Everyone was filing out of Assembly Hall, Gus Johnson and Quinn Buckner had already pronounced the game over and us media members were getting a head start on our deadlines.
Let's face it. IU was up by 57 points in a game that had been over since the 14 minute mark of the first half. The bench guys were rounding out the clock just because IU had to send five guys out there.
But if you tuned out the last two minutes of IU's 107-50 stomping of Howard, then you missed the most impressive shot of senior guard Kory Barnett's IU career.
With the shot clock winding down, fellow walk-on Jeff Howard found Barnett open beyond the arc to set up his second career three-pointer. The scattered Assembly Hall crowd and the IU bench erupted at the sight of a rare Barnett bucket.
The high-arcing trey ball that found the bottom of the net was contested by a Howard defender, maybe even a little too contested.
"I did want the and-one on that three-pointer," Barnett said. "I had a knack in high school for kicking the leg out and faking it a little bit but I think he could've got me enough."
Had Barnett gotten the call, he would've went to the line with a chance to eclipse his career-high---all on one play. The basket from the senior walk-on gave him 10 career points. There were six IU players that reached that feat in last night's game alone.
Barnett's five points this season have already matched his total from his previous three seasons combined. For crying out loud, you or I had as many points as Barnett in his freshman and sophomore campaigns.
But with Barnett, it's never been about the minutes. He understands exactly what his role is on this team.
"I've gotten the nickname somehow as 'The Human Victory Cigar'," Barnett said. "Obviously, we don't support that, just non-tobacco cigars. When I check in, everybody is pretty happy because they know the game is over."
Instead of being bitter about the fact that he has only played 87 minutes in his IU career, Barnett came into yesterday's post game presser all smiles.
The reality is, it was probably the only time Barnett will get to speak to the media all year. Even IU Media Relations Director JD Campbell joked before Barnett and fellow walk-on Raphael Smith came in that it was probably the only time we were going to get to talk with them.
Needless to say, Barnett made the most of his time. For Barnett, he wasn't going to sit up there and talk about simply the game. He talked about the journey he and these seniors have been on, starting with a six-win season to being the first IU team since the undefeated 1975-76 squad to start 11-0.
A lot of people are going to want to talk about the new-found roles for seniors like Verdell Jones, Matt Roth, Daniel Moore and Tom Pritchard. Just because Barnett doesn't get the game-time minutes, doesn't mean this guy hasn't been there for every step of the way, too.
He's seen IU lose at home to Lipscomb. He's seen IU crawl to a 1-17 Big Ten record. Most importantly, he's seen IU's worst three-year stretch in school history.
But Barnett was also there for IU's win over No. 22 Illinois last season. He was in the dog pile after Christian Watford's three-pointer that shocked the world against No. 1 Kentucky. Now, he's hearing IU be likened in the same breath as the last undefeated team in college basketball.
Yes, it was one three-pointer in a game IU was up 57 points against a mid-major. But it was a reminder that these games and these moments belong to everyone like Barnett who have stuck with this program through the lowest of lows.
"My sophomore year, Coach Buckley sat down with me and said 'you can be in a lot of other situations with other schools but you came here and you'll never go through anything as bad as it has been,'" Barnett said.
"He said, 'this will help you grow more than any other place' and I have. I've grown as a person, as a player and I've learned so much and just as a team in general, this team has matured so much"
