Indiana Can’t Make Go-Ahead Shot In Final Seconds As Hoosiers Fall To UCLA

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Coming off of an upset win at No. 11 Michigan State Tuesday, Indiana’s men’s basketball team had a chance to build some momentum with UCLA – just outside of the top 25 – visiting Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall for the first time ever on Friday.

Could Indiana match UCLA’s toughness and execute well enough to ensure that the win over the Spartans was something the Hoosiers could build on?

Indiana came close, but the Hoosiers could not finish a late comeback with the winning shot.

Mackenzie Mgbako had a wide open corner 3-pointer with four seconds left that could have resulted in an Indiana triumph, but his shot hit the back of the rim. UCLA’s Dylan Andrews made a pair of free throws after the miss to salt away a 72-68 Big Ten victory for the Bruins.

Mgbako’s look was clean. So was a layup just before that sequence that could have tied the game. Mgbako was certainly not the cause of the defeat, but they were just two plays of many where Indiana had a chance to take the game away from the Bruins, but couldn’t get the job done.

“It's a tough loss. We executed, but we just didn't finish,” Indiana coach Mike Woodson said. “Mack got an offensive rebound, point blank layup, and we don't get it. Then we get a wide open three. We got exactly what we were looking for on the play, and that's a shot that he normally makes. He just didn't make it.”

No Indiana players were made available to the media after the game.

Luke Goode led Indiana with 16 points. Mgbako and Malik Reneau had 14 each, but it wasn’t enough. Tyler Bilodeau led UCLA’s balanced attack with 12 points. Nine different Bruins scored at least five points.

UCLA (19-7, 10-5) won its first game east of the Rocky Mountains since it joined the Big Ten. Indiana (15-11, 6-9) dropped its fourth home game of the season – all losses have come since Jan. 8.

As it did in its previous two games, Indiana used a 2-3 zone against the Bruins. Unlike Indiana's previous pair of games, UCLA was able to exploit it.

A Bilodeau 3-pointer on UCLA’s first possession set the tone. UCLA patiently worked its offense, finding the seams in the zone for easy conversions.

“I thought there were times (the zone defense) didn't help - we just didn't play it right, and they exposed us some early on, and we got away from it. I thought our rotations tonight were off based on how we played at Michigan State,” Woodson said.

Indiana hung in there at first, leading 10-9, but then the bottom fell out of the Hoosiers’ attack.

Indiana missed eight shots in a row spanning the 16:16 to the 8:34 mark of the first half. Indiana missed 17 of its final 22 shots in the first half overall. The 3-point line provided no respite from the shooting as the Hoosiers only made 2 of 13 before halftime.

Indiana’s cause was not helped when Mgbako, who had six early points for the Hoosiers, limped off favoring his right leg. He did not play after the 12:49 mark of the first half to halftime. Mbgako did return and played most of the second half.

UCLA gleaned confidence from its stopping ability and played free on the offensive end. Whether Indiana was in a zone or a man set, UCLA was able to continually find openings to exploit. UCLA converted 46.7% in the first half to take a 35-25 halftime lead.

The second half saw Indiana slice the Bruins’ lead to four almost immediately after the second half began. Goode had 10 points from the resumption of the game to the first media timeout, but it began a frustrating pattern for the Hoosiers.

Indiana would cut UCLA’s lead to four or five points – the Hoosiers did it eight different times in the second half – only to allow the Bruins to respond with a mini-run of its own. Indiana’s inability to get stops was a key reason. The Bruins shot 50% or better for much of the second half until they slumped slightly in the final two minutes.

Indiana’s cause wasn’t helped by questionable shot selection. On a fast break with 1:57 left with the Hoosiers down seven, Myles Rice failed to dish the ball, electing instead to dribble into a pair of taller UCLA defenders. His shot was blocked.

Later, with Indiana closer, Rice took a quick mid-range jumper that prematurely ended an Indiana possession that could have cut UCLA’s lead down to one possession.

Indiana overcame these questionable shots, but it delayed the comeback almost until it was too late.

Before that second Rice shot, Indiana had received the break that helped the Hoosiers break out of its close-but-no-cigar purgatory.

Anthony Leal fouled UCLA’s Sebastian Mack after Goode had missed a 3-pointer, but Mack followed through with an elbow and was called for a technical foul. After Mack missed the front end of a one-and-one, Goode made two free throws and Indiana was down five with the ball.

A three-point play by Reneau with 53 seconds left finally broke the four-point ceiling for the Hoosiers as they trailed 70-68. Indiana got the stop on UCLA’s next possession and had a chance to tie or take the lead.

On that final possession, Indiana got clean looks, but couldn’t convert. Rice took an open baseline jumper with 12 seconds left that was off-line, but Mgbako rebounded on the weak side and had an open look at the rim. It swirled out and was knocked out of bounds by the Bruins.

On the inbounds pass, Mgbako inbounded to Reneau, who handed off to Mgbako in the left corner, his positioning providing a screen for Mgbako. As Assembly Hall roared in anticipation, his shot hit the back of the cylinder. Andrews rebounded and made the subsequent free throws to send Indiana to its 11th loss of the season.

Indiana has nine days off before it hosts No. 7 Purdue on Feb. 23.

“I'm searching as the coach in terms of trying to get them over the finish line. I'll never put it on the player. I'll take the responsibility. Even though I don't make the shots or miss the defensive assignments, it's still my job to get them over the hump,” Woodson said.