INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana men’s basketball simply found a way to win.
IU didn’t display the greatest basketball throughout Monday’s game against Syracuse — though few teams truly do in November. But when the contest got into crunch time at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, the Hoosiers stepped up and found a way to pull out an 83-80 win.
For head coach Darian DeVries, just seeing his team get over the line in a close game like that was really encouraging.
“That’s probably the biggest takeaway for us, just from a coaching standpoint, is to see that response. Until you’re in that situation, you don’t know for sure,” DeVries said after the game. “I thought the guys did a great job.”
Indiana (3-0) trailed by five points with 6:24 remaining, after a Darren Harris shooting foul that — after replays clearly showed he never contacted Kiyan Anthony — left the IU sideline and crowd in disbelief.
The energy could’ve easily given Syracuse (2-1) a big momentum swing. But the Hoosiers kept their composure and regrouped. After that moment, they shot 5 for 7 from the field and went 9 for 9 at the foul line.
“I liked the communication that was taking place,” DeVries said. “There wasn’t a lot of panic. It was very much, ‘the next play.’ They weren’t worried about the last play. I thought that was really good.”
IU’s late-game execution was far from perfect. The team took a five-point lead with less than a minute remaining, and things got a little messy.
The Hoosiers had trouble getting the ball in cleanly down the stretch, and had to take multiple timeouts to avoid costly turnovers in the game’s final minute. And then with four seconds remaining, Bryce Lindsay picked up an offensive foul call that revived the Orange’s chances, giving them the ball back down by three.
DeVries knows there’s plenty to clean up. But there were enough positives to take out of this performance to outweigh the negatives. Positives like Indiana’s free-throw clip — the Hoosiers went 17 for 18 at the foul line in the second half on Monday. And, primarily, the mentality the team showed in finishing out a win like this.
“We’re gonna come out and fight, each and every time, no matter the circumstance, how the game’s going. We’re gonna come out and fight, and we’re gonna stay together at all times,” guard Jaeden Mustaf said. “I think we built a great bond with each other just over the summer and into now. And so just knowing that every game we’re gonna all fight together, no matter what the score is.”
Mustaf and IU’s backcourt delivered on Monday. He, Harris, Lindsay, and Markus Burton combined for 69 of Indiana’s 83 points.
Tougher tests lie ahead, with more neutral-site games coming up against No. 19 Arkansas and No. 24 Kentucky. Just last year, IU blew out Marquette early in the season, only to drop ensuing non-conference games against Louisville and Kentucky.
The Hoosiers will have to prove that this win over Syracuse wasn’t a fluke, rather an indicator of the type of team they are. DeVries will hope the composed confidence he saw in clutch moments on Monday is a sign of things to come.
“Every late game situation, it’s just hard to simulate without the crowd and the pressure of it. To be able to come away and get the win, that’s the ultimate way to learn,” DeVries said. “That was a great quality to have, just to find a way to win that game.”
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