They say, “What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.” On the other hand, the hope for both Indiana and Arizona is that they take home valuable lessons from tonight’s game. Especially the Hoosiers.
On Saturday, IU (8-2, 1-1 B1G) was outclassed by the Wildcats (8-1, 1-1 Pac-12), as Arizona came away with an 89-75 win in the “Las Vegas Clash” at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. The Wildcats were paced by their fantastic frontcourt, as Azuolas Tubelis had 21 points and Oumar Ballo had 15 points and 12 rebounds. Pelle Larsson and Kerr Kriisa scored in double figures as well. Race Thompson led IU with 16 points and nine boards.
It was a packed house in Vegas for the top-15 matchup, and the play on the court reflected the “main event” type atmosphere in the building. The majority of fans supported Indiana, and the Hoosier faithful brought the noise as early as pregame warmups.
Mike Woodson and the Hoosiers once again did not have true freshman starting point guard Jalen Hood-Schifino available for tonight’s matchup, due to back soreness. He remains day-to-day.
Without Hood-Schifino, the Hoosiers could not have started the game any worse. Arizona used their rapid pace to discombobulate Indiana, forcing a number of missed shots, turnovers, and Hoosier fouls. In particular, Xavier Johnson picked up two early fouls to hurt IU’s cause.
Over the course of a seven-minute stretch in the first half, IU missed 13-of-15 field goal attempts and turned it over five times in the process. Meanwhile, the Wildcats, who have lost just five games since the start of the 2021-22 season, punished IU for their mistakes.
