KelleyHoosh

Indiana coach Tom Crean was looking forward Tuesday night to seeing how his team had improved since the last time it had faced Ottawa during a summer tour of Canada prior to the 2014-15 season. That year, the Hoosiers had fallen to Ottawa by eight points. Tuesday night, it was a different looking IU basketball team that took the court for its exhibition opener at Assembly Hall. Ottawa head coach James Derouin noticed it, too. IU beat Ottawa Tuesday night 82-54. In doing so the Hoosiers limited Ottawa to almost exactly half of the points it had scored a year ago in a 109-101 victory over the Hoosiers. Tuesday, IU held Ottawa to 22 second-half points and closed the game on a 25-3 run. While Indiana struggled at times with the same issues that plagued the Hoosiers last season – turnovers and defense – IU looked largely improved. Derouin was impressed. “The first thing that jumps to mind (about how this Indiana team is different from last year’s) is the size on the offensive glass,’’ Derouin said. “I thought on the glass especially they were outstanding with 18 offensive rebounds and those extra possessions were huge. And then their defense I thought their rotations and closeouts were much, much tighter than they were a year ago.” So the man who coaches the top ranked Canadian team had some pretty high praise for the two most questionable facets of the Hoosier’s game. While keyboard warriors may be more critical, the facts indicate that head coach Tom Crean’s team has improved markedly in those areas as it outrebounded Ottawa 46-34 and limited the Gee-Gee’s sharpshooting offense to just 19 percent from the 3-point line. Sophomore guard James Blackmon Jr. has an idea why the guards were better able to rebound. A lot of the thanks, he believes, belong to Thomas Bryant and Max Bielfeldt’s presence in the game at the same time. “It is so much different with those two in there, it seems like everything is carved out,” Blackmon Jr. said. “It makes it so much easier for us, I go in to crash the glass and it’s wide open.” Crean later said he wasn’t sure that the guards graded out so well in terms of offensive rebounding. Whether or not improved rebounding was the intent of the bigger starting lineup, the fact that it was used is intriguing. Last year fans grew tired of a three guard offense that struggled to find defensive success. This year, Blackmon Jr. says he has been adjusting to a bigger lineup. “We have shot blockers, so I have confidence pressing up on guys,” Blackmon Jr. said. “I know Max and Thomas have our backs.” That faith in teammates is a crucial part of help defense. Crean thinks while having faith in one another is important, the rotations have to improve after this game. “There is no question we got spread out a little too much and had to give too much help, but I liked our recovery,’’ Crean said. The ultimate goal of Crean’s philosophy is to be close to basketball without defined positions. The roster currently has a mix that of players he feels is closer to that goal than in years prior. “They can all shoot, they’re getting better with their handles although it didn’t look like that tonight at certain times,” Crean said. “If we can get to a place where we can guard different positions then that will really lead you to another place offensively.” And in its first exhibition game, the Hoosiers showed the benefits of being in Crean’s desired offensive “place.” The team shot 49 percent from the field with five players going for eight or more points. However, all the positives of this exhibition didn’t come without some negative. Indiana struggled to take care of the ball, throwing several errant passes on their way to 17 first half turnovers. The point was corrected at half time as the Hoosiers only had six turnovers in the entire second half. Crean says the difference is thanks to mostly better defense. “Frankly (it was) better defense for longer periods of time leading to easier baskets for us,” Crean said. If Indiana can do a complete 180 and find offense because of its defense, this could be an extremely dangerous unit. As it was an exhibition game, you should probably take the Ottawa performance with more than a single grain of salt. The rhythm was a bit chaotic as Crean tried several different lineups. There probably isn’t anything conclusive about this year’s team based off Tuesday night’s play. So were IU’s guards more physical rebounding the ball Tuesday night or was it a product of the opponent? “Well we have young guys so it may look like that tonight,’’ Crean said. “I’m not sure its gonna look like that when we play teams in the conference, Maryland, Purdue, Michigan State, Iowa and teams like that.’’ As of now we don’t know much of anything about how this team will compare to last years. Well, other than that Bryant is a whole lot better than last year’s starting center.

The 2015 Haunted Hall of Hoops featured two 10-minute periods and a third period that was about six minutes. Collin Hartman, Juwan Morgan, Thomas Bryant, Tim Priller, Nick Zeisloft, Yogi Ferrell and Robert Johnson made up the white team while the red team had James Blackmon Jr., Troy Williams, Max Bielfeldt, Harrison Niego, Ryan Burton and Josh Newkirk. This event likely provided a better glimpse of who can provide what this season than Hoosier Hysteria, though it should still absolutely be taken with a grain of salt. With that said, after about 25 minutes of basketball plenty of observations and logical deductions can be made. While Blackmon Jr. was the leading scorer with 17 points, Anunoby stole the show with his active hands on defense and athletic finishes at the rim that netted him 15 points. Bryant and Ferrell also finished with 15 points while Williams had 11 and Bielfeldt scored nine to go along with nine rebounds. What can we expect out of Anunoby this year? He wasn’t highly rated coming out of high school. Most of the fan base has no expectation for significant contributions to be made by him in his first season. But after a scrimmage where he intercepted passes, tipped balls, defended well AND showed the ability to run the floor well, that may change. Associate Head Coach Tim Buckley said for Anunoby to see the floor he must understand his strengths and weaknesses. “The speed of the game is something every freshman has to get used to,” Buckley said. “You see how guys listen and how they understand… I think there will be development thanks to practice, the film room, and things like that.” It would be silly to expect the kind of production he had Saturday afternoon during the regular season, but if he can even just bring the same intensity to the defensive side of the floor, Anunoby could find himself getting quite a bit of playing time. Fellow freshman Bryant scored 15 points as well. He, however, did not have the dominating performance he had during Hoosier Hysteria. There are two ways to look at Bryant’s display at Haunted Hall of Hoops. On one hand, he didn’t play anywhere near his best game and still scored 15 points. He was sloppy at times, committed fouls, and looked a bit uncomfortable. If he can grind out a performance like that during a bad day, he could exceed his freshman expectations. On the other hand, the first game is 13 days away. Bryant is by far the best big man IU has and he was taken advantage of at times by fifth year transfer Bielfeldt who was never overly impressive at Michigan. The question has to be raised: how much of Bryant’s development was stunted by all the time he has missed in the preseason at the hands of a foot injury? For this team to have any success, Bryant must find his groove by the time conference play starts. As previously mentioned, Bielfeldt more than held his own against a five star talent who is taller than him by two or three inches. Any fan who agonized over the Hoosiers’ defensive woes in the paint last season will appreciate a smart player who knows the ins and outs of the Big 10 play. He was one point and one rebound away from recording a double-double against the team’s best post defender. That presence, which Buckley called poise in the post, will be needed to add depth in the front-court. It cannot be understated how valuable the perspective of a fifth year player is in an otherwise very young group. Blackmon Jr. looked smooth bringing the ball up the court against pressure from Johnson. He looked even smoother hitting several threes. Buckley says Blackmon Jr. is still recovering from his injury. “He has done a terrific job bouncing back mentally and physically,” Buckley said. “He is playing more at the point where he is initiating the offense and getting used to guys getting into him, but he has always had a really nice stroke and that hasn’t changed much.” Blackmon Jr. also appeared to be more aggressive, driving with much more strength than he did at times last season. Conversely, Williams didn’t look like the Hoosier Hysteria 3-point shooting contest winner. While he played well by all accounts, fans may want to temper their expectations for him this year. While the athleticism is undeniable, he still doesn’t look to have taken the same sophomore to junior year leap of Victor Oladipo that fans have been clamoring for. The scrimmage also showcased one look that fans begged for at times last year- a press. There was plenty of full court pressing, albeit soft at times. Buckley said it is a strategy that makes the most of Indiana’s athleticism. “We want to be able to use our athleticism and our length,” Buckley said. “But we don’t want to get out of position so we really have to keep our chests in front of the ball handlers and not let them into the paint.” There were plenty of opportunities last year where a press would have been beneficial, but it never came to fruition. This year, Buckley says, it may be an option. “The guys are starting to do a much better job of covering for each other,” Buckley said. “Our guys are understanding those rotations better.” Part of why so many fans wanted a press was the distinct height disadvantage Indiana often found themselves in. This year, that may not be such a problem as the staff believes their personnel allows them to matchup with teams much better. “Basketball is becoming more and more of a matchup game than a position game, so you pretty much are who you can guard,” Buckley added. “You could see Max and Thomas on the floor at the same time along with Collin (Hartman) and I think we have a lot of possibilities to be a versatile team.” At the end of the day, this is another scrimmage and it certainly won’t be indicative of how the season will go. However, there were some refreshing changes in philosophy and a lot of growth in player’s individual games. There is a lot of reason to believe that this team won’t be the same as last year’s with a few different faces. Indiana has two more exhibition games before it kicks off its season against Eastern Illinois on November 13 in Bloomington.

After another offseason of attrition, Indiana added three freshmen to the roster in Thomas Bryant, Juwan Morgan, and O.G. Anunoby. Originally, it appeared as if only Bryant would receive extensive playing time as a freshman but with the dismissal of Emmitt Holt, Devin Davis and Hanner -Mosquera-Perea, all three now look to be rotational players. Bryant, a former five star center from New York, is projected to start this season at center despite having missed extensive time in the preseason. According to head coach Tom Crean, Hoosier Hysteria was only the seventh day Bryant had experienced “live contact.” The cause of Bryant’s missed time is mostly due to a foot injury, but also a bout with strep throat. Now, he claims to be mostly healed. “I’m feeling good,” Bryant said. “The coaching staff and trainers that we have are getting me into the best shape I can be … Running up and down the floor felt real good.” With the three freshmen figuring into the regular rotation, it is critical that any learning curve is accelerated. The freshmen know they are responsible for getting as good as possible as fast as possible. “Thomas is a very willing learner, he is a very quick learner, he is a sponge,” Crean said of Bryant. “He came in with tremendous humility, combine that with his upside and he has a great future.” Anunoby also said college basketball has taught him how important details are thanks to the emphasis of the coaching staff. “I’ve learned to just try and stay focused on everything to get better at everything at the same time,” Anunoby said. “I’ve been working on shooting, ball handling, defense, everything.” As the freshman trio, who composed the 26th ranked overall 2015 recruiting class, tailors their games to the collegiate level, they know adjustments have to be made. “The biggest adjustment is the strength of the guys and the speed of the game,” Anunoby shared. “I think post defense will be one of the biggest parts of my game, being able to guard bigger players,” Morgan said. “I’m not a super quick wing or a powerhouse power forward, so I know I have to be smarter than them, beat them to the spot and things like that.” The freshmen embrace the obstacles ahead of them with enthusiasm, Crean said. “The best thing to say about Thomas is we knew every day when he wasn’t there,” Crean said. “I think makes practice better every day.” Bryant serves as inspiration for Morgan, who says players of Bryant’s level normally don’t have his work ethic. Personally, Bryant believes a positive attitude can be extremely helpful to the team. Bryant later stated that fan support is a huge reason he works the way he does. “It felt real good seeing those fans come out and support us because we wouldn’t be out there if it wasn’t for them,” Bryant went on. “Being out there got me really excited.” The energy, according to Morgan, surpassed the prior year’s event. “It was crazy, I was not expecting it to be this loud,” Morgan said. “Actually being on the court and hearing it, it was a different level.” Ultimately the freshmen are aware of the responsibility they shoulder. Preparation will be key in masking their youth and featuring their talents. Luckily for them, they have the coaching staff to guide them along the way. “Coach Crean and the rest of the staff will put us in the best position to be successful out there,” Bryant said. “We just have to go out there and play the game.”