Indiana 75, Butler 59: Hoosiers pull away from Bulldogs.

by John M (The Crimson Quarry) on Nov 28, 2011 6:45 AM EST in Indiana Hoosiers Basketball

BLOOMINGTON, IN - NOVEMBER 19: Will Sheehey #10 of the Indiana Hoosiers shoots the ball during the game against the Savannah State Tigers at Assembly Hall on November 19, 2011 in Bloomington, Indiana. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)

After a rough, hard-fought first half, Indiana exploded in the second half, and a game that felt like it would go down to the wire suddenly became a comfortable win for IU. Above all, this game was a relief. Butler isn't as strong a team as it was last year, let alone in 2009-10, and the Bulldogs have lost three legendary players over the last two years, so some rebuilding seems to be inevitable. On the other hand, Butler won 10 NCAA Tournament games over the last two seasons despite having less talent than most of the teams they beat. Butler is an extremely well-coached team and this was a dangerous game. A win at home over Butler doesn't prove all that much, but a loss would have led to a feeling of same old, same old, and would have led to a media feeding frenzy (even after the win, hacks like Jeff Goodman of CBS have exaggerated the precariousness of Tom Crean's position at IU and with the fans). In other words, this is an important win because it means we didn't lose.

As for the game itself, the first half was a slugfest, with lots of turnovers and not much by way of shooting. IU missed a number of bunnies (I'm looking at you, Christian Watford), some because of Butler's defense and some because of just bad luck. I thought that in the first half, it was apparent that IU wasn't used to playing against a team with any ability to match them physically. That's not to say that Butler and IU have comparable talent--they don't--but Butler was a big step up in talent and preparation from IU's other opponents, and I thought it took a while for IU players to realize that some of the stuff that worked earlier wasn't going to work today. Again, however, as much as IU struggled against Butler's defense early on, the Bulldogs were stymied as well. Butler has struggled to score all season, but the most impressive number for the IU defense is the Bulldogs' turnover total. Butler turned the ball over 21 times, or on 33 percent of its possessions. That percentage number is Butler's worst single game total since a loss to Wisconsin-Milwaukee in January 2004. Certainly, part of that is the loss of Shelvin Mack, but taking care of the ball has long been a Butler trademark, and IU made the Bulldogs look very sloppy. Forcing turnovers is quickly becoming a point of strength for this team. IU now ranks #19 nationally with a defensive turnover percentage of 27 percent.

As it stood, IU shot only 11-34 from two point range for the game, including 3-15 in the first half. IU continued to excel from behind the arc, shooting 5-10 in the first half and 8-13 for the game. IU got to the line and shot well there, 29-36. There certainly are plenty of concerns with this team, but if we can continue to turn teams over, get to the line, and shoot well from outside, we will win some games.

Individual performances:

Will Sheehey continued to excel, scoring a team-high 21 points on 5-8 from the field and 8-10 from the line. I have said it many times this year, but for all the accolades for the 2009, 2011, and 2012 classes, picking up the relatively unheralded Sheehey and Victor Oladipo in 2010 may be a key to this turnaround.
Oladipo struggled to finish near the basket, but still ended up with 10 points thanks to 5-6 from the line. He also had two steals.
Cody Zeller had a steady game. He had his "worst" shooting performance at 4-9 from the field, but finished with 16 points, 8 boards, 8-10 from the line, 3 steals, 2 blocks, and only 2 fouls in 33 minutes.
Christian Watford really struggled: 2-10, only 2 boards, and an uncharacteristic 2-4 from the line.
Jordan Hulls played a nice game as well, finishing with 14 points on 5-9/2-3.

IU now stands at 6-0, which is all that can be expected at this point, of course. Before the season, I saw five loseable games on the non-conference schedule: at Evansville, Butler, at NC State, Kentucky, and Notre Dame. IU is now 2-0 against that slate with a 21 point win and a 16 point win. The NC State game now seems like the true test of the pre-conference. Kentucky is at this point a dominant team, and although IU has risen to #20 in the Pomeroy ratings, Pom gives IU only a 24 percent chance of winning at home. Notre Dame recently lost its best player, Tim Abromitis, to a season-ending knee injury, and ND didn't have much margin for error to begin with. Still, there's no need to dwell on the future today. This was a nice and important win for the program, and we are in very good shape for this season and next.

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Order restored

For the moment, anyway. Good win. I am particularly impressed by our defensive performances thus far. I’d like to see if they can continue it against better competition, but everyone just seems to be more active on the defensive end.

by hoosierdaddynow on Nov 28, 2011 7:59 AM EST reply actions

as per usual

Will, Vic, and Jordy looked good. VO wasn’t scoring as much as we’ve come to expect but his tenacity on defense was as impressive as it has been all season. It seemed like everyone was shorting their shots, as if they had just played two games right before this one and had tired legs. I found it odd. Maybe CTC snuck one more intense practice before the game to make sure they were ready and it backfired. Oh well, a win is a win.

The biggest positive was obviously Will Sheehey. He’s just a beast. I was also glad that IU kept attacking and was able to keep getting to the line. CTC said it correctly when he said they we won’t lose very many games when we make more FTs than the other team attempts. Lastly the turnovers forced were encouraging. I had been worrying that all the TOs forced recently were due to the quality of the competition and now I very much doubt that’s the case. I think these Hoosiers will continue to force tons of TOs and I couldn’t be happier about it.

The negatives were many, but at least they’re correctable. First, the guys are NOT boxing out. At all. Butler was in position or almost every rebound. Really hope CTC starts stressing this or else we’re going to get destroyed on the boards vs better teams. This doesn’t apply to WS, though. He boxes out well from what I saw. 2. Turnovers were frustrating. I’m somewhat ok with it because IU is still learning the ins and outs of running. I think they’ll learn to keep the TOs down by the end o the nonconference schedule. 3. Watford. Normally I like it when a guy has confidence in himself and keeps shooting after he misses a few, but in last night’s case I wish he could’ve recognized that he was just having a bad night. He left everything short and made several bad decisions. He wasn’t able to pull down hardly any boards either. Still don’t know quite what to make of him this year. Hopefully he’ll get more consistent.

Overall it was a sloppy win, but a win nonetheless. I’ll take it.

"It's an easy game, man. Easy game."
~Edgerrin James

by 87 Rides A Surfboard on Nov 28, 2011 8:27 AM EST via mobile reply actions

Watford

The luxury with this team this year is the you can sit him, and maybe that’s what needs to happen. Did you catch the sequence where Jones chewed him out after he failed to block out on a missed free throw? Watford’s a talented kid, and the hope here is that he can take the challenge of having tough and talented players around him and elevate his game. I’ll be watching for that on Wednesday.

by hoosierdaddynow on Nov 28, 2011 9:02 AM EST up reply actions

sure did.

I had floor seats and it happened right in front of me. Thankfully Watford has backup so IU won’t crumble if he has a bad night. I think he’ll have a breakout game soon where everything falls into place. He just hasn’t yet fully adjusted to his new role.

"It's an easy game, man. Easy game."
~Edgerrin James

by 87 Rides A Surfboard on Nov 28, 2011 10:53 AM EST via mobile up reply actions

You lucky bastard

by hoosierdaddynow on Nov 28, 2011 10:57 AM EST up reply actions

first and probably last time

I ever get seats like that. It was incredible. I was so excited during the pregame ceremony that my knees went weak. Definitely an experience that every true IU fan should get to experience at least once in their lifetime.

"It's an easy game, man. Easy game."
~Edgerrin James

by 87 Rides A Surfboard on Nov 28, 2011 11:10 AM EST via mobile up reply actions

As I said above, I think, based on nothing but my own half-assed observations, that the team had a bit of an adjustment early on getting used to playing such a tenacious, well-coached, and talented team (not as talented as IU, but much more talented than any previous opponent).

The Crimson Quarry, SB Nation's Indiana Hoosiers blog

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by John M (The Crimson Quarry) on Nov 28, 2011 9:22 AM EST up reply actions

it's all correctable.

Crean will straighten them out. IU is finally to the point where they can out-talent a lot of teams and in situations like last night it’s a nice advantage to have.

"It's an easy game, man. Easy game."
~Edgerrin James

by 87 Rides A Surfboard on Nov 28, 2011 10:50 AM EST via mobile up reply actions

the most encouraging part of last night's offense in my opinion

is the fact that we played terribly from an offensive standpoint for this team and still put up 75 points on a hard nosed defense.

-Contributing Writer at The Crimson Quarry.

by JustAJ on Nov 28, 2011 11:26 AM EST reply actions

agreed.

I’m liking the scoring balance. On any given night some combination of Sheehey, Oladipo, Zeller, Jones, Hulls, Elston, Watford, and even Roth can carry the scoring burden. Maybe all of the above, maybe just 2. Having options is nice. I remember when Pritchard was our only scoring threat. Those were dark days.

"It's an easy game, man. Easy game."
~Edgerrin James

by 87 Rides A Surfboard on Nov 28, 2011 11:46 AM EST via mobile up reply actions

A million times yes

Best lineup right now? Hulls, O, Sheehey, Elston and Zeller. You have a plus defender at three of the five positions, and each of them can score. They space, pass and drive well in the half court, and all of them can get out in transition.

I know — picking those five is a really controversial position. It’s just nice to have a five-man lineup that you can throw out there that does not really have significant holes in it. And if you bring in guys like Watford or Jones; there are holes there, but those guys still bring a lot of other things to the table.

by hoosierdaddynow on Nov 28, 2011 2:53 PM EST up reply actions

still would prefer Sheehey and Elston off the bench at this point

Watford and Jones on an average night offer more potential than the other two offensively and probably slightly less defense, though it is close. Watford and Jones have both showed marked improvement in the defensive game this year and it is early. They’ll still grow as they get their game legs under them.

-Contributing Writer at The Crimson Quarry.

by JustAJ on Nov 28, 2011 3:22 PM EST up reply actions

Ding, ding, ding.

The Crimson Quarry, SB Nation's Indiana Hoosiers blog

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by John M (The Crimson Quarry) on Nov 28, 2011 11:57 AM EST up reply actions

Watford

I just wanted to chime with a curious comment that it seems Watford didn’t get any bigger in the off season. Is that true? He seemed to just get pushed around when it came time to box out and that made me think that he just looks small, and I’m talking strength wise. Maybe I’m wrong but Zeller needs to put on some meat obviously and we lose Pritchard this year…hopefully these guys underneath get bigger strength wise or we’ll always get pushed around under the boards.

by Nillzle on Nov 28, 2011 12:30 PM EST reply actions

Zeller will bulk up

he just needs time. Watford has always done well as a weak side rebounder but if he has to get physical he’s usually outmatched in a strength capacity. He’ll get his rebounds but he’ll rarely get them from being the most physical guy on the floor. Is that acceptable? Hardly. But it is what it is. If he can offer offense to go with average rebounding and defense, he’s still a guy you want on the floor for a big portion of the minutes.

-Contributing Writer at The Crimson Quarry.

by JustAJ on Nov 28, 2011 12:44 PM EST up reply actions

and.....

next year will get some physical interior reinforcements with Jurkin and Perea. Both are defensive and rebounding fiends. Our inside game on that end of the court will likely only improve. Now on offense, they’ll still be searching for some depth. That is likely where Elston comes in to provide an outside-in mismatch against PFs.

-Contributing Writer at The Crimson Quarry.

by JustAJ on Nov 28, 2011 12:46 PM EST up reply actions

Good Points...

Very good points there, seems to just be a big weakness for us this year…but you work with what you can work with. If Cody’s brother is an inclination on what Cody could look like in a few years then great! UNC Zeller is a big boy and it’ll be quite helpful with that size underneath…just a waiting game now.

by Nillzle on Nov 28, 2011 12:53 PM EST up reply actions