INDIANA
2017
2018
WINDS OF CHANGE BLOWING AT ASSEMBLY HALL
AS MILLER TAKES OVER IN BLOOMINGTON
BY REX BEYERS | PROFESSIONAL ODDSMAKER, FORMER SOIN NATIVE
Those who have been wishing for new guidance
at the top of the program for Indiana’s flagship
basketball program got their wishes last March
when Tom Crean was fired after nine seasons in
March and Archie Miller was hired in from the
University of Dayton to take over.
Crean admirably guided the Indiana Hoosiers
through a tumultuous period at the start of
his tenure. The program was gutted by Kelvin
Sampson-era rules-breaking that left the Hoosiers
woefully underprepared to win consistently in
the uber-competitive Big 10.
Patient fans allowed Crean to win six 10 and
12 games in his first three seasons as he rebuilt
the program properly through redshirting and
better recruiting. The payoff came in 2011-12
when IU finished 27-9 and went to the Sweet 16.
Ultimately, Crean never was able to better that
season’s performance in the NCAA Tournament.
Despite an outright Big 10 crown in 2015-16, the
hungry fan base wanted more.
It’s tough to tell if they’re going to get it from
Miller’s first team.
The losses from last season are fairly significant,
as James Blackmon, OG Anunoby and Thomas
Bryant all left eligibility on the table to declare for
the NBA Draft. Grant Gelon also is a transfer loss
from last season’s 18-16 team that lost at Georgia
Tech in the first round of the NIT.
Bryant started all 34 games from a year ago and
averaged 12.6 points per game. He led the team
in rebounding and got to the line far more than
any other Hoosier. Anunoby injured his knee
in early January and that finished his season.
Blackmon led IU in scoring at 17 ppg.
24 EXTOL SPORTS / NOVEMBER 2017
Miller’s first coaching job was getting the three
Crean recruiting signees to keep their pledge
to come to Bloomington. He was able to get all
three to re-commit. Hoosier fans will quickly
ULTIMATELY, CREAN NEVER WAS
ABLE TO BETTER THAT SEASON’S
PERFORMANCE IN THE NCAA
TOURNAMENT. DESPITE AN
OUTRIGHT BIG 10 CROWN IN
2015-16, THE HUNGRY FAN BASE
WANTED MORE.
get to welcome Justin Smith, Al Durham and
Clifton Moore. Smith is a 4-star recruit, a wing
from Buffalo Grove, Ill. Durham is a 3-star recruit
at point guard from Lilburn, Ga., while Moore is
a 6-foot-10 forward from Ambler, Pa. All figure
to have a chance to contribute immediately
considering what was lost.
Robert Johnson is the most notable letterman
that will be back in cream-and-crimson, having
logged more minutes than any Hoosier in 2016-
17. Johnson is also the returning leading scorer,
at 12.8 ppg last winter. He also shot more free
throws than any Hoosier other than Bryant, and
led the team in both steals and turnovers, as well.
Josh Newkirk is among the more exciting of
the returnees, having paced the Hoosiers with
three assists per game while adding nine ppg as
well. De’Ron Davis played in all 34 games, but
averaged just 14 minutes per outing. His playing
time figures to go up this season, as does his
scoring average, which was 5.9 ppg. Davis and
Juwan Morgan each blocked almost a shot per
game and Morgan scored almost eight points.
Devonte Green, Curtis Jones, Zach McRoberts
and Freddie McSwain are all players who
contributed and started in at least one game
that return as well. Those guys are likely to be
role players on Miller’s first team.
No IU players made the preseason list of All-Big
10 players, so it will be incumbent on the sum of
the parts to play well together if the Hoosiers are
to exceed the mid-pack Big 10 expectations over
the next few months. The preseason conference
writers tabbed IU to finish ninth out of 14 in
league play.
IU opens the regular season with a home
game at Assembly Hall against Indiana State
on Nov. 10.