How it Happened: Indiana defeats Lindenwood 73-53 despite ugly performance

It wasn’t pretty, but Indiana was able to defeat Lindenwood 73-53 to improve to 5-0 on the season.

While the Hoosiers were able to win by 20, it wasn’t an impressive performance by any means. They got outrebounded 38-34, while the first 30 minutes of action featured a lack of energy from Darian DeVries’ team.

Lindenwood pulled within six, but Tucker DeVries was able to save the day with 17 second-half points. He led the team with 25 total points, while Lamar Wilkerson was the only other double-digit scorer with 10.

Sam Alexis didn’t score in double figures, but his eight points and 10 rebounds were a huge factor in Indiana securing the win. He was key in the energy department, as he provided a boost that got the rest of the team going in the second half.

Indiana shot 23-for-61 from the floor, totaling the worst shooting percentage (37%) of the season thus far. Lindenwood was even worse, as it went 17-for-67 from the field.

The Hoosiers’ defense was solid for the majority of the game, but it got overshadowed by the lack of energy at times. With shooting and rebounding issues as well, it wasn’t a pleasant 20-point win by any means.

With that, here’s how it happened in front of a less-than-sold-out crowd.

Hoosiers sleepwalk through first half

It was a sparse crowd for Assembly Hall standards, and Indiana’s play on the court reflected the sleepy crowd on the Thursday before students leave for Thanksgiving break.

There wasn’t much energy in the building, and the Hoosiers certainly didn’t help with that, as they played a lackadaisical half of basketball to begin the ballgame. Three-pointers weren’t falling, similar to Sunday’s matchup with Incarnate Word, but even that one had more energy than what was seen against Lindenwood.

Turnovers were a major issue early on, as Indiana committed four in the first eight minutes and finished with seven turnovers in the first half. In addition to the turnovers, the Hoosiers were taking ill-advised shots, resulting in a 12-for-32 mark from the field in the opening half.

Lindenwood was even worse, but in a game like this, simply beating your low-major opponent isn’t enough. Indiana was expected to dominate, and in the first half, they weren’t even close to doing so.

Rebounding was an issue all game long, but the first half saw Lindenwood outrebound Indiana 28-25, with 13 of the Lions’ rebounds being of the offensive variety. The Hoosiers weren’t crashing the glass well, and it showed.

With both the offense and rebounding faltering, Indiana had a very frustrating half of basketball. Lindenwood’s lack of shot-making allowed for a 16-point lead at the half, but the score didn’t tell the full story of how poor the Hoosiers were early on.

Lindenwood gives a scare to begin second half

The problems seen throughout the first half didn’t just carry over after the break, they got much worse to begin the second half. Lindenwood was able to expose the Hoosiers, as it went on a 10-0 run to cut Indiana’s lead to six just three minutes into the period.

Six of the 10 Lion points during the stretch were from free throws, as Indiana was playing sloppy defense and fouling rather than forcing Lindenwood to make tough shots. On offense, Indiana had no answer and began the second half 0-for-4 from the field.

With a lack of energy on both sides of the ball from Indiana, the Lions took full advantage. While the Hoosiers would go on to win in one-sided fashion, this stretch was straight-up ugly from Indiana.

When you’re playing an opponent from the Ohio Valley Conference, you don’t expect it to be a six-point game in the second half, but on Thursday night, that’s the situation Indiana found itself in due to a frustrating start to the second half.

DeVries’ second-half surge allows for victory

With Lindenwood on the attack, Indiana needed someone to step up, and it ended up being Tucker DeVries who made sure his team wasn’t the victim of an embarrassing upset.

His eight points in the first half were nothing special, especially considering he made just 2 of 7 field goals in the first 20 minutes, but his second-half performance willed the Hoosiers to victory.

DeVries scored 17 after the half, doing so on 5-for-8 shooting from the floor and a 3-for-4 mark from beyond the 3-point line. Most impressively, 13 of those 17 points were scored during a stretch that saw no other Hoosier score a point.

On five straight possessions, DeVries was able to score, and three of those ended with a made 3-pointer. Once he finally cooled down, Indiana was up 58-36 for the Hoosiers’ first 20-plus-point lead of the ballgame.

After that, IU cruised to a blowout victory, not long after Lindenwood had cut the Hoosier lead to within two possessions. Indiana fans have DeVries to thank for that, as he provided a spark that his team desperately needed.

In the end, it wasn’t a pretty performance, but because DeVries turned it on when Indiana needed it, they got the 20-point win and improved to 5-0 on the young season.

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