Indiana Makes Late Run To Beat Morehead State 69-68, Avoid Ugly Home Loss

Indiana came out slow and trailed Morehead State for the majority of Tuesday's game, but crucial defensive stops down the stretch and an 18-point night from Anthony Walker helped the Hoosiers escape with an 69-68 win.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – After stepping back and drilling a three in Malik Reneau’s face, Jordan Lathon laid on Branch McCracken Court a few extra seconds to soak it all in. The Assembly Hall crowd groaned in frustration, while Morehead State had serious thoughts of an upset.

Lathon was fouled on the play, and his subsequent free throw gave the Eagles a 15-point lead with 9:29 left in the game. All Reneau could do was look hopelessly at the bench, knowing he’d be subbed out with his fourth foul.

That felt like the dagger. But just as Morehead State took a seemingly insurmountable lead, the game flipped. From the 8:47 mark until the final buzzer, Indiana made a 20-4 run.

The late push allowed Indiana to escape with a 69-68 win Tuesday at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall and avoid a home loss that would stick with it all the way until Selection Sunday. The Hoosiers have struggled with several mid-major opponents in the early stages of this season, but nevertheless improved to 8-3 on the season, plus an important 2-0 in Big Ten play.

“I'm just pleased that we didn't quit,” Indiana coach Mike Woodson said. “We could have easily thrown in the towel and said, 'Hey, we'll get ready for the next game,' but we didn't do that. We kept fighting and were able to get the win.”

Indiana's Malik Reneau (5) and Mackenzie Mgbako (21) celebrate their victory after the second half of the Indiana versus Morehead State men's basketball game at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall on Tuesday, Dec. 19, 2023 :: Rich Janzaruk/USA TODAY Sports

Indiana’s late run was sparked largely by its advantage inside and improved defense on Lathon. Woodson called for ball screen after ball screen for Trey Galloway at the top of the key down the stretch, and he made the correct decisions more often than not. Baskets and free throws from Mackenzie Mgbako, Kel’el Ware, Anthony Walker and Reneau trimmed the deficit to two points with 4:11 remaining, then a Galloway 3-pointer gave the Hoosiers their first lead, 65-64, since they led 16-15 at the 11:26 mark of the second half.

With Indiana clinging to a one-point lead, Reneau stepped to the free throw line with 27 seconds remaining and a chance to ensure that Indiana would at worst go to overtime. But he missed both free throws, giving Morehead State a chance on the final possession to stun the Hoosiers on their home court.

Galloway started the possession guarding Lathon, but a ball screen gave Lathon the matchup he likely preferred against Reneau. Like he did roughly nine minutes prior, Lathon tried a stepback against Reneau, but the Indiana big man did a better job of holding his ground this time.

Lathon attempted to step through Reneau’s defense, but Reneau deflected the attempt just seconds before the buzzer, redeeming himself for the two missed free throws. Ware snatched the rebound, and Reneau pumped his fist as Indiana eked away with the win.

Lathon finished with a game-high 30 points, but Indiana held him scoreless in the final 9:29, just after his and-one 3-pointer that put Morehead State ahead by 15 points. Indiana still has a long way to go offensively, but its ability to get defensive stop after stop down the stretch was a major factor in the win.

“I thought Gallo started to really take the ball away from [Lathon],” Woodson said. “When he got rid of it, I told Gallo not to let him get it back if he could. So he was trying in that area to keep the ball out of his hands because he was basically the hottest player on the floor.”

Indiana Hoosiers forward Anthony Walker (4) celebrates a basket and foul with teammates in the second half against the Morehead State Eagles at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall / Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports

On a night where Reneau and Ware, Indiana’s leading scorers, combined for just 16 points and 15 rebounds – roughly half of their combined season average in scoring – backup forward Anthony Walker stepped up. The 6-foot-8 senior scored a team-high 18 points, which tied a career-high, on an efficient 7-for-11 shooting and grabbed nine rebounds.

Woodson called Walker the MVP.

“By far his best game since he's been wearing an Indiana uniform,” Woodson said. “We needed every bit of it to win this game tonight. He gets the game ball based on what he did tonight.”

Other than Walker and Galloway, who scored 13 points on 6-for-13 shooting, it was a rough night for the Indiana offense. The Hoosiers shot just 39.7% from the field, including 3-for-16 from 3-point range. Poor free throw shooting contributed to an 11-point halftime deficit, and Indiana finished just 16-for-28 from the line.

“I thought at the start of the game we were flat, and like we didn't even want to be out there,” Woodson said. “But finally we picked it up when our backs were against the wall, and we made plays coming down the stretch that we had to make in order to win the game.”

Ware had been shooting well over 60% earlier this season, but he’s just 8-for-28 over the last three games. Mgbako got several open looks, but finished 3-for-14 from the field and 0-for-5 from beyond the arc. Aside from Walker, Indiana’s bench provided close to nothing, shooting 2-for-9.

Similar to its first three wins of the season, Indiana can walk away from this game glad that it won, but concerned at how it got there.

The Hoosiers have two more nonconference games – home games against North Alabama on Thursday, then Kennesaw State on Dec. 29 – before Big Ten play resumes. Indiana led No. 2 Kansas for 35 minutes just three days ago, but didn’t appear ready to play against Morehead State.

In addition to its shooting struggles, Woodson is tasked with fixing just that, as Indiana may not be as fortunate to pull off comebacks moving forward like it did Tuesday night.

“As coaches, we think we're ready to play every time we step out on the floor, and it didn't happen tonight,” Woodson said. “For whatever reason, it didn't. But at the end of the day, the guys made the plays that they needed to make to secure the win, and that's what counts.”

Related stories on Indiana-Morehead State

• WHAT MIKE WOODSON SAID: Here's the full transcript and video of Indiana coach Mike Woodson's postgame press conference following Tuesday's 69-68 win over Morehead State. CLICK HERE
• PHOTO GALLERY: Here are the best pictures from Tuesday night's game against Morehead State. There are 17 great images. CLICK HERE
• LIVE BLOG: Relive all the play-by-play moments from the game in real time in Jack Ankony's blog straight from press row. CLICK HERE
• INDIANA 2023-24 SCHEDULE: Here is the complete Indiana basketball schedule for the 2023-24, with dates, opponents, gametimes, TV information and more, plus links to stories from the games already played so far CLICK HERE