Rapid Reaction: Indiana Survives Scare from Northwestern

Snapping a two-game losing streak was the end reward, but Indiana struggled to get past one of the Big Ten's bottom feeders.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Struggling Indiana averted disaster Wednesday night, finding a way to win down the stretch to hold off undermanned but pesky Northwestern 66-62.

The Wildcats, the only winless team in the Big Ten that's also dealing with a ton of injuries, came into the game as 14-point underdogs. But the Hoosiers, who had lost two games in a row last week and looked bad doing it, let them hang around.

Thankfully, the Hoosiers found their offense down the stretch, erasing a 10-point deficit to pull out the win thanks to some rare excellent free throw shooting. 

The Hoosiers are now 12-3, and 2-2 in the Big Ten. They were led by Trayce Jackson-Davis, who scored 21 points. Justin Smith  had 18, and Al Durham 16. 

The first half was a complete disaster for Indiana, which was something of a surprise. Northwestern was just 5-8 coming into the game and was 0-3 in the league, the only team in the 14-team Big Ten to not have a conference win.

The teams traded baskets early but then Indiana went on a 12-4 run to take a 29-19 lead with 7:05 left in the half on an Durham dunk. That would be the last field goal the Hoosiers would make in the half. Northwestern outscored them 15-2 down the stretch in the first half.

As the Hoosiers trotted off to the locker room, there was a smattering of boos from the Assembly Hall crowd.

Northwestern built its lead to 50-40 at the 11:59 mark in the second half, but then the Wildcats went cold too, and the Hoosiers were able to get back in the game. Northwestern went 6 1/2 minutes without scoring and when Durham made two free throws with 7:32 to go, it was 50-50.

Each team could muster only four points in the next four minutes, and it wasn't until Northwestern's Miller Kopp hit a 3-pointer that the lead got beyond two points.

After two Northwestern free throws, Justin Smith scored for Indiana, tipping in a missed Rob Phinisee shot to make it 59-56. Indiana forced a turnover and got a rare runout, scoring on the other end when Smith's shot counted on a goaltending call, and he was fouled. He made the free throw to tie the game at 59.

Jackson-Davis, who had been struggling from the free throw line, then made two to give Indiana its first lead of the half. Northwestern missed, and Joey Brunk rebounded. On the other end, Phinisee found Jackson-Davis cutting to the lane and he threw down a dunk to make it 63-59.

Northwestern's A.J. Turner made one free throw, but then Indiana was called for a shot clock violation with 28 seconds left, giving the Wildcats another shot in a one-possession game.

Northwestern got a good look at a 3-pointer, but Pete Nance missed the shot from the right side.

Jackson-Davis got the rebound and was fouled. He made the first free throw, but missed the second to make it 64-60. Northwestern scored with 1.5 seconds left. Indiana was able to inbounds the ball, and Durham was fouled immediately. He made them both to ice the game.

Indiana, which has struggled from the free throw line lately, made 23-of-30 freebies Wednesday night, good for 76.7 percent.