Ahead of Saturday’s Indiana men’s basketball game against Michigan, I answered some questions for Michigan’s On3 site about the matchup and the circumstances around the game.
Sometimes, we get a reverse Q&A from The Wolverine writers from their perspective. But given the news about Mike Woodson’s status with IU, and where the Hoosiers are at entering this game, we thought it would be more relevant to share the same Q&A from our perspective.
These are the same six questions that The Wolverine’s Clayton Sayfie sent to me, and the same answers I sent back.
1. Take us through Malik Reneau’s return, and how he’s played. Looks like he hasn’t been able to handle a lot of minutes and isn’t producing at as high of a level. What kind of impact has his absence, and then his return and lack of production, had?
Outside of a few flashes here and there, Reneau has looked very rusty since returning. He’s just been a shell of himself both physically and skill-wise, and the low amount of minutes has just as much to do with Luke Goode being a better option right now as it is his health. Until I see otherwise, I can’t count on Reneau as a reliable option for this team right now.
2. Obviously, Indiana fans on social media have been pretty vocal about Dusty May. Where is the fan base at with Woodson, and is the noise as loud as I’m seeing online about them wanting IU to look at May?
Well, this question was posed before Thursday’s reports that Woodson and IU will part ways at the end of the season. Really, this was an inevitable outcome with the way things have gone. Indiana has been simply finding ways to lose games, in so many different ways. Woodson’s teams have a tendency to let things spiral out of control when games aren’t going well, resulting in a lot of blowout losses, but the Hoosiers have also not been able to finish out the close games. The on-court product is just tanking, the team plays an outdated style of basketball, and fan patience wore thin. Woodson has been loudly booed at IU’s last few home games, and if this sort of news didn’t come out ahead of this game against Dusty May, the atmosphere could’ve become pretty toxic on Saturday. I’d imagine the news should lower the heat a bit on Woodson. As for May, he will still be a sought-after candidate on many IU fans’ wish lists. His Indiana ties are well-known, as a former manager under Bob Knight. And contractually, it seems workable for the Hoosiers to hire May away from Michigan if they want to. So, to answer your question, I wouldn’t expect the noise around May and the IU job to quiet down until the position is filled.
3. What has been the main issue over this tough stretch for IU? They’re obviously not playing well, but the opponents have been tough. Thought they played well at Purdue.
There really isn’t only one main issue. It’s just so many things going wrong for this team right now. There’s very little consistency from one game to the next. But I’ll focus in on the 3-point line. Indiana’s had problems shooting threes for a few years now, and this year’s been no different. IU ranks No. 251 in the nation in 3-point percentage (32.2) and No. 299 in 3-point attempts per game (19.7). And Indiana, on too many occasions, has had trouble defending the 3-point line The season-long stats don’t reflect it on that end of the court, but the Hoosiers have given up double-digit threes in five of the last eight games, the first such stretch for the program in at least 15 years. They did put together a solid performance at Purdue and could’ve won that game if not for 20 turnovers, but that ties back to the first point — it’s felt like one step forward, one step back with this team.
4. What would your biggest concern be with this matchup?
I think Danny Wolf is a matchup nightmare for Indiana. Even if Reneau was healthy, I think the Vlad Goldin-Wolf tandem would cause problems for IU defensively. But particularly with Reneau limited and ineffective, I’m concerned there. Illinois was really able to exploit Oumar Ballo on defense by forcing him out to the perimeter, and he had a brutal game that day. It’s very easy to see Wolf causing similar issues for IU.
5. On the flip side, what would you feel best about if you’re IU?
There isn’t a ton. But No. 1, in light of the Woodson news, is to hope that it lights a fire under the team to play hard the rest of the way, and they get the so-called coaching news bump. Otherwise, I think all they can really lean on is the fact that they put together the good performance at Purdue and have responded to adversity on occasion this season, such as the Ohio State and Penn State wins. They have to know they have that ability down there somewhere.
6. What have the crowds been like? I imagine still great at Assembly Hall
It’s been interesting. Especially in recent games, as things have gone further downhill, fans are arriving already irritated. Woodson has been hearing boos during pregame introductions. IU has stopped showing Woodson on the videoboard as he walks from the tunnel to the bench — and that’s not a coincidence, as the women’s basketball program still does that with Teri Moren every game. But, even with all of that negativity lingering over the program, IU basketball fans are still eager to see their team play well, and they still respond in turn when that happens. Indiana played well in the second half against Maryland and nearly pulled out that game, and the arena was loud as usual. If the Hoosiers start playing well on Saturday, I’d expect the same.
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