Sloppiness and faulty perimeter play sink Indiana in 86-70 loss at Nebraska
Carelessness. Frustration. Butterfingers. Miscommunication, defensive breakdowns, lack of energy. Call it what you want. Whatever it was, it wasn’t pretty.
The first game of 2024 was full of promise for the Hoosiers. Xavier Johnson was back in uniform for the first time since November 26 and Kel’el Ware had recovered from the illness that kept him out of Indiana’s previous win against Kennesaw State. Malik Reneau was coming off of a career-high 34 points and seemed to be finding a bit of a rhythm from the perimeter, and Indiana sat on top of the Big Ten at 2-0 in conference play.
Then, the Hoosiers walked into Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln, Nebraska.
Any remaining fireworks from New Year’s Eve just a few nights prior were solely in the possession of the Huskers throughout Wednesday night’s game. The home team saw four of its players score in double figures, shot 20-for-26 from the free throw line, and totaled a whopping 15 steals. You could equate their play to fireworks that leave viewers speechless and in awe.
Indiana, on the other hand, elicited the kinds of feelings one might get when watching a young child run around with a lit firecracker in their hand: surprise, panic, confusion and an overwhelming sense of uncertainty.
The Hoosiers’ 86-70 loss to the Huskers marked their first loss in conference play and highlighted what the team needs to work on to succeed for the rest of the season: just about everything.
Perhaps the most glaring issue was Indiana’s carelessness with the basketball. Turnovers were plentiful and came often, working to boost Nebraska’s momentum while keeping Indiana’s from existing in the first place. A total of 19 Hoosier turnovers led to 27 Husker points. Sixteen of those turnovers came from Indiana’s starting lineup.
“We basically gifted them 27 points on turnovers,” Mike Woodson said in his postgame radio interview with Don Fischer. “That, I thought, was the difference in the game tonight.”
In his first appearance since November 26, Xavier Johnson had four turnovers, as did Kel’el Ware and Malik Reneau. Trey Galloway had three. Mackenzie Mgbako had one.
While Nebraska’s defense was tenacious, often doubling in the post to force shots from players not named Reneau and Ware, many of Indiana’s miscues were self-inflicted. Something as simple as a pass that was mistimed or a throw that slipped through someone’s fingers gave Nebraska a chance to score, and more often than not, the Huskers capitalized.
Indiana’s defense was anything but solid in the first half, lacking in energy and court vision and overflowing with flailing arms and legs. In the first 20 minutes alone, Nebraska shot from the charity stripe 15 times — making 11 of them — thanks to 11 fouls from Indiana. The second half was minutely better, as the Huskers went 9-for-11 from the line on eight Hoosier fouls while totaling 11 of their own. However, Indiana only made eight of their 12 free throws in the second half and shot 13-for-19 from the stripe overall.
To make matters worse, Indiana’s perimeter play did little but make up for the rest of their troubles. The Hoosiers finished the night shooting 50 percent on 3-pointers, with nine. Still, that feat was grossly overshadowed by their inability to have a strong presence on the perimeter on either end.
“When I look at the stat sheet tonight, the perimeter play, they outplayed our starting two guards, who were awful tonight,” Woodson said in the postgame press conference. “I think a lot of times we were trying to create things that weren’t there.”
Galloway scored 10 points and went 2-for-6 from beyond the arc and Johnson went 0-for-3 with no perimeter shots in his 15 minutes of play. The two combined for three rebounds and five assists, and Johnson was also whistled for three fouls. Nebraska’s guards, on the other hand, excelled. Keisei Tominaga scored 28 points with four 3-pointers and Brice Williams and Jamar Lawrence combined for five 3-pointers.
“This team is not as good as we were defensively in the last two years,” Woodson said. “And a lot of it is because we do have new faces, but we’ve got to overcome that.”
It’s no secret that playing on the road in the Big Ten with a team full of new faces is a tall task. But, 14 games into the season, some of the mistakes and miscues coming from the Hoosiers are inexcusable. Mike Woodson knows it. You can bet his players do, too. The question now is, are they able to change it?
(Photo credit: IU Athletics)
Filed to: Nebraska Cornhuskers