My Two Cents: ‘Next Man Up’ Mantra Being Put to the Test at Indiana

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Indiana level guard Xavier Johnson has performed 129 faculty video games in four-plus years and beginning ahead Race Thompson has performed 114, together with 76 begins in a row. 

On Sunday, although, Johnson will likely be zipping round Simon Skjodt Meeting Corridor on his scooter, or possibly strolling round with a boot on his foot after surgical procedure final month. He is out for a minimum of one other month. And Thompson, who bought damage on Thursday evening at Iowa, is out indefinitely with a knee harm. He’ll be hobbling round on crutches when Indiana takes on Northwestern at Midday ET. (Here is tips on how to watch the sport: CLICK HERE)

Two starters down, proper at the beginning of the resumption of the Massive Ten season. That hurts, and it hurts unhealthy.

Subsequent man up.

It is a drained, previous phrase, in fact, and it is typically overused. But it surely’s additionally very true. Indiana wants others to step up — and rapidly — with Thompson and Johnson down.

Johnson injured his foot early within the Kansas recreation on Dec. 17, and wanted surgical procedure every week later. He and freshman Jalen Hood-Schifino — each with critical level guard abilities — have been taking part in nice collectively early within the season.

They performed side-by-side within the first seven video games, and Indiana gained all of them, together with nationwide TV showdowns at Xavier and residential in opposition to preseason No. 1 North Carolina.

However in these subsequent seven video games, they’ve performed all of six minutes collectively. Hood-Schifino missed three video games with a again harm, unable to go in opposition to Rutgers, Nebraska and Arizona, and the Hoosiers misplaced two of three video games with out him.

He got here again for the Dec. 17 recreation at Kansas, and the 2 began the sport collectively however performed solely six minutes and 9 seconds collectively. Johnson went down with a foot harm within the first half, and by no means returned. He is missed the final three video games after surgical procedure. His rehab goes nicely, Johnson mentioned Thursday, and he is hoping to be again by February.

Hood-Schifino, a five-star recruit out of Montverde Academy in Florida, has performed nicely in going it alone on the level. He had 21 in opposition to Iowa on Thursday, and made 5 three-pointers. 

The stage, clearly, shouldn’t be too huge for him.

It is guys like Tamar Bates and Trey Galloway who’ve been tagged with the ”subsequent man up position,” although. Each have began on the two-guard, and each — Galloway particularly — has to choose up the purpose guard minutes.

With Johnson out, these two actually need to step up. They’ve had their moments, however have had some struggles, too. Bates was simply 2-for-8 at Kansas after Johnson went out, and was simply 3-for-9 in his first begin at Iowa. He is scored 19 factors twice this 12 months (Nebraska, Kennesaw State), and had a career-high 22 in opposition to Jackson State.

He is been up and down loads — an excessive amount of, in all probability — and actually must step up and be extra of a scorer for this workforce. He is bought to be a double-digit man, and never by going 5-for-15. He must be extra environment friendly on the offensive finish. 

That is how ”subsequent man up” works.

Galloway is in the identical boat. He can choose up a few of these level guard minutes, which is huge, however he additionally must be extra productive on the offensive finish. Since Johnson went down, he has performed 100 minutes and solely taken 12 photographs. He is 6-for-12, and 2-for-4 from three. He is solely scored 21 factors, and. that is merely not sufficient. 

What we do know, too, is that Bates and Galloway are each able to doing extra. We noticed Bates take over that Nebraska recreation, the Hoosiers’ solely Massive Ten win to this point. And we noticed Galloway rating 20 in the identical recreation and have 11 enormous factors within the huge win over North Carolina. 

So it is there, and we simply have to see extra of it. And we additionally should marvel if or when freshman C.J.Gunn and even Anthony Leal can step in on the perimeter spots and add one thing, too.

We have seen a lot with Johnson out for three-plus video games now, however beginning on Sunday, we’ll see how the Hoosiers can repair the ”subsequent man up” void on the energy ahead place. 

This has me involved. Very involved. 

Indiana hasn’t gotten up a lot up entrance currently outdoors of Trayce Jackson-Davis and Thompson, who had 9 fast factors within the Iowa recreation whereas the Hoosiers have been pulling out to an enormous lead. 

The most important disappointment to this point has been with freshman ahead Malik Reneau, Hood-Schifin’s teammate at Montverde, and Jordan Geronimo, the junior ahead.

Reneau has been laborious to determine. He scored double figures in 4 of his first 5 video games in an Indiana uniform, however he is scored solely 32 factors in his final eight video games, a 4.0 common per recreation after averaging 10.7 factors per recreation within the first six.

He retains stepping into foul hassle, and he is been uncovered a bit in opposition to top-rate opponents. Indiana coach Mike Woodson has talked about typically that Reneau, a 6-foot-9 left-handed ahead similar to Jackson-Davis, continues to be studying how laborious he has to play at this degree. It is a work in progress.

The issue, although, is that Indiana actually wants him now. He solely performed six minutes on Thursday evening, even with Thompson out. He had three fast fouls, and by no means took a shot. Woodson went with Geronimo on the 4 nearly solely within the second half, taking part in 14 minutes. I am not an enormous plus-minus man, however he was a minus-16, the bottom for Indiana.

Geronimo actually struggled making an attempt to protect Iowa star Kris Murray. He had solely scored two factors within the first 12 minutes of the sport — Race Thompson did an awesome job on him — however completed with 30, many in opposition to Geronimo.

I’ve mentioned it typically that Geronimo is a superb athlete, however he is extra of a vertical athlete with nice leaping potential. He is not that nice horizontally as a defensive participant, and struggles to protect gamers who can assault the basket in opposition to him with the dribble.

He’ll must be higher, too. We all know he can explode at instances, particularly on the offensive glass, however with Thompson out, he will have to do extra offensively and be extra of a stopper on the defensive finish.

It may be attention-grabbing to see how Woodson makes use of them, beginning on Sunday. Who begins? I wish to see Reneau begin, and attempt to get some run whereas additionally staying out of foul hassle. He is a high recruit himself, and Indiana wants him to play at a excessive degree these subsequent two months. Geronimo, off the bench, is likely to be higher, including a spark. That should occur on a extra constant degree, too.

There’s at all times the thought that Indiana might go small, too, and slide Miller Kopp to the 4 and begin each Bates and Galloway. We’ll discover out in a number of hours, in fact, and we’ll let you realize what is going on on immediately,

We’ll study loads in regards to the Hoosiers on Sunday. They’re 8-0 at residence this season, however Northwestern is taking part in nicely and has gained each of their highway video games straight up, beat Georgetown and Michigan State.

Guys have to step up — and proper now — or the Hoosiers are going to start out digging themselves an enormous gap. 

• HOW TO WATCH: Indiana takes on the Northwestern Wildcats on Sunday at Meeting Corridor in Bloomington. Here is tips on how to watch, with recreation time and TV info, three main storylines, the most recent on the purpose unfold, the teaching matchup, collection historical past and extra. CLICK HERE
• THOMPSON OUT: Indiana senior ahead Race Thompson is out indefinitely with a proper leg harm he suffered through the Hoosiers 91-89 loss at Iowa on Thursday. CLICK HERE
• OPENING LINE: Indiana is again at residence for the primary time in 16 days on Sunday, taking over the Northwestern Wildcats in a Massive Ten recreation at Meeting Corridor. Right here is the opening line on the sport, with an awesome historical past on how each groups have fared in opposition to the purpose unfold this season. CLICK HERE
• INDIANA SCHEDULE: Right here is the entire 2022-23 males’s basketball schedule for Indiana, with recreation instances and TV info, plus hyperlinks to all of the tales from video games performed to this point. CLICK HERE
• JACKSON-DAVIS SCORING LIST: Trayce Jackson-Davis is as much as No. 8 on Indiana’s all-time scoring listing. Here is the place he stands, and who’s subsequent to go. CLICK HERE
• PHOTO GALLERY: The Indiana Hoosiers traveled to Iowa Metropolis to restart their Massive Ten season, however misplaced 91-89 to the Iowa Hawkeyes. The photographers had an awesome evening. Listed here are 15 photos from the sport. CLICK HERE