SIMON SKJODT ASSEMBLY HALL – After a disappointing loss in Iowa City last weekend, the Indiana Men’s Basketball team returned home to take on 19th ranked Illinois in IU’s first ranked matchup since their 89-73 loss to Gonzaga in the Bahamas last November. Similar to Thanksgiving Day, the Hoosiers trailed the Illini for the majority of the ball game, and lost
94-69.
The Hoosiers came out of the gate on a solid foot, sticking with the Illini through the first four minutes. However, after the under-16 media timeout, the Hoosiers went cold failing to get the ball through the basket for four and a half minutes. The drought was cut by a Bryson Tucker mid-range bucket; but by that point, it was too little too late, and the Hoosiers trailed by 10.
“We haven't been getting off to a good start… I got to put guys in there that I think is going to get us off to a good start and see if we can maintain it over a 40-minute ballgame,” said Indiana Head Coach Mike Woodson.
As time drew on in the 1st half, Illinois’ lead grew. With under seven minutes to play, two Illini were in double-digit scoring, and the Illini were out-rebounding the Hoosiers 20 to 6. Those 20 rebounds (which reached 29 by the end of the first half and 51 by the end of the game) turned into 17 second-chance points for the Illini.
“We're not playing tough enough,” said Indiana Guard Luke Goode. “That's been our biggest issue so far. We come out and let teams kind of punk us in a sense.”
The second half started a bit better for the Hoosiers who trailed 60-32 coming out of the break. Illinois’ Tre White got a technical foul in the first 2 minutes of the half, Myles Rice drilled four free throws, and Assembly Hall got loud. The Hoosiers cut Illinois’ lead down to 16, but the Illini responded and re-extended the lead beyond twenty.
“Got to give Illinois a lot of credit, their coaching staff. They played great,” Woodson added. “Guys just didn't step up tonight.”
The Hoosiers finished shooting 38% from the field and 22% from 3. They were 0-13 from beyond the arc before Trey Galloway made the team’s first three with 5:48 left to play in the 2nd half (the longest it’s taken them to make a triple in a game this season).Indiana Guard Anthony Leal said after the game, “[I]t really doesn't matter what we do if we're not going to do it hard, with effort and toughness. That's what it comes down to.”
The Hoosiers left Assembly Hall suffering their 2nd worst home loss ever (the worst being a 32-point loss to Wisconsin in 2010). Illinois’ 94 points is the most a visiting team has scored in regulation in Assembly Hall’s history, and it’s IU’s first back-to-back 20+ point losses since 2008.
“Long season, man. I mean, you can't throw in the towel,” Woodson said. “Do I think we're good enough to win? Yeah, I do. I just got to get us to believe that.”
After an embarrassing loss, the Hoosiers have to reassess before they take on the hardest part of their schedule “[W]e all have to understand amongst ourselves first and then just [come] in with the right mindset every day,” said Leal. “Sure, we just did lose two, but we're staring nine quad one games in a row in the face.”
The Hoosier’s next contest is in Columbus, OH against an Ohio State team that narrowly lost to 15th ranked Oregon last Thursday.
