'Incredible Range': Lamar Wilkerson Stars in Indiana Basketball Debut vs. Alabama A&M

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — His smile wide and his chest puffed out, Indiana men's basketball senior guard Lamar Wilkerson sat stationary outside the left wing of Branch McCracken Court's south basket.

Swarmed by teammates Tayton Conerway, Jasai Miles and Sam Alexis, Wilkerson savored his and-one 3-pointer that extended Indiana's first half lead over Alabama A&M to 19-5 only seven minutes into the game.

After making the free throw and getting a defensive stop, Wilkerson pulled another left wing 3-pointer — this time from nearly 30 feet. Distance aside, the lone difference was the celebration. Wilkerson strolled down the court's east side with his arms hanging low and three fingers sticking out, celebrating his third 3-pointer in seven-and-a-half minutes of action.

Such joy and offensive efficiency proved easy to come by Wednesday night, as Wilkerson and the Hoosiers (1-0) cruised to a 98-51 season-opening victory over Alabama A&M (1-1) inside Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.

Wilkerson scored 19 points on 7-for-13 shooting from the floor while going 4 of 10 from beyond the arc. He added two assists and three steals, and he was the Hoosiers' second-highest scorer, trailing only senior forward Reed Bailey's 21 points.

Bailey said postgame Wilkerson is "for sure" the best shooter he's ever played alongside.

"I've got to give it to him," Bailey said. "It's fun to play with him. He spaces the floor well, and you see it when he shoots it from the logo and it still goes in. It's fun to be out there with him and get him the ball."

It's a prestigious honor on a team that, as Wilkerson said postgame, has "a bunch of shooters." Indiana went 10-for-24 shooting from distance Wednesday night, driven by four 3-pointers apiece from Wilkerson and senior forward Tucker DeVries. Junior guard Jasai Miles and senior forward Sam Alexis each made one triple.

Last season, under coach Mike Woodson, the Hoosiers attempted 24 or more 3-pointers just five times, and they made 10-plus triples twice in 32 games.

Now, the nylon nets in Assembly Hall appear poised to endure a busy season.

Indiana coach Darian DeVries said Monday at his radio show he placed a priority on adding shooters this offseason when he assembled his 13-man roster, which is one of seven high-major units without a returning scholarship player.

Aided by sharp ball movement — the Hoosiers had 23 assists against Alabama A&M — and quality shot selection, DeVries' team brought his shooting-filled vision to life.

And DeVries feels the group is wired in such a way as to make shooting efforts like Wednesday a commonality, not a celebration.

"We have a really confident group," DeVries said postgame. "They're very sure of themselves, and they know they have the green light. They put in the time and the work, so on game night, let it rip. That's kind of our philosophy. We don't want them to hesitate even when they miss one.

"I don't care where they take them from, just know it's something you work on every day, and we're good with it."

No Hoosier embodies that better than Wilkerson.

Early in the second half, Wilkerson launched a deep 3-pointer from the left wing nearest Indiana's bench. His feet landed only a few feet away from DeVries. Wilkerson's shot, an ambitious, aggressive attempt with a 40-point lead, hit front iron and hastily ended the Hoosiers' possession.

DeVries didn't yell, or criticize, or show any emotion that signaled frustration. It highlighted his confidence in Wilkerson, who holds unshakable faith in his flame-throwing right hand no matter how deep or contested the shot.

To say Wilkerson has the oft-discussed green light may not do justice to Indiana's belief in him. There is no light system — and even if there were, it'd never turn yellow, much less red.

DeVries said it's been that way since Wilkerson, who shot 44.5% from distance last season at Sam Houston State, first stepped foot on campus this summer.

"He can shoot, and some guys just have that ability," DeVries said. "He puts in the time. He's one of those guys you've got to kick out of the gym because he's in there so much. He works on all those. He has incredible range. He can shoot it with ease from anywhere.

"We want him to be super aggressive. Whenever he gets a space that he wants to let it go, let it go."

Indiana's offense is driven around fast pace and shooting, but DeVries acknowledged there will be nights where triples won't fall. The Hoosiers have already experienced one — they went only 6 of 24 from distance in their final exhibition game against Baylor on Oct. 26.

The key, DeVries said, is his team's ability to score in different ways. He thinks the Hoosiers are plenty capable. Wilkerson's proven he's up for the task. Though he went only 3 of 9 from beyond the arc against Baylor, he scored 26 points, 11 of which came at the free throw line.

Wilkerson, largely touted as a shooter, has shown he's a quality playmaker who's more than just a long-range sniper — a mission so time extensive that, evidently, required DeVries to kick him out of the gym at times in the offseason.

"In the most humblest way, even at Sam Houston, teams tried to run me off the line," Wilkerson said. "So, I really took that personal during the summer to try to put the ball on the ground and expand my game to score at three levels. That way they can't stop me; I won't be one-dimensional."

Wednesday night served as the official start of Indiana basketball's new era under DeVries. It marked the first regular season game at Assembly Hall for every scholarship player Wilkerson, who scored 18 points for Sam Houston State in a 97-71 loss last season.

Wilkerson one-upped himself in his first outing with the Cream and Crimson and helped DeVries get the largest margin of victory any Indiana coach has secured in their first game leading the program.

The night largely validated months of optimism — about DeVries' offense, about the wealth of shooters and about Wilkerson. Now, an already confident Indiana has even more wind behind its sail after an abundance of encouraging debuts.

"It's major," Wilkerson said, "just because we're all new here, so for us to go in and see that the work is actually working, man, it was great for us."