Just when the Hoosiers needed it the most, Indiana found a bit of momentum in the middle of a brutal Big Ten slate. The early wins against Nebraska, Ohio State, and Northwestern helped the Hoosiers gain a bit of confidence as they begin the core portion of their conference schedule.
After weeks and weeks of light experimentation, it seems that Archie Miller and the rest of the Indiana staff have settled on a rotation for the Hoosiers. Indiana has used 20 lineups or less in five consecutive games. Additionally, the balanced bench rotation has shortened. One victim of the shortened rotation has been Damezi Anderson, who did not check in at all against Nebraska and Michigan State.
Here are Indiana’s top performing lineups in Indiana’s 67-63 victory of the No. 11 Michigan State Spartans.
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Notes from the Lineup Report
- The Hoosiers went to just 19 unique lineups, which is just one more from their previous game against Nebraska on the road where Archie Miller used 18.
- During the final 9:55 on Thursday night (except for the last nine seconds), Archie Miller went with his main frontcourt workhorses: Justin Smith, Trayce Jackson-Davis, and Joey Brunk. Indiana trailed by 3 at the start of that stretch.
- Focusing more on Smith, he played the final 12:08 against MSU. Miller relied on Smith for his length and athleticism all night, as Smith led the team with 34 minutes played.
- Al Durham led all players with an individual plus/minus of +9.
- Rob Phinisee had the lowest individual plus/minus among Hoosiers at -8.
- Indiana’s eight turnovers represented a season low for this group. Devonte Green and Rob Phinisee each had three. On the Michigan State side, Cassius Winston and Aaron Henry combined for eight turnovers.
- Sophomore Damezi Anderson did not see minutes on the floor once again. This now the second game in a row where Anderson did not play.
Featured Photo: IndianaHQ