Quick thoughts on the 74-62 win over Minnesota:
How it happened
Indiana was strong from the opening tip against Minnesota on Friday night at Assembly Hall. The Hoosiers took an 11-2 lead when Trey Galloway and Mackenzie Mgbako opened the scoring with three-pointers. By 12:14, Indiana had increased its lead to 17 on a 3-point play by Anthony Walker, who came off the bench and scored seven points in the first half. Turnovers were a big reason the Hoosiers were able to build a lead, as eight Minnesota errors led to 11 points for the Hoosiers. Minnesota got into a zone that seemed to slow Indiana offensively for a while and got within five after an 11-0 run. But Indiana answered back and ended the half by outscoring Minnesota 13-8 to take a 41-31 lead at the break. Mgbako played his best half as a Hoosier, scoring 14 points, grabbing three rebounds and dishing out two assists in 17 minutes.
An 11-0 run to start the half extended Indiana's lead to 21 points with 15:08 left. After a Minnesota three-pointer stopped the run, Malik Reneau quickly scored again to make it 58-37, forcing Ben Johnson to call a timeout with 13:53 left. At the eight-and-under media timeout, Indiana led 62-45 despite missing six of its final seven field goal attempts. The Gophers got within 12 at 63-51, but the Hoosiers scored the next four goals – two free throws from Walker and a layup from Reneau – to make it 67-51 with 4:20 left in another Minnesota timeout to force. That was enough to decide the game, as Indiana recorded its 12th win of the season and improved to 4-2 in conference play.
Outstanding artists
Mgbako led Indiana with a career-high 19 points and logged a team-high 34 minutes. Kel'el Ware posted a double-double with 17 points and 14 rebounds, while Reneau contributed 16 points and six rebounds. Galloway was also outstanding, recording 10 points, seven assists, four steals and three rebounds in 25 minutes.
Statistics that stand out
The Hoosiers won this game with a solid defensive performance, holding Minnesota to just 39 percent shooting and 0.87 points per possession.
Final IU individual stats
Final pace-free statistics
Call for a meeting after the game
(Image credit: IU Athletics)
Submitted to: Minnesota Golden Gophers