Five takeaways from Indiana’s win against Rutgers

Indiana improved to 11-3 with an 84-74 win against Rutgers on Thursday at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.

Here are five takeaways from the win against the Scarlet Knights:

Hoosiers heat up from the perimeter

Indiana beat Winthrop 77-68 on Dec. 29 despite a dreadful 1-for-20 performance from beyond the 3-point line.

On Thursday against Rutgers, the Hoosiers delivered their best perimeter shooting performance of the season. For the first time since Dec. 21, 2023, against North Alabama, Indiana made more than 10 3-pointers.

IU went 12-for-27 – 44.4 percent – from distance in Thursday’s win and six players connected from outside.

Luke Goode went 3-for-5, Trey Galloway was 3-for-6 and Mackenzie Mgbako was 3-for-7. Anthony Leal, Kanaan Carlyle and Myles Rice each made one triple.

“Guys stepped up, they made ’em, which was kind of nice to see,” Mike Woodson said postgame. “That’s probably the most threes we’ve made this season so far and I just hope it continues to be a carryover because I thought in the Winthrop game we got some good looks, we just didn’t make them. Tonight, guys stepped up and they knocked them down which we’re going to need moving forward.”

On a night when leading scorer Malik Reneau was injured in the game’s opening minute, Indiana was forced to play small for a second straight game. After its worst shooting game of the season against Winthrop, the Hoosiers responded this time in Thursday’s comfortable win against the Scarlet Knight.

Myles Rice thrives for a second straight game

Inconsistency has been an issue for Myles Rice through the season’s first two months. Rice was terrific in early season games against South Carolina and UNC Greensboro.

He was sometimes invisible at the Battle 4 Atlantis in the Bahamas and scored just 11 points in three games.

He returned to his early season form in a loss at Nebraska before scoring just four points in a win against Chattanooga eight days later. Coming off a strong 18-point game against Winthrop, it was hard to know what to expect from Rice.

While he didn’t shoot the ball particularly well – he was 6-for-15 from the field – Rice was the best guard on the floor Thursday night at Assembly Hall.

The redshirt sophomore finished with a team-high 21 points, including an 8-for-8 mark from the free throw line. He added five rebounds, three assists, two steals and one turnover in 36 minutes.

For the season, Rice is now shooting 91.7 percent from the free throw line and 55.4 percent on 2s. Both numbers are up from last season at Washington State.

Oumar Ballo returns – and dominates in the paint

Oumar Ballo dressed but did not play in Sunday’s win against Winthrop. Woodson did not address the circumstances of Ballo’s absence on Sunday and reiterated that stance in his postgame remarks on Thursday.

Ballo came off the bench Thursday and didn’t have to wait long to enter the game, as Reneau went down with a leg injury less than a minute into the contest.

The 7-footer logged a season-high 32 minutes and finished with 17 points, 12 rebounds and three blocked shots. Ballo was 7-for-13 from the field and 3-for-9 from the free-throw line.

When asked postgame if Ballo’s coming off the bench was related to injury or discipline, Woodson focused on his big man’s production.

“Let’s just talk about his 17 and 12,” he said. “That’s what I like to focus in on. He came off the bench and he got 17 and 12 for us, which is fantastic.”

Ballo was a major reason Indiana dominated the offensive glass. The Hoosiers grabbed 18 offensive rebounds and Ballo had seven of those. For the game, IU rebounded 38.3 percent of its missed shots and scored 34 second-chance points.

IU needs more from its bench

Ballo’s production Thursday night aside, Indiana’s bench continues to struggle to contribute consistently.

The Hoosiers had a massive dropoff against Rutgers when it went to the bench. Freshman Bryson Tucker played 10 minutes but Indiana was -15 when he was on the floor. He was 0-for-4 from the field with one turnover.

Langdon Hatton, who was terrific against Winthrop, couldn’t keep up with the size and athleticism of the Scarlet Knights in the post. Hatton was 0-for-2 with two turnovers and the Hoosiers were -9 in the six minutes he was on the floor.

Kanaan Carlyle, a starter early in the season, continues to struggle to make shots. He was 1-for-7 in 15 minutes and IU was -5 when he was in the game.

“I got to help our bench more somehow,” Woodson said postgame. “I just got to get them comfortable having fun and flying around and doing things on both ends of the floor that we’re supposed to do and we’re not there yet.”

Anthony Leal was the only real positive off the bench, besides Ballo. The fifth-year senior scored five points and played hard-nosed defense against Ace Bailey, who exploded for 39 points.

Ace Bailey’s performance was incredible

With Dylan Harper sidelined due to an illness, Ace Bailey was the clear go-to option for Rutgers on Thursday night in Bloomington.

And the future lottery pick put on a show.

Bailey scored 39 points in 38 minutes and didn’t commit a turnover. He also led the Scarlet Knights with eight rebounds and four steals.

The 6-foot-10 scored from everywhere on the floor. He was 16-for-29 from the field, including a 4-for-8 mark from beyond the 3-point line. The only place he struggled was from the foul line, where he shot just 3-for-8.

“He’s special. He’s a good player and he’s young,” Woodson said postgame of Bailey. “If he continues to work, he could be pretty special. I mean, we kind of threw a few things at him, but he made some tough shots tonight and that’s what great players do.”

Category: Five Takeaways

Filed to: Rutgers Scarlet Knights