The Hoosier faithful inside Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall collectively held their breath as Trey Galloway raised his right hand. When his 3-point attempt fell through the net, the held breath turned into a thundering cheer, booming in volume as the Hoosiers improved their lead to 11 points over Miami University with only seven and half minutes to go in the game.
Unlike his supporters, Galloway was not impressed.
The fifth-year senior guard made a small gesture to the sky, and, with little enthusiasm, turned to defend the inbounds play. When the whistle blew to signal a timeout, Galloway continued his stoic manner, lightly high fiving his teammates on the way to the bench.
Galloway’s atypical response to a crucial 3-point basket was emblematic of Indiana’s 76-57 victory over Miami on Friday night –– one which further emphasized the issues plaguing the Hoosiers to start the season.
The win was a step in the right direction. What led up to that step could prove costly for the Hoosiers moving forward.
The issues began immediately as Indiana took a quick 8-0 lead, which was immediately followed by a 3-pointer for Miami. Only three minutes later, up 14-6, a miscommunication on defense left freshman guard Luke Skaljac open behind the arc. Entering the game shooting 13 for 17 from 3-point range, the RedHawk wasted no time in burying the open shot.
Even with a rejuvenated defensive effort in the second half, holding Miami to only 21 points, Indiana’s perimeter defense continued to show lapses. With two minutes to go in the game and leading by 20 points, the Hoosiers left freshman forward Brant Byers open for yet-another simple 3-point basket.
“There's a lot of miscues that we had that we shouldn't have,” Galloway said postgame. “If we clean those up, it takes away a lot of those buckets that they got.”
Then came the rebounding.
Indiana won the rebounding battle convincingly, securing 46 to Miami’s 29 –– and yet, its performance on the boards was not satisfactory. The Hoosiers snagged a respectable nine offensive rebounds, but in comparison to the RedHawks’ 12, the effort was not good enough.
To make matters worse, junior forward Antwone Woolfolk was the tallest member of Miami’s starting lineup, measuring 6-foot-9. Sophomore center Reece Potter posed a rebounding threat off the bench with his 7-foot-1 frame, but he only managed two total rebounds, both offensive.
Indiana sixth-year senior center Oumar Ballo carried most of the load with 18 total rebounds, but junior forward Malik Reneau and freshman forward Bryson Tucker were next best with seven and five, respectively.
“Once the ball goes up on the glass, are we in a position to rebound the ball?” Indiana head coach Mike Woodson said. “I think we gave up 15, 16 offensive rebounds. That’s way too much. These are things we got to fix.”
Finally, Indiana once again failed to win the turnover battle, giving up 16 while Miami only committed eight. Even worse, the 16 turnovers outnumbered the 15 total assists.
Redshirt sophomore Myles Rice provided the Hoosiers with an offensive threat early on, scoring 14 points on 5-for-6 shooting in the first half. But in his 30 minutes of gametime, he only managed one assist to go with his three turnovers.
The 16 Indiana turnovers turned into 20 points for Miami, a team which entered the game ranked 166th in KenPom, a ranking system based on advanced metrics. Committing 16 turnovers could prove even more problematic against a top Big Ten squad.
“These things that, man, you just got to fix,” Woodson said. “Moving forward, once we start playing Big Ten basketball, plays like that can really put you in the hole with these good teams.”
That is where the issue lies.
Indiana begins conference play Monday night against Minnesota. Although the Golden Gophers rank 111th in KenPom and 174th in the NCAA NET rankings, they’re still a Big Ten team. And as Galloway said postgame, “the Big Ten is real.”
“Anybody can win on any given night,” Galloway said. “You got to be prepared and practice with urgency and with purpose.”
These are words echoed by Woodson. And for the fourth-year Hoosier head coach, these persistent issues need to be cleaned up.
If they aren’t, Big Ten play will create more pain than fun for Indiana.
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.
