IU preps for talented point guards

On Wednesday, the Hoosiers will face one of the best floor generals in the country.
Without an All-American in the backcourt, IU plans to use a point guard by committee approach to run its offense.

In search of size and depth, IU coach Tom Crean played freshman Malik Story at the point position for the first time Sunday.

Story, a 6-foot-5, 222-pound freshman from Los Angeles, has primarily played frontcourt positions this season, splitting time with freshman Nick Williams at power forward. But Crean said the Hoosiers would take advantage of Story’s versatility, playing him at as many as four positions this season.

“We’re not making this move out of desperation, we’re making it out of necessity,” Crean said. “He is pretty good with the ball, and he is strong. We’re going to be playing against so many bigger guards in the time coming up that we are going to need that. We’re going to need a guy that can guard that position.”

The first of the talented guards the Hoosiers will face over their several next games is Demon Deacons’ sophomore Jeff Teague. An Indianapolis native and a Pike High School graduate, Teague is averaging 21 points, five assists and four rebounds per game this season.

Crean said Sunday that Teague is playing as well as any guard he’s seen this season, adding he’s “on an absolute roll right now.”

After Wake Forest, the Hoosiers will have to game plan for talented guards like Gonzaga’s Jeremy Pargo and Kentucky’s Jodie Meeks.

With freshman guards Verdell Jones and Daniel Moore in the starting lineup Sunday, Crean decided to add Story, a “point-forward,” to the mix against Cornell.

“We need to have another point guard that can come off the bench so we are not so winded,” he said.

In 21 minutes against the Big Red, Story finished with five points, three rebounds, one assist and one turnover.

Crean said his new point guard “played really well” Sunday, adding he communicated on the floor as well as he had all season.

After playing on the wing primarily in high school, Story’s ability to create off the dribble and guard bigger players has landed him in the Hoosiers’ point guard rotation. In 18.7 minutes per game this season, Story is averaging 5.8 points per game, making him the team’s fifth-leading scorer.

Along with Jones and Moore, IU’s top two point guards who both started Sunday, Story is one of only three Hoosiers to have more assists (10) than turnovers (7).

On Monday during his weekly radio show, Crean described Jones’ status as “day-to-day” and said the team’s training staff is treating him as if he has a concussion after Jones had to be stretchered off the court Sunday, the victim of a hard screen.

Even if Jones can go Wednesday, it is likely Story will at least help back up Moore, the team’s fiery 5-foot-10 walk-on.

Moore is leading the team in assists (24) and steals (9). He scored a career-high 10 points against Chaminade in the third round of the EA Sports Maui Invitational and is shooting 57.1 percent on 14 attempts from the field this season.

Jones, IU’s most productive point guard offensively, is averaging 8.2 points per game through six games and has gotten to the free-throw line more than any other point guard on the roster.

If Crean decides to dig deeper into his depth chart, he could turn to junior Devan Dumes or sophomore Brett Finkelmeier. Dumes is the team’s second-leading scorer (12.3 points per game), but has played almost exclusively at shooting guard this season. Finkelmeier, one of two returning players this season, has played in every game, but has had minimal impact.