Cupcake.
It’s a word with many different definitions.
There’s the obvious traditional sense of the word as an icing-coated, sugary pastry, but the phrase has taken on a second life over the past few years.
In the world of sports, it’s also a turn of phrase meant to belittle the hopeless mid-majors that go on the road to much more prestigious teams in college basketball, such as a Duke or a North Carolina. Cupcakes are the Houston Baptists and Mississippi Valley States of the world, or as some people like to refer to them as — “the sisters of the poor.”
By all accounts, IU’s exhibition opponent Thursday night, the University of Southern Indiana, could be considered by many as a "sister of the poor." A cupcake.
Any NCAA Division II squad that travels to play a Big Ten school in an exhibition is going to be labeled as such.
But the Screaming Eagles aren’t the average Division II cupcake, despite being ultimately flattened by the Hoosiers 96-62.
They aren’t the same level of cushiness as a cream puff, creamsicle or whatever you want to call the fluffy matchup IU’s season-opening opponent will be in Chicago State on Nov 6.
Even though Chicago State is a Division 1 foe, Southern Indiana could conceivably be a better all-around team than it and could easily hang with IU’s second regular season opponent, Montana State. The Screaming Eagles have established themselves as a top notch Division II opponent, went 20-11 last year, finished 25-5 the year before and beat a Division I opponent in Eastern Illinois last season.
That’s why something can be learned from the Hoosiers’ shellacking of them — something not all exhibition games can boast.
IU’s night was full of positives and their performance on the defensive end was at the top of that list.
Southern Indiana shot just 25 percent in the first half as IU constantly forced them into bad shots late in the shot clock. The Hoosiers’ switching was exquisite both on and off the ball, behind the always reliable efforts of senior captains Juwan Morgan and Zach McRoberts.
Though it may be a slight detail to some, watching those two work together on helping, switching or recovering on ball screens together is a marvel to watch.
Yet, the real question mark was how the freshmen would assimilate into that kind of defensive efficiency, and they didn’t disappoint.
Freshman sensation Romeo Langford in particular was impressive, coming up with four steals and showed off some quick hands and solid awareness. For a player that came to Bloomington so highly-touted for his offensive abilities, it was his defensive effort that was most intriguing on Thursday.
Defensive plays like Langford’s steals were what helped IU into a lot of its offensive success. For the most part, they were fairly poised in transition, and it’s evident that is how the new crop of freshmen like to play.
Freshman guard Robert Phinisee was the one to reap the benefits of that style of play the most, coming up with multiple nice finishes in fast break situations, finishing with 13 points.
Phinisee’s body control and concentration at the rim is extremely high for a youngster and if he can keep it up, it’ll be hard for Coach Archie Miller to yank away the reigns at point guard even when a veteran like junior Devonte Green comes back from injury.
“He’s taking advantage of opportunity,” Miller said. “Right now, it’s come to the level where he’s ‘that man up’ and he has to step in and do a good job.”
Miller said there were a few aspects of his team’s transition offense that can still be fine-tuned, but overall he was pleased with what he saw.
“Defense to offense is something we’ve always prided ourselves on,” Miller said. “You have a really good chance to be good on offense because that is the hardest thing to stop is transition.”
There were other high points such as IU’s outside shooting coming alive in the second half behind the smooth, pure-looking jump of senior transfer Evan Fitzner, who nailed two out of three long balls and the funky, yet highly-effective jumper of freshman guard Damezi Anderson, who led the team with four threes.
But as free-flowing and electric as IU’s offense looked at times on fast breaks, there was still some concerns in the half court. The Hoosiers would slump into lulls of sparse movement and ineffective perimeter handoffs that really got them going nowhere.
Morgan showed how strong he can be backing down defenders in the high post and down low along with his nimble foot work and an impeccable accumulation of post moves but seemed to get lost in the shuffle when ball movement was porous or the guards dribbled too much on the outside.
Southern Indiana played fundamentally sound defense all night and made IU’s defense look less foiling in the second half by hitting some tough shots.
They weren’t a complete cupcake. Maybe still in the same pastry family as IU’s easy opponents to come, but no pushover.
Perhaps more of a donut. Or a croissant. Can this be a campaign to invent a new phrase? It doesn’t really matter.
But what does matter is the way IU stepped up to their first challenge and gobbled up any hope Southern Indiana had fairly early in the game.
For a nearly new look team like the one Miller has assembled, this was step one, and that means something.
jonmwhee@iu.edu
@murph_wheelerIU
