How hot is Mike Woodson's seat before the 2024-25 Season even Starts?
By Dante Pryor
It Began with Hope
There were a couple of ugly losses to UConn and Auburn early in the season but the Kansas game gave Hoosier fans hope. Yes, they lost that game too, but that was one of their best games of the season. Trey Galloway had a career day and Kel'el Ware neutralized Hunter Dickinson. However, the lack of a point guard cost them that game.
Then Indiana lost two of its first three games, including an ugly loss to Rutgers. Indiana's inconsistencies began to get exposed. They struggled taking care of the basketball with Xavier Johnson still injured, and they did not shoot basketball well, especially from three.
The Ugly was really Ugly
Technically, Indiana exceeded preseason expectations by finishing sixth in the Big Ten. However, when it got bad, it got terrible. Woodson had the challenge of bringing new players and an almost entirely new roster to play as a team. There were times that it looked good, and there were times that it looked discombobulated.
Indiana’s 14 losses this year came by an average of 14.8 points. That’s a strong indication of where the roster was for Mike Woodson — and what needs to change.
— Alec Lasley (@allasley) March 17, 2024
“Bottom line is we’ve got to get better … a lot of work to do this summer”#iubb
Story: https://t.co/NxhE1HL51o
One reason Michigan State is in the tournament, and Indiana did not argue despite both teams having similar records is that most of Indiana's losses were bad. They lost to UConn by 20 and Auburn by 28, and their three losses to Nebraska were by an average of 19 points.
Offensively, the Hoosiers were the worst three point shooting and free throw shooting team in the conference. It took them nearly a month into the conference season to earn a road win. Indiana was 140th in turnovers. Even some of their wins were ugly, including their win against Penn State in the Big Ten Tournament.