There are times when No. 15 Indiana men’s basketball needs something more. Big plays in big moments. A superstar effort.
For four years, those efforts have come from senior forward Trayce Jackson-Davis. For four years, the crowd at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall rose to cheer Jackson-Davis' latest dunk or block. Tonight, Jackson-Davis did it one more time.
On Sunday, with Indiana needing a win to earn a double bye in the Big Ten Tournament, Jackson-Davis was his typical self, pulling Indiana to a comeback overtime victory over Michigan, 75-73.
“Just knowing that it's my last time in this building, playing in front of these fans in Assembly Hall is bittersweet,” Jackson-Davis said after the game. “I wish I could play here forever.”
With his personal legacy secured, Jackson-Davis has said all season, including in his senior day speech Sunday, he needs to help Indiana win hardware. Sunday, however, was about putting the cap on his regular season career.
“There was a lot at stake. You know what I mean. It's the last game at home,” head coach Mike Woodson said. “I can't say enough about Trayce Jackson-Davis. He's had a stellar, stellar career here at Indiana, but he's still got a lot of basketball left.”
Jackson-Davis finished with a typical stat line: 27 points, nine rebounds and six assists. He helped bring the Indiana crowd to its feet with an emphatic put-back dunk, and the crowd responded by helping spur Indiana in its comeback.
He didn’t deliver the final blow, but Jackson-Davis was vital to sending the game to overtime.
It was Jackson-Davis who stopped a 19-2 Michigan run that bled into the second half. After the Wolverines grabbed their second lead of the game, Jackson-Davis recovered a broken offensive play to drive to the glass and earn the and-1.
It was Jackson-Davis again late as he took over on a three-play sequence down the stretch. Down 3 points with just over three minutes left, Jackson-Davis made a layup to cut Michigan’s lead to one. On Michigan’s ensuing possession, he poked loose a pass and sent it toward the sideline. He hustled around his defender, slamming the ball off a Wolverine to give Indiana possession, then made a reverse layup past junior center Hunter Dickinson to give Indiana the lead.
At the buzzer in regulation, with 0.7 seconds left, Jackson-Davis nearly played hero — his half-court heave bounced off the rim and landed just wide.
Even when he wasn’t scoring, it was Jackson-Davis making the plays for Indiana. This year especially, he has been more than a high-scoring, high-rebounding post player. With Indiana desperate for a run down to Michigan in the final quarter of the game, Jackson-Davis forced a steal on the defensive end. Back on offense, he dished the ball to an open senior forward Miller Kopp, whose 3-pointer once again brought Assembly Hall to its feet.
“Miller was down on himself a little bit after he missed a few shots, and I told him that big one was coming,” Jackson-Davis said. “I saw him in the corner, and he hit a huge one for us that we really needed.”
Kopp and senior forward Race Thompson, both celebrating senior day as well, were indispensable in Indiana’s victory. Thompson had 16 points and 10 rebounds, plus two late steals which Woodson said iced the game for Indiana.
“I wanted (the three seniors) to win in the worst way, man,” Woodson said. “It's a good feeling to be home, back here in your last game on senior night in front of your fan base and winning basketball games, and they were able to pull it out, so I'm so proud of them.”
Jackson-Davis is Indiana’s all-time leading rebounder and its all-time leading shot blocker. He needs 30 more points to move into third in program scoring and is likely to get there with at least two postseason games guaranteed.
But in his final game on Branch McCracken Court, Jackson-Davis took one last bow.
“It's been an honor and a privilege to play in front of them, and to put on this uniform every day,” Jackson-Davis said. “I'm going to cherish every second that I have in it from here on out and hopefully we get to play for a little bit longer. That's the plan.”
Follow reporters Evan Gerike (@EvanGerike), Emma Pawlitz (@emmapawlitz), columnist Bradley Hohulin (@BradleyHohulin) and photographer Alex Paul (@alexpaulphoto) for updates throughout the Indiana men’s basketball season.
