For the second consecutive game, Indiana basketball scratched out a narrow win over a team it was expected to beat handily, this time Army West-Point, taking a 72-64 victory Sunday night.
The Hoosiers were 26-point favorites. The Black Knights entered the game 0-2 with a pair of double-digit losses. With 3:46 left to play in the second half, they were tied at 58.
Indiana was a No. 4 seed in March Madness last season. It lost 10 players to the transfer portal this spring but brought in a talented cast of characters, headlined by 5-star freshman forward Mackenzie Mgbako and Oregon transfer center Kel’el Ware, another former 5-star recruit.
But like in their 69-63 win over Florida Gulf Coast on Nov. 7 during which they held a two-point halftime lead, the Hoosiers were in a dogfight late after a slow first half, leading the Black Knights 32-31 at the break. In the first exhibition game, a 74-52 victory against the University of Indianapolis on Oct. 29, Indiana trailed 27-25 at halftime.
The reason for this repetitive storyline? Not talent, but effort, according to sixth-year senior guard Xavier Johnson.
“In practice we have our young guys – including me, (senior guard Trey) Galloway, and just the whole team – we're not going as hard,” Johnson said postgame. “I think our preparation led to that.”
Perhaps the best example of this is Mgbako, who played only 16 minutes and wasn’t on the floor for the game’s final 15:12. Afterwards, Indiana coach Mike Woodson said Mgbako needs to play harder to stay on the court.
But these issues extend far beyond Mgbako. Per Johnson, they trace back to bad practice habits that have directly translated with close halftime margins.
“Guys in practice, we just go soft up for layups,” Johnson said. “And when we turn over the ball, we think it's on the GAs that's reffing our little games when we play each other. I think we need to get stronger with the ball, and turnovers is the issue right now for this one game honestly.”
The Hoosiers had 18 turnovers against the Black Knights, nine in each half. All five starters had at least two after the team had just 11 versus Florida Gulf Coast.
Offensively, Woodson added that he wants to see more ball movement, better play out of pick and roll actions, greater efficiency from 3-point range and more fast break opportunities.
The Hoosiers have the pieces to fulfill Woodson’s self-proclaimed ideal offense. They’re just not playing to the level that’s needed at this stage, and their defense has done little to help the cause.
“If you get stops and you rebound the ball, you have an opportunity to get out and fast break and make plays,” Woodson said. “If you get in passing lanes and you get easy steals where you can generate offense that way, it's a quick way to get out and play faster. Right now, we're doing none of those things.”
Indiana played the final six minutes of the game with the same five – Johnson, Galloway, Ware, sophomore forward Malik Reneau and freshman guard Gabe Cupps – who played the final 10:43 against Florida Gulf Coast.
This is the core Woodson currently feels most confident in. All but Cupps are starters, a notion of the struggles Indiana’s second unit has had.
Ware had 20 points, Johnson was close behind with 19 and Reneau added 14. No other Hoosier had more than five points. Sophomore guard C.J. Gunn and sophomore forward Kaleb Banks, who Woodson said pre-season were players he wanted to see take the next step, have scored just three combined points through two games.
Indiana’s 2-0 in regular season play and 4-0 when factoring in the exhibition slate, but many of the same flaws have emerged time and again – defensive rotations, limited bench success and slow starts.
Those can be coached, especially with the talent Indiana’s roster has.
But effort can’t – and the Hoosiers have a long way to go in that aspect, perhaps best illustrated by how small Woodson has kept rotations when the game is on the line.
“I'm going to play guys that want to play and play the right way,” Woodson said.
Follow reporters Will Foley (@foles24) and Matt Press (@MattPress23) and columnist Daniel Flick (@ByDanielFlick) for updates throughout the Indiana men’s basketball season.
