Game Review, Game 6: St. Louis University

Well...It was a good game. Really good. Being down 15 on the road usually means that's that. But leaders emerged and the team stepped up huge to fight back and tie the game. But hey, SLU was the better team. Oh and we didn't hit a superhoop. Sigh... Let's get to it!

Player of the Game: Stephen Thomas, IUPUI
Stat line aside, the kid stepped up huge. He was a clear leader on both sides of the ball, something the team needed more than anything to come back from 15 down with 17:33 left in the game. Not to mention the point guard led all players in rebounds (8).

Six Man of the Game: Christian Siakam, IUPUI
Christian bounced back after a disappointing weekend in Oxford with 10 points, 7 rebounds, and 2 steals in 21 minutes.

Stat of the Game: Alex, 17/6; Stephen, 13/8; Christian, 10/7.
IUPUI had three players were within reach of a double-double.

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Et Cetera...

• Leaders finally emerged from the rubble of a major deficit. Stephen showed poise in his 40 minutes, going without a foul until the last minute. 
• This game was just like IUPUI vs IPFW last year at Conseco. I mean eerily similar. Jag start slow, go down big, come back, miss a shot at the buzzer. I guess it's better than losing by 30...but it still hurts.
• The Jaguars out-rebounded a team. On the offensive glass. What the hell?! Awesome. Awesome. Awesome. Awesome. (Christian had 3, Alex had 2.)
• Despite going 0-8 from superhoop land, the Jaguars attacked the basket with a vengeance. The major question is can they continue to do that successfully. IU-East won't be a challenge, but Ohio and Duquesne are smaller (ish) teams......time will tell.
• Someone needs to hit a damn superhoop. 
• It was nice seeing multiple scorers on the floor the last two games. It took a little longer to get things going Saturday, but they were there. Two would be minimal, three is awesome, four is amazing. Consistency is key.
• Did I mention we had nine offensive rebounds?
• The defensive side of the ball wasn't great, SLU had 12 assists on 19 baskets. It seems apparent that passing to find the open man is the downfall of Coach Hunter's trap defense. Working on the help-side aspect of the trap needs to happen every game.

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Team Stats, Post Game

IUPUI	Statistic	SLU
2-4	Record	3-2
116	BB State Rank	109
236	RPI	307
164	SOS	309
60.2	Points/Game	65.8
62.0	Points Against/Game	55.0
35% (18-51)	Fieldgoal %	43% (19-44)
0.0% (0-8)	3-Point %	36% (5-14)
83% (19-23)	Free Throw %	68% (15-22)
4	Assists	12
10	Turnover	12
30	Rebounds	26
2	Blocks	5
19	Fouls	18

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Review: Keys to the Game

1) Take The Crowd Out Of It. (Eh...)

The crowd was basically a non-factor the majority of the game, but they were there. If there was any impact to be made, they made it.

2) Multiple Scorers On The Floor. (Yep!)

Finally. Alex with 17, Stephen 13, Christian 10, Leroy 9. Not the prettiest, but I'll take it.

3) DON'T TURN THE BALL OVER. (Yes!)

IUPUI had three turnovers in the second half, while outscoring SLU by eight. Not a coincidence.

4) 45% FG; 80% FT; 40% 3P (No.)

35% FG; 83% FT; 0.0% 3P.