Comfortable win not quite so on paper

Saturday night proved more of the same in a season marked by anything but for the IU men’s basketball team.

And yet, there existed plenty of possibility for an upset, if there is such a thing for the Hoosiers this year.

IU was absolutely wiped off the glass on both ends of the floor.

A smaller Northwestern State squad, if that’s even possible, had more offensive rebounds (27) than it did defensive rebounds (25) and won the overall battle 52-41. By contrast, IU had 27 defensive rebounds.

Despite going to the free-throw line 41 times, the Hoosiers shot just 68.3 percent in that particular area.

The home squad, as green as it was cream and crimson, committed 25 fouls and 23 turnovers, leading to 15 points from the charity stripe and 26 points off turnovers for the Demons.

Despite all that, the win was markedly comfortable, considering all expectations.
But the 83-65 home win was no mistake, because the Hoosiers turned the tables on Northwestern State quite often themselves.

IU’s pressure defense forced 30 turnovers – including 15 steals – and the Demons shot a paltry 31.9 percent from the floor, even with all those third chances. Their 27.3 percent number from behind the 3-point line was even more noticeable, since 22 of their 69 shots came from range.

IU’s ability to break down the Demons’ presses, traps and man-to-man defenses throughout the game forced the visitors to commit 35 fouls. Northwestern State coach Mike McConathy said after the game IU made his press “look more like a filter that we were pouring water through.”

“I just thought they executed unbelievably there – so much better than I anticipated they’d done,” McConathy said of the team that had just dealt him season loss No. 1.

The Hoosiers executed, sure. And to get specific, their transition offense, court vision and ability to stifle on defense were all key to picking up this team’s first win that counts.

But the energy, the hustle, the vigor with which IU played the full 40 minutes of its season opener was perhaps the most palpable part of the entire night.

To use an example from a pair of the evening’s greatest culprits: With the Demons hanging in through most of the first half, the Hoosiers came down the floor up just five with less than two minutes left.

Then Verdell Jones hit a driving layup to push the score to seven, and after a turnover by Keithan Hancock, Daniel Moore essentially went coast-to-coast to net another driving layup, picking up the foul along the way.

He would miss the free throw, but all of the sudden, a five-point game was almost a double-digit lead heading into halftime, and it would never come closer from there.

With all their deficiencies – and Saturday night suggests there will be plenty – the Hoosiers can’t afford to be out-hustled by anyone this season. They’ve bought into Tom Crean’s hustle-first, hustle-most approach, if one game is any indication.

Good, because they will get absolutely nowhere without it.

See you tomorrow.