IU men’s basketball won 68-56 against Minnesota on the road Wednesday night in a key game between two NCAA Tournament bubble teams.
This was IU’s fifth Quadrant 1 win of the season.
It is the second road win of the season for the Hoosiers and is IU’s biggest on the road this season. It is the first road win over a team that didn’t have a losing record entering the game.
After trailing for all but 19 seconds in the first half, Minnesota’s shooting went cold and IU worked its way back. The defense and rebounding were far from perfect, but Minnesota wasn’t able to make open shots.
The Gophers shot 34% from the field, 4-25 on 3-pointers and 10-19 from the free throw line.
IU’s offense didn’t produce in high quantities or with consistent quality, but Minnesota’s shooting was so poor that IU was able to come back. The Hoosiers held on to the lead as Minnesota continued to shoot at a low percentage and freshman forward Trayce Jackson-Davis controlled the game.
Jackson-Davis had his best game as a Hoosier with a career-high 27 points and career-high 16 rebounds for his eighth double-double on the season.
IU got a strong defensive performance from redshirt sophomore forward Race Thompson, who converted a huge and-1 late in the game to help give the team breathing room. He finished the game with nine points and 10 rebounds.
Thompson and Jackson-Davis were more than enough in what remained a close game. Both players made key shots down the stretch to hold off the Gophers and give IU an important win for its NCAA Tournament hopes.
With the win, the Hoosiers improve to 17-9 overall and 7-8 overall. IU took a big step Wednesday toward making the NCAA Tournament field. The Hoosiers’ next game is 12 p.m. Sunday at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall against No. 9 Penn State.
