Never thought that I'd ever say that a 16 point win at Assembly Hall would be a good but not great game for us. For any other team, this would have been a great performance. But we were a bit loose with the ball, including several bad entry passes to Hunter. We had some defensive breakdowns in the first half, especially on the high ball screens. IU was just not a good enough shooting team to take full advantage. They missed a ton of contested layups, largely due to our length. Durham was the guy I worried about, and he was good. No one else was. Once again Hunter forced a big man to shoot over him and miss repeatedly. TJD was not someone who I worried about. He doesn't have a reliable jump shot, nor back to the basket moves.
Johns has to up his game. Needs to be stronger around the tin. His minutes are important to give our front line rest without a big fall off. Today was a little disappointing. OTOH, Chaundee was good. missed his first couple of threes, but was money in the second half. Teams don't focus on him so he can get looks on just about every possession. His ability to make those is usually the key to us pulling away. Davis off the bench struggled to finish. His two FT misses on the flagrant foul followed by a turnover on the inbounds play could have been a turning point. I will say that we missed him wide open several times rolling to the hoop.
What can you say about Franz that hasn't already been said. He does everything that a player can do on the court at a high degree of skill. His length is a weapon all by itself. The steal on the press and the blocked shot from behind when he was beaten for what looked like a layup were next level. His Spiderman-esque finishes where he arms seem to stretch are beautiful. He has such good touch on the drives. Almost unstoppable.
On this team, no one dominates the ball or the game. Everyone can shine. Livers scored 16 with 10 rebounds without ever forcing a shot or pounding the air out of the ball. Smith probably has the ball in his hands the most, scores in double figures and piles up assists, yet you never feel that he is dominating the ball. Eli is the essence of quiet excellence.
IU will lose to MSU and will likely miss the dance w/o a run in the BTT. Assembly Hall may be reduced the Mausoleum if this keeps. IU fans have to be very depressed. Supposedly, Archie's job is safe. For our sake, I hope so.
Johns has to up his game. Needs to be stronger around the tin. His minutes are important to give our front line rest without a big fall off. Today was a little disappointing. OTOH, Chaundee was good. missed his first couple of threes, but was money in the second half. Teams don't focus on him so he can get looks on just about every possession. His ability to make those is usually the key to us pulling away. Davis off the bench struggled to finish. His two FT misses on the flagrant foul followed by a turnover on the inbounds play could have been a turning point. I will say that we missed him wide open several times rolling to the hoop.
What can you say about Franz that hasn't already been said. He does everything that a player can do on the court at a high degree of skill. His length is a weapon all by itself. The steal on the press and the blocked shot from behind when he was beaten for what looked like a layup were next level. His Spiderman-esque finishes where he arms seem to stretch are beautiful. He has such good touch on the drives. Almost unstoppable.
On this team, no one dominates the ball or the game. Everyone can shine. Livers scored 16 with 10 rebounds without ever forcing a shot or pounding the air out of the ball. Smith probably has the ball in his hands the most, scores in double figures and piles up assists, yet you never feel that he is dominating the ball. Eli is the essence of quiet excellence.
IU will lose to MSU and will likely miss the dance w/o a run in the BTT. Assembly Hall may be reduced the Mausoleum if this keeps. IU fans have to be very depressed. Supposedly, Archie's job is safe. For our sake, I hope so.
