Hoosiers Seek to Bounce Back Against No. 6 Louisville

By Pete DiPrimio
IUHoosiers.com

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Silver-lining opportunities are there for the taking if the Indiana Hoosiers are willing enough, resolved enough, ticked enough.

Wednesday night's 73-64 Big Ten-season-opening loss to Minnesota exposed flaws and delivered teaching points head coach Darian DeVries is determined to maximize with his No. 22/19 Hoosiers (7-1).

"There are just a lot of little things that matter in winning," he says. "Free throw box outs, making free throws, a lot of things that we've done really well for the most part this year."

Making just 7-of-14 second-half free throws at Minnesota was a problem. So was being out-scored 14-7 on second-chance points by allowing 10 offensive rebounds and getting out-rebounded 40-25 overall.

"When you're in conference play and in games like that," DeVries says, "those possessions are so golden. You've got to value every little aspect of the game.

"There were a couple out-of-bounds plays where we missed some assignments. Those one, two, three baskets, they matter. That's something hopefully we'll really be able to take from this."

Minnesota defensive physicality and tenacity targeted Tucker DeVries and Lamar Wilkerson, IU's leading scorers. Tucker DeVries finished with nine points (eight below his season average) on 3-for-13 shooting, including 3-for-10 on 3-pointers. Wilkerson had 15 points, but made only 5-of-14 shots.

"I think (Minnesota) did a good job being physical with Tucker and Lamar, making catches tough, made the opportunities for them to come off clean (for open shots) challenging," Darian DeVries says.

The solution, he adds, is to make teams pay for their defensive emphasis on Wilkerson and Tucker DeVries by better utilizing the other Hoosiers.

"That will create opportunities for those (other guys), but also find ways to get (Wilkerson and Tucker DeVries) open."

Now comes Saturday afternoon's marquee opportunity against No. 6 Louisville (7-1) at Indianapolis' Gainbridge Fieldhouse. It's part of a huge Hoosier day that will end with second-ranked Indiana (12-0) playing top-ranked Ohio State (12-0) that night at nearby Lucas Oil Stadium for the Big Ten football championship and the No. 1 seed in the upcoming College Playoffs.

Louisville also lost for the first time Wednesday night when it was beaten at No. 25 Arkansas 89-80. The aftermath had Cardinals coach Pat Kelsey angry about being too passive, about fouling too much and not rebounding better. He wanted a great response to the season's first real adversity.

Darian DeVries wants the same thing.

Louisville, which has quality wins over Kentucky and Cincinnati, is led by senior guard Ryan Conwell, a former Indianapolis Pike High School standout who averages 19.5 points and 4.9 rebounds while shooting 41.9 percent on 3-pointers.

The Cardinals have three other double-figure scorers – freshman guard Mike Brown Jr. (17.6 points, a team-leading 45 assists), senior guard Isaac McKneely (12.1 points), and 6-foot-10 junior center Sanada Fru (10.4 points, 6.1 rebounds).

Louisville out-rebounds opponents by 10 boards a game. It has taken 286 3-pointers and made 101, (35.3%). Its 12.6 made 3-pointers per game rank second nationally.

For comparison, IU has taken 223 3-pointers and made 82 (36.8%).

This game is part of the third annual CareSource Invitational, a series of games dedicated to raising awareness and funds for adolescent and young adult mental health.

During last Monday night's coaches' show, Darian DeVries told Voice of the Hoosiers Don Fischer that the Cardinals open the floor and shoot a lot of 3-pointers.

"It's going to be a lot of fun, a great environment," he told Fischer. "Hopefully it's not as 'neutral' as they think it's going to be. … I think there will be a lot of Hoosier fans in the area that day."

Hoosiers Seek to Bounce Back Against No. 6 Louisville

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Tucker DeVries

Lamar Wilkerson

Indiana University Athletics