Indiana men's basketball broke a nine-game losing streak against No. 4 Purdue with a 68-65 victory at the Simon Skzod Assembly Hall on Thursday night. Fans stormed the court in celebration, and senior guard Rob Finsey was hoisted by his teammates after the team's leading 20-point performance.
Wins this season saw the Hoosiers lead 14–4 and 12–0 on their home court overall, and their best performance against their state rivals in their first game since head coach Mike Woodson took over. Did.
"I didn't dribble a ball or make a shot, man, those guys in that locker room did it," Woodson said at a postgame press conference. "I couldn't be more proud of a team, boy. They poured my heart out tonight."
Under Phinisi's leadership, Indiana's bench scored 35 of the team's 68 points. Phinci scored 17 of his 20 points in the first half, but dropped the go-ahead basket with 16.9 seconds into the game for his only point of the second half. He made a total of four rebounds, four steals and 4-7 shots from 3-point range.
ROB PHINESEE PUTS INDIANA UP BY
— NCAA Buzzer Beaters & Game Winners (@NCAABuzzerBters) January 21, 2022
1 WITH 16.9 SECONDS LEFT VS #4 PURDUE (Video via @MrMatthewCFB) pic.twitter.com/jhJ6yhQtw2
While Phineas starred, senior center Michael Durr also stepped in and played 24 minutes, which he played throughout the season. He helped close Purdue's big man pair of sophomore center Zach Eddy and senior forward Travian Williams.
"He's not really playing that much, we have Trace Jackson-Davis," Phineas said of Durr. "Just his energy and leadership, what he brings to the table is really huge for us."
Eddie and Williams came into the game averaging a combined 29 points and 16 rebounds, but thanks to Durr's defense, they added 14 points on a 6-10 shoot. The duo turned the ball five times and shot 2-9 from the free throw line. Durer scored a total of 4 points, two steals and two blocks in 24 minutes as Indiana's bench extended their opening 35-33.
Before the game, senior guard Xavier Johnson told Durr that it would be his day and that Durr was ready to play.
"The coach told him he would go to him and be ready," Johnson said. "For a player not to play as much as he has been before and to come out here and compete with those guys and the top five team in the country, it shows a lot."
Durer played big minutes not only to match Purdue's size, but also to replace Indiana's leading scorer, junior forward Trace Jackson-Davis, who played just 11 minutes after spending most of the game in a foul. Jackson-Davis scored only 4 points, but 2 of them were a pair of free throws to extend Indiana's lead from 1 to 3 points, with five seconds left to play.
Purdue sophomore guard Jaden Ivey, who scored 19 of his game-high 21 points in the second half, took a 3-pointer as the sound of the buzzer would have sent the game to overtime, but it went out and Indiana. Gave him victory.
Johnson also made the move for Indiana with 18 points, four rebounds and two assists. Johnson outscored the rest of Indiana's opening players 18-15, and the pairing of Phinci and Johnson accounted for 56% of the team's scoring output after scoring 0 and 9 points respectively in the team's last win in Nebraska on Monday.
The X Man 😤 @XavierJ0hnson for @IndianaMBB. pic.twitter.com/CPeqzd4kIV
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) January 21, 2022
Thanks to good ball control from Johnson and Finesse, who both finished the game with zero turnover, the Hoosiers finished the game with a season-less three turnovers, while forcing the Boilermakers to 12.
Woodson said he and Phineas had a "beautiful conversation" a few hours before the game and said he responded to it in the game.
"The basketball god was letting us down because I thought after our conversation, he replied, man," Woodson said. "It's good to see. When you get to have a coach/player relationship with these guys, sometimes you have to talk face-to-face."
Indiana West will face Purdue again in their regular season finale on March 5 in Lafayette, Indiana. Purdue will likely still top the ranks of college basketball when the teams match again, and the next time they see each other, Purdue will seek revenge after snapping their winning streak against Indiana.
Hoosier fans rush the floor after the team’s 68-65 win against No. 4 Purdue. #iubb pic.twitter.com/YW0SnuLve7
— Tristan Jackson (@Trist_Jackson) January 21, 2022
Indiana would like to take the momentum they have gained and their 5-3 record in the Big Ten to their next matchup with Michigan at 3:30 p.m. Sunday in Bloomington. Michigan is 8-7 this season and 2-3 in the Big Ten, but it is coming from an 83-64 win against Maryland in its last game.