Column: Hoosiers must pick up the pace

Run.

This three-letter word must become the Hoosiers’ dogma after freshman center Luke Fischer left the program yesterday.

To put on their dancing shoes come March, IU must first put on their track shoes.
Fischer, 6-foot-10, was the only viable backup for freshman forward Noah Vonleh at
center.

Sophomore center Peter Jurkin has not shown he can contribute. Sophomore Hanner Mosquera-Perea is 6-foot-9. These two players, along with Vonleh, are the only Hoosiers 6-foot-9 or taller with Fischer’s departure.

This lack of size will force IU to play to its strength: running.

Vonleh has been terrific this season. He is an athletic specimen, and a menace on the boards and defense. He even looks a little Anthony Davis-esque at times.

But he gets in foul trouble at times. He commits 5.3 fouls per 40 minutes.

So when Vonleh has to ride the bench, who is the backup center now?

Nobody.

No other Hoosier player can play with the other centers in the Big Ten. Mosquera-Perea is a great athlete, but he’s far from a polished post player. And his interior defense isn’t stellar.

So why not go a completely different route?

The Hoosiers should transform into VCU and run their opponents to death. Use the natural slashers on the team (sophomore guard Kevin "Yogi" Ferrell, freshman guard Stan Robinson and graduate student guard Evan Gordon) to send the opponents looking for oxygen masks and never let their foot off the gas pedal.

Use the full-court IU experimented with during non-conference to push the game to a dizzying speed.

IU has run this season. A lot.

They are 11th in the country in adjusted tempo, averaging 73.2 possessions a game (the national average is 68.1 a game), according to kenpom.com.

So IU Coach Tom Crean understands running is the key to Hoosier success. It’s no coincidence the three Hoosier losses this year were also the three slowest games IU has played this season.

The Connecticut loss was 68 possessions, Notre Dame was 71 and the Syracuse contest was an incredibly slow 58 total possessions.

So whenever Vonleh exits, the running should become sprinting.

Put freshman forwards Devin Davis and Troy Williams, sophomore forward Jeremy Hollowell or Mosquera-Perea at the center position and go off to the races.

This small-ball lineup would allow IU to press full court and provide incredible team speed.

This would mean any player on the floor could get to the basket at any given time.

Without a pure shooter or a viable post presence, executing a half-court offense will prove fatal to the IU offense.

The first test comes in Champaign, Ill. against the Illinois Fighting Illini.

Illinois (11-2) plays slow. Very slow. Their adjusted tempo is 325th in the nation.

Incredibly, Illinois has registered more than 67 possessions in just one game this year.

In comparison, IU has had more than 67 possessions in a game 12 times this season.

This will be a clashing of styles. IU will try to run up and down the court, as the Fighting Illini will fight to keep it a half-court, low scoring affair.

This will be the first true measuring stick of the year for IU. This is a winnable game, as IU and Illinois are projected to finish with a similar record in the Big Ten.

But the Champaign crowd will prove too much. IU won’t be able to control the pace. IU’s lack of interior presence will rear its ugly head when Vonleh comes out.

Illinois wins 67-59.

Evan Hoopfer is 3-1 in predictions this season.