It may have been snowy and cold outside of Assembly Hall on Sunday, but inside, the Indiana Hoosiers were hot as they had no issues with the Ohio State Buckeyes.
Both teams came in undefeated in the Big Ten, but following this game, you could tell who deserved to keep their undefeated Big Ten mark.
Hoosiers Come Out Humming
Indiana came out of the gates firing on all cylinders and it seemed like Ohio State was out of it right at the start. The Hoosiers opened up a 10-0 lead at the first media timeout, and they didn't look back from there.
Ohio State was playing sloppy and Indiana was playing the exact opposite of sloppy. The Buckeyes had no chance to get back in it from there. The Buckeyes did cut it down to seven, but Indiana finished the half on a 21-4 run in the last 6:05 and the young Buckeyes just had to battle through.
11 turnovers and 28 percent shooting isn't going to get it done on the road against an offensive team like the Hoosiers. Indiana shot 50 percent in the first half and led 48-18 heading into the second half.
"That was definitely the most fun basketball, a half at least, that I've played here," senior guard Yogi Ferrell said about the first half. "Playing with these guys, and you got guys like OG (Anunoby) going to the offensive glass and dunking the ball, I think that's fun."
In the second half, it was more of the same and the Hoosiers rolled to a 25-point victory.
Playing Indiana Basketball
Indiana has had to find itself following the loss of James Blackmon Jr., but Sunday, they played their game following a few outings that were a bit shaky. There was nothing shaky about this game, but coach Tom Crean doesn't think so.
"The most important thing is that we come in tomorrow and get better," said Crean. He also added that there are about four things the team could get better in in practice tomorrow.
It wasn't just the shooting percentage, it was nearly every stat. Indiana outscored Ohio State 32-5 in second-chance points, outrebounded the Buckeyes 50-31 (including 10 more offensive rebounds), and had 11 more assists.
The turnovers have been an issue for the Hoosiers this year, but Sunday afternoon, they had more assists than turnovers.
Another player who broke out of a bit of a slump was Troy Williams who had a team-high 23 points and six rebounds.
"Troy played phenomenal, with his head up," said Ferrell of his teammate. "I like his decision-making, he didn't over-penetrate, I felt like he picked and chose his spots. Main thing I saw better for him, he was getting out and running, which Coach (Crean) has gotten on him about it. He's too athletic and nobody can stop him."
Ferrell added 16 points, Thomas Bryant had 18 points and 13 rebounds, while Robert Johnson, who also broke out of a slump, scored 11.
Tough Day For The Buckeyes
There was one bright spot for the Buckeyes and that was JaQuan Lyle who completely took over in the second half. He finished with a game-high 29 points on 11-for-20 shooting including four three-pointers. Other than that, Ohio State had just one other player in double digits which was Marc Loving who had 12.
Coach Thad Matta really just couldn't sum it up when it was over.
"I was just looking for five guys that could score and defend, anything we could get," said Matta. "I was literally just searching for something to say, and see if we could pull ourselves out of this. I don't think I have been in that situation too much. When you're in coaching long enough you have a game like this, and to say this is your worst nightmare, this was. We just didn't have it today."
What's Next?
Indiana has the week off before they travel to Minnesota on Saturday. They are 4-0 in the Big Ten and are tied for first place.
As for Ohio State, they should have an easy time with Rutgers on Wednesday at home as they just lost by 31 at home. They need a good bounce back game following this rough loss.