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Indiana bounced back from losses to Iowa and Illinois with a 77-76 overtime win against Ohio State on Friday night at Value City Arena. The win improved the Hoosiers to 14-5 overall and 5-3 in Big Ten play.
Here are five takeaways from the win against the Buckeyes:
Indiana responded after embarrassing performances against Iowa and Illinois
After back-to-back 25-point losses to Iowa and Illinois, how Indiana would respond Friday night in Columbus was an open question entering the game.
Would the Hoosiers falter again and allow a third-straight blowout loss? Or would IU regroup as Luke Goode suggested in the aftermath of the Illinois loss?
Indiana regrouped and from the opening tip, the energy was different. The Hoosiers competed for most of the 45 minutes against the Buckeyes. Even when shots weren’t falling in the first half, Indiana never let the game get out of reach.
As the second half began and perimeter shots began to fall, the Hoosiers made a move. By the 5:12 mark of the second half, Indiana led 68-58 and it appeared that a comfortable win was within reach.
However, Indiana faltered down the stretch as Ohio State went on a 13-3 run to close out regulation and force overtime. After falling behind to start the extra period, Goode’s 3-pointer with 1:07 remaining and Anthony Leal’s block with one second left lifted IU to a much-needed victory.
Luke Goode had a career night and IU needed every shot to win
Goode entered the starting lineup on Dec. 29 against Winthrop and has found his shooting stroke in the new year.
Friday marked Goode’s best performance of the season as he poured in a career-high 23 points on 7-for-14 shooting from the field.
Goode was 4-for-7 on 3s. Through eight Big Ten games, Goode is 19-for-41 on 3s (46.3 percent). He’s scored in double figures in four of the last five games.
Nearly every Goode 3-pointer came at a key point in the game for Indiana. His first 3-pointer got the Hoosiers within three at 39-36 with 17:51 to play.
His second triple gave IU the lead at 43-41 at the 15:08 mark and his third stretched the lead to four at 50-46 with 12:50 remaining.
And in overtime, Goode’s 3-pointer with just over a minute to play lifted Indiana to its second conference road win. Goode played every minute of the second half and overtime.
Oumar Ballo dominates Ohio State in the post
Oumar Ballo finished with a double-double Friday night for the fifth time in six games.
The 7-foot, 265-pound big man has taken on a bigger scoring load in the absence of Malik Reneau. Against Ohio State, Ballo had 21 points on 8-for-14 shooting and a 5-for-7 performance from the free throw line.
Ballo also grabbed 15 rebounds with eight of those on the offensive end. He played 40 minutes and added three assists, two blocked shots and a steal.
In Big Ten games, Ballo is averaging 17.3 points, 11.8 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.5 blocked shots in 32.1 minutes while shooting 66.3 percent from the field.
While there have been moments where Ballo’s effort has waned inside games, he’s playing the most minutes of his career. In Friday’s win, his hustle kept several possessions alive and his size was too much for the Buckeyes to handle at the rim.
Kanaan Carlyle provides a significant lift off the bench
For the first time since Dec. 9, sophomore guard Kanaan Carlyle reached double figures in scoring against Ohio State.
The Atlanta native has struggled with his shooting all season but came alive on Friday night. With Myles Rice benched for most of the game with foul issues, Carlyle played a season-high 36 minutes and delivered his best overall game this season.
Carlyle finished with 13 points on 5-for-12 shooting. He made IU’s only 3-pointer of the first half and didn’t turn the ball over.
While he did struggle at the free throw line – he shot 2-for-5 – Carlyle’s energy on both ends was a major reason the Hoosiers escaped with a win.
Ten of Carlyle’s 13 points came in the second half and overtime, as his aggressive attack on the rim resulted in three layups.
Hoosiers add second Quad 1 win
As ugly as IU’s losses to Iowa and Illinois were, the reality is the Hoosiers still have plenty of opportunities to record NCAA tournament resume-worthy wins.
Friday night was one of those and IU took advantage.
The win against the Buckeyes was the second in Quad 1 of the season for the Hoosiers. The Buckeyes are No. 37 in the NCAA’s NET rankings.
Now 2-5 in Quad 1 games, the Hoosiers still have numerous opportunities to build a case for March Madness. Of Indiana’s remaining 12 regular season games, all 12 are Quad 2 or higher and eight of them are projected to be Quad 1.
With the win against Ohio State, Indiana currently sits at No. 61 in the NET rankings.
Filed to: Kanaan Carlyle, Luke Goode, Ohio State Buckeyes, Oumar Ballo
