IU falls to Penn State in conference opener, 69-60

As if opening the Big Ten season wasn’t daunting enough, the IU men’s basketball team got in its own way Monday.

In their 69-60 loss to the Penn State Nittany Lions, IU sophomore guard Jordan Hulls said the defense the Hoosiers prided themselves on throughout the season was a step slow, giving their opponents clear looks.

“We just let them have open shots,” he said. “Division I basketball players can hit open shots. That was on us. We just missed coverages on some plays and didn’t get a hand up in time or whatever the case may be. Those are all fixable mistakes.”

Penn State shot 50 percent in the first half, including a 5-of-10 effort from the 3-point line. The Nittany Lions lead grew as large as 14, and they took a nine-point advantage into the half.

Penn State, ranked last in the Big Ten in field goal percentage, finished shooting 53.8 percent from the field Monday.

“The one thing you never want to do to a team when they’re on the road is let them come in and have hope right away,” IU coach Tom Crean said. “And we did that. We were a step slow on some shots, and they made shots … And some shots didn’t go for us.”

The Nittany Lions attack, while large in quality, was limited in quantity. Only seven players touched the floor Monday, and three players – forwards David Jackson and Jeff Brooks and guard Talor Battle – combined for 57 points alone.

“Recognition on offense and communication on defense – it really got us early on,” Crean said. “We went zone, probably should have gone a little earlier with it, but we were right there, we just had some miscommunications and, boom, they’re good enough that they’re going to make shots if we’re late.”

Brooks led all scorers with a career-high 23 points. He found a niche in the pick and roll game, using his 6-8, 200-pound frame to score over mostly small IU lineups.

“Our pick and roll defense is a weakness for us right now,” Crean said. “And we spend a ton of time on that. It’s a communication weakness, and it’s a get up and make the play weakness, which we attack everyday and we’re obviously not getting enough out of that.”

The Hoosiers, as they have done in several games this season, made a comeback in the second half and took the lead with 8:45 remaining. But Crean said that after a media timeout at the 2:28 mark, his team lost the belief it could win.

Crean added that he believes this team, as opposed to past teams, has the talent level to complete comebacks, but Monday showed the “old wounds and scars” of not being able to get over the final hurdle.

“I’m not going to change one bit the way we’re coaching now and pushing them," he said. "That point’s going to come, it’s going to hit, it’s going to be another experience, and we’ll have it under our belt.”

Adding to IU’s troubles, its most reliable scorer was stuck in his worst offensive rut of the season. Sophomore forward Christian Watford – IU’s leading scorer entering Monday with more than 18 points per game – finished with three points in 25 minutes.

Crean said a combination of Penn State taking him out of the game and a bout of back spasms both contributed to Watford’s thin stat line.

“I give him credit for trying to gut it out and play through it as much as he did,” Crean said. “And that’s where a lot of that lies, in the sense of him not having a great night.”

IU sophomore guard Verdell Jones led the team with 15 points, while freshman guard Victor Oladipo added 14 in his first career start.

Sophomore forward Derek Elston had his second-straight two-point outing after scoring 19 points against Northern Iowa in Las Vegas. The last two forwards – sophomore Bobby Capobianco and junior Tom Pritchard – each played only four minutes.

Crean said he simply saw a better performance from his guards, which led to the decreased minutes for the big men.

“All season long, I’ve said it’s not about positions. It’s about production. It’s not any one position. We can talk about the front line … we’ve just got to play better.”