Friday, March 15
Minneapolis, Minn.
9:00 PM
Indiana University
19-14,10-10Big Ten
66
vs
93
Nebraska
23-9,12-8Big Ten
1
2
F
Indiana
27
39
66
Nebraska
50
43
93
Indiana Falls to Nebraska in Big Ten Tournament Quarterfinal
3/16/2024 1:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
By Pete DiPrimio
IUHoosiers.com
MINNEAPOLIS -- The Indiana winning streak was ending, a postseason opportunity was fading, and senior guard Xavier Johnson couldn't watch.
A towel covered his head and face while sitting on the bench as the clock ticked toward zero Friday night. When it ended, IU had fallen to hot-shooting Nebraska 93-66 in the Big Ten tourney quarterfinals.
The sixth-seeded Hoosiers (19-14), which came in on a five-game winning streak, never recovered from a 17-0 half-ending Cornhusker run. Nebraska (23-9) hit 14 3-pointers, 12 in the first half.
"We just didn't have any answers from a defensive standpoint," coach Mike Woodson said in the post-game press conference.
"The bottom line is, we've got to get better. I don't want to sit here this time next year not playing in the NCAA Tournament."
IU, so dominant all season in the paint behind center Kel'el Ware and forward Malik Reneau, managed just 24 points in the paint. Ware and Reneau combined for just 17 points on 6-for-18 shooting.
"Our guys fought hard," associate head coach Yasir Rosemond told Voice of the Hoosiers Don Fischer during the post-game radio show. "We had some injuries this year. Coach won't let us make excuses. We thought we had a good game plan.
"Nebraska, when they play us, they shoot the heck out of the ball. They shot it great. We couldn't get our offense going. They took away our big guys and our guards didn't make a lot of shots."
Forward Mackenzie Mgbako had 16 points and seven rebounds. Guard CJ Gunn came off the bench for a career-high 17 points. Johnson finished with eight points, five rebounds, and five assists. IU did go 13-for-13 from the free throw line.
Senior guard Trey Galloway was again sidelined by injury. Senior guard Anthony Leal was limited to no points and one rebound in eight minutes because of a sprained ankle. Freshman guard Gabe Cupps failed to score.
"Not having Trey hurt," Rosemond told Fischer. "He had been playing well. We overcame it in the Michigan State game. We overcame it in the Penn State game. But playing a team like this, you need two to three ballhandlers.
"We have to get Gabe better at making plays for other guys, but he's been great this year. He's been steady. We need another guy to make plays."
Nebraska, which beat IU for the third time this season, had the advantage of the double bye and was playing in its first Big Ten tourney game. The Hoosiers were coming off an emotional tourney win over Penn State Thursday night.
Was fatigue a factor?
"I don't know if our guys were tired," Rosemond told Fischer. "We won't make excuses because we were trying to get to the NCAA Tournament, but that might have played a part in it."
Nebraska will play No. 2 seed Illinois (24-8) in Saturday's semifinals. Top-seed Purdue (29-3) will play fifth-seed Wisconsin (21-12) in the other semifinals.
IU opened with two turnovers. Nebraska opened with a pair of three-pointers. Reneau countered with two- and three-point baskets. Mgbako followed with a three-point play for an 8-8 tie.
An Mgbako shot-clock-beating 3-pointer put the Hoosiers ahead 15-13.
Nebraska responded with four more 3-pointers (giving it seven, four from Brice Williams) and took a 31-21 lead in a game that already had six lead changes.
Mgbako's three free throws -- making IU 6-for-6 on the line to Nebraska's 0-for-0 -- briefly kept the Hoosiers within range.
Then guard Keisei Tominaga got hot from beyond the arc as Nebraska surged ahead 50-27 by halftime. The Cornhuskers had 12 3-pointers. IU made just one of its last 15 shots. Mgbako had 14 points and six rebounds. Ware, who had been so dominant coming down the stretch, had zero points.
In Bloomington, the Hoosiers had cut a 20-point halftime Nebraska lead to three before losing. Could they duplicate that rally?
They could not.
The Cornhuskers scored the first two points of the second half for a 25-point lead.
A Gunn 3-pointer and Ware steal and dunk got the Hoosiers within 18 points six minutes into the second half but could never build on it. Reneau fouled out with nine minutes left with nine points and five rebounds. A few minutes later, Woodson picked up his second technical and was ejected.
By then, the deficit was too large to overcome.
"I'm proud of these guys," Rosemond told Fischer. "To do what we've done despite the injuries is a tribute to Coach and our guys. They kept fighting. They could have folded the tent when we lost four in a row."
IU figures to be a strong player in the transfer portal. Galloway said he would do his recruiting part.
"I'm going to be the biggest recruiter I can be. The portal is here. We can't pretend that it isn't."
IUHoosiers.com
MINNEAPOLIS -- The Indiana winning streak was ending, a postseason opportunity was fading, and senior guard Xavier Johnson couldn't watch.
A towel covered his head and face while sitting on the bench as the clock ticked toward zero Friday night. When it ended, IU had fallen to hot-shooting Nebraska 93-66 in the Big Ten tourney quarterfinals.
The sixth-seeded Hoosiers (19-14), which came in on a five-game winning streak, never recovered from a 17-0 half-ending Cornhusker run. Nebraska (23-9) hit 14 3-pointers, 12 in the first half.
"We just didn't have any answers from a defensive standpoint," coach Mike Woodson said in the post-game press conference.
"The bottom line is, we've got to get better. I don't want to sit here this time next year not playing in the NCAA Tournament."
IU, so dominant all season in the paint behind center Kel'el Ware and forward Malik Reneau, managed just 24 points in the paint. Ware and Reneau combined for just 17 points on 6-for-18 shooting.
"Our guys fought hard," associate head coach Yasir Rosemond told Voice of the Hoosiers Don Fischer during the post-game radio show. "We had some injuries this year. Coach won't let us make excuses. We thought we had a good game plan.
"Nebraska, when they play us, they shoot the heck out of the ball. They shot it great. We couldn't get our offense going. They took away our big guys and our guards didn't make a lot of shots."
Forward Mackenzie Mgbako had 16 points and seven rebounds. Guard CJ Gunn came off the bench for a career-high 17 points. Johnson finished with eight points, five rebounds, and five assists. IU did go 13-for-13 from the free throw line.
Senior guard Trey Galloway was again sidelined by injury. Senior guard Anthony Leal was limited to no points and one rebound in eight minutes because of a sprained ankle. Freshman guard Gabe Cupps failed to score.
"Not having Trey hurt," Rosemond told Fischer. "He had been playing well. We overcame it in the Michigan State game. We overcame it in the Penn State game. But playing a team like this, you need two to three ballhandlers.
"We have to get Gabe better at making plays for other guys, but he's been great this year. He's been steady. We need another guy to make plays."
Nebraska, which beat IU for the third time this season, had the advantage of the double bye and was playing in its first Big Ten tourney game. The Hoosiers were coming off an emotional tourney win over Penn State Thursday night.
Was fatigue a factor?
"I don't know if our guys were tired," Rosemond told Fischer. "We won't make excuses because we were trying to get to the NCAA Tournament, but that might have played a part in it."
Nebraska will play No. 2 seed Illinois (24-8) in Saturday's semifinals. Top-seed Purdue (29-3) will play fifth-seed Wisconsin (21-12) in the other semifinals.
IU opened with two turnovers. Nebraska opened with a pair of three-pointers. Reneau countered with two- and three-point baskets. Mgbako followed with a three-point play for an 8-8 tie.
An Mgbako shot-clock-beating 3-pointer put the Hoosiers ahead 15-13.
Nebraska responded with four more 3-pointers (giving it seven, four from Brice Williams) and took a 31-21 lead in a game that already had six lead changes.
Mgbako's three free throws -- making IU 6-for-6 on the line to Nebraska's 0-for-0 -- briefly kept the Hoosiers within range.
Then guard Keisei Tominaga got hot from beyond the arc as Nebraska surged ahead 50-27 by halftime. The Cornhuskers had 12 3-pointers. IU made just one of its last 15 shots. Mgbako had 14 points and six rebounds. Ware, who had been so dominant coming down the stretch, had zero points.
In Bloomington, the Hoosiers had cut a 20-point halftime Nebraska lead to three before losing. Could they duplicate that rally?
They could not.
The Cornhuskers scored the first two points of the second half for a 25-point lead.
A Gunn 3-pointer and Ware steal and dunk got the Hoosiers within 18 points six minutes into the second half but could never build on it. Reneau fouled out with nine minutes left with nine points and five rebounds. A few minutes later, Woodson picked up his second technical and was ejected.
By then, the deficit was too large to overcome.
"I'm proud of these guys," Rosemond told Fischer. "To do what we've done despite the injuries is a tribute to Coach and our guys. They kept fighting. They could have folded the tent when we lost four in a row."
IU figures to be a strong player in the transfer portal. Galloway said he would do his recruiting part.
"I'm going to be the biggest recruiter I can be. The portal is here. We can't pretend that it isn't."
Team Stats
IND
Nebr
FG%
.353
.500
3FG%
.250
.438
FT%
1.000
.792
RB
37
40
TO
12
11
STL
8
8
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
16
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
7
Pts
9
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Pts
8
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
Guard
/ Men's Basketball
Guard
/ Men's BasketballGuard
/ Men's Basketball
Guard
/ Men's BasketballForward
/ Men's BasketballForward
/ Men's Basketball
Center
/ 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