Tennessee Tech came to Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall on Thursday night with a clear plan: press for 40 minutes, speed Indiana up, and see if the Hoosiers would crack.
Instead, Indiana took control after halftime and turned a tight game into a 90-66 win that pushed the Hoosiers to 4-0.
The first half was anything but smooth. Indiana led by only four at the break, and Tennessee Tech kept itself around by crashing the glass and creating extra chances. The Golden Eagles even outrebounded Indiana 21-18 before halftime, using those second opportunities to stay attached despite the Hoosiers’ defensive resistance.
But the second half belonged to Indiana on both ends.
The Hoosiers outscored Tennessee Tech 49-29 after the break and shot 66.7 percent from the field in the second half. Markus Burton scored all 12 of his points after halftime, and Bryce Lindsay added eight of his points in the final 20 minutes to help fuel the surge.
Indiana’s defense was the bigger story, though, especially considering what Tennessee Tech brought into the night. The Golden Eagles entered averaging 100.7 points per game and hoisting 39 3-pointers a night, the third-most in the country, with a five-out system designed to stretch defenses and create perimeter looks.
That production never really showed up against Indiana.
Tennessee Tech shot just 34.3 percent overall and finished 9-of-31 from 3-point range. After halftime, the Golden Eagles made only 12 of 38 shots and went 3-of-13 from deep as Indiana tightened the screws.
“Honestly, I have to watch the tape again, but I even thought we were pretty good in the first half,” head coach Darian DeVries said. “I thought we forced a lot of really tough shots.”
The press also came at a cost for Tennessee Tech. Indiana reached the double bonus with more than eight minutes left in the first half, kept drawing contact against the pressure, and went to the line 36 times, making 26. The Golden Eagles finished with 28 fouls.
DeVries said his team was too rigid offensively early, leaning too much on post touches instead of letting the offense flow. After the break, Indiana used more ball-screen action, opened up driving lanes, and found better rhythm against the pressure.
Aiden Sherrell said the halftime message hit home.
“Coach talked to us at the half,” Sherrell said. “He gave us a message like we got to pick it up for sure, and we went out there and executed what he told us to do.”
Indiana’s response showed up in the rebounding battle too. After Tennessee Tech had success on the offensive glass in the first half, the Hoosiers controlled the boards after halftime and held a 23-14 edge on the glass in the second half.
That stretch helped Indiana stretch a four-point halftime lead into a 28-point advantage with a little more than five minutes remaining, and the game was effectively over from there.
For DeVries, the challenge was obvious from the start.
“This is one of those games that you don’t sleep as good at night because you’re preparing for 40 minutes of press,” DeVries said. “I knew this was what the game was going to be like, and they were never going to stop.”
Indiana didn’t let that pressure decide the night. Instead, the Hoosiers absorbed it, settled in, and finished with what DeVries called the program’s first real encouraging defensive showing under his watch.
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