Euroclydon

Hoping IU gets the customary home cooking you get in the B1G. If so, OSU won't be able to body all over the court like Nebraska just did and IU won't have to have players create their own shot, which they are not good at most of the time.

Someone finally asked CMW about the guys leaving shooters to drift into the lane. The answer didnt make anyone feel better about it.. Said it's a lot of guys doing that but mostly young guys and he knows it works because it worked last year with veteran players. Said they need to keeo working at it. We know they need to keep working on a lot of things but in the meantime I guess they will keep getting lit up outside. He also mentioned the lack of communication. This has been mentioned several times this season. It's irritating at this point. A player may not be able to shoot, dribble, jump or run fast but there's no excuse for not communicating. The coaches cannot allow that to continue. And the captains shouldn't accept it either. This may be the biggest insult to the fans.

Better take care of business at home. The road Ws may be few and far between.

Would any IU player want to be named MVP of that disaster? Not likely.

How easy is IU to guard? You don't have to be near a perimeter player. You can sit in the lane and double anything inside. You won't see a Hoosier move to an open spot 99% of the time whether it's a drive by a teammate or a post pass. Statues. I'd expect this on the road the rest of the season. I'd expect some losses at home because of similar issues and poor FT shooting. The question is, once Ware leaves and likely some others, can you add more than one five star? Where is IUs international recruit/beast? Where's the legit PG? Where's the horses needed to compete because this is not working?

Disappointed in Banks. Brings very little on either end. At this point of his career things shouldn't be this difficult for him. Same with Gunn. For this team to excel everyone has to be healthy and everyone has to contribute even if it's defense and/or rebounding. Malik just ran away from a shooter who hits the three. Can anyone explain that?

IU on the road highlights all the things they lack. They don't have guards you can consistently count on to make plays and secure the ball. They don't have shooters you know will knock down open shots. They can't stop fouling as a team. They don't rebound effectively. To their credit they play hard. Still in this game with a shot. But the strength they have inside they can't take advantage of. The other team can double every big inside because there's no threat outside.

X looking rusty. To be expected. More important, as big as IU is inside the rebounding is often non-existant. I don't trust them to get consecutive rebounds on the defensive end, leading to several second chance points.

IU gets a steal and the next thing you know it's going back the other way for points. Sloppy. At the same time, Nebraska gets away with bodying on defense. Could get ugly. As someone mentioned, CMW still hasn't figured out how to work the refs. On the road you have to fight to give your team a chance. Can't let the game be called one-sided.

No cookin' like home cookin'. But IU has to take care of the ball better.

The offense is looking more defined. They have an idea of who can do what and while it's still ugly at times they are starting to knock down some perimeter shots. Getting X back and moving Galloway to a more normal position off the ball should elevate everyone. The defense will determine if this team makes the big dance. They play their bigs together and it makes them slow. Their rotations are two steps behind and some still don't know where they should be or who they are guarding. Still waiting for CMW to explain why the guards dig so far into the lane leaving shooters. Again, X could make a significant difference. He has a better chance of staying in front of the ball than Cupps. He also allows Galloway to focus more on that side of the ball. But the reality is they also struggle to prevent drives and it leads to more threes against them than any season I can recall. Talent is there. Effort is there. Significant gaps on both ends amplified by the X injury. It forces a true freshman to play more than he should and Galloway to play point, which he is not. Figure out the D and get healthy - they can play with anyone in conference.

BTN+ and Peacock. I'd like to see the numbers on how many are watching games on those platforms. I understand it's all about the money, but my guess is IU benefits more when more fans watch their games. I have zero interest in using either platform. Trying to force fans to pay in order to see Kennesaw State at IU seems like a losing formula in the long run. But if fans go along with it now you can expect more games will be pay per view until most games will have to be purchased.

Hoping for a locked in effort on both ends. Less wasted possessions and better defensive rotations. I'd like to see more fundamental decisions for shooting the ball. Example - Gunn and Banks squared up and not forcing shots helps the team. When they drive into defenders or take off balance garbage shots For no reason other than a lack of composure, its really just a turnover.

Some really good. Some bad. Letting a less talented team hang around is dangerous. Hopefully they put them away early second half. Regardless how this season unfolds, CMW can't allow his team to be handicapped with only two points guard options in the future. If you swing big in recruiting you better have a backup option. With X injured again it falls to freshman Cupps to not get in foul trouble. That unrealistic. It's also a shame Galloway has spent the past two seasons playing out of position trying to be a point. It has limited his game on both ends.

Just like to see a team that is locked in on both ends of the court. Something that proves they have a game plan we can identify. If they win by 30 playing out of control, undisciplined ball it won't make anyone feel better about their prospects this season. These last two non-conference games are likely the last chance for some guys to see any real playing time. The bench will shrink with conference play.

Relying heavily on two freshmen and two sophomores is creating problems for IU. The lack of maturity and composure stands out. They have to play through it and learn how to be ready for every game. The reality is the game is much more difficult when you can only hit a few three pointers per game and back that up by missing 12 free throws. If this game was on the road they lose by double digits. What frustrates me is they ended up so thin at guard one injury has put the season in jeopardy. Playing your starters 30+ minutes and then asking them to do it again threedays later is probably not going to turn out well long term.

Nothing I've seen this season suggests this will be a game. If X cannot play it's likely to be as ugly as Auburn or worse.

X being out is a killer on both ends even with his bipolar play. He takes a lot of pressure off Galloway and the other guards and he's a physical defender. The result is Galloway is once again being forced to play point more than he should, which he is not. That hurts his game on both ends. It all leads to more pressure on Cupps as a freshman. Gunn is not even close to a point guard. If X comes back they have a chance to reach their potential but the reality is this team can't lose any guards for any amount of time and still have a chance against better teams.

IU doesn't have the guards to compete against a strong press team. Even with X they are really too thin at guard. CMW should have realized that going in and come up with a plan to slow it down. Not sure a W was in the cards but no way they should be giving up 100+.

From the elbow to the face it all collapsed. Panic set in and they folded. I need to see some fight in the second half and some composure.

The pace is too fast. Can't get into an offense and when they do get a shot it's rushed and most of them have been poor decisions. That's led to poor D and rebounding. The start was great. Couldn't sustain it. Now they look shell shocked. X would have helped but the young guys look physically weak and unsure.

Galloway has struggled all season with his three point shot. Many of them are challenged or at least he looks rushed. Last season he benefitted from the attention JHS was getting and TJDs ability to find open shooters. It's not the same this season.

Nice win. Not the best basketball they've played and plenty still to work on, but they did enough without their starting PG. Take every conference road win you can get and be happy.

Can IU guard without fouling? Can they rebound? Do those two things well and they'll have a chance. If Malik or any of the guards get into foul trouble early, it's going to be a tough game to win.

IU's most complete game this season. Let up in the second half but may have been fatigue at the guard spot. Let's hope Cupps is OK. They are alreqdy paper thin at guard when everyone is healthy. Losing X is tough. Losing X and Cupps would be disaster.