You know those outdated, slightly problematic romantic comedies in which a man does something truly egregious to a woman but she still falls for him in the end for god knows what reason?
I never quite understood those movies until I watched IU men’s basketball defeat Northwestern 79-76 in double overtime Wednesday night. Now, I’m the female protagonist suddenly ready to disregard a slew of red flags simply because I got wooed in the final stretch.
[Related: Guards lift IU men’s basketball in 79-76 double-overtime win over Northwestern]
Three days after stunning No. 8 Iowa on a last-second jump shot by sophomore guard Armaan Franklin, IU was in prime position for a massive letdown. The Wildcats entered last night’s contest on a nine-game losing skid with nothing better to do than rain on the Hoosiers’ parade.
In the first half, it poured.
I could have sworn there was a microphone nestled behind the rim in Welsh-Ryan Arena. Each errant brick resonated with a particularly angry rattle, a cruel reminder of just how poorly the Hoosiers were shooting.
IU shot an abysmal 24% from the floor, bolstered by a pitiful 25% from the free-throw line.
Sophomore Trayce Jackson-Davis, who typically guarantees about 20 points, didn’t find the basket until three seconds remained in the first half. His put-back jumper brought the score to 23-20 in favor of the Wildcats, and the Hoosiers shuffled into the locker room where I doubt there were many Rice Krispie Treats to be munched or Capri Suns to guzzle.
Needless to say, you probably didn’t enjoy this contest’s opening act if you’re a big fan of lights-out shooting — or competent shooting, passing, dribbling or really anything associated with the sport of basketball.
Personally, I thought it very irresponsible of the Big Ten Network to broadcast that first half without so much as a warning. Tape delays do exist, after all. They never would have shown a naked fan streaking across the court or a particularly graphic injury, so why were we subjected to something objectively far more obscene?
Fortunately, IU heated up in the second half. Then again, you can’t get any colder than absolute zero.
It became evident early on in the second half that the Hoosiers would have to construct their offense entirely out of Franklin and senior guard Al Durham if they wanted to win. Jackson-Davis wasn’t getting open looks, but his supporting cast picked up the slack.
Despite finding a rhythm as the evening progressed, IU still couldn’t reclaim the lead and only managed to tie the game with 24 seconds remaining, sending the ugliness pageant to extra innings.
The basketball gods are like an out-of-touch corporation that takes a focus group’s word as gospel and churns out a product nobody wanted.
Overtime? People love overtime. Let’s give them five extra minutes of this asinine fever dream.
However, the subsequent frame was a major improvement over the first two. IU connected on its free throws and some sharpshooting by Durham kept the Hoosiers alive while Jackson-Davis was briefly sidelined with a knee injury.
Second overtime arrived because of course it did. Heartbreak was the obvious punchline for this cruel joke, but a dagger 3-pointer by sophomore forward Jerome Hunter clinched victory for IU.
I’m not sure how many brownie points you can award to a team for narrowly escaping abject embarrassment, but a win is a win. The Hoosiers chose the perfect opportunity to have a remarkably awful first half, so congratulations.
Like every close battle in which IU has competed this season, a single basket can completely swing a narrative. I think the Hoosiers’ good but not great 11-8 record is a more accurate summation of them than any of their hot streaks or cold spells.
That record certainly doesn’t make the Hoosiers a powerhouse. That said, if I have to watch an OK basketball team every time it takes the court, I’m grateful for a little excitement.
In a lot of ways, this game couldn’t have gone better from a fan’s perspective. How often do you get to mock your school for playing one of the worst halves of basketball in recorded history and still walk away with a victory?
