The ball floated through the air as Luke Goode slowly backed away from the 3-point line. His confident demeanor contrasted with the anticipatory hush that fell over most of the crowd inside Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.
But as the senior forward’s shot nestled in the basket, the Hoosier faithful could not contain their excitement, unleashing a roar as Indiana men’s basketball trimmed No. 13 Purdue’s lead to 2 points.
This was not an uncommon situation for the Hoosiers this season.
In its last game Feb. 14, Indiana had been within 2 points frequently with UCLA. Even with just seconds remaining, sophomore forward Mackenzie Mgbako had a chance to win the contest with a 3-pointer, but his effort did not fall.
A similar story played out against then-No. 24 Michigan and the reverse fixture with Purdue, but in neither instance could Indiana close out the victory.
That all changed Sunday afternoon. Goode’s triple wasn’t the end of a second half comeback — it was the start of a second half domination.
Just under a minute and a half later, Goode scored again, earning an and-one and gifting Indiana a lead it would never relinquish. As the buzzer sounded inside the Hall, the Hoosiers walked away with a 73-58 victory over Purdue in Bloomington.
“We've been in a lot of close games over the last month and a half, and I just haven't been able to get over the hump,” Indiana head coach Mike Woodson said postgame. “Tonight, they refused to lose.”
In Woodson’s last iteration of the rivalry, both as a player and a head coach, it was the nearly perfect sendoff for the program legend.
A sendoff Woodson can thank himself for.
Beginning the contest, the four-year Hoosiers head coach decided not to start Mgbako and sixth-year senior Oumar Ballo. For Mgbako, it was his first appearance off the bench in an Indiana uniform, while it was only the second for Ballo.
In their stead, Woodson opted for redshirt sophomore guard Myles Rice and junior forward Malik Reneau, both original starters from early in the season that had recently been moved to the bench.
Almost immediately, Indiana saw success from the change.
The Hoosiers jumped out to an early lead, and with just over six minutes played, up 13-8, they looked like a completely different team. Fielding Ballo on the court for Reneau, fifth-year senior guard Trey Galloway found the Koulikoro, Mali, native for a thunderous alley-oop dunk, sending the Indiana fans into a frenzy.
But only a minute later, most of the starting lineup was on the bench. Rice, Goode and fifth-year senior guard Anthony Leal left the game, and while Indiana continued to lead for nearly the next six minutes, the team’s momentum had clearly faltered.
After a 21-4 Purdue run in the final eight minutes and 39 seconds, the Hoosiers entered the half down 12, staring a blowout defeat in the face. Boos filtered through the crowd, a not so uncommon occurrence from the home fans inside Assembly Hall.
But the boos would never return, and for one simple reason: Indiana gave the fans nothing to boo in the second half.
And Mike Woodson is largely to credit for that.
Opting for his starting lineup, Woodson once again saw an instant impact. In just under a minute and a half, Rice drained a triple, Leal dished Galloway for a dunk and Galloway assisted Leal for a layup, forcing a Purdue timeout.
Only four minutes and 47 seconds later, the Boilermakers called another timeout, now down 6. By the under-12 media timeout, Indiana had executed a 28-3 run from the start of the half, cruising to a 13-point lead.
Rather than switch up the rotation, bring some guys from the bench such as Mgbako or freshman forward Bryson Tucker, Woodson stuck with his core six. And when the final buzzer sounded, four of them — Rice, Galloway, Leal and Goode — had played the entirety of the second half.
What that group succeeded in most was slowing down a potent Purdue offense. Junior guard Braden Smith, a Big Ten Player of the Year candidate, logged 8 points, two rebounds and five assists. On the season, the Westfield, Indiana, native averages 16.1 points, 4.7 rebounds and 8.8 assists.
Similarly, Indiana’s hounding defense, particularly Leal and Rice, forced 11 second-half turnovers. Smith, who averaged 2.9 entering Sunday, accounted for five of them.
“You can't just play that young man with one guy — he’s really that good,” Woodson said about Smith. “I mean, when things break down, the ball gets back up into his hand and he's able to make plays with the basketball. I thought we did a good job with him tonight.”
Ultimately, Woodson found the six players he needed to secure the victory, and he unflinchingly stuck with them. Moving forward, he acknowledged this won’t be the default game plan.
“In the long run, you know, we can't play those guys those many minutes,” Woodson said. “The rest of the way, (I’m) still going to need guys to contribute off the bench. So, you know, I'm not throwing in the towel on any of our players.”
Every game won’t require four players staying on the court for over 30 minutes. Every game also won’t be a rivalry matchup in an electric environment. And for Woodson and Indiana, this was the necessary game plan.
As of now, the Hoosiers are still not a lock for the NCAA Tournament, but according to the ESPN Analytics forecast, Indiana improved its chances of reaching March Madness from 24% to 36%. Beyond the fact it moved their Quad 1 record to 4-11, Sunday’s win provides crucial momentum for a squad that appeared lost.
That momentum won’t guarantee wins — Indiana’s win at then-No. 11 Michigan State was followed by a defeat to UCLA. But with only four games left in the regular season, what better time than now to defeat a hated rival in what has been an otherwise disappointing season.
As for Woodson, he proved retirement isn’t on his mind just yet — the wins are still his top priority.
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.
