He said although it’s easy to get caught up in comparisons, he needs to remember not to evaluate Mosquera-Perea that way, but rather watch him grow into his own player.
That growth was on display Monday in an 83-64 win against Texas Southern.
The junior forward finished with a career-high five blocks and 12 points.
Though Mosquera-Perea had just five rebounds and three fouls, he made up for those mistakes with his scoring and defensive presence.
“Hanner’s continuing to learn what he’s capable of,” Crean said. “We need him to continue to do all the little things that make him a consistent player in practice. There’s a lot of room for ?improvement.”
The 6-foot-9 Mosquera-Perea overmatched an undersized Texas Southern (0-2) team.
When a Texas Southern guard beat an IU guard off the dribble to get into the paint, Mosquera-Perea was waiting to meet him near the rim.
“I feel like Hanner this year has gotten better at timing the block,” junior guard Kevin “Yogi” Ferrell said. “If we get beat off the dribble, we know we’ve got backline defense, and Hanner is going to be there to block it for us.”
On the offensive end, Mosquera-Perea showed flashes of improved footwork and scoring versatility.
Late in the first half, he received the ball from Ferrell with his back to the basket. He spun inside, then outside and laid it off the glass.
He followed the layup with a slip-screen rollout into a dunk. Then he showcased his jumpshot with an 18-footer from the elbow as part of a six-point scoring burst in a little over a minute.
For good measure, Mosquera-Perea added a highlight reel bucket when he received an outlet pass at the free throw line on a breakaway. He gathered the pass, took two long strides and finished with a right-handed slam that at the time put IU up 54-37.
When Mosquera-Perea did falter, his hustle plays took over.
Midway through the second half he turned the ball over in the lane, which prompted a Texas Southern fast break.
Mosquera-Perea chased down the fast break and blocked a layup attempt off the glass just four seconds after turning the ball over.
Crean said those hustle plays are a result of Mosquera-Perea playing harder, smarter and more determined in practice.
“A lot of it is coming from practice,” Ferrell said. “I feel like his confidence has grown in practice and that’s carried over to the game.
“That’s why you see him out there killing it.”
