Oumar Ballo, Malik Reneau establish new ‘buddy ball’ tandem in dominant win against Marian
Oumar Ballo and Malik Reneau’s final scoring tallies were unsurprising.
Indiana’s frontcourt pair combined for 34 points in the Hoosiers’ 106-64 win against Marian Friday night at Assembly Hall, but with the Knights’ tallest player standing at 6-foot-8, Ballo and Reneau were expected to dominate inside.
Yet, the two displayed another facet of their games that may prove integral to Indiana’s offense moving forward: passing. Ballo logged four assists — he never eclipsed three for Arizona last season — and Reneau dished out five.
After Kel’el Ware departed to the NBA, coach Mike Woodson made a concerted effort to find a worthy partner for Reneau. While it’s difficult to glean much from the results of an exhibition game, it’s abundantly clear the Hoosiers will lean on Ballo to fill that role.
“He plays good buddy ball,” Woodson said postgame. “He and Malik are learning each other more and more that they’ve been together.”
Ballo notched three assists in just over the first five minutes of play against Marian and displayed impressive mobility. Woodson said Ballo is still working to get into “tiptop shape,” but he didn’t seem to face any difficulties running the floor.
He wasn’t consistently relied upon to distribute the ball at Arizona; instead, he dominated the boards and scored inside. Ballo averaged a double-double last season, scoring 12.9 points and corralling 10.1 rebounds per game.
“Ballo is proven,” Woodson said. “He’s a double-double guy… there’s a reason we went after him hard when he went into the portal.”
But now, the passing element opens an entirely new dimension for Indiana’s offense. Woodson and the Hoosiers’ players talked at length in recent weeks about a desire to play fast and emphasize quick possessions.
In the 7-foot, 260-pound Ballo, IU has a cog in the paint that can demand heavy attention from defenses and effectively pass out of those double teams. While Ware and Ballo are vastly different players, the former never reached the four-assist mark in his sole season in Bloomington.
By offering a comparable rebounding skill set and inside scoring presence to Ware, Ballo’s passing presents a world of opportunity for Indiana’s offense.
“Brings a whole other level,” redshirt sophomore guard Jakai Newton said. “He’s a guy that brings so much attention just by himself. Him being able to kick the ball out to the open man, it’s important for us.”
The centerpiece of the Hoosiers’ lauded transfer class, Ballo was expected to mask his shooting deficiencies with intimidating shot-blocking prowess and an ability to overwhelm defenders in the post.
He’s proven capable of just that through the preseason and with an array of viable options on offense, Ballo doesn’t feel the need to shoulder the load of scoring himself.
“It’s not just about him thinking he needs to demand the basketball,” Woodson said. “He’s a good team player that does a lot of good things for your team.”
Meanwhile, Reneau is in the midst of a similar ascension. He forged an at-times seemingly unstoppable partnership with Ware in the frontcourt last season and much of it could be attributed to his vision.
Reneau, too, demands extra attention from defenses, and his ability to kick the ball out and find open shooters has grown during his two seasons at Indiana. Last season, Reneau averaged 15.4 points, six rebounds and 2.7 assists, becoming a focal point of the offense alongside Ware.
The Hoosiers haven’t shot the ball well from distance through two exhibitions. They went 4-of-19 (21 percent) from 3-point range against Tennessee on Oct. 27 and Friday night shot 6-of-25 (24 percent) against Marian.
Regardless, Indiana totaled 33 assists and scored a whopping 70 points in the paint. The second unit flashed upside, with freshman Bryson Tucker leading all scorers with 19 points and Bellarmine transfer Langdon Hatton providing quality minutes in relief of Ballo.
Myles Rice excelled in Indiana’s first exhibition — scoring 20 points on 7-of-14 shooting — and flashed the quickness in transition that promised to jumpstart Indiana’s formerly stagnant offense. But through all the changes, “buddy ball” will remain a focus.
“They both can pass the ball and they both can score down low and they both can handle the basketball,” Woodson said of Ballo and Reneau. “That’s a nice combination.”
Filed to: Malik Reneau, Oumar Ballo