Boos Rain Down on Indiana During Ugly 85-70 Home Loss to Nebraska
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — The message was sent loud and clear.
Very loud, and very clear.
When Indiana's basketball team walked off the court at halftime, down by 20 to a decent Nebraska team that's only good at home, Hoosiers fans by the thousands booed the local team off the court.
And it wasn't just the students, either. The disgust came from every corner on Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.
It wasn't a good look for an Indiana team in complete free fall right now.
“That’s part of it,'' a soft-spoken Trey Galloway said. "We just have to block out all the outside noise. I have to stay focused and try to help my team.”
It's been a rough season, but the Hoosiers hit rock bottom on Wednesday night. They lost 85-70 to a Nebraska team that was 0-7 on the road in the Big Ten before Indiana gifted them a win in every possible way
Even more amazing, they were down by 20 at half and lost by 15 despite going on a 20-3 run themselves early in the second half. They actually had a shot to tie the game — a three-point attempt from C.J. Gunn with 10:58 to go — that went wide. They were outscored 26-14 the rest of the way.
Outside of that run, they were outscored by 32 points.
At home.
IU is now 14-12 on the season, 6-9 in the league and trending toward playing on the first night of the conference tournament, a night reserved for the four worst teams.
It's gotten that bad.
"We had no defensive effort in the first half,'' Indiana coach Mike Woodson said. "You can't give up 51 points in the Big Ten and beat anybody. "We didn't compete. I thought the second half we competed. Cut it to three, and then we stopped competing again."
Nebraska jumped all over the Hoosiers early, making nine threes in the first half. They led by 18 at 40-22, withstood a mini Indiana run, then scored the final nine points of the half to lead 51-31 at the break. When Indiana coach Mike Woodson, his entire coaching staff and every player headed to the locker, they got an earful from the Assembly Hall, many of whom did not come back after intermission.
Nebraska guard Keisei Tominaga was the biggest problem. The left-handed guard had 18 first-half points and scored literally at will. Freshman Gabe Cupps, who did a great job guarding Northwestern's Boo Buie on Sunday, was completely overmatched. Trey Galloway and C.J. Gunn took their shots, too, but to no avail. He finished with xx points.
This Big Ten season has been all either/or for Nebraska. The Cornhuskers are a perfect 8-0 at home, but came to Bloomington having lost all seven league games. Indiana was one of those home wins, an 86-70 beatdown in Lincoln back on Jan. 3.
They didn't look the least bit uncomfortable here, and they are now 19-8 overall and 9-7 in the Big Ten. They finished the night with 14 made threes. Indiana was just 4-for-21 from deep — a measly 19 percent — and missed 10 free throws.
"When we get chances to make shots, we've got to make them,'' Galloway said. "We've just got to really stick together. We show spurts where we can be really good."
He's not wrong. That early second half run by Indiana was great, but it was literally putting lipstick on a pig. They still aren't making shots — either from deep or the line — and they have no chance of winning when their defense falters like this. This is their fourth home last in five games after starting the season 9-1 at Assembly Hall.
"We've lost more games at home this year than we have in the last two years and that's frustrating," Woodson said. "But no one is going to feel sorry for Indiana basketball. They're just not.
"When you talk about trying to stay in the hunt, every game is important. Right now, we're kind of sinking ourselves. I've got to get us where we can at least be competitive enough when we get into the Big Ten tournament because that is what it's going to take."
Freshman forward Mackenzie Mgbako led the Hoosiers with 22 points, but he was just 7-of-17 from the field and 2-for-8 from deep. Kel'el Ware had 17 points and 12 rebounds, and Malik Reneau had 15. Galloway had eight points, but six turnovers as the Indiana guards struggled once again. Cupps was 0-for-6 shooting and failed to score.
The Hoosiers are back in action on Saturday when then take on Penn State at Noon ET in State College, Pa. Penn State handed Indiana's its most embarrassing loss this season, an easy 85-71 outcome at Assembly Hall on Feb. 3. The Nittany Lions stunned Illinois at home on Wednesday night, going on an 8-0 in the final 40 seconds to win 90-89.
Related stories on Indiana basketball
- WHAT WOODSON SAID: Here's the full transcript and video of Mike Woodson's press conference after Indiana's 85-70 loss to Nebraska: CLICK HERE
- NBA COACHES IN COLLEGE: Indiana's Mike Woodson and Nebraska's Fred Hoiberg both spent time in the NBA. Hoiberg seems to be finding more success than Woodson and other former NBA coaches — Juwan Howard, Patrick Ewing and Mike Dunleavy Sr., to name a few. One trend might explain Hoiberg's success. CLICK HERE
- IU'S FREE THROW STRUGGLES: Indiana is one of the worst free-throw shooting teams in the country despite its frequent trips to the line. Several Hoosiers have become worse free throw shooters throughout their careers. Coach Mike Woodson said it's a mental issue. CLICK HERE
- MEET THE OPPONENT: Nebraska heads to Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall for the return game against Indiana on Wednesday. The Huskers won the first meeting in Lincoln 86-70. The Hoosiers are looking for revenge on their home court while the Huskers are searching for their first Big Ten road win. CLICK HERE
- TOM BREW COLUMN: Mike Woodson is going to be 66 years old in a few weeks, and the Indiana basketball coach can't keep doing this forever. He was asked Tuesday how long he wants to coach and he said ''I'm not going anywhere anytime soon, guys.'' CLICK HERE
