Indiana sits in first place in the Big Ten standings after its victory over the Maryland Terrapins Friday night…
One game into the season.
In all seriousness, the Hoosiers dominated Maryland from start to finish despite an ugly finish to the game. Indiana led by as much as 23 points during its 65-53 triumph with sophomore transfer Kel’el Ware leading the charge with an 18-point double double.
“[Ware]’s been smacked around a little bit this early season,” Mike Woodson said in the postgame press conference. “Hey, it's part of the game, man. You've got to get in the fight.”
Nothing seems to be enough for Indiana fans though. Even with a 6-1 start on the season, the Hoosier faithful and many others appear to be overreacting and overanalyzing the start.
Let’s look at why that might be the case.
Sure, it hasn’t been pretty how Indiana has won some games this season. Go back to the first and second games where Indiana defeated two teams outside the top 200 in KenPom by single digits.
Three-point shooting has been a concern, and for good reason. Indiana shoots less than 25 percent from outside which is 344th in the nation. Not a recipe for success. But when you have a frontcourt like the Hoosiers, why go away from what works?
It’s not like Indiana isn’t taking 3s, averaging 12 attempts per game, they just haven’t been falling. During the Hoosiers’ win over Maryland they went 3-for-9 from deep but dominated the paint, scoring 40 points down low.
“I think with such two post presents out there like Kel'el and Malik down there teams are going to start doubling now,” Trey Galloway said. “So we know and we've got to be ready to knock it down and it comes out of the post and just shoot it with confidence.”
After returning to the Hoosier state from Indiana’s trip to the Empire Classic, the past two games they have shown flashes of the great team they could be. Combined between the Hoosiers’ victories against Harvard and Maryland, Indiana scored 90 of its 154 points in the paint. With both Malik Reneau and Ware playing at their best, Indiana is a difficult team to stop.
Even when posed with a zone defense by the opposition, the Hoosiers have been able to counter and see success against the zone. On Friday night, Maryland dabbled with a 2-3 zone and a 1-3-1 multiple times throughout the contest. Still, Indiana was able to rack up the points in the painted area.
Expectations are always high for teams donning the Cream and Crimson, as there should be. Indiana has shown flashes of potential through the first seven games of the season — the ceiling is high. But managing those expectations is even more important.
Indiana will travel for its first true road test of the season to Ann Arbor, Michigan next Tuesday. The Hoosiers have lost their past four Big Ten road opening matchups dating back to 2018 and will have their hands full against a hungry Wolverines squad.
