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Not counting the first two exhibition games, seven games of the Jalen Hood-Schifino experience has yielded quite a wide range of moments. There's been times where the freshman guard could be mistaken for a wily veteran, getting downhill and to his spots where his silky smooth jump shot could gracefully kiss the net on its way through. His vision and play in transition has had opposing defenses running in circles, and his presence on the floor elevates the flow and spacing of Indiana's offense.

On the other hand, there's been a fair few occasions where the youth in his game shows through, being hesitant to let the game come to him and forcing his shots when they aren't falling. Heading into Wednesday night's contest, he'd been experiencing his first true shooting slump of his collegiate career, although he'd still been finding ways to make an impact.

Yet, it took just under ten minutes of game time to see that Indiana's freshman guard was playing at a different level. After knocking down a three directly in North Carolina guard Seth Trimble's grill, Hood-Schifino let him know about it. Amidst a raucous, packed house inside Assembly Hall with the greater part of 17,222 fans on their feet and screaming at the top of their lungs, Hood-Schifino was directly in Trimble's ear, jawing to him about the shot he'd just made. At that point in the ballgame, Hood-Schifino's three meant he had 10 of Indiana's 15 points. That's not to mention he scored Indiana's first seven of the night.

The Hoosiers would go on to capture a sufficient victory down the stretch, closing the Tar Heels out in a 77-65 victory. Without his quick start though, Indiana's evening may have had a much different ending.

"Jalen came out and he was really our spark to start the game," Trayce Jackson-Davis said postgame. "It was ridiculous. He was hitting big shot after big shot. I think our team fed off of that."

Hood-Schifino scored 14 points on the evening, adding six rebounds, two assists and a steal onto his stat sheet. Tasked with guarding North Carolina's über-talented backcourt guards, the freshman saw the most minutes of any Hoosier on the floor Wednesday. After 35 minutes of action, Hood-Schifino finished the evening with a +/- of +10.

"Him being a freshman coming into this environment against that team, doing that, it's really special," Jackson-Davis continued.

Jackson-Davis had a big night himself, one that you'd come to expect from a preseason All-American in a big-time matchup. However, thanks to the play from the freshman point guard, Jackson-Davis' play has elevated once again this season. Alongside Xavier Johnson, Hood-Schifino not only alleviates pressure off the shoulders of his veteran creators around him on offense, but it opens up more lanes of passing due to defenses having to pressure the ball out of the guards' hands.

Yet, with the poise that Hood-Schifino and others have shown in doing so, defending Indiana when he's on the floor is extremely tough. Once Indiana is able to consistently get it out of him, the Hoosiers could become even more of a threat.

"Jalen, as far as I'm concerned, has been solid ever since I got him," Indiana head coach Mike Woodson said following the victory. "I have no complaints with (him). He tries to do all the right things, the winning things, to help you win. He's great off the court, just a good young man."

Throughout the recent slump that he'd been working through, Woodson had stuck with his young freshman, a testament to his trust in the Pittsburgh, PA product. After consistently saying that he can't wait for his guys to come around with only so many minutes to share, the constant trust in Hood-Schifino's game is moreso a representation of why Woodson is so comfortable to let him run the offense. Indiana has been a better team than their opponent when he's on the floor, and nights like tonight are just further reinforcement of that fact.

"I'm pleased how he's been playing. You guys might not be, but I'm happy as hell how he's been playing," Woodson said.

On a night where the bright lights were shining and the whole country was watching, Jalen walked into an amped Assembly Hall with his head on straight and played his brand of basketball. He made the moment his own, and what was a night loaded with storylines quickly became the Hood-Schifino show.

"Yeah, it was a big-time game. North Carolina is coming off losing two games," Hood-Schifino said. "I knew they were going to come in, bring energy, try to knock us off our feet."

It was in those moments where that aforementioned poise rose above all else for Hood-Schifino. With his insertion into the limelight and a leadership role, others followed. A win did, too.

"For me, I just came in confident, just shot my shot. I feel like I was a spark," Hood-Schifino continued. "When I was hitting my shots, everyone else followed along, brought their energy, just built it up from there."

Sporting a new hair wrap and a shooting undershirt, Hood-Schifino's game was just as different aesthetically as it was from a performance standpoint. With Big Ten play on the horizon, the Hoosiers will need everything they can get from their freshman point guard in order to continue to churn out results.

Yes, he sometimes makes unpolished, head-scratching plays that remind you that he is still just 19 years old and yes, he sometimes forgets his secret word that he's supposed to insert into his post-game press conferences.

With him though, it's the upside that makes him such an intriguing prospect for the immediate future of this program and why he's garnered the national attention that he has. His game has all of the right tools that make effective, winning plays, and he's shown an innate ability to be a quick learner and adapt moving forward. Wednesday night's performance is a testament to both of those points.

There may be more imminently valuable players on Indiana's roster, but Woodson himself says that it's a complete team effort every time his Hoosiers hit the floor. So far, he's right. Seven wins, seven team efforts, no losses.

Undoubtedly, Jalen Hood-Schifino is a big part of that. There's no reason to believe that won't continue.

"Oh damn, I forgot," Hood-Schifino said. "Jellyfish."

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