Indiana basketball kicked off the week with a win over Eastern Michigan. Head coach Mike Woodson’s first career game starts on a high note, but perhaps not in the fashion he wanted. The Hoosiers led by 21 points at one time, but the Eagles came storming back to make it a two point game with under a minute left. Fortunately, Indiana was still able to squeak out a 68–62 win.
The Hoosiers’ defense looked to be working fairly well. They held Eastern Michigan to only 31.3% shooting and the Eagles did not score until the 12:39 mark in the first half. However, Indiana did not box out as well as they should have, allowing seven offensive boards and losing the rebounding battle.
The offense looked out of sync all night. The starting five only featured two starters from last year, Race Thompson and Trayce Jackson-Davis. With all of the new transfers and a new recruit, team chemistry is something that is going to have to be built over time for Indiana to be successful. Indiana struggled at the free throw line, just as they did last year, shooting 12–20 from the charity stripe. Additionally, the 3-point shooting was dismal, making the deep shot at only 16.7% (4–24).
Trayce Jackson-Davis continued his dominant ways again tonight with 21 points and 14 boards.
The Hoosiers will face off against Northern Illinois this Friday. Indiana will have to flush out these issues before their next game against the Huskies.
Notable Stat Lines:
Trayce Jackson-Davis (F) – 21 PTS, 14 REB, 3 BLK, 9/14 FG, 3/7 FT
Xavier Johnson (G) – 14 PTS, 3 AST, 4/9 FG, 5/8 FT, 1/3 3PT
Rob Phinisee (G) – 7 PTS, 2 AST, 3/11 FG, 1/5 3PT
