Five takeaways from IU basketball’s exhibition win against Baylor
- Alex Bozich
- 5h ago
IU basketball wrapped up exhibition play with a 76-74 win against Baylor on Sunday afternoon at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
Here are five takeaways from the win against the Bears:
Lamar Wilkerson carries the offensive load
Sam Houston transfer Lamar Wilkerson was one of IU basketball’s top additions from the transfer portal last spring for new coach Darian DeVries.
After a quiet exhibition opener against Marian on October 17, the 6-foot-6 guard came to life in Sunday’s matinee in Indianapolis.
Wilkerson scored a game-high 26 points in 35 minutes, including an 11-for-11 mark from the free-throw line.
His 16 first-half points kept the Hoosiers in the game when it looked like Baylor might pull away and his early 3-pointers after intermission helped IU build a lead.
While Wilkerson shot just 3-for-9 on 3s – a mark he’d like to improve upon – he had four assists and no turnovers. He also played 35 minutes as the Hoosiers continue to be short-handed depth-wise.
Overall, it was an outstanding performance and an up-close glimpse at the impact Wilkerson can have this winter in Bloomington.
Tucker DeVries stuffs the stat sheet
A two-time Missouri Valley Conference player of the year at Drake, Tucker DeVries hasn’t garnered a lot of preseason hype nationally.
Maybe that’s because DeVries was mostly out of the spotlight last season at West Virginia, where he played in just eight games before a shoulder injury ended his season.
The fifth-year senior showed why he’ll be one of the most complete players in the Big Ten against Baylor.
He was second on IU in scoring with 18 points and added six rebounds, five assists, two blocked shots and two steals in a team-high 38 minutes.
“Tucker attracts so much attention,” Baylor coach Scott Drew said postgame. “When Tucker is on the court, it makes it easier for everybody else.”
Baylor dominates IU on the boards
One of the concerning stats on Sunday afternoon was rebounding.
Baylor made a living on the offensive boards. The Bears grabbed 16 offensive rebounds – an offensive rebounding percentage of 43 – and scored 18 second-chance points.
Darian DeVries has emphasized the importance of defensive rebounding since the summer and Sunday showed IU still has work to do on the glass.
“Our defensive rebounding has to improve,” DeVries explained postgame. “We can’t allow people to run in there and jump. We won’t win a lot of jumping contests.”
The Hoosiers have to improve at finding bodies, making contact and blocking out when shots go up, which they didn’t do well enough against Baylor.
Hoosiers overcome another double-digit deficit
For the third time in five exhibitions dating back to Puerto Rico in early August, Indiana found a way to erase a double-digit deficit and win.
The Hoosiers trailed by 13 points on two occasions in the first half of Sunday’s exhibition win, but stayed with it and closed the gap to four at halftime.
Early in the second half, IU played with more energy and urgency, flipping the game’s momentum.
While Darian DeVries doesn’t want his team to make a habit of playing from behind, this IU team has shown it won’t go away easily.
“I think it’s a great quality. I hope it continues,” DeVries said. “It is something that matters.”
Indiana’s second-half defense was impressive
After Baylor did what it wanted for most of the first half, the Hoosiers tightened things up defensively in the second half.
IU did a much better job of stopping straight-line drives and forced the Bears into tougher shots.
Baylor shot 51.7 percent in the first half, but was just 9-for-31 in the second half, good for only 29 percent.
Baylor coach Scott Drew said postgame that there was a noticeable difference in IU after halftime.
“I asked Cam (Carr) on the way in here, ‘What happened in the second half?’ He said, ‘They just came out a lot more aggressive than us.’
“They just did a great job of putting us on our heels, getting that lead and then that’s how you close games, going 20-for-21 from the free-throw line.”
See More: Five Takeaways, Baylor Bears