His face bore a fervent, fiery expression and quickly turned to a grimace. As Indiana men’s basketball sophomore center Kel’el Ware reached for his left leg after a thumping slam dunk, it appeared the Hoosiers could lose yet another key contributor.
But, in Indiana’s 74-68 win over Iowa Tuesday night at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, Ware was the impetus for perhaps the Hoosiers’ most resilient performance of the season.
“That’s the thing we need from him,” freshman guard Gabe Cupps said postgame. “A lot of people’s knock on him is that he’s not tough. And I think he shows it in spurts, but once he can be consistent in that, and he showed that tonight, he’s an unstoppable player.”
For the last two games, Ware donned sweatpants on the sidelines as he nursed an ankle injury and his team lost consecutive contests to then No. 11 Wisconsin and No. 10 Illinois. Tuesday night, Ware returned in spectacular fashion.
The 7-footer finished the game with a team-high 23 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks in 35 minutes. With sophomore forward Malik Reneau down with a lower-body injury suffered early in the first half, there was no choice but for Ware to shoulder the load.
Easing back into action wasn’t an option.
“We needed him back in the worst way,” head coach Mike Woodson said. “Games like this, man, it’s huge for our ball club. We were missing his length and ability to block shots. We just didn’t have it.”
Indiana got a career-high 13 points from senior guard Anthony Leal and a triple from Cupps in a crucial moment down the stretch. Without Reneau and sixth-year senior guard Xavier Johnson, who left the game in the second half with an apparent arm injury, the Hoosiers were desperate for contributions.
Iowa evaporated a once-17 point deficit and flipped it into a lead late in the second half. Maybe unsurprisingly, after warding off further damage and regaining a 4-point advantage, it was Ware who planted an exclamation point on the victory with a two-hand flush.
KEL'EL WARE ‼️‼️ @IndianaMBB pic.twitter.com/uoZWMLLkLH
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) January 31, 2024
Upon arriving in Bloomington from the University of Oregon, the highly touted Ware carried criticism about his effort from Ducks head coach Dana Altman and college basketball pundits. Typecast as an uber-talented big hindered by a perceived lack of toughness, Ware entered his sophomore campaign with much to prove.
According to Woodson, his early time with Ware featured a lot of screaming. From the outset of Ware’s Hoosier career, the labels from his time in Oregon seemingly held true.
“The first two or three weeks with him was a nightmare in terms of his energy and his get-up-and-go,” Woodson said. “And we’ve kind of coached him into playing better, playing with a little more energy.”
Woodson too noted a distinct level of emotion in Ware’s performance. When Ware has faced adversity this season, like his rocky effort against sophomore center Donovan Clingan and No. 1 University of Connecticut, he’s lacked intensity.
But Tuesday night, each volleyball-spike block, each thunderous dunk and each assertive rebound felt different.
Ware shouted triumphantly and celebrated successes with his teammates. All the while, the player that spearheaded Indiana’s victory limped around and battled through obvious discomfort.
The whole game, he remained resolute. And the result was a win that marked the Hoosiers’ first against Iowa and head coach Fran McCaffery under Woodson.
Throughout the season, Indiana’s performances have been a pendulum swing of emotion. Against Wisconsin, the Hoosiers unraveled and were ultimately beaten decisively. Against Auburn University on Dec. 9, Indiana was run off the floor.
But still, they competed to the bitter end in a narrow loss to then-No. 2 University of Kansas. They toppled Ohio State and Minnesota, the latter in comfortable fashion. Ware — whose college career has seen its ups and downs — embodies this Indiana team.
Tuesday night, it was the best of Ware and the Hoosiers. With Reneau and Johnson down, Ware fought through pain and persevered.
“He loves us as teammates and he wants to win more than anything,” Leal said about Ware. “So it was good to see him show some emotion and fight through the nicks and bruises.”
Follow reporters Will Foley (@foles24) and Matt Press (@MattPress23) and columnist Daniel Flick (@ByDanielFlick) for updates throughout the Indiana men’s basketball season.
