Thoughts From the Student Section - Oakland

We have finally found a man who can provide a spark off the bench. EG (No, not Eric Gordon!) scored 26 points off the bench in a fantastic spectacle of shooting. Hopefully Evan Gordon can continue to play with his hair (which is almost non-existent) on fire. He was the driving force as far as offense was in the last ten minutes of the first half and most of the second half. The crowd’s loudest point during the game came after a pair of Gordon threes, which had the student section chanting “Ev-an Gor-dan.” It was quite a spectacle. Let me tell you, I’ve been to a bunch of games at Assembly Hall against cupcakes, but this was by far the loudest it has been in any of those games. There is a certain aura about Evan that the crowd seems to like (we all know that this is because of his brother). Apart from Evan’s outstanding performance, Yogi had 11 points, Troy had 13 points, and Noah added a solid 8 points and 10 boards. I’m glad that Assembly Hall, even though it was about 65% full, was able to finally get extremely excited about something. The future is bright, meaning there will be many more games with crowd excitement, but for now, we have to be happy with what we’ve got. And we’ve got the new-look Evan Gordon on our team. It was the last game for students before the upcoming Winter Break, which we are surely looking forward to. It’s been a great first 10 games and let’s hope the only direction we will go from here is up!

Kevin “Yogi” Ferrell – Yogi has gotten a lot better over the past couple weeks about randomly chucking up shots. He finds teammates all over the floor, but there had to be at least five times in which he passed it to someone for a wide open shot and they missed it. He is able to distribute the ball, but there needs to be some work done on the end of those dimes.

Will Sheehey – Will obviously didn’t have a great game on the offensive end, only putting up 3 points and 2 assists, but he was instrumental in shutting down the leading 3 point shooter in the country, Travis Bader. Prior to this game, Bader had hit a 3 pointer in 61 straight games. Sheehey had a solid game defensively, but there is plenty to work on from an offensive perspective, especially with the weak shots he puts up close to the rim. I’m waiting for the Sheehey of old to come back. Maybe Coach Crean will bring him off the bench, where Will seems to be more comfortable anyway.

Jeremy Hollowell – This is the first game this year where Jeremy was able to contribute in other areas of his game while having an off night shooting. He grabbed 10 rebounds and had 4 assists to go along with his 6 points, which helped the squad immensely. If he could become this type of role player, along with becoming more consistent shooting the ball, he will surely be the X-Factor this season.

Noah Vonleh – This man is a beast on the boards. I think I can keep opening his analysis with that sentence. Another double-digit performance on the boards, but not as solid as far as scoring goes. Sure, he only had 5 shots all night, but he wasn’t nearly as aggressive as we’d like to see on multiple possessions throughout. He even missed a dunk during a scramble on the offensive end. No matter what though, he’s awesome.

Troy Williams – Troy came out very aggressive in the first half, which I LOVED. He attacked the rim when needed and even hit a three near the beginning of the game. The only criticism I can offer to Troy is the fact that he dove after a ball with two seconds left in the game - with a 27 point lead - and came away limping.

Stanford Robinson – This game was by far the most Stan has contributed this year. He hit a three and drove the ball well to draw a few fouls. Stan even grabbed 3 boards and had 2 assists. If he continues to get the playing time, I can only see these statistics increasing. He has a bright future ahead of him, he just needs to hone in his ballhandling skills, as he is a little too loose with it at times.

Devin Davis – DNP; injury

Hanner Mosquera-Perea – Hanner had a few good possessions, but still looked a little lost on the defensive end, as he has throughout his career at IU. I’m thoroughly impressed with how well he is coming along on the offensive end, though. If he can use his size, he should become a more consistent threat on the offensive glass.

Evan Gordon – Evan is finally becoming the scorer we knew he was. I explained pretty much everything about his night in the opening paragraph, but let’s just hope he can continue this hot streak.

Luke Fischer – This game was the most impressed I have been with Luke all year. He grabbed some key boards down low and added 6 points in the paint. If he can play this way more often, he will start to see the court a lot more.

Austin Etherington – Still not a fan of Austin Etherington. He fouled Bader on a three point shot at one point and he was late closing out on his man on numerous occasions. I’d like to see him be a spot up shooter, a la Matt Roth, more than a man who drives and distributes. Yes, I realize he’s struggling from the three point line, but all he needs is a little confidence. He can still contribute to this team, but Collin Hartman is almost the same player, so why not get him some experience?

These players have so much room to grow, with so many young guys. Our upside is tremendous. We need our seniors (EG and Sheehey) to step up and be consistent. If that happens, we will be dangerous while dancing in the tournament. If not, it might be a long year for #HoosierNation.