Galloway and freshman guard Gabe Cupps played the entire second half.
"I thought fatigued set in," Woodson said, pointing to Galloways three second-half turnovers. "That's normally not him. I think (playing the starters so many minutes) hurt us a little bit."
Galloway didn't want to use that as an excuse.
"You can say that, but you can't focus on that," he said. "Their starting five played a lot of minutes, and played through foul trouble."
Heavy starter minutes is typical for Kansas (four of its five starters played at least 36 minutes). Woodson entering the game planning on matching that.
"We knew it would be our starting five against their starting five," he said. "Their starting five won out."
Kansas came in as the nation's best passing team. IU negated that with defensive ferocity that squeezed off the passing lanes and contested everything but breathing. It forced 11 turnovers that helped it have a 14-9 edge in points off turnovers.
It was almost enough.
"We rebounded (from the Auburn loss), but didn't win," Woodson said. "We'll go back to work and get ready for our next two games."
That would be Tuesday against Morehead State and Thursday against North Alabama, both at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.
"We'll watch the film and learn," Galloway said. "The great thing is we have another opportunity on Tuesday to bounce back."
Mgbako finally missed a free throw. He opened his career with 23 straight, including his first two against Kansas, before missing. He finished with 14 points.
Ware had 11 points and 15 rebounds. Reneau had 13 points.
For the first time in a decade, IU coordinated a "stripe out" to boost a crowd that lacked its typical student numbers because of semester break.
Before the game, IU honored Hoosier legend George McGinnis (a former ABA and NBA superstar), who passed away last week.
Multiple ex-Hoosiers attended, including Christian Watford, Race Thompson, and Rob Phinesee.
At the start, IU unleashed its full-throttle attack -- can you say slashing Galloway? -- for an 8-2 lead to force an early Kansas timeout.
The Hoosiers continued to attack with Ware, Reneau and Mgbako boosting them to an 18-11 advantage after eight minutes.
Kansas closed to 24-21. IU responded with an 8-0 run and a 32-21 lead.
By halftime, the Hoosiers led 40-32 with Galloway and Mgbako combining for 24 points. They led in shooting (54 to 34%), rebounding (22-17), points in the paint (22-18), and fast-break points (11-4).
A frantic four minutes to open the second half included Reneau and Mgbako each picking up his third foul, and Mgbako and Galloway hitting 3-pointers, followed by a Galloway layup.
The result -- a 50-37 Hoosier lead.
Kansas cut it to 56-50, drawing Mgbako's fourth foul in the process. Ten minutes remained. Two minutes later, the lead was three. Two minutes after that, it was 59-58.
A Dickinson hook shot over Ware gave the Jayhawks their first lead, at 62-61with 4:45 left. Fifteen seconds later, Reneau got IU back in front with his own inside basket.
A 3-pointer pushed Kansas ahead 69-64 as the clock ticked under three minutes.
A layup and a 3-pointer from Galloway made it a two-point game at 71-69 with 55 seconds left.
The Hoosiers couldn't get any closer.
"I don't think our defensive intensity was there in the second half like it was in the first half and the start of the second half," Woodson said. "They picked up their defensive intensity.
"We played a solid game, but they made the solid plays down the stretch. That was the difference."
Team Stats
KU
IND
FG%
.426
.424
3FG%
.333
.375
FT%
.708
.682
RB
36
38
TO
11
14
STL
9
6
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
28
FGM
12
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Pts
14
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
4
Pts
13
FGM
5
3FGM
2
FTM
1
Pts
11
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
5
Players Mentioned
Guard
/ Men's BasketballGuard
/ Men's BasketballForward
/ Men's BasketballForward
/ Men's Basketball
Forward
/ Men's BasketballCenter
/ Men's BasketballFB: Under the Hood with Indiana Football - Week 2 (Kennesaw State)
Thursday, September 04
FB: D'Angelo Ponds Media Availability (9/2/25)
Tuesday, September 02
FB: Pat Coogan Media Availability (9/2/25)
Tuesday, September 02
Indiana University Athletics: Hoosier the Bison's First Entrance
Saturday, August 30