Hoosiers Upset Irish 80-77 in Indy

The Irish suffered a tough 80-77 overtime loss on Saturday afternoon at Bankers Life FieldHouse to the Indians Hoosiers. Bonzie Colson just missed a half-court three that would’ve tied it as the Irish fell to 8-3 on the season. The Hoosiers improved to 6-5 and were led by Juwan Morgan’s 34 points. Colson had 29 points and 11 boards in the loss.

A hook shot by Morgan gave the Hoosiers their first lead since early in the first half. Matt Farrell answered back with a fadeaway jump shot to tie the game at 67. A three-point play opportunity by Colson gave the Irish their first lead of overtime with 2:40 to play in the extra period. But he missed the free throw, giving the Hoosiers hope.

A deep three by Devonte Green cut the Irish lead to two with under a minute left in the extra period. A couple of free throws by Farrell extended the lead to three. After the lead was cut to one, T.J. Gibbs made a pair of free throws with just 20 seconds to play. A layup by Morgan cut the lead to one, and then after the missed free throw, Morgan got it back and scored again to give the Hoosiers a one-point lead.

The Irish were outrebounded 41-32, and it turned out to be the deciding factor late in the game.

The Hoosiers cut the lead to three right out of the half as Robert Johnson hit a corner three-pointer. Colson answered right back with a layup from in close. A three by Farrell and back to back jumpers from Colson gave the Irish a 13-point lead as they made five straight from the field.

The Irish held a ten point advantage, 44-34 with 15:57 to play in the game. Nine consecutive points by the Hoosiers kept them in the game as they hit within four points after a layup down low by Morgan. A three-pointer by John Mooney stopped the run, giving the Irish a 47-40 lead.

A straight away three by Johnson cut the lead to four again, waking up the Indiana crowd. The Hoosiers shooting started to heat up as the Irish were under pressure to score nearly every time they came down the court. A Colson jumper calmed the crowd and the Irish held just a 51-49 lead midway through the half.

A three-point play by Farrell gave the Irish a five-point lead as they attempted to keep the Hoosiers at bay. With 7:59 remaining in the game, the Irish maintained that five-point lead. Both teams started to go cold as the time wound down, missed open shots began to become an issue for the Hoosiers.

A three-pointer by Gibbs extended the Irish lead with six minutes to play to 59-50. Johnson answered back with a three as the crowd rose to its feet. A couple of free throws by Colson gave the Irish an eight-point lead with just 3:57 to play.

More free throws by Colson got the lead back to eight as the Irish looked to close out the game. After an offensive rebound, Morgan finished off a three-point play to cut the lead to four with 1:30 to go. Two made free throws by Morgan made it a single possession game with just 50 seconds to play.

An inside drive by Morgan tied the game with only 13 seconds left before Austin Torres got fouled down the opposite end with just 00.8 seconds left. Torres missed both, which sent the game to overtime.

The Irish shot just 73 percent from the free throw line in the game.

The Irish began the game cold from the field with the only bucket being a nice up and under layup from Rex Pflueger. Despite the poor shooting start, the Irish were aggressive on defense, forcing a few early turnovers. With 15:16 left in the first half, the Irish were nursing a 7-6 lead.

After the poor shooting start, the Irish began to hit their stride. Unfortunately, the Hoosiers started to dominate the offense glass, keeping the game close. The Hoosiers led 11-9 with 11:34 to play in the half as the Irish went cold from the floor again, going two minutes without any points.

The Hoosiers went cold soon after, going one for seven from the floor and going nearly three minutes without a field goal. The Irish tied the game up on a Colson layup, then took the lead when he made a couple free throws. The Irish lead was 22-14 after a three-pointer from Nikola Djogo. Back to back threes gave the Irish a 14-point lead and 19 of the last 22 points in the game in over five minutes.

A quick three-pointer by Collin Hartman stopped the Irish onslaught with five minutes left in the half. At the final media timeout of the half, the Irish led 28-17 with the Hoosiers shooting just 29 percent from the field.

A three-point play by Green cut the Irish lead down to single digits as the half was nearing the end. After a corner three by Hartman, Mike Brey called time to try to motivate the Irish to close out the half strong. The Irish closed the first half with the lead, 31-25. Colson led the Irish with 12 points, but the team only shot 39 percent, while the Hoosiers shot just 37 percent were led by Morgan who had eight points at halftime.

Player of the Game: Morgan. Was there any doubt? The junior forward dominated the game late and was virtually impossible to guard as he set a career-high in points.

Unsung Hero: Johnson. Shooting 50 percent from downtime, Johnson kept the Hoosiers in the game in the first half and also made some big shots down the stretch in crunch time.

Up Next: The Irish return home to face Dartmouth on Tuesday night at 7 P.M.