1/3/2022 basketball Edit

Quick Hitters: Takeaways from IU's loss to Penn State

Alec Lasley • TheHoosier

Senior Writer

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Indiana got back to the court after an 11-day layoff and looked anything but a team you expected.

The Hoosiers fell to Penn State, 61-58, in a very lackluster performance that had many issues show up that have been a consistent theme all season.

Indiana has now lost its seventh straight game on the road, dating back to February 10 of 2021.

Now sitting at 10-3 (1-2), Indiana needs to get right quickly before welcoming in No. 13 Ohio State to Assembly Hall this week.

Here are the main takeaways from IU's loss to Penn State.

Cant win on the road: It has now been seven straight losses for Indiana on the road and most of them have been pretty brutal performances. IU is 0-3 this season and have yet to put together a full performance that leaves fans happy. Indiana's loss to Penn State on Sunday became the sixth loss out of the seven road games that have come in the Big Ten. IU looks like a totally different team on the road and that needs to be fixed.

Finding consistency in shooters: This is starting to become a theme that nobody likes, but outside of Parker Stewart, the lack of consistent shooting is evident. Stewart went 0-2 from deep and just 1-of-4 in 30 minutes on Sunday, but that was just the third time all season he failed to knock down a three. Miller Kopp, Tamar Bates, Xavier Johnson all combined to shoot 2-of-6 from three and 5-of-17 overall for the game. IU needs to find other guys who can step up if Stewart has a tough night.

Bench struggles: Indiana has had an up-and-down bench all season and Sunday provided very little in reserve for the starters. The bench totaled 13 points, but those came from two players. Rob Phinisee had nine points in 24 minutes, but was the only member of the bench to see double-digit minutes. Tamar Bates didn't play in the second half and didn't score. Michael Durr and Anthony Leal provided nothing in their 10 total minutes. Jordan Geronimo was active early, with four points and three rebounds in the first half, but played just two minutes in the second half. Whether it's working out his rotations or not fully trusting his bench, Mike Woodson needs to come up with something from the second unit.

3pt defense fails: IU came into Sunday's matchup as one of the top three-point shooting defenses in the country. However, Penn State hit 11 3's and shot 50 percent for the game. The Nittany Lions came in averaging eight 3's a game and shooting just 33.2 percent. The sense of urgency and closeout energy IU had on shooters was nowhere to be found and while some shots were luck from PSU, most were due to a lack of ability from the IU defense to get to shooters quick.

Offensive execution: 58 points was the lowest point total IU had this season. It was an offense that looked unorganized and way more 1-on-1 than team basketball. Trayce Jackson-Davis had 20 points and was 8-of-18 from the field. The rest of the lineup combined for 38 points on 15-of-40. Indiana, which shoots it at 37 percent from three on the season, was just 4-of-17. All of this happened while committing just six turnovers -- a season low.

Lack of guard production: The guards for Indiana just can't seem to figure it out. Up-and-down play from Xavier Johnson and Rob Phinisee have put IU right where it was last year -- relying on the inconsistent guards in order to have a successful season. While turnovers weren't the issue, making plays for teammates seemed to be the hardest thing out there. IU's guards were dribbling in the lane with no clear goal of what they wanted, leaving their feet with no decision made or attacking the basket and throwing up a shot that clearly wasn't there. It needs to be better and be better right away for the backcourt of Indiana.