When he drove down the lane and was stuffed by 7-foot center Marshall Plumlee.
When IU Coach Tom Crean was forced to call a timeout after Duke opened the second half on a 7-0 run.
When Duke hit its ninth 3-pointer of the game — Ferrell stood up off the bench and subbed himself in.
And as IU fell to No. 7 Duke 94-74 at Cameron Indoor Stadium on Wednesday night.
“Ferrell’s one of the best guards in the country, and he sets these guys up so well,” Duke Coach Mike Krzyzewski said.
He said one of his team’s keys was to contain Ferrell’s ability to distribute the ball. The senior guard finished with five assists, but Duke’s defense was enough to frustrate IU’s high-speed offense.
“In the limited amount of time we had for practice, that’s what we practiced on,” Krzyzewski said. “He had five, but in some games he could have 12.”
Despite a 2-of-7 shooting performance in the first half, Ferrell willed his way to 15 points, the Hoosiers’ second-highest point total. Troy Williams finished with 17 points on 6-of-7 shooting.
IU’s guards were unable to get anything going to the rim throughout the game. When outside shots weren’t falling, they resorted to getting in the lane and forcing shots.
It’s not easy for Ferrell to drive against players who are a foot taller.
“The length and strength and experience on that front line forces errors,” IU Coach Tom Crean said. “And we didn’t get enough guard rebounds to make up for that.”
Size wasn’t the Hoosiers only problem under the basket. Twenty-five minutes into the game, Duke’s front court had outrebounded IU’s front court 18-1. The Blue Devils used their physicality to outgain the Hoosiers on the boards, 38-25.
That included 19 offensive rebounds.
Twice in the first half, Duke pulled down rebounds off its own free throw misses — a time when IU players automatically had inside position.
It led to an 18-point advantage in second-chance points for the Blue Devils.
“Our young guys had not seen that length,” Crean said. “I think we’ll get a lot better.”
IU, which was ranked No. 13 a week ago, will have to wait another day to prove it’s a top-25 team that can compete with some of the best teams in the country.
IU returns to Bloomington for a three-game home stretch beginning with a matchup with Morehead State.
“It’s early in the season,” Crean said. “We’re anxious to get back on the practice court and improve in all aspects of the game.”
