Mike Woodson’s Hoosiers now sit at 4-0, one of five undefeated Big Ten teams left. The Hoosiers crushed Louisiana 76-44 on Sunday night, handing the Ragin’ Cajuns their first defeat of the season. IU did not have the services of Rob Phinisee, Trey Galloway, or Logan Duncomb for the contest. Of the remaining available Hoosiers, which combinations stood out in IU’s impressive victory?
Notes:
- Indiana’s starting lineup of Xavier Johnson, Parker Stewart, Miller Kopp, Race Thompson, and Trayce Jackson-Davis bounced back from the St. John’s game with a strong showing on Sunday, pacing all Hoosier lineups in raw plus-minus (+14). The group gave IU a 12-4 lead to begin the game, and added to IU’s halftime advantage by another six points before the first second half substitution.
- There’s no ignoring that Khristian Lander’s name and number pops up frequently on the infographic above. Lander had an outstanding 9 PTS, 6 REB, 6 AST, and 2 STL in his career-high 23:53.
- Not only did Lander set a new career-high in minutes played, but Jordan Geronimo also did by playing 20:38. Lander and Geronimo, along with newcomers Kopp, Tamar Bates, and Michael Durr saw a lot of success against the Ragin’ Cajuns. That unit went +10, the second-best among all five-player units.
- Kopp led all Hoosiers by a significant margin in minutes played (30:25) and plus-minus (+34). He was the only Hoosier to appear in IU’s three most efficient lineups on a per-minute basis. In fact, he even shows up in the fourth-most efficient per-minute lineup as well.
- Woodson has clearly decided to play Stewart and Jackson-Davis together. Stewart has played 85:25 over four games; only 2:05 of that playing time has come with Jackson-Davis on the bench. Stewart and Jackson-Davis are +39 in those 83+ minutes.
- Kopp and Jackson-Davis are now tied for the individual team lead in plus-minus through four games (+55). However, Johnson holds a narrow lead over everyone in plus minus per minute.
- IU’s offense was at its best with Johnson in the game. In Johnson’s 16:16, IU scored half its points in the game. IU put up 38 points, or 2.34 points per minute (PPM). In the 23:44 he was on the bench, IU scored the other 38 points at 1.60 PPM.
- In a game where IU’s defense grabbed the headlines, the defense was at its stingiest with Kopp on the floor. IU gave up 31 points in his 30:25, or 1.02 PPM. In the 9:35 he was on the bench, IU conceded 13 points at 1.36 PPM.
Featured Photo: Indiana Athletics
