'Confident' Indiana Finishes Strong, Gets Huge Road Win at Michigan
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — All we've learned about Indiana and all its new players so far was that they were good enough to beat the teams they were supposed to beat.
On Tuesday night at Michigan, they also showed they could win when they weren't supposed to.
Making one big play after another down the stretch, the Hoosiers — who were 6.5-point underdogs entering the game —won 78-75 over the Wolverines for their second straight Big Ten win here in early December. They're now 7-1 on the season, continuing to find a way to win even when things aren't the prettiest.
"I thought we fought,'' Indiana coach Mike Woodson said. "My theme coming into tonight's game that was that we've got to come out and set the tone like we did in the Maryland game to give us a chance to win. I thought we turned the ball over a lot in the first half, but I thought that was the difference. We made some key shots down the stretch.''
"We're a competitive team and we're playing hard. Since (losing by 20 to Connecticut) we've been playing a lot better.''
They sure did.
It was a tight game throughout and Indiana trailed by six with 9 minutes to go. But they got buckets inside from Mackenzie Mgbako and Malik Reneau and then sophomore CJ Gunn hit a 3-pointer at the 7:30 mark — his second of the night after starting his career 2-for-28 from deep — to take a 60-59 lead.
Neither team led by more than three points the rest of the way, and it was the Hoosiers who made more plays in the closing minutes. Trey Galloway, who had one of his worst nights as a Hoosier — he was 3-for-12 shooting, missed three free throws and didn't have a single rebound — scored on a driving layup to give Indiana a 73-71 lead with 2:35 to go.
Michigan tied in on a jumper by Olivier Nkamhoua, but then Kel'el Ware had his number called again, and he scored with 51 seconds to go to make it 75-73.
Dug McDaniel, Michigan's top scorer, was fouled on the other end, but missed the first free throw. Woodson put Mgbako back on the floor and made sure the ball got in his hands. He was fouled, and made both free throws. Mgbako is now a perfect 17-for-17 from the line this season.
Michigan's McDaniel was fouled again and made just 1-of-2. Galloway was fouled with 2.2 seconds to go and made one free throw to make it 78-75. Michigan called timeout, but the 7-foot Kel'el Ware guarded the inbounds pass, something Woodson came up with in the huddle. Ware was able to block the pass, and the clock ran out.
"It was a short clock, and I was going to take the foul,'' Woodson said. "It worked in our favor.''
Indiana's front line carried the load once again. Reneau led the way with 15 points, Ware had 13 and Mgbako added 11. The bench players also contributed in a big way. Anthony Walker had eight points, and Payton Sparks and Kaleb Banks had six each. The Hoosiers had eight different players score six points or more.
Reneau had a huge second half, scoring five baskets as Indiana's go-to guy during their run.
"It's just confidence in ourselves,'' Reneau said. "Our guards were great getting the ball down low to us, and playing tough on the road, that was big. That's what we did. That's just Coach Woodson trusting me. He's seen me do it multiple times and he trusts me. I told him if I could get to my block and I could get enough time to go, I was going to score, and he trusted me to do that.''
Reneau and Ware are turning into quite the dynamic duo inside. Reneau is passing well out of double teams, and the two of them together cause problems. That Ware basket that put Indiana ahead for good was the perfect example. The ball started in Reneau's hands, but he was double-teamed, so he passed it back out. The Hoosiers reversed the ball, and got it inside to Ware. He rolled to the basket, and his little mini-hook went in.
"He's 7-foot and nobody can get up there for his sky hooks or his fadeaway jumpers,'' Reneau said. "He's taking advantage of his one-on-ones, and he's knocking his shots down.''
Woodson loved the ball movement on that final possession. It showed a lot of poise, he said, and no panic.
"We worked both sides, and we needed a big bucket at that particular time,'' Woodson said.
The Hoosiers also got a big boost from Gunn, who's struggled to hit from deep throughout his career. But he had a big three in the first half, and that second one to get the lead.
He's a confident kid, and he's going to keep shooting. On Tuesday night, his two big threes made a big difference. So did his defense. He had four steals and a block as well.
"This was amazing. I've been waiting for this game,'' Gunn said. "This is just proof for all the work I've put in, getting shots up with Jordy (Hulls) and coach (Calbert) Cheaney. Shooters shoot. You miss 100 percent of the shots you don't take. Yesterday I was sick, but today I just did anything I could do to help my team win.''
The Hoosiers are back in action on Saturday, taking on Auburn in Atlanta.
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- WATCH WARE'S DUNK: Indiana point guard Gabe Cupps fed Kel'el Ware for an easy fast break dunk on Tuesday night at Michigan. Watch the highlight below. CLICK HERE
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