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Indiana Takes Big Ten Lead into Nebraska
1/3/2024 1:00:00 PM | Men's Basketball
By Pete DiPrimio
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Is this the year Indiana regains its Big Ten title-winning form?
Let's take a look.
The Hoosiers are off to a first place start at 2-0 in conference play. Northwestern, No. 9 Illinois, and No. 21 Wisconsin are 1-0.
Top-ranked Purdue is 1-1. So is Nebraska (11-2 overall), which hosts Indiana (10-3) Wednesday night.
IU's last conference championship came in 2016, when the Yogi Ferrell-led Hoosiers went 15-3 and reached the Sweet Sixteen, beating Kentucky along the way.
What kind of record will it take to win this year's conference crown?
History offers a clue.
Last year, Purdue won the title with a 15-5 record, three games better than second-place IU and Northwestern.
The year before that, Wisconsin and Illinois shared the championship with 15-5 records.
The year before that, during a COVID-altered season, Michigan won with a 14-3 record. Illinois was second at 16-4.
Titles require outstanding players and Indiana has its share, highlighted by forward Malik Reneau, center Kel'el Ware, and forward Mackenzie Mgbako. They comprise a frontcourt that rates among the Big Ten's best.
In the last two games, Reneau has put up MVP numbers (averaging 29.5 points and 9.0 rebounds on 67% shooting, including 5-for-8 from 3-point range). For the season, he averages a team-leading 16.2 points, plus 5.7 rebounds. He also leads IU in shooting at 59.7%. That ranks third in the Big Ten behind Purdue's Zach Edey (62.4%) and Iowa's Ben Krikke (59.9%). His 36 assists rank second on the team to guard Trey Galloway's 46.
The key is sustaining it against conference competition.
"He's getting better," coach Mike Woodson says. "Everybody talks about development and who is being developed. Malik, based on where he started with us last season and where he is today, is a lot better.
"There's a lot of room still to grow as a player. He's got to keep pushing and we've got to keep pushing him."
Ware averages 14.9 points and a team-leading 8.9 rebounds. He also leads IU with 18 blocks, six more than Reneau. He missed Friday night's Kennesaw game because of illness.
Mgbako averages 10.0 points and 4.3 rebounds. He leads the Big Ten in free throwing shooting at 94.4% (34-for-36). The next closest is Maryland's Jahmir Young at 91.0% (71-for-78).
Add guards Xavier Johnson (10.5 points) and Galloway (11.0 points) and IU has five double-figure scorers.
The hope is Ware and Johnson (who has missed seven-straight games because of injury) will be available against Nebraska.
The Cornhuskers have won four straight after a two-game losing streak to Creighton and Minnesota. They are 9-1 at home, and average 8.8 3-pointers per game.
They have four double-figure scorers in 6-6 forward Juwan Gary (14.2 points), 6-7 guard Brice Williams (13.5), 6-2 guard Keisal Tominga (13.5) and 6-10 forward Rienk Mast (13.0).
Mast leads in rebounding at 9.9, with Gary (7.3) and Williams (5.2) behind him.
Key Nebraska victories include Michigan State, Kansas State, and Oregon State.
The Cornhuskers can play small, not so much in the manner of, say, Kennesaw State, but in ways that might force Woodson to use matching personnel.
It's why 6-10, 258-pound forward Payton Sparks, who was so dominant in his 14 starting minutes against Kennesaw State (10 points, eight rebounds, four blocks), didn't get more action, especially in the second half.
"Sometimes you have to match (the other team)," Woodson says. "When I pulled Payton, it was based on their matchups because they went so small.
"In doing that, I knew we could switch 1 through 5 with Malik at the 5. That was the reason I did what I did.
"Coming down the stretch, it really helped us because we were able to switch and not give up (open 3-pointers). They were making 3s anyway, but switching allows you to at least keep a body in front of you and hope like hell that they don't make shots over the top."
As for Sparks, once a double-double threat at Ball State and now a Hoosier reserve behind Reneau, Ware, and Mgbako, Woodson says, "That tells me a lot about him in terms of being ready to play because you just never know. We didn't know that Ware wasn't going to play until (Friday morning). Payton was ready, stepped in and gave us a major lift. That's what team play is all about."
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Is this the year Indiana regains its Big Ten title-winning form?
Let's take a look.
The Hoosiers are off to a first place start at 2-0 in conference play. Northwestern, No. 9 Illinois, and No. 21 Wisconsin are 1-0.
Top-ranked Purdue is 1-1. So is Nebraska (11-2 overall), which hosts Indiana (10-3) Wednesday night.
IU's last conference championship came in 2016, when the Yogi Ferrell-led Hoosiers went 15-3 and reached the Sweet Sixteen, beating Kentucky along the way.
What kind of record will it take to win this year's conference crown?
History offers a clue.
Last year, Purdue won the title with a 15-5 record, three games better than second-place IU and Northwestern.
The year before that, Wisconsin and Illinois shared the championship with 15-5 records.
The year before that, during a COVID-altered season, Michigan won with a 14-3 record. Illinois was second at 16-4.
Titles require outstanding players and Indiana has its share, highlighted by forward Malik Reneau, center Kel'el Ware, and forward Mackenzie Mgbako. They comprise a frontcourt that rates among the Big Ten's best.
In the last two games, Reneau has put up MVP numbers (averaging 29.5 points and 9.0 rebounds on 67% shooting, including 5-for-8 from 3-point range). For the season, he averages a team-leading 16.2 points, plus 5.7 rebounds. He also leads IU in shooting at 59.7%. That ranks third in the Big Ten behind Purdue's Zach Edey (62.4%) and Iowa's Ben Krikke (59.9%). His 36 assists rank second on the team to guard Trey Galloway's 46.
The key is sustaining it against conference competition.
"He's getting better," coach Mike Woodson says. "Everybody talks about development and who is being developed. Malik, based on where he started with us last season and where he is today, is a lot better.
"There's a lot of room still to grow as a player. He's got to keep pushing and we've got to keep pushing him."
Ware averages 14.9 points and a team-leading 8.9 rebounds. He also leads IU with 18 blocks, six more than Reneau. He missed Friday night's Kennesaw game because of illness.
Mgbako averages 10.0 points and 4.3 rebounds. He leads the Big Ten in free throwing shooting at 94.4% (34-for-36). The next closest is Maryland's Jahmir Young at 91.0% (71-for-78).
Add guards Xavier Johnson (10.5 points) and Galloway (11.0 points) and IU has five double-figure scorers.
The hope is Ware and Johnson (who has missed seven-straight games because of injury) will be available against Nebraska.
The Cornhuskers have won four straight after a two-game losing streak to Creighton and Minnesota. They are 9-1 at home, and average 8.8 3-pointers per game.
They have four double-figure scorers in 6-6 forward Juwan Gary (14.2 points), 6-7 guard Brice Williams (13.5), 6-2 guard Keisal Tominga (13.5) and 6-10 forward Rienk Mast (13.0).
Mast leads in rebounding at 9.9, with Gary (7.3) and Williams (5.2) behind him.
Key Nebraska victories include Michigan State, Kansas State, and Oregon State.
The Cornhuskers can play small, not so much in the manner of, say, Kennesaw State, but in ways that might force Woodson to use matching personnel.
It's why 6-10, 258-pound forward Payton Sparks, who was so dominant in his 14 starting minutes against Kennesaw State (10 points, eight rebounds, four blocks), didn't get more action, especially in the second half.
"Sometimes you have to match (the other team)," Woodson says. "When I pulled Payton, it was based on their matchups because they went so small.
"In doing that, I knew we could switch 1 through 5 with Malik at the 5. That was the reason I did what I did.
"Coming down the stretch, it really helped us because we were able to switch and not give up (open 3-pointers). They were making 3s anyway, but switching allows you to at least keep a body in front of you and hope like hell that they don't make shots over the top."
As for Sparks, once a double-double threat at Ball State and now a Hoosier reserve behind Reneau, Ware, and Mgbako, Woodson says, "That tells me a lot about him in terms of being ready to play because you just never know. We didn't know that Ware wasn't going to play until (Friday morning). Payton was ready, stepped in and gave us a major lift. That's what team play is all about."
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