Before a basketball was tipped Tuesday night at Welsh-Ryan Arena in Evanston, Illinois, chaos surrounded the IU men’s basketball team.
The announcement of an indefinite suspension for junior guard Devonte Green, as well as junior forward De’Ron Davis being ruled out with a persistent ankle injury, meant IU’s starters would have to shoulder most of the scoring responsibility against Northwestern.
A 4-10 shooting performance from freshman guard Romeo Langford came along with a 7-15 shooting night from senior forward Juwan Morgan as the Hoosiers lost to the Wildcats, 73-66.
IU’s fifth-straight loss leaves the team with a 12-7 overall record and 3-5 mark in conference play. Tuesday’s defeat followed a similar pattern for the Hoosiers, as a defensive collapse near the end of the first half extended into the second period.
The Wildcats then went on a 15-4 scoring run during the final 6:54 of the first half to turn an four-point Hoosier lead into a four-point halftime advantage for the home team.
Northwestern then used three-point shooting and a high energy level on the court to bury IU for good to start the second half.
Redshirt junior forward Aaron Falzon helped ensure IU would never regain the lead, scoring a career-high 21 points by making six of seven three-point attempts. Falzon’s scoring explosion came out of nowhere, as he had played in just three games and scored six total points prior to Tuesday.
“One guy changed the game there in two crucial parts,” IU Head Coach Archie Miller told reporters after the game.
Falzon accounted for all of Northwestern's bench points, while IU had 13 points from its bench players.
Redshirt senior forward Evan Fitzner scored his first points since December, while sophomore guard Al Durham had 11 points, his highest total in six games.
The Wildcats’ primary two scoring options, redshirt senior forward Vic Law and senior center Dererk Pardon, combined for 28 points.
IU finished the game with a 30-14 advantage in points in the paint, as well as a 17-3 advantage in second-chance points. Morgan and sophomore forward Justin Smith had 11 and 12 rebounds respectively for the Hoosiers.
But when Northwestern went inside, it often resulted in a trip to the foul line, as Law converted eight of Northwestern’s 21 made free throws during the game.
Northwestern’s lead was 15 points with 12:11 remaining, but IU displayed signs of energy and spirit that weren’t apparent in its prior four defeats.
A free throw from Langford with just under seven minutes to play made it a three-point game. But the deficit would get no closer, as IU missed a slew of offensive chances to try and get the score to within a single possession.
“Had our opportunities there in the last six minutes to keep it at one possession,” Miller said. “Just — we weren’t good enough.”
This included a missed one-handed dunk by Smith from an IU in-bounds play, as well as a miss in transition by freshman guard Rob Phinisee, who started and finished with 13 points, but only two assists.
The reeling Hoosiers face no respite with their upcoming Big Ten schedule, as No. 5 Michigan awaits Friday night in Bloomington before a pair of road games next week at Rutgers and Michigan State.
