LEXINGTON, Ky. — Indiana men’s basketball rebounded from an ugly two-game losing streak with a dominant victory at home over Penn State on Dec. 9. Fifth-year senior guard Lamar Wilkerson’s historic 44-point performance helped restore Hoosier fans’ faith in what first-year head coach Darian DeVries is aiming to build in Bloomington.
But in the first matchup of the Hoosiers’ renewed rivalry with the University of Kentucky, Indiana fell 72-60 inside Rupp Arena in its first trip to Lexington, Kentucky, since 2010. The Cream and Crimson turned the ball over a season-high 18 times in the loss.
For much of the first half, the Hoosiers remained in control of the game. Foul trouble limited Indiana’s ability to pull away, but the Wildcats couldn’t take advantage, only making 13 of 21 free throw attempts in the first half.
The Hoosiers didn’t connect from beyond the arc often in the early stages of the game, but that didn’t stop them from scoring. Ball movement and dribble penetration frequently got Indiana to the free throw line, which is where it did the bulk of its damage in the first half, converting 18 of 19 attempts. The Hoosiers took a seven-point lead into halftime.
But as the game went on, Kentucky upped the intensity. And much like the Cream and Crimson’s matchup with the University of Louisville on Dec. 6, the Hoosiers struggled to deal with increased defensive pressure. An influx of turnovers ensued.
“Yeah, I thought the turnovers; it was a combination of things,” DeVries said postgame. “I thought, you know, we left our feet a few times. I thought we just got on our heels a little bit and didn't play as disciplined as we needed to.”
Indiana exemplified that lack of discipline on the defensive glass. Amid a stretch of five straight turnovers that helped kick off Kentucky’s game-winning 30-11 run in the final 14 minutes, the Hoosiers allowed second-chance points on three straight possessions, the second of which put Kentucky in the lead.
Heading into the contest, Indiana ranked 84th in the nation in defensive rebounding. But Kentucky wasn’t an offensive rebounding juggernaut. The Wildcats entered averaging 11.6 offensive boards per game, ranking 166th in the country. However, Kentucky overpowered Indiana on the offensive glass, scoring 18 second-chance points on 14 offensive boards.
“They just went and got them,” DeVries said of Kentucky’s offensive rebounding effort. “And we didn't do a good enough job of creating space and getting bodies and going and securing the ball.”
While the Hoosiers frequently coughed up the ball, they weren’t claiming it back on the defensive end at their typical rate. Through 10 games, Indiana averaged 6.7 steals per contest. Against Kentucky, the Cream and Crimson registered just two steals. Sixth-year senior guard Tayton Conerway — who has grabbed 19 steals thus far in the year — didn’t nab a steal for only the second time this season.
Indiana followed its season-high 30 assist night against Penn State with a season-low eight assists against Kentucky. Only redshirt senior forward Tucker DeVries posted multiple assists, ending the game with three. But four Hoosiers finished with multiple turnovers. Conerway and DeVries led the team with four turnovers each, senior forward Sam Alexis had three and junior guard Nick Dorn added two.
“Obviously, four turnovers is far too many,” Tucker DeVries said postgame. “As a group, I think when they pick up the pressure, I think we just need to really focus on our execution a little bit more on every possession.”
Despite the many miscues, Indiana had a chance to get back into the game. Trailing 65-58 with three minutes remaining, Wilkerson went up for a layup only to wedge the ball between the rim and the backboard. The Wildcats then deflected the Hoosiers’ first inbounds pass before stealing the next attempt — a careless pass from Conerway.
Kentucky junior forward Mouhamed Dioubate grabbed his sixth of seven offensive rebounds on the ensuing Wildcats possession to set up a second-chance layup to extend the lead to nine and stymie Indiana’s comeback hopes.
Tucker DeVries and Wilkerson combined to shoot 9 for 24 from the field, each ending with 15 points. Conerway added 11 points, and Dorn scored all seven of his points at the free throw line. Alexis tallied only six points and five rebounds in his second game in the starting lineup.
The Hoosiers’ disjointed offense ended with just 60 points — their lowest scoring effort of the season. Indiana won’t play again until it takes on Chicago State University at 1 p.m. Dec. 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.
