Favorite Games, No. 9: Hoosiers Sweep Basketball Series With Home Win Over Iowa
Editor's Note: This is the second installment in our 10-part series on HoosiersNow.com publisher Tom Brew's 10 favorite Indiana games during the 2020-21 school year.
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – It just might have been the strangest basketball season in Indiana history, with the COVID-19 pandemic forcing teams to play an entire season in near-empty arenas all year. And that home-court advantage that Indiana often enjoys at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall just wasn't there.
And it showed.
There were many issues with Indiana's basketball program this past season, starting at the top with coach Archie Miller, who was fired after four disappointing seasons. The Hoosiers were just 12-15 on the season and they went 2-8 last season against ranked teams, with both wins coming against Iowa.
Indiana was 1-2 at home against ranked teams, so the 67-65 win over the No. 8-ranked Hawkeyes on Feb. 7 was without question the most high-profile victory in the nearly vacant Assembly Hall all season. The Hoosiers were 3-7 in Big Ten home games.
That made the Feb. 7 win pretty special, especially since it validated the Jan. 21 Indiana win at Iowa City, when the Hawkeyes were ranked No. 4 in the country and were 12-2 at the time. (That game will come further in our rankings, of course.)
It was a strange game, with a stunning ending. Indiana did a good job of keeping Iowa All-American center Luka Garza in checking, holding him to just 18 points. He scored fewer than 18 only six times in 31 games all year.
Indiana's big guys actually outplayed him, with Trayce Jackson-Davis (17 points) and Race Thompson (15 points) scoring well inside. Indiana also got a big break that Iowa's bench, which was a reliable component to this Hawkeyes team, was brutal in Bloomington. They were a combined 0-for-12 from the field.
Sophomore guard Armaan Franklin turned out to be the unlikely hero for the Hoosiers. He was having a brutal shooting night, going just 1-for-9 with just two points before Miller drew of the final play with the score tied at 65.
Franklin hit a 15-foot jumper over the outstretched arms of Iowa's Joe Wieskamp to put the Hoosiers ahead with 1.8 seconds to go, and survived a last-second heave from Jordan Bohannon to steal a win.
After the game-winner, Franklin pointed up to his family, who made a lot of noise after the bucket. Family members were the only ones allowed in the Assembly Hall seats all year.
Indiana's three starting guards – Franklin, Rob Phinisee and Al Durham – were a combined 1-for-23 shooting through the first 35 minutes of the game. Because of it the Hoosiers trailed by double digits in both halves. But they rallied both times to make a game of it.
Phinisee made a huge three-pointer with 1:39 to go to tie the game and then Franklin ended it with a mid-range jumper off the left elbow with 1.8 seconds to go to give Indiana the win.
From terrible to terrific.
Just like that.
"Coach called for me to go get it, and called a play for me, kind of an iso,'' said Franklin. "Race (Thompson) faked a screen, and created kind of a diversion. Luka (Garza) stepped out a bit and I saw him leaning, so I hit a step-back and just let it go.''
It was a rare celebratory moment inside their home locker room. Ten days later they would beat Minnesota at home, but then lose their final three home games to Michigan State, Michigan and Rutgers.
The Iowa win was a great snapshot of this Indiana team. During the first 35 minutes, their guards literally could not make a shot, and it was so frustrating to watch. But then Phinisee and Franklin, two really good kids who struggled to find their way in Miller's system, hit some big shots to put out a big win. The joy on their faces was priceless.
It wouldn't last, of course.
Miller would eventually be fired and Franklin, somewhat surprisingly, decided to enter the transfer portal. He opted to go to Virginia instead of sticking around to play for Mike Woodson.
He'll always have that Iowa game-winner as a nice memory, though.
Previous 'Favorite Games' stories
- NUMBER 10: Indiana's football team has struggled at Wisconsin for decades, so it was very sweet to go up there and steal a 14-6 win on Dec. 5 in quarterback Jack Tuttle's first-ever college start. CLICK HERE
- ARMAAN FRANKLIN FINAL GRADES: Indiana sophomore guard Armaan Franklin turned into a star in 2021, becoming the Hoosiers' biggest perimeter threat on both sides of the ball. He gets high marks. CLICK HERE
- FRANKLIN TRANSFERS TO VIRGINIA: Looking for a fresh start, Indiana guard Armaan Franklin decides to transfer to Virginia instead of sticking around at Indiana and playing for Coach Mike Woodson. CLICK HERE
- Coming on Thursday, No. 8, a thrilling walk-off winner.
