On a night when the Indiana men’s basketball team shot 50 percent from 3-point range, won the rebound battle and got 20 points from sophomore center Kel’El Ware, the Hoosiers lost 86-70 to Nebraska. More spacious.
The Hoosiers allowed 12 3-pointers.
In the first game of the new year, played Wednesday night at Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln, Nebraska, Indiana committed a season-high 19 turnovers, well above its previous average of 12.3 turnovers per game. The Cornhuskers took advantage of these mistakes and scored 27 points, more than enough points for an easy win.
“I thought that was the difference in the game,” Indiana head coach Mike Woodson said after the game. “When you go on the road, you have to play differently than you do at home…you can’t turn that around. I thought that was the biggest problem tonight.”
Ware and sophomore forward Malik Renaud each had four turnovers despite outpacing the team’s scoring. Redshirt senior guard Xavier Johnson, returning after missing seven games with an ankle injury, added four more turnovers in just 14 minutes.
Nebraska was excellent in transition. The Cornhuskers, who often took advantage of Indiana’s mistakes and rushed to the other side of the court, were able to do considerable damage as the Hoosiers clumsily tried to lock up their defense. This resulted in a lot of open looks on the perimeter and Indiana fouls.
On Wednesday night, seven of the Hoosiers’ 10 players recorded at least two fouls, and Nebraska made 26 shots from the free-throw line. This season, the Cornhuskers averaged just over 16 attempts per game from the stripe.
Indiana’s incompetence with turnovers and fouls culminated time and time again. With just under eight minutes left in the game, Nebraska senior forward Josiah Arick swiped the ball from Ware, pushed it up the court and handed it to senior guard Keisei Tominaga.
Tominaga was a dangerous threat from beyond the arc — he made 4 of 10 from range — but went for the shot, but was fouled by Indiana sophomore guard CJ Gunn. It was done. Tominaga made three shots from the free throw line. After the game, Ware said his team’s mistakes were self-imposed, not ones forced on Nebraska.
“It was just us throwing bad passes to each other,” Ware said.
After a first half filled with nine turnovers, the opening minutes of the second period proved that the Hoosiers had not solved their glaring problems. Renaud appeared to have successfully corralled the loose ball as it rolled to the floor, rolling it aimlessly into the hands of Nebraska junior guard Bryce Williams.
The Cornhuskers quickly caught on to the Hoosiers’ defense, and Tominaga hit a baseline jumper, forcing Woodson to take a timeout just 90 seconds into the first half. After an 18-turnover performance against Kennesaw State University on December 29thIndiana is starting to trend in an alarming direction.
“We’ve been pretty good in that area the last two years,” Woodson said. “The last two games, We exploded the other way in terms of turning the ball over. You can’t beat someone who has 19 turnovers, especially on the road. ”
Hoosier guards endured a continuing struggle Tuesday night.
In fact, the Hoosiers’ turnovers have shown that the past few games have shown notable comparisons to previous seasons. In the 2021-22 season, Indiana averaged just under 12 turnovers per game. In 2022-23, that number was 11.5.
The Hoosiers’ frontcourt duo frequently pivoted endlessly and gave up on trying to thread passes into tight windows as Nebraska’s defenders crowded into the paint and chased Ware and Renaud on the outside.
A byproduct of the Cornhuskers’ emphasis on forcing Indiana out has changed the very foundations of the Hoosiers’ offensive system. With little consistent 3-point shooting threat this season, Ware and Renaud have made a living by playing near the basket and inviting fouls.
Through the first half Wednesday night, Indiana finished on just seven shots from the last line, below its season average of about 17 per game. Failing to take advantage of Ware and Renaud’s size inside forced the Hoosiers to play outside of their comfort zone.
Even though Wednesday night was Indiana University’s first conference loss of the season, the result confirmed Woodson’s continued thoughts about a mismatch with the group. Being able to manage the ball and eliminate unforced errors will be paramount as the Hoosiers enter the remaining Big Ten games, especially play outside of Simon Skyot Assembly Hall.
“We’ve been competitive the entire time, we just need to be competitive for 40 minutes,” Woodson said. “When you get a fan base, it seems like you play a little bit better, but it’s different on the road. To win basketball games, you have to do everything right on the road, but tonight… couldn’t do that.”
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