Indiana at Rutgers: Post-game notes, numbers and trends

Indiana went into Piscataway, New Jersey on Wednesday needing a win – or at least a good performance. The Hoosiers got neither, as they were outhustled and thoroughly beaten down by Rutgers. IU lost 74-63, but the game wasn’t as close as the eleven-point score indicates. It was another poor result for Archie Miller’s group, as the road to the NCAA Tournament is closing rapidly. 

Here are some notes, numbers, and trends from the loss to Rutgers.

• IU jumped out to a 23-8 lead, their second fast start in as many games. Unfortunately, the Hoosiers followed the hot start with a 6-of-25 stretch from the field while Rutgers began to heat up from three. 
• Speaking of 3-point shooting, the Scarlet Knights were cooking from beyond the arc, shooting 11 of 28 on the night. Geo Baker and Ron Harper Jr. combined to make 10 of the 11.
• Rutgers bullied Indiana, coupling that three point shooting with dominance inside. The Scarlet Knights dunked the ball nine times, scored 22 points in transition, and scored 36 points in the paint. 
• Al Durham and Trayce Jackson-Davis combined for 41 points, providing most of the offense for IU. Durham scored 14 of his 20 in the first six minutes.  Durham’s four 3-pointers tied a career high.  He is now six points away from becoming the 53rd player in program history to score 1,000 career points.
• Jackson-Davis recorded his 10th double-double of the season and 22nd in his career. Indiana is now 17-5 in games in which he has a double-double.  Jackson-Davis also had a career high three steals.
  
• The Hoosiers continue to get little production from the point guard spot, with Rob Phinisee and Khristian Lander combining for zero points on 0-10 shooting. Lander missed three layups (one should have been a goaltend) and Phinisee was unable to get anything going.  Phinisee was held scoreless for the second straight game and third time in the last seven contests.
• IU continued to struggle from two-point range, shooting a maddening 14-43 from inside the arc, good for 32 percent. Somehow, the team shot just 7-20 on layups.  Their overall 36.1 percent shooting performance was their fourth worst of the season, although they won two of the other three games (vs. Iowa, at Northwestern).  Their 44.4 percent effort from 3-point range was the fifth best of the season.
• Jordan Geronimo scored a career-high eight points off the bench, nailing two threes in garbage time. Though the points were meaningless, Geronimo showed an ability to shoot the ball from long range. 
• Indiana seems to be firmly out of the NCAA Tournament picture at this point. Joe Lunardi of ESPN had the Hoosiers as one of the Last Four Byes. They will either be Last Four In or out after this loss, and the road doesn’t get easier. They’ll host Michigan on Saturday before traveling to Michigan State and Purdue. 
• Armaan Franklin scored zero points, sitting out the second half with what appeared to be some sort of lower leg injury. The injury created time for Trey Galloway, who played 26 minutes. 
• Indiana had zero blocks in a game for just the second time all season (Ohio State).
• The Hoosiers had 13 turnovers on the night and they are averaging that many per game over the last eight contests.

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