On a night dedicated to IU’s four seniors, Nebraska’s 70-60 victory against the Hoosiers Wednesday spoiled their home farewell to the upperclassmen and effectively ended the team’s hopes of earning an NCAA Tournament at-large bid.
“First of all, I do hate to lose, and I hate tonight,” senior forward Will Sheehey said in the opening of his post-game speech on Branch McCracken Court.
After trailing by as many as 11 points, the Hoosiers tied the game midway through the second half when a wide-open Sheehey knocked down a 3-pointer from the left wing.
However, it was all downhill from there for the Hoosiers. IU only scored eight points in the final 10 minutes and shot 3-for-18 during that span.
For the second consecutive game, freshman forward Noah Vonleh was sidelined with inflammation of his left foot. In his absence, the Hoosiers couldn’t find an answer for Nebraska sophomore Walter Pitchford.
Pitchford — a 6-foot-10, 234-pound forward — scored Nebraska’s first nine points and finished with a team-high 17 points on 7-for-10 shooting.
His biggest shot of the game was a 3-pointer in the final two minutes of the game that gave the Cornhuskers a 62-58 lead and proved to be the dagger.
“The mistake late of leaving Pitchford baffles my mind to be honest with you,” IU Coach Tom Crean said. “How we can make a mistake there in a switch game late like that in the game.”
Sheehey said it bothered him that the Hoosiers left opponents open.
“There was a stretch there where the other guys hit a bunch of threes,” he said. “That was unacceptable.”
The Hoosiers’ struggles weren’t limited to the defensive end. On offense, IU shot 36.7 percent from the field.
Crean said the bottom line in the Hoosiers’ loss was that they didn’t shoot well enough.
“When we moved the ball well and kept it moving from side to side, we were really hard to guard,” he said. “We just didn’t do it enough.”
Sophomore guard Kevin “Yogi” Ferrell said the team’s game plan against Nebraska’s zone defense was to get into the middle and drive.
However, IU’s offense became stagnant at times and the Hoosiers struggled to finish at the rim and to shoot from behind the arc.
They were 5-for-21 from 3-point range. Ferrell finished 1-for-10 from distance.
Cold shooting from Ferrell and Sheehey, coupled with Vonleh’s ailment, demanded that the Hoosiers’ supporting cast step up on both ends of the floor.
“We had some guys step up,” Crean said, citing the play of freshmen Devin Davis, Troy Williams and Stanford Robinson. “We told Troy before the game somehow you got to find a way to get 10 rebounds.”
Williams scored a game-high 18 points, which was his second-highest scoring output of the season.
Despite entering the game as a 12 percent 3-point shooter, he made both of his jump shots from behind the arc.
Davis played 15 minutes — the most action he has seen in a game since Nov. 22 — and chipped in seven points, three rebounds and several hustle plays.
“He was a straight warrior tonight,” Crean said. “That’s exactly what we need from him.”
Even though its role players stepped up Wednesday, IU didn’t make enough plays in crunch time to earn its eighth conference win of the season, ensuring a sub-.500 record in the Big Ten.
“We didn’t make enough (shots) to put us over the hump at any point in time,” Crean said.
“That combined with a couple defensive mistakes at crucial times defies imagination. But it happens and it did and now we got to regroup and get ready to go play Michigan.”
Andy Wittry 