IU men’s basketball’s offense struggled on the road once again as it was blown out by No. 24 Penn State on Wednesday, 64-49.
The 49 total points scored by IU’s offense was the lowest of the season.
IU began the second half shooting 1-9 from the field. The Nittany Lions gained a small lead and the Hoosiers’ porous offensive display was never going to get back into the game. Penn State’s lead continued to grow through the second half.
In the first 12 minutes of second half, IU scored just nine points. The team only scored 21 total in the second half. IU shot 9-28 on two-point field goals as a team.
Virtually any offense IU had flowed through freshman forward Trayce Jackson-Davis and junior forward Justin Smith. Jackson-Davis finished the game with 14 points and seven rebounds. Smith scored nine points in the second half. Smith and Jackson-Davis combined to score 55% of IU’s points, for a total of just 27.
IU shot 19-57 overall on 2-point field goals and 2-11 on 3-pointers. The Hoosiers committed 18 turnovers and the Nittany Lions scored 21 points off them.
IU may have had its best offensive performance of the season against Maryland on Sunday. It looked as if the Hoosiers had turned a corner. Penn State was a relapse back to the stagnant, inefficient and ugly performances on offense that have plagued the team through its season, especially on the road.
IU quickly got into foul trouble in the first half, especially with its forwards. That greatly limited head coach Archie Miller’s rotation in a game where he already didn’t have sophomore forward Race Thompson due to an undisclosed injury and redshirt freshman forward Jerome Hunter was sitting out with an illness.
With the loss, IU drops to 15-6 overall and 5-5 in the Big Ten. The Hoosiers have won just one road game this season. IU will remain on the road this weekend with a trip to Columbus, Ohio, to face a reeling Ohio State team. Tip off is scheduled for noon and the game will be aired on ESPN.
