Indiana University
21-10,12-8Big Ten
Michigan
17-14,11-9Big Ten
Hoosiers Beat Michigan in Overtime Thriller
3/5/2023 7:15:00 PM | Men's Basketball
By Pete DiPrimio
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Race Thompson got his Indiana Senior Night victory, and if it took longer than expected, who cares?
The Hoosiers' senior forward didn't. Neither did fellow seniors Trayce Jackson-Davis and Miller Kopp in the aftermath of Sunday night's 75-73 overtime victory over Michigan at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.
All three thrived when it mattered most, sparking a rally from a 12-point second-half deficit.
"Down the stretch, leaders have to lead, that's what we did," Jackson-Davis said.
The win clinched second-place in the Big Ten with a 12-8 record. The No. 15/13 Hoosiers are 21-10 overall and earned a double bye in the upcoming conference tourney at Chicago's United Center. They won't play until Friday.
As coach Mike Woodson said during the Senior Night ceremony, they aren't done yet.
"Somehow, we've got to put another Big Ten banner up there. The only way to do that is, we've got to go to Chicago and win."
Jackson-Davis backed that up, and then raised the stakes.
"Gentlemen, we've got a lot of ball left to be played. Not only do we have the Big Ten tourney, let's go get No. 6 (a sixth national championship banner)."
In his final home game, Thompson finished with 16 points and 10 rebounds, his 10th career double-double, plus a couple of difference-making overtime steals. Jackson-Davis had 27 points, nine rebounds and six assists. Kopp had five points and seven rebounds.
Freshman guard Jalen Hood-Schifino added 13 points.
During the Senior Night ceremony, senior reserves Michael Shipp and Nathan Childress also were recognized.
Jackson-Davis could have left after the coaching transition from Archie Miller to Woodson two years ago. He did not. He could have left after last season with an NBA Draft opportunity. He did not and has records and player-of-the-year opportunities as a result.
In the race for Big Ten MVP, Jackson-Davis finished with 436 points in 20 games, a 21.8 average. Purdue's Zach Edey had 437 points, a 21.85 average.
"It's been a long four years," Jackson-Davis said. "We've been through a lot of ups and downs."
He thanked his teammates and coaches, telling Woodson, "We butt heads sometimes, but it's all good."
He thanked his family -- telling his mother (Karla Jackson) that she's the reason why he plays so hard and his father (Ray Jackson) that he's the reason why he's a Hoosier; plus told younger brother, Tayven Jackson, a quarterback who transferred from Tennessee to join the IU football team, that it's "Your turn to shine here now."
Added Woodson: "When you said you were coming back, I was the happiest guy in the world. Your progress has sky-rocketed. You will be missed – unless you want to come back!"
Woodson was joking. Jackson-Davis is set to enter the NBA Draft.
Thompson has been at IU for six seasons, setting standards for toughness and resiliency.
"I've been here for a long time, but it seems like a month ago I was a freshman."
He thanked teammates and family and the coaches, "For being hard on me when I needed it." He thanked team trainer Tim Garl and the medical staff for helping him overcome multiple injuries.
Woodson mentioned that, "Race, we had some battles. The beauty of you is you left everything you had on the floor."
Kopp set a Big Ten record, and tied the national mark, by playing in his 99th NCAA Division I conference game. He played three years at Northwestern before playing the last two seasons for the Hoosiers.
"Last year wasn't the easier for me. I kept asking myself, why am I here? I'm blessed to have been brought here."
He thanked his teammates for treating him like family, and thanked his family and the coaches for "Believing in me and showing me every day that I can be better and take that extra step."
Added Woodson: "I knew what I was getting -- a guy who worked; someone who was very professional about his approach. He didn't fail me. He comes to work every day. He has gotten so much better. He's had a heck of a season."
In wrapping up Senior Night, Woodson said told all the seniors that, "I don't know what I'll do without you guys. Whatever you need, I will be there. Pick up the phone. Knock on the door. I'll be there."
And then a coaching motivator:
"We've still got work to do. A lot of work."
*****
The overtime victory was the reward for all the work after last Tuesday's disappointing home loss to Iowa.
"We learned a lot from the Iowa game," Thompson said. "Everybody was fighting to win for each other. There was no way we're losing this game.
"We played desperate. We won't lay an egg like that ever again."
IU dominated the game's first 15 minutes to build a 14-point lead, then allowed a 29-7 Michigan run in the next eight minutes spanning the first and second half. It fell behind by 12 eight minutes into the second half.
The Hoosiers ratcheted up the defense and offense and surged for a 69-69 tie at the end of regulation before securing the victory.
Along the way, they got key off-the-bench contributions from Tamar Bates (six points), Malik Reneau (four points, three rebounds) and Kaleb Banks.
"Miller and Race were struggling when I took them out (in the second half)," Woodson said. "I was searching. Tamar, Kaleb and Malik gave us positive minutes."
Bates, who had been struggling recently, came in when starting guard Trey Galloway got in foul trouble. Galloway fouled out with four points and three assists in 25 minutes.
Bates added strong defense against Michigan guard Kobe Bufkin.
"Tamar has had some big games for us, so I went with him," Woodson said. "He played well down the stretch. He stepped up and did what he needed to do."
Michigan (17-14, 11-9) lost its second straight overtime road game, following a double-overtime heartbreaker at Illinois. Forward Hunter Dickinson led with 24 points and 14 rebounds.
Early on, IU quickly flexed its defensive muscles after giving up an opening three-pointer to Jett Howard. The Wolverines struggled to find open shots and struggled to make them when they did.
Jackson-Davis and Thompson paced an attack-the-basket approach that built a 23-11 lead on 50 percent shooting and a 16-2 edge in points in the paint.
The Hoosiers led 27-13 before Michigan ended the half on a 14-2 run for a 29-27 halftime score. The teams were a combined 3-for-20 from three-point range. Thompson had IU's lone three-pointer.
The Wolverines hit three straight three-pointers as part of a 15-5 run to start the second half in less than four minutes. Trailing 42-34, Woodson called a time to settle the Hoosiers down.
It worked for 6-for-6 free-throw shooting (four by Jackson-Davis), but Michigan countered with two more three-pointers for a 52-40 lead with 13 minutes left.
The Hoosiers attacked with full-court pressure. Bates hit a three-pointer -- his first since Feb. 7 against Rutgers. Jackson-Davis hit a couple of three throws. They closed within 54-47.
Kopp hit a three-pointer. Thompson scored on a hook shot, then dunked off a Jackson-Davis pass and completed the three-point play. IU trailed 60-59.
Michigan countered with a Dickinson three-point play. Bates countered back with another three-pointer to keep the deficit at one. The clock ticked under five minutes, then four, then three.
Jackson-Davis scored four straight points for a 66-65 IU lead. The Wolverines took a three-point lead on Bufkin's two free throws and a Dickinson basket. Hood-Schifino tied it at 69-69 with a three-pointer with 55 seconds left.
Michigan had a chance to win it at the end of regulation, but Dickinson missed a three-pointer. Jackson-Davis had the same chance, and missed a half-court shot.
IU scored the first six points of overtime, capped by a Kopp three-pointer, forced Michigan into a series of empty possessions, and got the victory.
"This is how our team has been this year with the ups and down," Jackson-Davis said. "We fight. We knew what was at stake. We knew they'd go on a run, but we never quit."
