Game Review, Game 7: Indiana University - East

It was a lot closer than anyone would have wanted, but what basically amounts to the #26 NAIA Division-2 team play their hearts out. Twenty-one point leads faded quickly into 12 before the Jaguars kicked in the afterburners and won by 23. (Highlights are at the bottom of the post.)


Player of the Game: Leroy Nobles, IUPUI
Leroy exploded for 31 points (10-15 FG, 4-7 3P, 7-9 FT), 4 rebounds, 3 assists, and 1 steal, not to mention he only had one foul. If he could continue to play like this (or a comparable stat line...31 points a game is a lot to expect) through the whole season, IUPUI would be a lot more dangerous than they seem to be now.

Six Man of the Game: Donovan Gibbs, IUPUI
Probably the most inconsistent player overall, Donovan seems to do much better in the comfort of The Jungle than he does on the road. That being said, he played very well Monday, tallying 12 points (6-7 FG) and 6 rebounds. His OMGDUNX in transition was awesome, as always.

Stat of the Game: 18.
IUPUI recorded 18 assists on 37 made baskets, their highest total since their season high 22 in their first home game against IU Northwest.

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Et Cetera...

• It's always nice seeing Donovan be successful, but I feel like he needs to shake this whole "I only play well at home" bit ASAP.
• Not seeing Mitch on the floor sucked, but made sense. IU East ran a very small, fast lineup out the entire game, leaving the biggest (and probably slowest, but that's relative, he'd whoop me in a race) guy out to dry. He'll need to play huge against Oral Roberts on Saturday, and sometimes sitting back and watching can be helpful.
• Nick DeSchepper played a hell of a game, getting 16 huge minutes of playing time. He and Sean Esposito need to continually play better while Greg Rice is out with another injury.
• IU East played well, which worried me for a while. IUPUI is notorious for allowing a high percentage of shots from superhoopland, but against a team who is flying high on emotion it's just plain dangerous.
• Their players and students both used a word that I will absolutely not repeat on this blog or anywhere else. While I will never pretend I'm the nicest person at games, there are certain things that you just don't say. I'm appalled they would take anything that far. Yell, scream, taunt, whatever. But don't resort to that. [Feel free to explain away, guys. It won't change anything.]
• I was hoping for a tomahawk OMGDUNX from Alex, but his two-handed slam was worth it. The alley-oop to Donovan was sick, too. (Both are featured in the video highlight on the bottom of the page.)
• Not sure if scheduling what amount to cupcakes (no matter how hard they played) before Oral Roberts and three games in Ohio/Pennsylvania was the best choice, though sometimes that's how it must be. I hope it isn't as dangerous as it appears to be on paper.
• 103? Awesome.

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Team Statistics, Post Game

IUPUI	Statistic	IU-East
3-4	Record	9-3
116	BB State Rank	N/A
236	RPI	N/A
162	SOS	N/A
66.3	Points/Game	N/A
64.6	Points Against/Game	N/A
68.5% (37-54)	Fieldgoal %	47.1% (32-68)
63.6% (7-11)	3-Point %	39.3% (11-28)
75.9% (22-29)	Free Throw %	50.0% (5-10)
18	Assists	17
15	Turnover	12
36 (12 O-24 D)	Rebounds	24 (15 O-9 D)
9	Blocks	3
12	Fouls	24

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Review: Keys to the Game

1) Hit Threes. (Yep!)

Seven successful trips to superhoopland is huge, especially when your wing players are leading the way at 5-8 shooting. Ashworth getting hot and hitting a couple (2-2) is important with Greg Rice's injury.

2) Hit High Percentage Shots. (Yes!)

IUPUI went 30-43 from inside the arc, good for 69.8% and that's not factoring in fouled-on-the-shot misses. Scoring in the paint amounted to an astounding 52 points.

3) Score A Ton. (Boom shaka-laka!)

I originally said IUPUI needed to score 80-100...and I'm glad they did. Roy blowing up for a ton of points isn't just good for him, but the entire team. Not to mention IUPUI had five players in double-digits (Roy, 31; Alex, 24; Christian, 14; Donovan, 12; & John, 10).

4) 50% FG; 80% FT; 40% 3P. (I'll take it.)

68.5% FG; 75.9% FT; 63.6% 3P.

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Video Highlights