Indiana kicked off postseason play on Thursday as the No. 9 seed in the 2025 Big Ten Tournament. The Hoosiers' first round opponent, the No. 8-seeded Oregon Ducks, entered the contest having won seven in a row.
For the second time in the last two weeks, the Hoosiers were defeated by the Ducks, 72-59, on Thursday behind an inefficient offensive performance and an inability to get over the hump.
Here's how the contest unfolded in Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
INEFFICIENCY PLAGUES INDIANA'S FIRST HALF
Indiana won the possession battle by a rather large margin in the opening 20 minutes of Thursday's clash with Oregon.
In the first half, the Hoosiers got up eight more shot attempts than their opponents, yet they trailed 37-29 entering the halftime intermission. To put that into perspective, going back to Indiana's loss on the road to Oregon in Eugene a few weeks ago, the Hoosiers took four more shots than the Ducks.
In Indianapolis, despite winning the possession battle, Indiana simply wasn't efficient enough in the first half against Oregon. The Hoosiers shot 34.2% from the field and just 2-of-9 (22.2) from 3-point range in the game's opening stanza. On the flip side, Oregon shot 50% from the floor and went 6-of-12 (50%) from downtown.
A big struggle for Indiana in the first half came on the interior. As a team, the Hoosiers shot 5-of-14 on layups in the opening half of the game.
Another part of Indiana's problem in the first half was Mackenzie Mgbako getting into trouble. The sophomore forward scored seven first-half points on a perfect 3-of-3 shooting, including drilling his lone 3-point attempt. However, after picking up his second foul with 5:34 to play in the half, Mgbako—Indiana's most efficient player to start the game—was forced to watch the rest of the half from the Indiana bench.
The Hoosiers started strong, making their first four field goal attempts of the game, including a pair of 3-pointers. After the potent start, the Hoosiers' offensive efficiency took a nose dive.
Over the final 16:53 of the first half–after that hot start from the field–Indiana shot 9-of-34 (26.5%) from the field and missed all seven of its 3-point attempts.
The Hoosiers...
HOOSIERS, DUCKS TRADE MINI-RUNS TO START 2ND HALF
The early stages of the second consisted of Indiana and Oregon trading blows, as the Hoosiers and Ducks went back-and-forth going on mini-runs.
To open the second period, Indiana scored six straight points on an Anthony Leal layup and a pair of buckets by Trey Galloway. The quick 6-0 run pulled Indiana back to within two points and forced Oregon coach Dana Altman to take a timeout.
Coming out of the timeout, the Ducks answered with four quick points of their own, a Brandon Angel jumper followed by a pair of freebies for Nate Bittle at the free throw line.
Of course the Hoosiers responded with a mini-run of their own. Malik Reneau checked into the game and immediately scored, and then Trey Galloway converted an and-one to bring Indiana within one.
Oregon then scored six straight over a 90-second spurt before a Mackenzie Mgbako 3-pointer and a couple of Reneau free throws saw the Ducks' lead shrink back to two.
All told, Indiana and Oregon traded five different runs of four to six points over the first eight minutes of the second half, setting up for a tight finish in Indianapolis.
INDIANA UNABLE TO GET OVER THE HUMP
In a tight, back-and-forth second half, Indiana was never able to get over the hump against Oregon.
In the final period, Indiana managed to within one possession of Oregon on five different occasions. The Hoosiers had countless opportunities to tie or take the lead in the second half, but they weren't ever able to capitalize. Indiana never led in the second half.
The Hoosiers once again took more shots than the Ducks in the second half. However, Indiana shot just 38.7% from the field and only took five 3-pointers, making two of them.
As was the case in the first half, Indiana's inefficiency from the field was too much for the Hoosiers to overcome, despite such a large advantage in the possession battle.
With just under two and a half minutes to play in the contest, Oregon's Jackson Shelstad—just as he did less than two weeks ago in Eugene–delivered what proved to be the final nail in the coffin for Indiana on Thursday, knocking down a midrange jumper to push the Ducks' lead to 11 with 2:24 to play.
Oregon managed to close the game out at the free throw line over the final couple of minutes.
The loss in the second round of the Big Ten Tournament means the Hoosiers will now have to wait until Selection Sunday to find out their fate for the NCAA Tournament.
FINAL STATS
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