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In a sports world where analytics have taken over with stats for everything, there is one intangible that still is the route for a successful basketball team. And that was put on display no more than In Indiana's loss to Rutgers last weekend.

While Indiana's defense played good enough to win -- holding Rutgers to just 63 points -- and the offense was still getting open looks, just not finishing, there was one reaction that head coach Mike Woodson had following the game -- Indiana's lack of toughness.

"There was some good things, but I just thought we got out-toughed," Woodson told reporters on Tuesday. "That was more glaring to me than anything.

"It wasn't too good for us at Rutgers, and I don't like the fact that we got out-toughed. That just takes guts and hearts to go out, rebound and get 50/50 balls, things of that nature. That's something that we've got to display in the game and not just in practice."

It was the first time this season that toughness was questioned. Indiana had responded numerous times prior. It responded down nine points right out of the gate against Xavier and also against No. 18 North Carolina when the Tar Heels were making second-half runs to cut into the lead.

But, last Saturday was a different story and one that has Mike Woodson preaching toughness and guts in the few days since. Now, it's about making that translate on the court to erase that type of performance from memory.

"It ain't magical," Woodson said. "... you've just got to work them and display it on the floor, display it like we did in the Carolina game. If you look at that game and you say, well, who was the toughest in that game, you're going to say Indiana was the toughest team. They got 50/50 balls, they defended the shit out of Carolina. It wasn't that way against Rutgers; they were the toughest team. We've been pretty good in that area. Well, we got out-toughed against Rutgers, so we've got to figure out how to not let that happen again going forward. That's the key."

Toughness can't be taught. It can't be 'practiced' and it isn't something you can easily turn off and on. And Rutgers taught them that.

Indiana now goes into a game looking to rebound from a loss. It's the first time this season that people will see how Indiana responds.

"There's nothing magical in practice that you can -- I can roll a ball out and say "loose ball drills" like Coach Knight used to do and make you get on the floor and knock the shit out of somebody and getting a loose ball. I can do all those things," Woodson said. "But that don't mean shit to me. You've got to do it in the damn game when it counts. That's when it counts. Not in practice, knocking the shit out of each other, which we do. We beat up each other for almost four months before we actually got an opponent."

On Wednesday, Indiana faces that next challenge as a hungry and upset-minded Nebraska comes to Assembly Hall fresh off of a road win over No. 7 Creighton.

With a top-15 matchup against Arizona looming on Saturday, Woodson is hoping last week's loss lights a different fire under his team.

"It's not just the Big Ten. I think you can be beaten by anybody in college basketball if you don't come to play," Woodson added. "For sure the Big Ten because there's so many good teams and good coaches . . . we can't play like that."

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