WATCH: Tamar Bates Drains 3-Pointer, Leads All Scorers at Halftime
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Indiana goes to another level when Tamar Bates is playing well. On Friday against Jackson State, he's doing just that.
Trayce Jackson-Davis set a ball screen for Xavier Johnson, who collapsed the defense with a hard drive into the lane. This move freed up Bates on the right wing, who drilled a 3-pointer to beat the shot clock buzzer just before halftime.
This 3-pointer gave Bates 12 points at halftime, which leads all scorers through 20 minutes of play. Bates shot 4-for-7 from the field and 2-for-4 from 3-point range with three assists and one rebound at halftime.
It was by far his best half of the 2022 season, and an important sign for Indiana with Trey Galloway out with a knee injury. Indiana coach Mike Woodson and teammates raved about Bates' development this offseason, and Friday's first half was the best example of that this year. If Bates is knocking down outside shots and playing like he did in the first half, Indiana becomes a dangerous team.
To follow along with all the action from the matchup between Indiana and Jackson State at Assembly Hall, CLICK HERE to read our live blog, written by HoosiersNow.com publisher, Tom Brew.
Next up for the Hoosiers is perhaps their most highly-anticipated game of the 2022-23 regular season. On Wednesday, the North Carolina Tar Heels, the nation's No. 1 team, come to Assembly Hall for a 9:30 p.m. ET tipoff.
North Carolina is off to a 5-0 start, but hasn't looked quite like the team that reached the National Championship last year. Most recently, the Tar Heels went back and forth with Portland in the Phil Knight Invitational, emerging with an 89-81 win. North Carolina also struggled to a 72-66 win at home against Gardner-Webb on Nov. 15. But with four starters from last year's team, plus Northwestern transfer Pete Nance, the Tar Heels will surely be a major challenge for the Hoosiers.
