Whatever is ailing the Indiana basketball team, currently #12 in the Big Ten, has taken their season to its breaking point. After starting the season 12-2 and boasting strong wins over Marquette and Louisville, the Hoosiers have fallen into a nasty tailspin. Since a 73-65 win at home over Illinois on January 3, then-21st ranked Indiana has won just a single game. How can we explain this sudden drastic change in performance?
Injuries?
The injuries this team has faced are one plausible scapegoat for the underachievement thus far. Several issues have limited potentially impactful youngsters. Four-star freshman Jerome Hunter and redshirt freshman Race Thompson have combined 7 total minutes played. Meanwhile, key contributors Rob Phinisee, DeRon Davis, and Zach McRoberts (among others) have all missed significant time. Injuries throughout the season have hurt IU’s depth. This places more weight on the backs of stars, Romeo Langford and Juwan Morgan.
Additionally, it can be tough to establish continuity when players are cycling in and out of the lineup. However, the talent on the roster should be enough to overcome these injuries. Especially since (knock on wood) Langford and Morgan haven’t had problems.
Roster Issues? Shooting?
The recent coaching change coupled with Indiana’s shooting struggles highlight the problems this roster has had. The upperclassmen on the team are remnants of the Tom Crean era. They are certainly no less productive, but maybe not recruited to play in this style. This is a guard-heavy roster that still lacks shooting and floor spacing. The only true big man given significant playing time is DeRon Davis, who is coming off a torn achilles.
This team could use more space for Langford and Morgan to slash and operate inside. Only adding to the issue is that Devonte Green and Al Durham posting three point percentages above 34%. To put that in perspective, the college basketball average last year was 35.2%. Issues like these could allow opponents to play to the Hoosiers’ clear weaknesses.
Coaching?
Let’s get this out of the way fast – Archie Miller should not be fired after this season. However, it is a little bit frustrating for fans of the program that a team this talented is 4-10 in conference play and on pace to miss the tournament for a third straight year. Archie has been known to play a very different style than former head coach Tom Crean. Miller puts more of an emphasis on gritty defense rather than run and gun shooting.
Compared to the Crean offense, this one can seem less effective at times, often looking stagnant. The Hoosiers go deep into the shot clock, and go long stretches without scoring. The poor shooting from the field and the free throw line (66%) hasn’t helped, but that side of the ball just needs a little boost. Give Archie some more time to integrate his coaching style into this program, and a bright future can be seen ahead.
Whatever happens, the consistently high expectations of the Hoosier fanbase are not being met as of now. Don’t give up yet, though. This team could still make a tournament appearance! Let’s not forget that Indiana is talented and has what it takes to compete with elite teams on any given night. Archie and the Hoosiers will certainly be looking to end this season on a good note and go into next year with some momentum and another potentially solid recruiting class.