As Myles Rice darted into the lane, he was met by a navy wall of University of North Carolina at Greensboro defenders.
Rice, Indiana men’s basketball’s redshirt sophomore point guard, left his feet underneath the basket and whipped a left-handed pass to the right wing — but it was intercepted by the Spartans’ junior guard Kenyon Giles.
Indiana head coach Mike Woodson lowered his hands and dropped his head, his eyes suddenly looking at the Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall hardwood.
UNC Greensboro drew a foul on the resulting fast break, and while junior guard Donovan Atwell Jr. shot free throws on one end, Indiana head coach Mike Woodson consulted with Rice on the other.
Rice responded with a layup, and then another two possessions later.
Perhaps nobody embodied the No. 16 Hoosiers’ 69-58 victory over the Spartans on Thursday night better than Rice, who led the team with 20 points and six assists but also tied for a team-high three turnovers.
After Indiana’s 11-point triumph, Woodson said Rice is supposed to get six assists — that’s hardly a talking point. There were, however, a handful of passes Woodson felt had no chance of being completed.
Rice had a few of those passes. Woodson didn’t mind sharing his feelings.
“If he's in the way sometimes not doing what he's supposed to do, then I'm tough on him,” Woodson said postgame. “That's just coaching. I love all the players on my team. But I've got to coach them, too.”
Woodson has plenty to coach moving forward. He expressed displeasure with Indiana’s performance in several facets, most notably effort. UNC Greensboro played harder than the Hoosiers, Woodson said, calling that unacceptable.
Selfless passing is another area Woodson wants Indiana’s offense to improve.
The Hoosiers tallied only 16 assists. Woodson thinks Indiana should average between 20 and 30. Apart from Rice, the Hoosiers dished just 10 assists across eight players. Indiana’s other two guards — sophomore Kanaan Carlyle and fifth-year senior Trey Galloway — were responsible for three of those 10.
“That's awful,” Woodson said. “The way we played offensively tonight was selfish as hell, to me, and that's something that just can't be — because we have enough guys on this team that can make basketball plays. We've got to be unselfish and sacrifice the ball for the sake of the team and good things will happen. The ball will end up in the right guys' hands.”
Woodson said it’s hard to grade his team’s offense through four games. Indiana entered Thursday averaging 85.7 points per game, but it shot a season-worst 42% from the field and 26% from distance against UNC Greensboro. The Hoosiers also had 14 turnovers.
From the start of summer practice in early June to Thursday night, Woodson said he’s seen considerable progress, and he’s pleased with the direction the Hoosiers are headed.
Indiana has given him plenty of reasons for optimism, some of which came against UNC Greensboro. The Hoosiers jumped out to a 19-5 lead with 12:19 remaining before Woodson turned to his bench. Their lead grew as large as 16 points a few seconds later, then Woodson pulled Rice.
The Hoosiers didn’t score during the three minutes Rice was on the bench. Their lead dwindled to 21-9, then 21-14, and ultimately, by early in the second half, became tied at 40. Indiana, once with its foot on the gas, suddenly started coasting. Rice, the engine of the Hoosiers’ vehicle, went silent.
“Once they got rolling, we gave them hope, and they played a solid game all the way through,” Woodson said.
Rice didn’t score during 13 minutes of game action — from the final minute of the first half through the first 12 of the second — as Indiana lost and ultimately regained control. He scored 6 points in the final eight minutes, leading the Hoosiers to a 4-0 start to the season.
But Woodson is still struggling to parse where his team stands as next week’s trip to the Bahamas for the three-game Battle 4 Atlantis tournament grows closer.
“We've had some good moments; we've had some bad moments,” Woodson said. “Against really good teams, you're going to have to have a lot of good moments to outweigh the bad moments if you're going to be a good team. I think we can, but only time will tell. I've got to keep working with this team to get them where I want them, but we're not there yet.”
The highs and lows of Rice, who scored 16 points the first two games and 43 the last two, epitomizes the Hoosiers’ offense. In the span of two possessions, Rice went from zero to hero. His highs elevate Indiana’s ceiling to new heights. His lows create a concerning floor.
But on Thursday night, as Rice, who had since changed into a puffer jacket and sweatpants, walked off Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall almost half an hour after the game ended, his mind didn’t appear to be on basketball.
He stopped for pictures with fans who had stayed well after the final buzzer. He was the last Hoosier off the court, ultimately heading for the exits alongside his dad, Joel, just shy of 9 p.m.
For the younger Rice, the feel-good moment surely qualifies as a high. Awaiting him Friday morning? A practice Woodson described only as tough — but may ultimately rank as an invaluable low.
Follow reporters Daniel Flick (@ByDanielFlick) and Quinn Richards (@Quinn_richa) and columnist Mateo Fuentes-Rohwer (@mateo_frohwer) for updates throughout the Indiana men’s basketball season.
