Indiana men’s basketball was half a step slow Tuesday night.
When head coach Darian DeVries stood in the bowels of the Galen Center in Los Angeles, he defined allowing free-throw attempts as the starting point for the Hoosiers’ loss.
But he also felt the Cream and Crimson didn’t play like the team that was riding a three-game winning streak — two of those being Quadrant 1 victories — when they fell to USC 81-75 on Tuesday.
“I just didn't think we had our same tenacity that we've had here these last few games,” DeVries said while speaking to reporters postgame.
Indiana was coming off a double-overtime victory over UCLA on Jan. 31. It led by 10 points with just under two minutes left in regulation before blowing the lead. Even with three players fouling out late in the game, the Hoosiers found a way to best the Bruins.
In the two days after that victory, Indiana prepared well and had a good pair of practices, DeVries said. Both squads went on their own short runs throughout much of the first half, and it appeared the Hoosiers would head into the locker room at halftime without much of a deficit.
However, with less than two minutes remaining in the half, the Trojans made three trips to the free-throw line, converting all five and taking a five-point advantage at the break, as they held the Hoosiers scoreless over that stretch.
USC led by as many as 14 points over eight minutes into the second half. A blowout seemed on the horizon. But Indiana cut its deficit.
First, down to four. The Trojans pushed it back to 12.
Second, down to five. The Trojans pushed it back to nine.
The Hoosiers were within four points when sixth-year senior guard Tayton Conerway earned an and-one opportunity with 31 seconds left. He could’ve taken the Cream and Crimson within just one point, but he missed his free throw attempt.
In the end, Indiana couldn’t knock down shots and make timely defensive stops. While fifth-year senior guard Lamar Wilkerson led all scorers with 33 points, no other Hoosier reached double figures. Redshirt senior forward Tucker DeVries and junior guard Nick Dorn combined for just 11 points on 3-for-21 shooting from the field.
“The guys continued the battle, trying to find ways to get it going,” Darian DeVries said. “A few different times, they got down and came back and kept fighting. Had that one last push there at the end, just couldn't come up with a big steal there to tie or take the lead.”
Although there’s no exact way to gauge statistically if the Hoosiers were a step slow, Darian DeVries saw it. Whether it was allowing the Trojans to drive through an open lane or unnecessarily fouling, Indiana didn’t play to its recent level.
Was there an exact reason?
“No, I mean we just couldn't get it done,” Darian DeVries said. “I don't know if the heavy minutes the other night had anything to do with it. They were really engaged. Coming into the game, I thought we were ready. We just didn't quite have it tonight throughout the contest.”
While Darian DeVries wasn’t certain of the reasoning behind the sluggish performance, Wilkerson felt like it was Indiana’s all-around showing, or lack thereof.
Although he went 11 for 20 from the field, made five 3-pointers and sank all six free-throw attempts, Wilkerson wasn’t satisfied Tuesday. Any time the Hoosiers lose, he said it doesn’t matter how he played.
“I feel like we could have played better basketball in every area of the game,” Wilkerson said. “It was just one of them games, man.”
Wilkerson didn’t agree that the Hoosiers were half a step slow, but he did admit the two-game trip to Los Angeles is a “hard” one.
“That's why a lot of people don't come out here and be successful on these two-game road trips in California,” Wilkerson said. “We've been out here for a week, tired, fatigued, stuff like that, but I don't make excuses for it.”
Still, Indiana previously beat UCLA and now sits at 15-8 overall and 6-6 in conference play, meaning it isn’t returning to Bloomington winless.
The Hoosiers stayed in Los Angeles on Tuesday night — another difference with the West Coast travel. Instead of returning home in the early morning hours Wednesday, the Cream and Crimson are dedicating the day as a “travel day.”
Indiana will practice Thursday and Friday ahead of a noon contest Saturday against Wisconsin inside Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall in Bloomington. Being a half step slow against the Badgers, who are 16-6 overall and 8-3 in Big Ten play, isn’t a winning recipe. It wasn’t Tuesday, either.
“Our biggest thing is we've got to get back, get some rest, regroup and get ready for the next one,” Darian DeVries said. “That's what this is. We've been playing good basketball and had a rough one tonight, but we can't let it linger.”
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.
