Many of us gave up on the men’s season this year. Some of us sought sanity by focusing on the women’s success. Admittedly, there were a couple of games that I turned off the TV and few that I looked forward to even watching. Fortunately, I missed the final Purdue game – in fact, I missed that whole day due to surgery. In the end, I began to expect the worst, but instead got some of the best. WOW – a four-game winning streak down the stretch, crashing two Senior Day parties in the process. It’s more than I honestly expected, but probably not enough to make the Big Dance. To make matters worse we lost our lone incoming recruit in the class of 2024. No McNeeley. No Boogie. No Queen. Zero incoming recruits. But, we still have Coach Woodson. Somehow, almost miraculously, IU met lowly preseason Big Ten expectations by finishing sixth despite a 4-game winning streak.
Even the usually fundamentally sound women fell apart this week in the BIG Tournament, eliminated 69-56 by Michigan. They built what seemed to be an insurmountable 17-point lead in the first half, even without All-Big Ten star Mackenzie Holmes, who didn’t play until late in the fourth quarter due to an injury. The collapse sounded familiar, since we’ve seen it so often with the men this year. Iowa and Caitlin Clark took the conference title with a comback, overtime win over Nebraska in Minneapolis.
Meanwhile, in Bloomington there was pure magic when IU regained the lead on Michigan State 60-57 with 5:33 to go. However, Malik Reneau could not finish his plus one on that potential 3-point play, then proceeded to turn it over on the next possession. Xavier Johnson followed with another. It looked like they just couldn’t put the Spartans away, missing frees and threes down the stretch. This has been typical play all season long but Michigan State was equally inept in the miscue department. At the buzzer, the Hoosiers prevailed 65-64 on a Kel’el Ware free throw, despite missing his last five at the line.
At the 13:14 mark in the first half, the Hoosiers amassed a 20-5 lead after a Mackenzie Mgbako 3-pointer, his second of the contest. But Trey Galloway then headed to the bench, never to return to the contest after an apparent knee injury. Near the end of the half, Kel’el Ware, Malik Reneau and Mgbako combined for turnovers on three consecutive possessions, leading to a relatively precarious 34-29 edge at the break. The Spartan dominance contined after halftime, with Tyson Walker (game-high 30 points) leading the way. Kel’el Ware countered with 19 second half points. It was a happy Senior Day ending with Leal and Galloway both announcing another year with the program following the victory.
Indiana has become the Senior Day Spoilers, after their second straight road victory, as the conference regular season comes to an end. I’d like to say that the Hoosiers played well but after eight first half and six more in the last half, I have to believe that the win was really more the result of the Minnesota Golden Gophers going 5-26 from behind the arc, even after rallying from that distance late in the game. Before the game it was announced that Coach Wooden will return for another year.
IU crossed the magic mark with a 61-48 lead at 4:36 remaining. Mackenzie Mgbako picked up his fourth foul just after hitting 3 straight 3’s and finished with 15, while Anthony Walker left the game with a knee injury. Kel’el Ware added 26 points — two off his career high — and 11 rebounds for the Hoosiers who moved to 17-13 overall and 9-10 in the Big Ten Conference. Trey Galloway also posted a double-double in the impressive 70-58 victory, their eighth straight over the not so Golden Gophers. Indiana closes out the regular season at home against Michigan State on Sunday with hopes that their Senior Day won’t be spoiled.
From the photo, you might be thinking that this post is about auto racing, Instead, it’s about basketball, but I was thinking that this Sunday when I might have attended my third straight Indycar St. Pete Grand Prix, I’ll be watching it on TV. My open-heart surgery and a neighbor’s hip surgery didn’t allow for either of us to make the trip. It will also be the I.U. men’s final regular season game. The women concluded their BIG season beating Maryland and play again in the conference tourney on Friday.
The Indiana men defeated Maryland on Sunday afternoon at Xfinity Center by a final score of 83-78. It wasn’t easy! The Terrapins led 43-33 at the half as a 16-point Maryland lead swung to an 11-point Indiana advantage and dwindled to five on two consecutive Terrapin threes as time was running out. I.U. was led in the game by Mackenzie Mgbako with 24 points.
Kel’el Ware had to get his team to the magic mark of 60 – twice. The first was a plus-one that was reversed in favor of a foul that should have probably been ruled fragrant. Maryland, however, had already gotten there first on a Jordan Geronimo layup with 11:20 remaining. The Hoosiers responded by going ahead for good 68-65 at the 6:33 mark. It was their third BIG road victory this season with Minnesota next on the schedule. A win there and against Michigan State on Senior Night in Bloomington could move them into the upper tier of the conference with a 10-10 record, 18-13 overall. However, who can be optimistic when the Hoosiers continue to suffer from major mood swings?
We did get some measure of revenge on the Terrapins, beating them twice this season, including Senior Day, after bad memories of 2002. From a recruiting standpoint, it helps make up for setbacks with Geronimo and more recently Derik Queen, both choosing Maryland over Indiana. It took a 48-27 turn around in the second half to earn this victory, and in the process, they also had to overcome a bad reputation for shooting frees and threes by going 14-17 from the free throw line and 7-16 from behind the arc. The return of Xavier Johnson proved to stabilize the team, as he scored 13, while adding six assists and a steal.
The #14 women had an easier time with the Terrapins, wrapping up their BIG Conference regular season with a 71-54 victory in Bloomington. It was 61-44 on a Lexus Bargesser layup with 5-minutes left to play. Sara Scali scored 19 points and Yarden Garzon added 17. They improved to 15-0 at home and tied Iowa for second place in the conference. They will be the #3 seed in tourney play.
Both Hoosier teams will need to rally in moving up the standings to impress the NCAA committee members, especially the men who are still in danger of not even making the field.
Indiana does lead the all-time series against Wisconsin. 97-81. However, the Badgers, have been victorious in 11 of the last 13 matchups. Indiana has not won a game in Madison since 1998 so it’s a good thing the game’s in B-Town. To be fair, IU has shown some series dominance, a 31-game win streak against Wisconsin from Feb. 28, 1980, all the way until March 2, 1997. The good old days! Who moved our cheese? Things were starting to stink for Coach Mike Woodson and Company.
Madison has been a nightmare story, with I.U. still stinging from earlier this season with that 19th straight loss against the “Cheeseheads.” They are stuck another year with the smell of the longest road losing streak against any opponent in program history — more than 100 years. The Hoosiers have also lost 17 straight away games against Michigan State from 1992- 2012, and dropped 12 straight road games against Purdue in West Lafayette from 1908 through 1922. This should be fuel for a good effort at home. We were in desperate need of a win and the odds were against us.
Kel’el Ware finished with 27 points and 11 rebounds to carry to a shaky 74-70 victory over Wisconsin. The game was delayed for 25 minutes in the second half because a fire alarm in the balcony was apparently pulled by some drunks. The alarm started blaring 25 seconds after John Blackwell had back-to-back layups to pull the Badgers even at 54 with 10:31 remaining. It definitely destroyed the Badger’s momentum and divided the game into thirds as both teams left the floor and Assembly Hall was evacuated, following state law.
At 7:48, Wisconsin found the magic first and put themselves in position to win with a 61-58 lead. With 1:07 on the clock the game was once again tied at 70, but I.U. had possession. Malik Reneau hit the go-ahead two but then immediately fouled out. The Badgers missed on a volley of threes, while Mackenzie Mgbako hit two critical free throws to seal the victory at 74-70. Xavier Johnson saw limited action and proved effective. It was I.U.’s first Quad 1 win of the season, but not nearly enough to earn them NCAA tourney consideration. They “cut the cheese” on that season goal.
The women’s game against Northwestern was much easier to watch. The other Mackenzie had 28 points and nine rebounds, while Sydney Parrish added 11. points and 10 rebounds. No. 14 Indiana comfortably beat Northwestern 84-64, earning its fourth straight win in the series.
Mackenzie Holmes, a graduate student, surpassed Steve Alford (2,348) to become the second all-time leading scorer amongst Indiana’s men’s and women’s programs. She ranks first amongst the women’s record book with 2,375 career points. Her next goal is to surpass Calbert Cheaney who scored 2,613 points from 1989-93.
Both the men and women “Mac’s” battle Maryland Sunday, but Mgbako and his teammates will have to do it on the road. Holmes gets to stay home.
It only gets worse, as each Penn State starter reached double-digit scoring. The Hoosiers have made many mediocre teams look great this season. The Nittany Lions are now 14-14 and have surpassed I.U. in the BIG rankings at 8-9 after the 83-74 College Station beating. The Hoosiers stand 14-13 and 6-10 with seemingly unbeatable Wisconsin next on the schedule. Even the NIT looks inviting.
It was the same sad story: 2-15 from three, 14-25 from the line, and 12 turnovers. Malik Reneu had 27, Kel’el Ware 16, and Trey Galloway 11, but not much production from anyone else. Everything was coming up “Aces” for Penn State, as Ace Baldwin, Jr. contributed 23 to go with Oudus Wahab’s double-double. The only “Magic” came from Puff (The Magic) Johnson who hit a jumper with 9:04 remaining to push the Nittany Lions over the 60-mark first, 61-54. Just like in the Nebraska game, I.U. had rallied to pull within striking range at 56-54, but then ran out of gas. Indiana owns the all-time series record at 42-17 but Penn State has won the last four.
The Badgers will probably make things even worse when they come to Bloomington in three days.
There truly was “Magic” when the Hoosier women hit the court against #4 Iowa. It was the same venue that had empty seats and echoed boos that now oozed sold-out positivity. For Hoosier fans, it was a refreshing relief to watch a fundamentally sound team rather than a train wreck. The women make their frees and threes, but have had their flaws, coming off a bad 20-point loss to unranked Illinois.
With thoughts of last year’s Caitlin Clark buzzer beater and an earlier conference loss to the Hawkeyes, No. 14 Indiana came on with a vengeance to upset Iowa, 86-69. Mackenzie Holmes scored 24 points, matching Clark’s output. Fifth-year guard, Sara Scalia led all scorers with 25 points, shooting 7-for-14 from the field and a perfect 8-for-8 at the line.
Meanwhile for Iowa, Clark shot just 3-for-16 beyond the arc, as 3-pointers decided the game. Kate Marshall had 19 points but went 0-for-6 from distance. The Hoosiers shot 43% from behind the arc, a vast improvement from January’s 25%. Iowa was 41% in that last game but held to only 18% this time.
The Hoosiers led 44-33 and at halftime and surpassed the magical mark at 62-51 with 1:09 remaining in the third quarter on a Chloe Moore-McNeil three. Sydney Parrish was a difference maker in returning to the starting lineup for the first time in nine games. I.U. improved to 22-4 on the season, and moved into second in the Big Ten at 13-3. Next up is at Northwestern. Take that Caitlin!
Indiana gave up 14 threes and got blown out at home by Nebraska 85-70 and was booed off their own home floor. The Hoosiers are now 14-12 on the season and have lost four of their last five games at Assembly Hall. Nebraska came to Bloomington 0-7 on the road in the Big Ten. Even more disturbing, the Hoosiers were down by 20 at half and lost by 15 despite going on a 20-3 run themselves early in the second half. They actually had a shot to tie the game — a three-point attempt from C.J. Gunn with 10:58 to go and the score at 59-56— that went wide. They were outscored 26-14 the rest of the way by the red-hot Cornhuskers, including the three at 10:40 by Jamarques Lawrence that made it 62-56 and took away all the “Magic.” As far as frees and threes, Indiana was just 4-for-21 from deep — a meager 19 percent — and missed 10 free throws. Clang, Clang, Clang went the Hoosiers. Boo, Boo, Boo went the crowd.
Freshman forward Mackenzie Mgbako led the Hoosiers with 22 points, but he was a miserable 7-of-17 from the field, coupled with 2-for-8 from deep. At least, he’s the best free throw shooter on the team. Kel’el Ware had 17 points and 12 rebounds, while foul-prone Malik Reneau had 15. Galloway had eight points, but six turnovers as the Indiana guards struggled once again. Cupps was 0-for-6 shooting and failed to score. Xavier Johnson is still not ready to play.
To make matters worse for the future, prior to this loss, Derik Queen, Montverde Academy teammate of I.U.’s only 2024-2025 commit, Liam McNeeley, decided on Maryland, obviously after seeing the horrible state of the Woodson & Company season. McNeeley may also be changing his mind, along with some of the underclassmen about next year with the program. The nightmare continues along with the boos.
The Hoosiers were 20-point underdogs going into West Lafayette. Indiana had never been that big of an underdog in the three years of the Mike Woodson era, and it’s not even close. The largest line the Hoosiers have faced all year was at Illinois, where they were 14.5-point dogs. Indiana tied the Illini with 53 seconds to go and did cover despite a 72-64 loss.
The Boilermakers dominated 79-59, as they did in Bloomington the month before, 74-62. In fact, for the first time since 1933-34, Purdue ended up winning both games by a margin of 20+ points. The hapless Hoosiers didn’t even get to 60, let alone get there first! P.U. led 61-35 with 9:48 remaining. There was no magic at Mackey! Zach Edey had 29-points and rubbed it in with his first career three. Braden Smith scored 19 as the Boilers pushed the lead to 28. C.J Gunn was the leading IU scorer with 13. I.U. would need the week off to prepare for Northwestern.
I remember the decade of the 70’s when I.U. won 20-straight over the Wildcats. There was another 26-game winning streak that ended in 2003. The longest winning streak Northwestern was ever able to put together was five in a row from 1913-15. However, Northwestern has been able to recently turn the tables with an 8-6 record against the once dominant Hoosiers since 2019.
Overall, the Hoosiers are 119-57, including this disturbing 76-72 loss in Bloomington. The Wildcats led at halftime 34-26, got to 60 first on a Boo Buie three with 6:34 to go, and held on for the victory after allowing the Hoosiers to creep within 4. Kel’el Ware led I.U. scoring with 22 and Mackenzie Mgbako added a career-high 20. Northwestern got 12 more shots at the basket due to a combination of low turnovers (3) and high offensive rebounds (14). They also shot 22-28 from the free throw line. Threes and frees, again, have haunted the Hoosiers. Malik Reneau and Kel’el Ware combined for seven turnovers against Northwestern double-teams, clearly part of the scouting report. Reneau fouled out for the second straight game. Coach Woodson could soon join the ranks of Ohio State’s Chris Holtmann on the outside of the BIG looking in. Oh, and the black uniforms with red lettering were as bad looking as the I.U. players wearing them.
I continue to emphasize the importance of getting to 60 points first in the game of college basketball. Due to surgery, I was unable to watch the next few games as three-straight I.U. opponents took advantage of “The Rule” and handed the Hoosiers a trio of BIG losses. The first was Purdue who led 60-51 with just about 13-minutes left on the fast track to an 87-66 victory at Assembly Hall. According to reports, Zach Edey The 7-foot-4 senior “drew fouls, made shots and even chased loose balls,” finishing with 33 points and 14 rebounds while leading the second-ranked Boilermakers to the 21-point rout. Trey Galloway scored 17 points and Mackenzie Mgbako had 15, but Indiana trailed for the final 37 minutes, most of that time by double digits, after falling into an early 25-13 hole and a 51-29 deficit at halftime.
Indiana has gone entire seasons without losing at Assembly Hall, including 1973, 1975, 1976, 1987, 1992, 1993, 1994, 2007, and 2016. This loss to the Boilermakers ranked fourth on the list. Here are the worst home losses in the modern era:
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February 25, 2010 – 32-point loss to Wisconsin
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February 25, 2009 – 22-point loss to Northwestern
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November 10, 2017 – 21-point loss to Indiana State
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January 16, 2024 21-point loss to Purdue
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January 27, 1977 – 19-point loss to Minnesota
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January 24, 1990 – 18-point loss to Michigan State
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March 6, 2004 – 18-point loss to Wisconsin
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December 31, 2010 – 18-point loss to Ohio State
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January 6, 1977 – 17-point loss to Purdue
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February 19, 2009 – 17-point loss to Wisconsin
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December 12, 2009 – 17-point loss to Kentucky
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February 10, 2010 – 17-point loss to Ohio State
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February 3, 2024 – 14-point loss to Penn State
There was then no rest for the weary as the Hoosiers traveled to Wisconsin for a 91-79 beating. Max Klesmit scored 20 consecutive Wisconsin points during a second-half span of just over 4 1/2 minutes, and the 11th-ranked Badgers prevailed. To add to the ugliness, this time it was C.J. Gunn who was ejected as the Badgers won the “race to 60” with the tally showing 61-47 and13:07 left. Wisconsin (14-4, 6-1 Big Ten) had now won its last 20 home games against Indiana and hadn’t lost to the Hoosiers in Madison since 1998, the Kohl Center’s inaugural season. Indiana (12-7, 4-4) was missing top rebounder and second-leading scorer, 7-foot Kel’el Ware due to a lower-leg injury. Malik Reneau scored 28 points, Mackenzie Mgbako 17, and Trey Galloway 10 for struggling Indiana.
It was then on to Champaign and another thrashing 70-62 by the #10 Illini. After a 60-56 Illinois lead at the 3:01 mark, Terrence Shannon Jr. made six free throws in the final minute. Indiana actually tied the game at 62 to keep things interesting with 1:29 left on a basket by Mackenzie Mgbako, part of his 12-point contribution. Malik Reneau, who scored 21 points for Indiana (12-8, 4-5), fouled out with 3:02 left. Xavier Johnson had 14 points while Ware once again was sidelined.
Iowa then came to town and IU managed to top the scoreboard 74-68 despite squandering a 17-point lead. It was Anthony Leal’s time to finally shine, scoring a career-high 13. Kel’el Ware returned with a 23-point effort including a free throw at 5:43 for a 60-58 advantage. Iowa came back to tie it at 60, but the Hoosiers prevailed in spite of both a Reneau ankle injury and Xavier Johnson’s banged-up elbow late in the game.
The Nittany Lions then came to Assembly Hall but I.U. couldn’t capitalize on the home court advantage, adding Penn State to the list of worst home losses. Malik Reneau came back to play, after missing practice while Johnson remained out of the lineup. Penn State (10-11, 5-6 Big Ten) hadn’t beaten Indiana in Bloomington since a 66-65 win on Feb. 12, 2014. At 11:05, the hot-shooting Nittany Lions were up 61-48 on the way to the 85-71 upset.
Kel’el Ware scored 17 of his 25 points in the first half for the Hoosiers. Malik Reneau added 16 points, MacKenzie Mgbako 13, and Trey Galloway 12 for the Hoosiers.
After this disheartening 1-3 stretch, the team headed to Columbus. Xavier Johnson didn’t dress, and I.U. trailed by 18 points twice in the second half, 47-29 at 18:58 and again 49-31 with 17:39 remaining. The Buckeyes even won the battle to 60, cruising to a 60-47 lead at 10:33 on a Dale Bonner three and all seemed futile. Then, the resilient Hoosiers mounted an incredible comeback by a 29-13 margin capped by Anthony Leal’s two free throws to win 76-73.
Here’s what Coach Woodson said after the game: “I thought tonight Gallo was huge in the second half. Our defense was solid in the second half, you hold this team to 31 points, that was the difference in getting back into the ballgame. Gallo coming down the stretch and Anthony making the big three was huge. Then getting the stop we needed when we stole the ball. It was big.”
Thus, the tale of two halves: Ohio State shot 50% in the first half and just 32% in the second but finished 24 for 27 at the line. Indiana shot 33% in the opening period and 55% after halftime. Galloway scored 19 second-half points and Reneau added 16 for the Hoosiers, combining for 51 of IU’s total points. Ware played just 10 minutes in the first half before picking up two fouls, and four total fouls in the game limited him to just 26 minutes. He then awkwardly landed on his leg and limped off the court. Ultimately, the careless Hoosiers gave up 22-points on 12 turnovers but still managed to win.
It didn’t get any easier as the wounded Hoosiers (14-9, 6-6) then traveled up I-65 to West Lafayette and once again squared off with #2 Purdue (21-2, 10-2). The Boilers were a perfect 11-0 at Mackey, so fan expectations were low. Would there be magic or more misery?
Working on the computer remains a daunting task. I haven’t been able to clearly focus on a single task, struggle with finger coordination, and shiver & shake from the blood thinners. My digits are often ice-like, needing to be warmed for even a proper blood oxygen reading. Most of this writing was done on my phone and transferred to this blog. I wanted to make sure to document this adventure while it was still fresh in my mind. I’d spend a few minutes on taxes, shift suddenly to baseball card organization, try to make a phone call, attempt to pen a poem, answer a text, pay a few bills, fill out another medical document, and then collapse for a nap. I did the daily Wordle, but any other of my regular card and word games took a back seat. All these once routine daily chores exhausted me, and I found myself unable to finish an entire chapter of a book or frequently confused on the plot of a TV series. They say that being heavily sedated for those two straight days of surgery had taken its toll and I needed to remain patient. Not so good of one, I’m afraid!
I returned to my role of grandfather, accompanying my wife in getting my granddaughter to the school bus and dropping off a belated birthday gift for my grandson. The bumpy car ride made me sore and the short distance seemed to stretch forever. I collapsed back in bed once we returned home, but failed to fall asleep, much like the restless effort before the 6a wake-up call. A shower, lunch, and shaky walk were next on the agenda before another boring afternoon of watching movies and attempting naps. I’ve come a long way in these first full three weeks since surgery.
Neck and back muscles ache from another restless night of trying to find a comfortable sleep position. Last night was nothing more than a series of short naps and trips to the bathroom. I often feel like there is a hole in my chest from a Howitzer blast. The surrounding skin remains sensitive and sore. There is a constant chill running through my body, but today is my last dose of blood thinners, so maybe my fingers and toes will finally begin to thaw. I continue to work the spirometer to strengthen my lungs and help warm my body. The cool Florida temperatures are not helping. I would like to sit outside in the sunshine but the air still gives me the shivers. Combine this with the existing tremors and my hands struggle with dexterity. I’m not much company for our guests that leave this afternoon.
I was buoyed by the IU basketball victory last night, after a first half performance that I can only describe as buffoonery. The team showed resilience, something that I need to get better at in fighting through this recovery. Everyone has been so supportive and I hate to let anyone down. Preliminary speculation is that my most recent EKG report no longer shows the irregularity of Afib. More frequent and longer walks, breathing exercises, a positive attitude, and a healthy diet are the keys to healing. I still feel like a Weeble-Wobble toy when I walk, unsteady on my feet. My thighs even burn as the leg muscles have obviously deteriorated from inactivity. I hate being out of shape, as my arms remain uselessly dangling at my side while raising them causes pain and stress on the repaired breast bone. I once again sit here starting at the TV screen while not really absorbing the content.
A neighbor reminded me that “the surgeon’s knife is a year long.” I can see where it will take that long to make a full recovery but will continue to do my best to make it shorter. I’ll fill you in on the surgeon’s report as to my progress after I catch you up on the trials and tribulations of I.U. basketball and “The Magic of 60.” I need a short break from the gory details of surgery, so why not focus on the equally ugly details of I.U. basketball.
