The Daily Hoosier
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram
    Trending
    • Curt Cignetti starts IU football job radiating confidence
    • 2024 quarterback Timothy Carpenter decommits from IU
    • IU soccer’s season ends at Notre Dame after penalty kicks
    • JMU starting QB in the portal, IU offers top JMU recruit
    • Report: IU offensive line coach Bob Bostad expected to be retained by Curt Cignetti
    • Cignetti jumps into Purdue rivalry with both feet
    • IU men’s soccer faces Notre Dame Saturday with College Cup on the line
    • IU basketball: Maryland at Indiana — The Report Card
    • Sign Up
    • About/Support
    • Jobs
    • Tickets
      • IUBB Tickets (Stubhub)
      • IUFB Tickets (Stubhub)
    • Shop
      • Official IU Store
      • IU Adidas Store
      • Amazon: Support TDH
      • IU Memorabilia
      • IU Press (Books)
      • The Daily Hoosier T-Shirt
    • Radio/Podcasts
    • Pro IU
      • IUBB NBA
      • IUFB NFL
      • IUBASE MLB
    • Forum
      • Disqus Forum
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube
    The Daily HoosierThe Daily Hoosier
    Sunday, December 3
    • IU Basketball
      • Latest IU Basketball News
      • IU Basketball 2023-24 Schedule
      • IU Basketball 23-24 Roster/Staff
      • Scholarship Chart
      • Future Schedules
      • 2023-24 Big Ten Standings
      • 2023-24 IU Basketball Stats
      • Rankings & Bracketology
      • IU Basketball Media Guide
    • IU Football
      • Latest IU Football News
      • Head coach candidates
      • Offseason roster tracker
      • IU Football: The 2023 Schedule
      • Roster
      • 2023 IUFB Stats
      • 2023 B1G Standings
      • Future Opponents through 2031
      • IUFB 2023 Media Guide
    • IU Recruiting
      • IU Basketball Recruiting News
      • IU Football Recruiting News
      • IUBB 2024-2026 Prospects
      • Recruit Interviews
      • Recruit Highlights
      • CBB Team Rankings
      • IU Football Recruiting Commits
    • IU Women’s Basketball
      • IU Women’s Basketball News
      • 23-24 Schedule
      • Big Ten Standings
    • IU Men’s Soccer
      • 2023 Schedule
      • Indiana Men’s Soccer: Program History
    • More Hoosiers
      • Fan and Business NIL options
      • IU Baseball
        • Baseball Schedule (links to iuhoosiers.com)
        • 2021 Stats (links to iuhoosiers.com)
        • Big Ten Standings
      • IU Swim & Dive
      • IU Olympic Results
    • Hoosier History
      • March Madness Classics
      • Basketball History
      • Football History
      • IUFB Best Seasons
      • IUFB All-Time Top 10 Players
    The Daily Hoosier

    Tom Izzo on TJD: “He’s kind of what you hope college basketball is supposed to be”

    Mike SchumannBy Mike SchumannFebruary 20, 2023 IU Basketball 24 Comments
    BLOOMINGTON, IN - JANUARY 22, 2023 - forward Trayce Jackson-Davis #23 of the Indiana Hoosiers during the game between the Michigan State Spartans and the Indiana Hoosiers at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall in Bloomington, IN. Photo By AWM#2
    Share
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Email

    Since he arrived in Bloomington, Indiana fans have been talking about Trayce Jackson-Davis’ jump shot.

    If he could only make threes, he’d finally be that dominant player who could lead the Hoosiers deep into March, the story went.

    Truth be told, while it may not be a strength of his game, Jackson-Davis can make threes.  But it makes little sense to shoot them when he can dominate in the paint like he has for the last two months.

    Moreover, if he was making threes in games, Jackson-Davis would have left Indiana for the NBA a long time ago.  As it turned out, we got to see how truly dominant he could be at the college level precisely because he never did start making threes.

    But while the perimeter jump shot never became a staple in his college repertoire, Jackson-Davis has improved in just about every other aspect of the game.  Now a March run is in fact in play for Indiana, and Jackson-Davis is first team All-American good.

    Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo has seen astronomical growth in year four.

    “I’ve watched him grow as a player, and I think he took small steps for three years, and maybe he works for NASA, or he just took a giant step for Indiana at least, if not mankind,” Izzo said on Monday.

    “He’s really improved his game with his ball handling, he’s improved his game with his strength.  I think he’s improved his game with his passing ability.”

    In their first meeting in January, Jackson-Davis had a game that while other-worldly, looked a lot like all the others he’s had lately:  31 points, 15 rebounds and five blocks.

    But Michigan State likely could have survived that onslaught if not for Indiana’s 9-of-15 shooting performance from beyond the 3-point arc.

    While Jackson-Davis hasn’t turned into a 3-point shooter himself, he’s become a very effective facilitator of long distance shots for others.  He had four assists against the Spartans last month, and his willingness as a passer is another area where Izzo has seen improvement.

    “I thought at one time he was a black hole, it went it and didn’t come out,” Izzo said.  “Now I think he’s added different dimensions to his game.  He’s very hard to double.  He can catch the ball anywhere on the floor and get to wherever he wants, and he’s got as good a first step as any player at any position.  He’s a load.”

    It’s bittersweet for Izzo to watch Jackson-Davis’ development.  He recruited the Greenwood, Ind. product aggressively.  He became close with both Jackson-Davis and his family, and still communicates with his step-father.

    For most of the year, the long-time Spartans head coach can sit back and enjoy the development of a good kid, even if it at the same time he’s left to wonder what it all might have looked like if Jackson-Davis had chosen to play in East Lansing.

    Tuesday night is one of those nights when Izzo doesn’t enjoy the great player Jackson-Davis has become.

    But he still knows stories like his are good for the game.

    “He’s kind of what you hope college basketball is supposed to be,” Izzo said.  “Kid came in and he was a good player.  Got to be a pretty good player and then a real good player.  And then he made this monstrous jump between his third and fourth year where I think we get condemned for staying in school, but he’s a kid where I think it’s really benefitted him.  So I think it’s been good for the game.”

    While Jackson-Davis scored 31 in the first meeting, he needed 20 shots to get there.  It was his 13 free throw attempts, along with offensive outbursts from Tamar Bates and Trey Galloway that ultimately led the Hoosiers to an 82-69 win in Bloomington.

    Izzo acknowledges there’s a pick-your-poison aspect to playing Indiana right now.  Single coverage is too easy for Jackson-Davis, and double-teams give up open threes.

    It sounds like the game plan on Tuesday night will be to throw the kitchen sink at Jackson-Davis with a wide variety of looks, while accepting the fact that he’ll still put up big numbers.  Jackson-Davis has scored 18 or more points in 11 straight games.

    “We’re going to have to mix some things up.  I don’t think there will be a steady diet of anything,” Izzo said.

    “But really, Trayce is going to get his 20 points.  He gets enough touches, he gets enough opportunities, and he’s a phenomenal player.  The game plan won’t just be to stop Trayce, we got beat last time because Bates hit five out of six threes, and I’m not sure he’s hit that many since.  But he did.  And Galloway hit three.  So two surprise guys hit eight threes, and that’s the problem.

    “People want you to double, and you’re giving up threes.  People want you to guard the threes and you’re giving up 30 points to the post guy.”


    The Daily Hoosier –“Where Indiana fans assemble when they’re not at Assembly”

    • Find us on Facebook:  thedailyhoosier
    • You can follow us on Twitter:  @daily_hoosier
    • Seven ways to support completely free IU coverage at no cost to you.

    Share this:

    • Tweet

    Related

    Tamar Bates Tom Izzo Trayce Jackson-Davis Trey Galloway
    Mike Schumann

    Keep Reading

    IU basketball: Maryland at Indiana — The Report Card

    Kel’el Ware thrived for Indiana in physical Maryland matchup

    Watch: Woodson, Galloway and Ware discuss win over Maryland

    Latest Hoosier News
    • Curt Cignetti starts IU football job radiating confidence
    • 2024 quarterback Timothy Carpenter decommits from IU
    • IU soccer’s season ends at Notre Dame after penalty kicks
    • JMU starting QB in the portal, IU offers top JMU recruit
    • Report: IU offensive line coach Bob Bostad expected to be retained by Curt Cignetti
    • Cignetti jumps into Purdue rivalry with both feet
    • IU men’s soccer faces Notre Dame Saturday with College Cup on the line
    Sign Up



    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube
    © 2023 The Daily Hoosier, LLC.

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

    Ad Blocker Enabled!
    Ad Blocker Enabled!
    Our website is made possible by displaying online advertisements to our visitors. Please support us by disabling your Ad Blocker.