Lamar Wilkerson got up from his seat at the press conference table. Head down, defeated, deflated. The fifth-year senior guard had just ended his press conference saying “It doesn’t really mean anything today.”
Redshirt senior forward Tucker DeVries high-fived Wilkerson and pat him on the back to lift his spirits as the two exited the room.
Wilkerson’s 29-point performance and the effort from his team didn’t matter as the Hoosiers dropped their fourth consecutive game in a 77-64 loss to Michigan State on Sunday inside Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.
The Cream and Crimson’s effort was there, but still, they could not come away with a win. A win they so desperately needed.
“We knew it was going to be a battle again,” Indiana head coach Darian DeVries said post game. “I thought we competed our asses off tonight, just wasn't enough.”
From late January through early February, it appeared Indiana was rolling. The Hoosiers were playing some of their best basketball this season. Indiana won five of its six games from Jan. 23 through Feb. 9, including a victory over then-No.12 Purdue and two overtime victories over UCLA and Wisconsin.
But after that stretch, Indiana has not garnered the same results. The Hoosiers have lost four straight contests with its NCAA Tournament hopes at stake.
Other than in the Hoosiers’ let-down loss to Northwestern on Feb. 24, the effort has been there. The Cream and Crimson continue to fight but can’t sequence together enough for a victory as of late.
“The guys were really battling and competing,” Darian DeVries said.
His son echoed the same sentiment.
“I thought we competed at a high level,” Tucker DeVries said.
The mentions of effort, fight and battling were frequent after Sunday’s loss.
Still, the Spartans led for 39:23 of the contest, while the Hoosiers never held a lead. Throughout the game, Indiana cut into Michigan State’s lead, but the Spartans always had a response.
With just over 10 minutes remaining in the game, Wilkerson drilled a 3-pointer to cut Michigan State’s lead to just five. But on the next possession, the Spartans drilled a 3-pointer of their own.
While this is just one sequence of plays, it’s what Michigan State did to the Hoosiers all game. The Spartans were always there to strip away any momentum Indiana had. Whether it was a 3-pointer or multiple offensive boards, Michigan State always had an answer.
“We got it to right there, a two-possession game, get a stop, get the ball, get in transition, get the crowd into it, and it seemed like they just came up with all the loose balls, all the big plays in those situations,” Darian DeVries said.
Wilkerson and DeVries combined for 49 of the Hoosiers 64 points. But outside of those two, the ball was not moving. The Hoosiers tallied just eight assists.
As a result, Indiana only shot 39% from the field and 29% from beyond the arc. And while the Hoosiers hung around, they were never able to make the right plays at the right time.
Now, the Hoosiers sit on the outside looking in at their NCAA Tournament hopes. Indiana has just two regular season games remaining before the Big Ten Tournament. While it’s not looking good for the Cream and Crimson, they aren’t out of the NCAA Tournament race just yet.
But with the recent results and trajectory of the team, it’s unclear if the team will be able to string together a run of consecutive wins.
Yes, they have the effort. Yes, they understand the magnitude of the games. But is that enough?
The Hoosiers should be able to handle Minnesota at home on Mar. 4. But Indiana will then have to come up with a road victory over Ohio State, which will not be an easy task to do as the Buckeyes are a Quad 1 matchup and just defeated No. 8 Purdue inside the Schottenstein Center.
And any game in the Big Ten Tournament will be a tough feat, as all teams will be playing for NCAA Tournament hopes. The Hoosiers will have to figure things out. Quick.
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.
