At the Buzzer: Indiana 72, Army 64
Quick thoughts on a 72-64 win against Army:
How it happened
Indiana came out flat Sunday night at Assembly Hall and Army played like a team eager to pull an upset. The Hoosiers were needlessly careless with the ball in the opening 20 minutes, committing nine turnovers that led to 10 points for the Black Knights. Army also had a ton of open looks from the perimeter, splashing in six of its 21 attempts from distance. The Hoosiers trailed 19-11 midway through the first half. Indiana responded to the eight-point deficit by outscoring Army 21-12 from that point to grab a one-point lead at intermission. Xavier Johnson was the only Hoosier in double figures in the first half with 15 points.
Army didn’t go away early in the second half as the Black Knights tied the game at 42 on a Jared Cross 3-pointer with 14:21 to play. But Indiana went to Kel’el Ware and the 7-footer began to take over the game. Ware’s jumper with 13:24 to play stretched the Hoosier lead to five and Indiana led by six after a 3-point play by Trey Galloway, forcing Kevin Kuwik to call a timeout with 12:18 remaining. But the Black Knights had an answer. After Indiana turned the ball over five times over a six-minute span, Army tied the game at 58 on a Blake Barker layup with 3:46 to play. Out of the final media timeout, Indiana scored six straight points to open a 64-58 lead with 2:13 to play, forcing an Army timeout.
Out of the timeout, Josh Scovens hit a 3-pointer to get Army back within three. The Black Knights fouled Malik Reneau on the next possession and he knocked down both free throws. Scovens then turned it over for Army and a Ware dunk in transition gave Indiana a 68-61 cushion and clinched the victory for the Hoosiers.
Standout performers
Ware led Indiana with 20 points to go along with six rebounds in 31 minutes. Johnson added 19 points and five assists in 29 minutes. Reneau was the third Hoosier in double figures, finishing with 14 points, seven rebounds and five assists in 32 minutes.
Statistics that stand out
Indiana allowed Army to make 12 3-pointers and turned it over 18 times, leading to 13 points for the Black Knights. The Hoosiers were outscored by 27 points from beyond the 3-point arc.
Final IU individual statistics
Final tempo-free statistics
Assembly Call postgame show
Filed to: Army Black Knights