Hoosiers get back on track against Illinois
By CALEB LYNN
ISL Contributor 
BLOOMINGTON — After a disappointing start to the conference season, the Hoosiers put together a bounce-back win over Illinois at Assembly Hall on Saturday night. It snapped Indiana’s three-game losing streak. IU started the game with a 15-0 run and that boosted their confidence as they eventually took down the Illini by a score of 96-80.
The Hoosiers defense was solid in the first half, but Illinois would not stop fighting, making it harder for the Hoosiers to close the game they would’ve liked in the second half. Though there was not one star for Indiana in this game, many players contributed in some way.
James Blackmon Jr. put together a very efficient performance. Blackmon put up 25 points by shooting 7-of-12 from the field including 5-of-9 from 3-point range.
“It’s really important,” Blackmon said. “Every team we play in the Big Ten is going to be great. We’ve just got to know that one game is never going to define us and just having a short memory and build on it.”
The big man Thomas Bryant had a strong afternoon. He was able to get 20 points on 6-of-6 shooting to go along with six rebounds. “I’m just having the right mentality going out there into the game,” Bryant said. “This conference has real good teams in them. You’ve got to bring your hard hat each and every time you go out there on the floor. That’s what I try to instill in myself and my teammates.”
Indiana coach Tom Crean put in a good word for Zach McRoberts at the post game conference. He did not have a big night stats-wise, but Crean didn’t worry about that. “He played 12 possessions, and we scored in 10 of those 12,” Crean said. “And they scored in two of those 12. He’s an example of what you want. Don’t worry about what’s said on the outside, don’t worry about what somebody thinks, you worry about what you can get better at and you worry about how you impact the team.”
Robert Johnson started in the game against Illinois even though he did not start against Wisconsin on Tuesday. He was able to put up big numbers and showed his consistency. He was 7-of-11 with 18 points and had the most minutes out of anyone on the team with 36.
Illinois wouldn’t go down quietly, as they cut the lead to nine at one point in the second half. Maverick Morgan stepped up for Illinois and dropped 18 points off the bench. Morgan was given lots of opportunities and took full advantage of it. Another contributor for Illinois was Jalen Coleman-Lands who had a hot shooting hand and dropped 21 points and made 7-of-13 shots from the field. His aggressiveness made IU have to work hard to stay on him.
Illinois in their comeback tried to get Malcolm Hill going. After three fouls in the first half, Hill shined bright in the second half and showed how valuable he is to Illinois. In the end, it was too little, too late for Illinois.
“I was really proud of the way that they played,” said Tom Crean.
The Hoosiers look like they are getting back on track after losing their first two Big Ten conference games at home. IU’s next game will be at Maryland on Tuesday night. It will only be their second true road game of the season.
