It hasn’t been the season that many Hoosier fans were expecting, but down the stretch Indiana has been able to prove doubters wrong.
“I don’t think that anyone on our team stopped believing, it’s just that we haven’t been able to put 40 minute ball games together like I’ve envisioned,” Indiana head coach Mike Woodson said postgame.
For the third time this season, Indiana came back from a 15-point deficit to secure a road win, defeating Maryland on Sunday 83-78. Once again, the Hoosiers got themselves in a large hole early but were able to climb out on the other side to get a massive victory to move themselves in prime position to make a run in early March.
Indiana has shown resilience many times this season, look back at the come-from-behind win over Ohio State a couple weeks ago. Time after time Indiana fans and other members of the media have shot down the Hoosiers and prepare to pack it up for the season.
If Sunday’s game shows anything, it’s that the Hoosiers are not dead yet.
“Our pick and roll game was going nicely, we made free throws, we made some 3s, we outrebounded our opponent, that’s huge when you’re talking about going on the road and winning,” Woodson said postgame.
Four different Hoosiers scored in double figures: Mackenzie Mgbako, Malik Reneau, Xavier Johnson and Trey Galloway with Kel’el Ware just missing the mark at nine. Indiana as a squad shot an incredible 73 percent from the field in the second half while forcing seven turnovers.
In his second game back from injury, Johnson proved to be the answer for Maryland’s Jamhir Young. Moving forward, Johnson will undoubtedly be a key part in the Hoosiers’ success. Back in 2021 during Johnson’s first season in the Cream and Crimson, it was the ‘X’ man who helped catapult Indiana to the the Big Ten Tournament semi-final round.
That will be the player that Johnson needs to continue to play like down the stretch in order for Indiana to make a deep run in two weeks.
“I just thought X was Xavier Johnson tonight,” Woodson said. “He did a lot of good things on the floor from a defensive standpoint and just controlled the game along with him and Galloway.”
Johnson’s absence this season from two separate injuries has been one of the biggest storylines. Just last week after Indiana’s win over Wisconsin, Woodson said how he thinks back on how different the season would be if they had Johnson healthy.
After Johnson’s performance on Sunday, Woodson seems to have validated his statement.
“We’ve struggled to put the ball in the hole, tonight it all came together a little bit,” Woodson said.
With the victory over Maryland, Indiana moves up one spot to ninth in the Big Ten standings. The Hoosiers have the ability to move up all the way to the fifth seed or fall back down to 12th before the conference tournament begins.
The Big Ten Tournament is on the minds of Hoosier fans and the Hoosiers themselves, with it being their only ticket into the NCAA Tournament. Indiana will need a massive spark moving forward, but a win over the Terrapins looked like a good place to start.
“We can’t look back, we’ve got to get ready for Minnesota and see where the next game leads us,” Woodson said.
Indiana will look to increase its win streak to three games as it continues on the road and take on the Minnesota Golden Gophers this Wednesday.
