Freshman Tracker: Morehead State

Here's the latest installment of our Freshman Tracker looking at how Indiana's freshmen fared in the most recent game of the season.

1. Thomas Bryant

After Bryant struggled in a tough game against Duke, he performed much better Saturday night with 14 points, six rebounds and one block.

Crean said Bryant has been banged up and missing some practice time, so he didn’t know how Bryant would play. But Bryant looked fine for the most part, shooting 4 for 4 from the field.

He had more action in the post, breaking out a nice reverse layup and going to the line for the chance at a three-point play, where he missed his only free throw of the game. He was 6 of 7 from behind the line.

Bryant had some competition from the IU bench from forward Max Bielfeldt. Bielfeldt had 12 points, four rebounds and three blocks. I think this could have been a wake-up call for Bryant to realize that his position can somewhat be threatened.

Bryant had 21 minutes of play and was loaning some of his minutes to Bielfeldt, who was holding the Hoosiers accountable for the little things both on offense and defense. Bielfeldt has a couple years of experience ahead of Bryant, and he stepped up Saturday night. Crean saw Bielfeldt take on this leadership spot on the court, as Bryant sat the bench while Bielfeldt was doing well.

Bryant’s big moment came from back-to-back dunks in the second half, which made the crowd go wild. His energy was back near the normal 'Thomas-Bryant level'. He is the kind of player fans and teammates alike all feed off of. He seemed to have some of his confidence back he was lacking against Duke. I think this was a good game for Bryant, and the rest of the team, to get back to the basics and reinforce some of the fundamentals.

So far, we’ve seen Bryant plays well against teams that are less of a competition for the Hoosiers. He’s had good games against teams like Creighton and Morehead State, but he’s a different player against teams a team like Duke..

Additionally, he plays well at home and seems to struggle on the road. Something about him falls asleep or cracks under the pressure of a highly anticipated game. I can see his consistency improving as the season goes on and he has more experience playing at the college level. He needs to have it figured out sooner, rather than later though, because the first Big Ten game for IU will take place on the road on Dec. 30 at Rutgers.

Bryant needs to continue taking these steps in the right direction during IU’s next two games against IPFW on Dec. 9 and McNeese State on Dec. 12, both at Assembly Hall. The next real test for IU will be in Indianapolis Dec. 19 to play in the Crossroads Classic, where it will take on Notre Dame.

2. O.G. Anunoby

Anunoby only saw four minutes on the court Saturday night and I think he should have seen a lot more. IU won by more than 30 points and its largest lead of the game was 41 points. I’m not sure what Crean was trying to accomplish leaving the starters in for that long, but Anunoby entered the game Saturday night for the first time with 12:17 left in the second half.

Anunoby had two defensive rebounds and one block. I think Crean should have left him in there long enough to at least give him a chance to shoot the ball. Anunoby did have two turnovers and two fouls, but with a lead that large, I hoped he would have some significant minutes and I was disappointed with how long he remained on the bench.

It would have been a good opportunity for Anunoby to get experience and become more comfortable on the court.

3. Harrison Niego

Niego was another freshman who only played four minutes Saturday night when I thought he should have seen more. Niego was 0 for 1 from the field with a missed shot from a drive in the paint. He had one defensive rebound. He did not have any turnovers. In my opinion, he handled the ball well. Although it is hard to get a good look at the type of player Niego is with how limited his playing time has been.

4. Quentin Taylor

Taylor didn’t enter the game until the last minute of the second half. Again, when IU is winning by more than 30 points, I don’t know why Crean didn’t put the subs in sooner. It would have been good for these guys to see game time because it is next to impossible to know how they will perform in a real situation, outside of practice.

5. Juwan Morgan

After being injured back in Maui, Morgan remained on the bench Saturday night. He was not wearing a walking boot on his right foot anymore, which should be a good sign.