The Indiana Hoosiers made the two-hour trip north to West Lafayette, Indiana, on Friday night for a matchup with the arch-rival Purdue Boilermakers. Despite taking a 41-37 lead into halftime, the Hoosiers fell apart in the game's final moments, ultimately losing 81-76.
Purdue guard Braden Smith posted 24 points, 6 assists, and 6 steals en route to the Boilermaker victory, while Mackenzie Mgbako paced the Hoosiers in scoring with 25 points on 10/17 shooting from the floor.
Here are three key takeaways for the Indiana Hoosiers following the loss.
Free Throws Are Important
The Indiana Hoosiers missed seven of their sixteen free throw attempts Friday night. Purdue's margin of victory? Five points. Had the Hoosiers connected on all of their free throws, the game's final moments would have looked very different.
Friday night wasn't the first time this season that free throws played a part in an Indiana loss. Hosting the Maryland Terrapins on January 26, the Hoosiers connected on only 60% of their free throw attempts in a 79-78 loss. Indiana is shooting 72.6% from the free throw line this season and has shot under 70% from the charity stripe nine times this season.
Malik Reneau Isn't Ready For Heavy Minutes
Junior forward Malik Reneau was projected to be one of Indiana's most important players this season. After averaging 15.4 points and 6.0 rebounds per game as a sophomore, many in Bloomington believed Reneau would make a leap this season.
Across the Hoosiers' first fourteen games this season, he played well. Reneau averaged 14.1 points, 5.9 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 1.3 steals per game on a highly efficient 60.3% field goal percentage while leading Indiana to an 11-3 record. A January 2 matchup with Rutgers brought it all to a halt, however, when Reneau injured his right knee in the game's opening minute. He would go on to miss the Hoosiers' next six games.
Reneau made his return on January 26 against Maryland, playing eleven minutes before playing 8 minutes Friday night, posting a +/- of -12. He has struggled mightily across his two post-injury appearances, averaging only 6.0 points and 4.5 rebounds per game on 25.0% shooting from the field. Reneau committed three turnovers and fouled out during the closing moments against Purdue.
Reneau is an incredibly gifted player but has clearly shown over his two post-injury appearances that he is not ready for the intensity of Big Ten play. Just over three weeks after head coach Mike Woodson said "it won't be any time soon" in regards to Reneau's return, putting a clearly hobbled Reneau on the court is a disservice to both the player and the program.
It's Time To Move On From Mike Woodson
Nearly four full seasons into his tenure as head coach of the Indiana Hoosiers, it's clear that Mike Woodson cannot take the Hoosiers to where fans want them to go. Friday's loss drops his record in Big Ten matchups to 36-35, and Indiana appears to be on the brink of missing the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive season. Over his first three seasons as head coach, Woodson has failed to win a Big Ten tournament or regular season title and has failed to advance past the Round of 32 in the NCAA Tournament.
Beyond the wins and losses, Woodson's struggles in close games continue to bite the Hoosiers. Against Maryland on January 26, the Hoosiers fell behind 79-78 with five seconds to play, only for a poorly drawn-up play out of a timeout to lead to a badly missed game-winning shot attempt. Friday night, after a Purdue jump shot put the Boilers up 77-76 with eleven seconds remaining and two timeouts in Indiana's pocket, Woodson elected to let the clock run down as guard Myles Rice took a contested jumper. The attempt missed, Purdue got the rebound, the Hoosiers fouled, and the Boilers iced the game on the ensuing free throws.
The Indiana Hoosiers have an uphill battle ahead of them if they want to reach the NCAA Tournament this season. They fall to 14-8 with the loss to Purdue and have four matchups with ranked opponents left on their schedule, including a rematch with the Boilermakers on February 23. Indiana will need to have a strong finish to their season if they want to have a chance to make it back into the Field of 68.