Indiana opened Massive Ten play with an 82-67 win towards Minnesota on Monday evening at Simon Skjodt Meeting Corridor.
It was Indiana’s fourth straight win and improved the Hoosiers to 8-2. Listed below are 5 takeaways from the win towards the Golden Gophers:
Bryson Tucker shines in 20 minutes off the bench
Freshman wing Bryson Tucker has been up and down by way of Indiana’s first ten video games however performed arguably his finest minutes of the season towards Minnesota.
Tucker scored a career-best 16 factors on 6-for-10 taking pictures from the sector and a 4-for-6 efficiency from the free throw line.
The McDonald’s All-American has an affinity for the mid-range recreation however bought his offense going towards Minnesota on the rim. Tucker’s first two subject targets got here on a second-chance layup and one other layup lower than two minutes later. 4 of his six subject targets had been layups.
The 16-point efficiency towards Minnesota got here after Tucker had arguably his worst recreation of the season towards Miami (OH) on Friday.
“After that recreation, I simply needed to preserve my thoughts proper and know that there’s loads of video games to return,” Tucker mentioned postgame. “So if I’ve a nasty recreation one recreation, I do know I can change it. I do know the whole lot can change the subsequent recreation. So I simply have to remain centered and preserve my thoughts proper and preserve going.”
Kanaan Carlyle returns and makes an on the spot affect
Sophomore guard Kanaan Carlyle returned from his three-game absence together with his finest all-around recreation of the season.
The 6-foot-3 guard got here off the bench and scored 14 factors, dished out 5 assists and grabbed three rebounds in 21 minutes.
Carlyle was 5-for-8 from the sector, together with 3-for-6 on 3-pointers. Offense has been a wrestle early this season for Carlyle, who’s taking pictures simply 30 % on 3s and 40 % on 2s in seven video games.
However he’s been Indiana’s most constant guard on the defensive finish. He continuously applies stress on the ball, fights by way of screens and isn’t shy about diving on the ground for hustle performs.
“Simply selecting up 94 toes,” Carlyle mentioned postgame when requested what he’s doing nicely defensively. “I really feel like that will get my complete recreation going, simply my protection, my vitality, so I really feel like that’s what I must convey each single evening as a result of that’s additionally what will get my offense going.”
Turnovers stay a problem
Indiana’s snug 15-point win wasn’t excellent and essentially the most obvious problem offensively was taking good care of the ball.
The Hoosiers proceed to try passes that don’t have any probability of reaching their supposed recipient. Indiana had a number of errant passes that hit the rim or the backboard.
On one other event, Myles Rice misplaced his shoe, tried to avoid wasting the ball whereas falling out of bounds and threw it to Minnesota for a layup.
Indiana had 14 turnovers for a turnover proportion of 20.6 %. By way of 10 video games, the Hoosiers rank 287th in turnover proportion at 19.7.
The continued errors haven’t stopped Indiana from successful video games towards inferior competitors. However that received’t be the case as soon as Massive Ten play ramps up and the Hoosiers are taking part in groups who can capitalize on their errors.
Struggles from the 3-point and free throw strains
Indiana dominated the sport contained in the 3-point line, scoring 42 factors within the paint and taking pictures 66.7 % on 2s.
The Hoosiers scored 1.21 factors per possession regardless of a tricky taking pictures evening from the free throw line and an off-night from the perimeter.
Indiana was simply 18-for-29 (62.1 %) from the free throw line. It was an uncharacteristic efficiency for a group now taking pictures 75.2 % from the road. That proportion ranks eightieth within the nation.
The three-point quantity was once more low as Indiana tried simply 14 3s within the win and linked on 4 for 28.6 %.
The Hoosiers proceed to inch in the direction of the very backside of Division I in 3-point quantity. As of Tuesday morning, Indiana is trying 29.7 % of its subject targets from behind the 3-point line. That ranks 351st out of 364 groups.
Improved vitality and urgency
Indiana’s first half towards Minnesota was one in every of its finest 20-minute stretches of the season.
Regardless of a sizzling taking pictures begin for the Gophers, the Hoosiers took management of the sport by the 4:41 mark of the primary half.
After Minnesota led 22-20 on a Brennan Rigsby jumper within the lane with 11:42 left within the half, the Hoosiers went on a 16-1 run over a seven-minute stretch.
The Gophers missed eight straight pictures in the course of the run and had only one offensive rebound.
For essentially the most half, Indiana performed with vitality and the urgency it has solely exhibited briefly stretches early this season. Nonetheless, as happy as Mike Woodson was with the primary half, he wasn’t thrilled with a second half efficiency through which the Hoosiers outscored by Minnesota by two.
“I assumed we performed nice the primary half,” Woodson defined. “The ball moved. Then, within the second half, we began very well, I assumed, however we bought to get some issues mounted, too, as a result of I assumed we had some lapses the place we simply didn’t play good offense. I assumed there was some egocentric play right here and there and we threw the ball away. We didn’t make some free throws.
“We bought to construct on this recreation however these are areas that we will repair and once you get a group down 15, 20 factors, you bought to recollect how you bought them down and proceed to do the identical issues that bought you the lead and I don’t assume we did that coming down the stretch.”
Filed to: Bryson Tucker, Kanaan Carlyle, Minnesota Golden Gophers
