Indiana
Best Indiana Men’s Basketball Players Of The 2020s So Far: No. 11 Xavier Johnson
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Indiana point guard Xavier Johnson is ranked 11th in our countdown of the best Indiana players of the 2020s so far. But if you take the production out of it, Johnson might be at the top of the list of players who embody what Indiana basketball has been all about in the 2020s.
Why? Sometimes Johnson was great. Sometimes Johnson was not so great.
Johnson was on the court for quite a bit of it. He had three event-filled seasons with the Hoosiers from 2021-24. He featured prominently in one NCAA Tournament season, was hurt for another, and then was part of the reason the Hoosiers fell short of expectations in the 2024 season.
Johnson arrived at Indiana as a seasoned veteran. He had played three seasons at Pittsburgh and started all but two games of his 84 with the Panthers. What Mike Woodson wanted was an experienced point guard to run his offense and to provide a dynamic presence on the floor.
At times, that’s exactly what Woodson got. Asked to be more of a distributor than a scorer as he was at Pitt, Johnson’s scoring average declined from 14.2 points in his final season at Pitt to 12.1 in his first season with the Hoosiers.
Johnson’s assist average also dropped from 5.7 to 5.1 per game, but he seemed to get better as he went along in his first Indiana season. That was born out in his hot streak to end the 2022 campaign.
In the final five games of the regular season and in three Big Ten Tournament games, Johnson averaged 18.1 points, 6.8 assists and made 45.2% of his 3-point shots.
Johnson fell off to 10.5 points per game in the NCAA Tournament games against Wyoming and Saint Mary’s, but excitement was high that Johnson could replicate that kind of production in the 2022-23 season and lead Indiana to the top of the Big Ten.
That’s not how it played out for either Johnson or the Hoosiers.
Indiana started 7-0 and reached a high-water mark of a No. 10 ranking before it all started to unravel.
When Indiana faced top-level competition, it struggled. Indiana lost 89-75 against No. 10 Arizona in Las Vegas and one week later at Kansas, it fell apart for both Indiana and Johnson.
Indiana lost 84-62 at Allen Fieldhouse, but Johnson came out of it the worst. He broke his right foot when it was stepped on it in a scramble for a loose ball, and he did not play again that season.
Indiana made the tournament without Johnson, but Woodson had built much of the team identity based on Johnson’s skill set, so the Hoosiers fell short of expectations as far as Big Ten contention was concerned.
Johnson got a waiver from the NCAA to play another season, but 2023 was also a star-crossed, injury-plagued season. Johnson missed seven games in December with another foot injury and six more in February with an elbow injury.
Johnson never got into rhythm. He had his worst Indiana season as he averaged 7.6 points and 2.8 assists. Indiana was depending on Johnson to lead the way for a team that was inexperienced elsewhere on the floor, but that was not to be. Indiana finished 19-14, and it was the beginning of the end for Woodson as head coach.
Johnson continues to pursue his basketball dream. He played for three G League teams in the 2024-25 season. In 25 total games, he averaged 2.6 points.
Johnson did better at Indiana, but in many ways, his ups and downs were symbolic of what Indiana went through as a program for much of the 2020s.
Previous men’s basketball top 16 players of the 2020s
No. 12 – Justin Smith
No. 13 – Rob Phinisee
No. 14 – Luke Goode
No. 15 – Devonte Green
No. 16 – Anthony Leal
Indiana
Indiana State Police: Beer spilled all over I-65 northbound in Indianapolis during semi crash
INDIANAPOLIS — Beer was spilled all over Interstate 65 northbound on the south side of Indianapolis late Sunday afternoon.
The beer was spilled when a semi and an SUV became involved in a crash near mile marker 109, which is located near the area where I-65 and Raymond Street converge.
The Indiana Department of Transportation sent a notification about the crash around 4:52 p.m. That notification indicated that all lanes of the interstate had been closed in the aftermath of the crash.
Indiana State Police confirmed that troopers found objects scattered all over the road when they arrived at the scene. They later determined that those objects were beer cans.
INDOT sent a maintenance crew to the scene to help police get the interstate cleaned up. ISP confirmed that medics also responded to the crash scene, though they did not transport any of the individuals involved in the crash.
I-65 northbound was closed at mile marker 109 until about 6:04 p.m., according to INDOT. That means the roadway was closed for a little over an hour as crews worked to clean up the crash scene.
ISP diverted traffic off of I-65 and onto Raymond Street while troopers cleaned up and investigated the crash. The cause of the crash is currently unknown.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
Indiana
Sunny Sunday ahead of warming for Christmas in central Indiana
Following the 4th above average day so far this December Saturday, a cold front passed through and dropped our temperatures. However, its passage didn’t drop temperatures too dramatically!
In the picture above, the clouds in the distance are the clouds along the cold front. They are exiting our region and can be seen 70 miles away! Sunday is to be the day with normal temperatures around here! Expect readings in the upper 30s to near 40° across central Indiana. High pressure settles in giving us the widespread sunshine. Don’t get used to it because our skies will look a lot more like December this week.
While this week does come with mostly cloudy to overcast skies each day, it won’t feel like how late December should feel. A few rain chances exist for late Monday then Christmas Eve Wednesday. Otherwise, expect daily warming with Indianapolis surpassing 50° by Tuesday.
The peak of the warmth will be Christmas Day Thursday! Our forecast high for Indianapolis is 61°. Should that verify, it would be the fourth time within the last six years a top-10 warm Christmas Day would occur. 61° is just three degrees shy of the 129-year-old record high of 64°. I don’t think we’ll get there since the clouds will be around. But, 60° is attainable given the breezy southwest winds forecast.
Following Christmas, Friday looks dry but we’re seeing indications of a post-holiday front sometime next weekend. Otherwise, the polar air will stay north for 2025’s final days. I don’t think we’ll be as warm for New Year’s compared to Christmas. Nonetheless, no big cold snaps (or snow) in the near term.
Indiana
Indiana takes on Boston, aims to end 4-game skid
Indiana Pacers (6-22, 14th in the Eastern Conference) vs. Boston Celtics (17-11, third in the Eastern Conference)
Boston; Monday, 7:30 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: Indiana comes into the matchup against Boston after losing four straight games.
The Celtics have gone 13-8 against Eastern Conference opponents. Boston is the leader in the Eastern Conference in team defense, allowing 110.5 points while holding opponents to 44.7% shooting.
The Pacers are 4-12 against Eastern Conference opponents. Indiana is the worst team in the NBA recording just 23.5 assists per game led by Andrew Nembhard averaging 6.4.
The Celtics average 15.7 made 3-pointers per game this season, 4.1 more made shots on average than the 11.6 per game the Pacers give up. The Pacers are shooting 43.1% from the field, 1.6% lower than the 44.7% the Celtics’ opponents have shot this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Jaylen Brown is averaging 29.3 points, 6.3 rebounds and five assists for the Celtics. Derrick White is averaging 4.0 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.
Pascal Siakam is averaging 23.8 points, 6.7 rebounds and four assists for the Pacers. Johnny Furphy is averaging 18 points over the past 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Celtics: 7-3, averaging 119.5 points, 42.9 rebounds, 23.2 assists, 8.5 steals and 5.4 blocks per game while shooting 49.4% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 111.0 points per game.
Pacers: 4-6, averaging 111.3 points, 42.5 rebounds, 23.9 assists, 7.8 steals and 6.6 blocks per game while shooting 46.0% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 113.2 points.
INJURIES: Celtics: Ron Harper Jr.: day to day (knee), Jayson Tatum: out (achilles), Jaylen Brown: day to day (illness).
Pacers: Obi Toppin: out (foot), Ben Sheppard: day to day (calf), Aaron Nesmith: out (knee), Tyrese Haliburton: out for season (achilles).
___
The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
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