It wasn't pretty. It wasn't dominant. But a win's a win, and IU's 11-point victory against Notre Dame (7-5) kept the Hoosiers undefeated with two games to go till conference play. Here's how it happened:
- Cody Zeller, Cody Zeller and more Cody Zeller. With 21 points, the freshman forward was the main source of offense for the Hoosiers and the only reason IU was able to take a slim lead into halftime despite an ugly field goal percentage (34.4%). In the frist half, Zeller scored 14 of IU's 26 points. All this production came in 27 minutes of playing time, as Zeller's fourth personal foul came with 6:43 still to go in the game. In short, Zeller was, once again, the most reliable and consistent scorer for IU head coach Tom Crean.
- Horrendous Notre Dame shooting. After one half of play, the Irish had four field goals...four. Sophomore guard Alex Dragicevich made three quick three-pointers, but after his last triple with 14:47 to go in the first (he never hit another basket), Notre Dame found the majority of their points through foul shooting. I'd like to sit here and credit IU with shutdown defense, but it was really a case of the Irish not being able to make a basket -the Hoosiers finished the game with four steals, while Notre Dame committed just 12 turnovers.
- Dumb fouls. One of the things I was really disappointed with in this game, was the Hoosiers undisciplined play. Ill-advised drives to the hoop, reach-in calls, and failing to switch over on defense contributed to 32 Notre Dame free throws (compared to 22 for IU) and three Hoosiers with four fouls, apiece. I don't know if it was the emotional hangover from the Kentucky game or playing away from Assembly Hall, but IU failed to play smart when faced with a less talented Irish team. The Hoosiers could have dominated Notre Dame Saturday, but instead, allowed coach Mike Brey's squad to hang around for much of the game.
- Scoring distribution. The final stat sheet won't show it with four players scoring in double figures, but the Hoosiers were struggling to find a scorer not named Cody Zeller. IU plays at its best with effective passing, good ball movement and utilization of its many offensive weapons. That was not the case Saturday, as IU amassed its lowest scoring total of the season. Yes, Zeller is an incredible talent and player, but he can't be the whole team. That's not what beat Kentucky, got IU to a 10-0 start, and it's not how the Hoosiers will thrive in Big Ten play. Players like Victor Oladipo, Christian Watford and Jordan Hulls can't wait till late in the contest to wake up and start playing to their potential because better opponents will have already built a hefty lead by the time they wake up.
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