BtownBanners would like to welcome another featured Blogger to the site. This will be a new piece after each game which are the thoughts on the game from Alumni Brian Hall. Please let us know if you like Brian's work by leaving comments and discussion in the comments section. Thanks!
Indiana 79 Savannah State 57
Indiana (7-1) was coming off a disappointing outcome from Boston College during the ACC/Big Ten challenge and I was expecting the Hoosiers to come out and be licking their chops to annihilate Savannah State (1-9). Indiana, just like in the previous seven games they have played, started out extremely slow. I know that they eventually have picked up the pace in all eight games, but I cannot help but think about how a start like we had against Savannah State will bury us against Kentucky or any team in the Big Ten. One good thing I noticed during the early part of the game was Maurice Creek was looking for his shot and was shooting the ball very well. After the first television time out, Coach Crean sent in the second unit.
I was thoroughly impressed by the play of Rivers, Moore, Sheehey, Oladipo and Elston. Their energy pumped life into the basketball team and the crowd while extending the lead. Moore was a little out of control at times, but that is to be expected, but Oladipo! Wow, I am so excited to see what he will do the rest of the year! I don’t think I can see the replay of the dunks that Victor did during Hoosier Hysteria too many times. The Hoosiers played a good game between the second media time out until the end of the bench came on the floor with three minutes left in the game. Elston replacing Pritchard at halftime seemed to light a fire in him and I have not seen Pritchard play that focused since he was a freshman.
Knowing that the cupcakes are pretty much all over for Indiana here are a few things I noticed during the Savannah State game that the Hoosiers need to improve upon if they want to be competitive for the remainder of the season. The first thing is the amount of turnovers IU is committing during the game. They were down a little in the Savannah State game, but Indiana needs to tighten up their passes and dribbling. Next is the inside game. We do not have a true center, and thanks to the NCAA’s ruling on Guy, we will not have one at our service for the remainder of the year. Capobianco did not play in this game, but between him, Elston, Pritchard, and Watford they have got to find a way to play better in the paint both offensively and defensively. Also, I think Jordan Hulls needs to take more shots because between Hulls and Creek I think we have one of the best one-two punches in the Big Ten.
Up next Kentucky.
Brian Hall
