Hoosiers Observations: Better balance, continued miscues
By CHRIS GOFF
ISL Editor
The general mediocrity of Indiana’s supporting crew often offsets the good work of the Yogi Ferrell-Noah Vonleh core. On Saturday, however, the Hoosiers were working together better offensively than in many recent games, as nearly three other players were in double-figure scoring: Troy Williams and Will Sheehey each had 11 points and Jeremy Hollowell had nine. But what doomed that progress were 11 turnovers on 31 second-half possessions.
Here are five other observations gleaned from Indiana’s 66-60 loss at Minnesota:
1. Ferrell’s inefficiency. In the upset of Michigan, the point guard was 8-for-10 from the field. On Saturday, he was 5-for-16. Off pick-and-rolls, he took some ill-advised jump shots and was regularly thwarted when he tried to take it all the way inside for layups. He knocked down only two 3-pointers. Ferrell, a good defender with great fundamentals, was also scored on by counterpart Deandre Mathieu, who finished with 16 points and five assists. To ask Ferrell to distribute and still serve as the focal point is clearly a lot to handle. At times, the responsibility is overwhelming.
2. Tighter rotations. Tom Crean likes to make use of his entire complement of players and will often reach deep into his bench early in games. At Williams Arena, there was no sign of Jonny Marlin, Jeff Howard or Devin Davis as Indiana used just nine players. Hollowell and Evan Gordon were the main reserves, with Austin Etherington receiving six minutes of playing time and Hanner Mosquera-Perea seven. Without frequent substitutions, the Hoosiers had a different energy and focus early in the game, with excellent activity on defense. Indiana accumulated eight blocked shots and seven steals by the time the night was over.
3. “Please, just get a shot off!” Indiana is so prone to turnovers that merely creating shots is a chore. Minnesota took eight more attempts than the Hoosiers did; they’re nearly always at a deficit in quantity when compared to their opponent. Not only do live-ball turnovers feed the other team’s running game — the Golden Gophers found six fast-break points — but they amount to wasted possessions. The Hoosiers imploded on offense down the stretch, blowing an eight-point lead in the process, because of the miscues. For the season, the Hoosiers are giving it away on well over 20 percent of their trips. It’s hard to see a solution. One player with especially poor ballhandling numbers (individual turnover rate, assist ratio) is Williams, but Crean is committed to him as a starter.
4. Williams’ two-way game. Austin Hollins who? Williams provided encouragement by winning his matchup with one of the Big Ten’s best small forwards. Williams beat him down the floor to earn two free throws and then hit a 3-pointer in his eye. Williams also had a midrange jumper, a highlight-worthy dunk and an offensive putback. Defensively, he was a menace guarding Hollins, who had just eight points, and generally played his best game since late November.
5. Hollowell stepping up. For the first time in a while, Stanford Robinson was nonexistent with no points and one rebound, but his production was accounted for with Hollowell playing big off the bench. It was a key game for Hollowell, and he took advantage of the space the Gophers were giving him to shoot. In addition to three free throws, he had a jump shot, a tough tip-in and a reverse layup. Hollowell is a combo forward who’s shot a bunch of bricks and needed a performance like this to move up from the fringes of Indiana’s rotation.
Follow Chris Goff on Twitter: chrisgoff_ISL.
