Would a win have been good? In fact. However it felt just like the Hoosiers might need wanted a whole sport much more than a win for no different cause than to show to themselves and everybody else that they may do it.
Indiana couldn’t even put collectively one good 20-minute half. Because of this, the Hoosiers misplaced their fourth straight sport, falling to Penn State 83-74. The loss marked the primary time Penn State has swept Indiana within the common season because the 2008-09 season.
“I’m upset with the way in which we performed, the way in which I’ve coached this workforce this entire season,” Mike Woodson mentioned postgame.
The Hoosiers now sit at 14-13 total and 6-10 in convention play and are tied for twelfth in convention standings.
It’s not essentially that Indiana didn’t struggle; Malik Reneau performed 35 minutes and scored a game-high 27 factors, and Indiana minimize Penn State’s result in one possession a number of occasions within the second half. The 2 groups even traded the lead backwards and forwards within the first half.
However there wasn’t sufficient struggle or sufficient good basketball to hold Indiana by means of.
“We simply didn’t make performs coming down the stretch of the primary half to maintain us proper there,” Woodson mentioned. “However that wasn’t the distinction within the sport. I believed we battled. I take a look at the stat sheet, take a look at the free throws and the missed alternatives to make 3s, I believed that was the distinction.”
Indiana shot 14-of-25 from the free throw line and 2-of-15 from past the arc. Penn State made 9 3-pointers and 26 of its 30 free throws, outscoring Indiana 53-20 in these two classes alone.
Whereas the Hoosiers had attractiveness all through the sport, their first 3-pointer didn’t come till 1:35 remaining within the second half. The second got here with three seconds left. By then, it was too little and much too late. These 3-pointers may have made a distinction earlier within the half when Indiana trailed by three and had the chance to tie. However in these moments, the Hoosiers didn’t even attempt to arrange a play on the perimeter. Nobody appeared assured sufficient to take an opportunity.
“We’re getting attractiveness,” Woodson mentioned. “We’re getting a whole lot of attractiveness. I simply assume from a psychological standpoint I’ve bought to get them to the place they’re comfy simply making them.”
That insecurity unfold to the free throw line as effectively. Indiana went 9-of-12 from the stripe within the first half, build up some optimism that Indiana may capitalize on its residency on the line this time. Then, the Hoosiers solely made 5 of their 13 makes an attempt within the second half.
It’s one thing that’s been a priority for Indiana all through the season. Time and time once more, the Hoosiers have been in positions to capitalize on opponents’ errors or seize momentum after massive performs, they usually haven’t been capable of do it.
“It’s very troublesome as a workforce, understanding we’ve bought the expertise and the gamers to do it,” Reneau mentioned. “However when stuff doesn’t go proper, we let video games slip by and it’s simply arduous to beat, if you let so many video games slip by, and a season slowly simply go by you, realizing you’ve bought 4 video games left. It’s simply arduous to struggle again from that.”
Penn State struggled when Kel’el Ware was within the sport, cautious of his presence across the basket. However he bought referred to as for 2 pointless fouls within the first three minutes of the second half, placing him at 4 fouls and sending him to the bench. Reneau tried his greatest to maintain Indiana within the sport, however Penn State didn’t have Ware to deal with inside anymore. They capitalized.
Equally, Mackenzie Mgbako posed a bodily risk to the Nittany Lions merely due to his construct and the truth that he averaged virtually 12 factors per sport. He took himself out of the sport — actually — when he dedicated two fouls within the first 5 minutes of the sport and was auto-benched by Woodson for the remainder of the primary half.
Comparatively, Penn State’s Ace Baldwin Jr. was referred to as for his second foul with seven minutes to go within the first half and remained within the sport. He scored 10 factors to place the Nittany Lions up by seven heading into the half.
Mgbako performed all 20 minutes of the second half and completed with seven factors, however his absence within the first half elicited questions on what he may have performed if he was on the ground. Alternatively, Baldwin performed for all 40 minutes and scored a team-high 23 factors. There have been no questions on his affect on the sport.
Realistically, Mgbako possible wouldn’t have modified the sport all on his personal. He struggled in his personal proper, as did everybody else. The actual fact of the matter is that nobody was capable of play a clear sport for an prolonged interval and that’s finally why Indiana misplaced.
“I’ve struggled with this workforce this 12 months,” Woodson mentioned, blaming himself. “I gained’t blame my gamers. I’ll all the time put it on Mike Woodson.”
Indiana’s subsequent sport is again in Bloomington in opposition to Wisconsin. The Tuesday night time matchup is certainly one of Indiana’s ultimate two dwelling video games and can as soon as once more be a check as as to whether or not the Hoosiers can play a whole sport. They must in the event that they wish to win.
(Photograph credit score: IU Athletics)
Filed to: Penn State Nittany Lions
