Column: Silent Sheehey makes noise on court

The normally quiet Will Sheehey let his game do the talking Saturday night.

Besides one-handed slams that land him on the highlight reel, Sheehey isn’t the most animated player on the floor or a big extrovert when talking with the media.

But behind the sophomore forward’s subdued demeanor is a blossoming talent that led all IU scorers with 18 points in the Hoosiers’ 90-72 exhibition win against the University of Indianapolis.

Appropriately, Sheehey racked up the highest point total of his short IU career in a whisper.

“He gets sneaky buckets, (and) he flashes hard,” junior guard Jordan Hulls said. “It’s just like nobody sees him flashing ever, so (we’ll) keep finding him.”

While the announced attendance of 16,516 watched in awe as freshman forward Cody Zeller electrified Assembly Hall with alley-oop dunks, Sheehey pieced together an efficient shooting night, making eight of 11 baskets.

It wasn’t flashy, and sometimes it wasn’t pretty, but Sheehey ignited an offense that stalled to start the game, scoring 11 points in the first half mostly from mid-range jumpers and gritty drives to the hoop.

And why did Sheehey succeed? Because he was given the opportunity to do so.
Averaging 13.8 minutes per game as a reserve his freshman year, Sheehey got the nod Saturday night in a smaller IU starting lineup that did not include injured forwards Christian Watford or Tom Pritchard.

Keep Sheehey in the starting rotation.

On a roster ripe with athletic swing men,Sheehey has separated himself from the pack in preseason play. His performance against UIndy was just the exclamation point.

“It’s not about the minutes that you play,” IU Coach Tom Crean aptly said. “It’s about what you do inside of the minutes that you play.”

Keep starting Sheehey, and watch the minutes — and the point totals — start to add up.

In his freshman year, Sheehey came as advertised: a lengthy athletic forward who could get to the basket but wasn’t big enough to post up or refined enough to consistently be a scoring threat.

However, the progression of Will Sheehey as a complete basketball player is beginning to take shape.

He took smart shots, making his only attempted three-pointer, was aggressive on offense and recorded a block on the other end of the floor.

That’s not to say Sheehey had the perfect night.

As Crean pointed out following the game, Sheehey, who pulled down three boards, was not as efficient rebounding the ball as he is capable of being.

If Sheehey continues to get abundant playing time, his on-court experiences will help him reach his full potential faster, developing him into a complete player whose skills match his athleticism.

And let me remind you, the 6-foot-6-inch forward is just a sophomore.

Sheehey could grow to be one of the most versatile forwards in the Big Ten and do so while barely making a sound.