Indiana Basketball's Offense Keeps Rolling vs Milwaukee. IU Sees a Higher Ceiling.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Before the whistle blew and the play began, an assistant coach on Milwaukee's staff told his team to "watch the catch," anticipating a catch-and-shoot 3-pointer off the ensuing inbounds pass.

Indiana men's basketball sixth-year senior guard Tayton Conerway sent the ball from the baseline to the left wing, where fifth-year senior forward Tucker DeVries caught the pass, launched a 3-pointer and watched it splash through the white nylon, giving the Hoosiers their largest lead at 75-56.

The Panthers knew what was coming. They couldn't stop it.

Indiana's offense is a freight train rolling down the tracks, and it may have reached a new top speed Wednesday night, flying past Milwaukee in a 101-70 victory inside Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.

The Hoosiers have scored 299 points through three games, eclipsed the 100-point mark in each of their last two games and are shooting 47.5% from the 3-point line. They've made 10-plus triples in three consecutive games for the first time in nine years.

But Indiana coach Darian DeVries hopes viewers see more than gaudy numbers — because the ingredients within them are just as appealing.

"Hopefully they see guys that play the right way, they play hard, they play unselfish, they share the ball, they understand cutting, moving, screening for one another," DeVries said postgame. "That's what ultimately we want people to really take joy in, is they just like watching this team play together."

Indiana owes the root of its early season offensive explosion to its first dose of adversity. The Hoosiers trailed Mega Superbet, 44-21, in an exhibition game Aug. 9 in Puerto Rico. They proceeded to piece together a 70-19 run en route to a convincing 93-71 win.

There, in front of a sparsely populated crowd inside Coliseo Roberto Clemente, the Hoosiers' collection of new-look pieces morphed into one of the nation's most prominent early-season offenses.

"A lot of that was, as they soon found out, the ball quit moving," DeVries said. "So I think they learned from that a little bit of like, 'Hey, we're really good at offense when we play this way; we're not as good when we play this way.' And to this point in the season they've done a really good job continuing to share it."

Indiana recorded 23 assists on 34 made field goals, and it committed only seven turnovers Wednesday night. Through three games, the Hoosiers have dished 73 assists to just 26 turnovers.

It's the fulfillment of DeVries' vision when he assembled this roster in the spring. DeVries intentionally brought in pieces who were capable of playing a selfless, team-first brand, and players quickly bought into his message at the start of summer workouts. They won't be selling stock anytime soon.

"We talk to them a lot about, 'This is how we can win. If we all stay true to that, we're going to have a lot of fun and have some success.' But that is the path," DeVries said. "They enjoy it. They embrace it. So usually in the locker room you can tell like when it's real or not.

"These guys genuinely just love playing basketball and they're a lot of fun to watch together."

Senior forward Reed Bailey, who logged 14 points, five rebounds and five assists against Milwaukee, said the Hoosiers' ball movement is contagious.

"When everybody else wants to share the ball and we're all moving it, it makes you want to buy-in and really do that," Bailey said postgame. "We've preached it throughout the summer and I think we've showed it in these first games here, and I think we can just keep getting better, keep making sure we find the open man for the assist.

"When we get open threes, it's a pretty good chance that thing is going in."

Indiana has plenty of shot-makers to capitalize on its ball movement.

Sixth-year senior guard Lamar Wilkerson scored 24 points on 7-of-12 shooting, including 5 of 6 from beyond the arc, while Conerway added a season-high 21 points on 8-for-11 shooting. Tucker DeVries notched 12 points, and along with Bailey's 14 points, four of the Hoosiers' five starters reached double figures. Indiana's bench contributed 25 points.

"One night it could be this guy, one night the next guy," Darian DeVries said. "They really don't care. They don't talk about it. They just go out and play, and they take what the defense gives them. I thought again tonight, 23 assists (to) seven turnovers was really good.

"I think that's why you get the shooting percentages you get, because we're getting the right type of shots."

Nine scholarship players saw the court for Indiana, and eight made at least one 3-pointer. The lone omission was senior forward Sam Alexis, who battled foul trouble in the first half and played only 12 minutes overall.

The Hoosiers were 14-for-28 shooting from long range Wednesday night, the second consecutive game they've made 14 triples. They eclipsed double-digit 3-pointers only twice last season under coach Mike Woodson.

Quantity of shot-makers aside, Indiana is creating quality looks — and, as Conerway said postgame, shooters like Wilkerson and Tucker DeVries won't miss often.

"I think guys do a great job understanding how to get shooters open," Darian DeVries said. "They have a really good understanding of when to deliver it. Their timing there has been good. And because we're getting enough movement outside of all the different areas on the floor, we're able to kind of create some things and put defenses in some tough spots, whether it's in pick and roll or back cuts.

"If the help comes from somewhere, our guys do a really good job reading it. If it's not there, that means somebody else is probably open, and that's where a lot of those threes come from."

Indiana has reached a point, DeVries said, where the coaching staff lets its offense go. The Hoosiers' focus is on defense and rebounding — Milwaukee outrebounded Indiana, 20-14, in the first half, but the Hoosiers rallied to win the battle on the boards, 35-31.

For that reason, Indiana still sees upside in its offense — no matter how prolific, how dominant, how refreshing the numbers and style of play may seem.

"I feel like our defense leads into our offense," Conerway said. "So, the more we can keep them from not getting second chances, offensive rebounds — as long as we can get them shots limited to one shot we can get out on the break and get a couple more points up there."

Or, in DeVries' words, Indiana can do what it does best: Pass, cut, shoot and score. Then do it over and over again until the scoreboard shows three digits and a gaudy victory, as has so quickly become a reality for the DeVries-led Hoosiers.