In Indiana's first regular season game it defeated the Southern Illinois-Edwardsville Cougars by a score of 80-61.
This one featured some sloppy basketball early on, but improvement in the second half, mostly thanks to Mackenzie Mgbako who was phenominal.
Mgbako lead the Hoosiers in scoring with 31, with Malik Reneau following him up with 15 and Oumar Ballo with 15 as well.
There was a lot of good, yet some things to clean up from this 2024-25 regular season opener, so here's how it happened:
MACKENZIE MGBAKO SHINES IN SOPHOMORE DEBUT
In Mackenzie Mgbako's first regular season game as a sophomore he really filled up the stat sheet, scoring 31 points, a new career high.
Mgbako showed flashes of his talent last season as a freshman but this one may have been his true "coming out party" as a Hoosier.
As the rest of IU looked out of sorts early on, Mgbako shined in the first half, scoring 19 points, while also going 2-for-2 from three.
Shooting and making threes was an area around this Indiana team last season, but Mgbako showed none of that early on, as the sophomore chose his shots wisely, hitting his only two jumpers from beyond the arc.
In the second half it was more of the same from Mgbako, as he scored 12 in the second half on 5-for-7 shooting, going 2-of-3 from three after halftime.
This ended the talented sophomore going 13-for-17 from the field and 3-for-4 from beyond the arc, both great numbers.
This really was something special from Mgbako, with this performance possibly a sign of more to come, but surely allowed IU to win its opening game against SIUE.
TURNOVERS, OFFENSIVE BOARDS ALLOWED HIGHLIGHT EARLY WOES
The first half was not kind to the Hoosiers and, while IU was up 42-30 at the break, self-inflicted wounds were a theme during the early going in this one.
IU turned the ball over nine times in the first half, while also allowing SIUE to grab 10 offensive rebounds during the half, resulting in 10 second-chance points for the Cougars.
Myles Rice was the most sloppy with the ball, turning it over four times in the half, followed up by Oumar Ballo who gave the ball away three separate times for the Hoosiers.
At one point, after back-to-back turnovers from IU and ensuing buckets from SIUE, the Cougars tied the game up at 27 apiece, sending Assembly Hall into a collective groan.
Many may have wondered if it was more of the same from last year from the Hoosiers, and for a large part of the first half, it was.
Mike Woodson's ball club looked disoriented at times but, mostly thanks to Mackenzie Mgbako, the Hoosiers did take a lead into the halftime break.
Right after the Cougars tied it at 27, Mgbako scored six straight points, three from a long range jumper and three more from an old fashioned three-point play.
This was not the prettiest half for the Hoosiers but, as it was the first of the regular season, improvements are sure to come.
SECOND HALF SEES IMPROVEMENT, IU PULLS AWAY
While it still wasn't perfect, the second half saw improvement from IU, resulting in the Hoosiers pulling away and getting the win.
IU only turned it over seven times in the second, while also only giving away six offensive boards, both better numbers compared to what the Hoosiers saw in the first half.
This is a step in the right direction, especially after the nine turnovers and 10 offensive rebounds surrendered in the first, possibly signaling that the first half woes were just some first game gitters.
IU also shot better from three in the second half, going 4-for-9 from three, a number that was not only an improvement from the 2-for-7 from the first half, but drastically better compared to what IU fans witnessed last season.
This all resulted in the Hoosiers pulling away in this one, outscoring SIUE STAT in the second half, allowing for the 80-61 win to open up this 2024-25 regular season.
FINAL STATS
–––––
Like this content? Join the conversation on TheHoosier.com's premium message boards and subscribe today!
– Follow TheHoosier on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook!
– Subscribe to TheHoosier on YouTube for more content
– Interact with fellow fans on TheHoosier's Premium Football Board and Premium Hoops Board
