Indiana struggled to get its offense going all night long. After falling behind 6-2, the Hoosiers entered the under-16 media timeout with a 1-point deficit.
As he has in all of Indiana’s games thus far, head coach Darian DeVries turned to senior forward Sam Alexis as one of his first subs off the bench. Shortly after checking in, Alexis slammed home an emphatic dunk that set the tone for his team-leading offensive effort in the Hoosiers’ 69-61 win against the University of the Incarnate Word.
In the first half, Indiana’s most prolific scorers so far — redshirt senior forward Tucker DeVries and fifth-year senior guard Lamar Wilkerson — combined for only 9 points on three for nine shooting.
As a team, the Hoosiers struggled from beyond the arc, only connecting on three of 13 attempts from long distance in the first half. It was the fewest triples Indiana has hit in any half this season. Until they hit just two in the final 20 minutes.
Despite shooting woes, Indiana was able to build a 16-point lead before halftime. And the effort was largely thanks to the interior presence of Alexis.
A second chance bucket from Alexis at the 12:43 mark of the first half kicked off a 20-2 Indiana run that lasted nearly eight and a half minutes. During the spurt, Alexis had 9 points and added two more dunks. Alexis ended the half with a game-high 13 points.
“When you got guys like Lamar (Wilkerson) and Tuck (Tucker DeVries), other guys on our team that can shoot it so well it gives me opportunities to just slip and get easy wide open dunks,” Alexis said postgame.
Alexis’ buckets came almost exclusively from right underneath the basket, showcasing his skill in the two-man game, particularly with sixth-year senior guard Tayton Conerway, who racked up seven assists on the night.
“Without him we weren't winning that game today,” Tucker DeVries said postgame. “He was a beast down low and that's probably where it starts. As our guards and wings we got to get downhill more and get to the free throw line and then get our rhythm in that.”
Alexis might not operate like a guard or a wing, but throughout the game he displayed his ability to get to the free throw line. As a strong presence in the paint and a threat to dunk the ball, Alexis consistently found ways to get to the basket and attract contact from the defense.
But converting opportunities at the charity stripe proved to be a challenge for the Hoosiers — one that carried over from the last game. Alexis ended the game 6-8 at the free throw line.
In its first two games of the season, Indiana shot 36 for 40 from the line. Against the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, the Hoosiers shot 19 for 27. And against Incarnate Word, Indiana made 18 of 26. In their second two-game stretch of the season, the Hoosiers shot 69.8% from the line, down from 90% in the first two contests. Alexis’ 75% was ahead of the curve.
But as Indiana’s struggles from beyond the arc continued in the second half, Alexis began to cool off. He finished the game with 16 points, adding just 3 in the second frame. While he didn’t have as big an impact on the scoreboard in the second half, Alexis’ effort led the team, making him the fourth different highest-scoring player the Hoosiers have had this season.
“Sam is playing great. He was one of the guys tonight that really brought some good energy, some good physicality,” Darian DeVries said postgame. “I thought he was terrific. I thought he had a really good night.”
The halftime lead Alexis spearheaded proved to be just enough to hang on for the victory. Incarnate Word cut the lead to five in the closing minutes, but Indiana was able to seal the win with a key defensive stop and clutch free throws. In addition to leading the team in scoring, Alexis added eight rebounds and a block.
The Hoosiers will look to reestablish their shooting prowess against Lindenwood University at 6 p.m. Nov. 20 inside Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall in Bloomington.
Follow reporters Dalton James (@DaltonMJames and jamesdm@iu.edu) and Nathan Shriberg (@NShriberg and naashri@iu.edu) and columnist Kasey Watkins (@KaseyWatki8773 and kaslwatk@iu.edu) for updates throughout the Indiana men’s basketball season.
