Frustrations turned over in N.C.

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Even with all the warnings and premonitions of a stressful season, IU coach Tom Crean and the team’s exuberance at the start the season was contagious.

But after their 83-58 thrashing at the hands of No. 15 Wake Forest, that exuberance turned to frustration.

When asked how he felt his team handled playing in their first true road game, Crean responded, “I think 26 turnovers tell the story.”

The 26 turnovers, along with the Demon Deacons’ 20 fast-break points compared to IU’s four, could be a result of the team’s lack of communication, Crean said.

“Before we can learn to compete, we’ve got to learn to talk more to one another,” the coach added. “We’ve got to learn to listen better.”

Even with all the telltale signs of a potentially long season, losing does not come naturally to Crean or the team. Last season, Crean guided Marquette to the NCAA Tournament while the majority of his current roster was enjoying successful high school careers.

In their losses to St. Joseph’s and now to Wake Forest, the Hoosiers hung tough for part or most of the first half before eventually fading in the second half.  

Freshman guard/forward Malik Story, who made his first start on Wednesday and notched 10 points, said part of the reason for the team not being able to maintain their starts is a lack of communication.

“We’re not coming together as a team, we’re not talking on the court, we’re not doing a lot of different things to have each other’s back,” Story said. “We need to work on that.”

Crean wouldn’t go into what he told the team after the game, saying only there’s improvement to be made.

“I’m not going to talk about that,” Crean said. “You want to ask me questions about the game that’s fine. But I’m not going to give you some dissertation on what we did defensively or what we did after the game. We’ve got to get better, just leave it at that.”

A bright spot for the Hoosiers on Wednesday was the shooting of freshman guard Matt Roth, who tallied 12 points on 4-5 shooting from behind the arc. Roth admitted the blowout losses are hard on him but said he and the rest of his teammates are used to winning and are struggling through it together.  

“It’s hard, at the same time everybody on this team has come from a winning background, and that’s something we all have in common,” Roth said. “It’s not like we’re all out there on our own.”

IU has a quick turnaround before it must face an even higher ranked opponent Saturday in No. 5 Gonzaga in Indianapolis. Along with taking care of the ball and communication, Crean said the team also needs to constantly stick to the game plan laid out for them.

“We’re not a team that can deviate from what the plan is,” Crean said. “Whether it’s offensively or defensively.”