The loss of Indiana guard Malik Reneau to injury for an unknown amount of time is tough for the Hoosiers as he was their leading scorer, but other players are already stepping up. Senior center Oumar BAllo has dominated in the paint the last two games since Reneau's injury and Myles Rice has been solid for longer-range shots.
However, the injury to Reneau forced head coach Mike Woodson to change things up a bit when it came to scoring. Indiana has now had to play more of a small-ball type of game. This means pounding the ball in the paint or at thing going inside-out in the paint to open up more perimeter shots.
Against Penn State, Ballo went off for 25 points, and before that had 17 points against Rutgers, the game Reneau was injured in. This was Ballo's second 25-point performance this season, and he also added 13 rebounds to his stat line.
Getting the ball inside to the 7-foot center is helpful for the Indiana offense because the more he scores in the paint, the more it will open up perimeter shots for players like Rice and Mackenzie Mgbako, the other two leading scorers for the Hoosiers.
Against Rutgers, Indiana made a season-high 12 three-pointers, and against Penn State, made nine, meaning their perimeter shooting is starting to heat up in the thick of the season. The more Ballo scores inside the paint, the more the defensive players he will attract to him, opening up players outside for close-range jumpers or three-point shots.
Right now, Indiana can not afford to lose ground in the Big Ten as they are currently on for the First Four Out teams in Joe Lunardi's latest 2025 NCAA Tournament Bracketology. So going forward, if small-ball is the way Indiana has to win, then by all means keep with it until Reneau can make his return to the court.
The Hoosiers will return to the court tonight at home in Assembly Hall to take on the USC Trojans as they look to keep their win streak alive and push it to five games. Tipoff is set for 7:00 p.m. EST.