Whole Again, Indiana Back to Work Preparing for Tough Test at Michigan State

Indiana coach Mike Woodson said his Hoosiers had a good practice on Thursday after his five suspended players returned to the team, and they're hard at work preparing for a huge challenge at No. 17 Michigan State on Saturday.

EAST LANSING, Mich. — The suspensions are done and over, and they've been dealt with by Indiana coach Mike Woodson. Now it's time to move on because, quite frankly, there are no other options in the middle of a brutal Big Ten basketball season.

The gauntlet doesn't stop just because you've got some internal issues to deal with inside your program. For Indiana, that meant that the five players who were suspended for Tuesday night's game at Northwestern because of curfew violations were reinstated on Thursday and got right back to work.

The five players — starting guards Xavier Johnson and Parker Stewart, and reserves Michael Durr, Tamar Bates and Khristian Lander — will be available for Saturday's game at Michigan State, but their roles have yet to be determined by Woodson. The game starts at 3:30 p.m. ET.

"I thought yesterday's practice was a good practice considering what had happened at Northwestern, because I just wasn't very pleased,'' Woodson said on Friday. "I was very disappointed, but I thought yesterday coming back, guys were back on the floor working, and I thought we had a very productive practice.

"I'll make a decision in terms of where I go with our starting lineup.''

Starters Johnson and Stewart were both suspended Tuesday and, without them, the Hoosiers lost 59-51 to Northwestern. Sophomore guard Trey Galloway, who's been playing well off the bench since returning from wrist surgery on Jan, 6, started at point guard and did a nice job, scoring 13 points.

He's been playing well enough to have a bigger role with this team, and that includes breaking into the starting lineup. 

"He's been fantastic,'' Woodson said of Galloway. "I mean, coming off the bench, he's been great. The other night I thought the first time he got a crack to start, he was phenomenal the whole game.

'I mean, that's a thought (starting Galloway on Saturday). We'll have to make that decision after (Friday's) practice and see where we are. But he's definitely played well enough to be in the lineup.''

The loss Tuesday was Indiana's second in a row, and it's the first time they've lost back-to-back games all year. They are 16-7 now, and 7-6 the Big Ten, and will see three nationally ranked teams in the next eight days, No. 17 Michigan State on Saturday, No. 14 Wisconsin in Bloomington on Tuesday and No. 16 Ohio State in Columbus next Saturday.

Woodson was asked about having a sense of urgency on Saturday now that the losing has started, but he dismissed it.

"Well, it's still one game at a time,'' he said. "I mean, I can't look ahead. We've got seven games left. We can basically control our own destiny (in the Big Ten standings). We've got to win out. That's kind of how I look at it, starting at Michigan State. Like I said, they've, lost their last few games. They've had their struggles, as well.

But I think our team can beat any team in the Big Ten if we commit ourselves. The Big Ten has kind of shown that this season, that anybody can beat anybody. We've just got to be committed for 40 minutes. Michigan State is going to force you to have to play them for 40 minutes in order to beat them.''

The Spartans are 17-6 and 8-4 in the Big Ten, but they've been staggering a bit lately, too. They are just 3-4 in their last seven games, and have lost two straight, losing by 21 last Saturday at Rutgers, and then losing at home 70-62 to Wisconsin on Tuesday. Even their most recent win — at struggling Maryland — required a late basket to get a 65-63 win.

Still, it's Michigan State. And it's Tom Izzo, so you know they'll be ready.

"They're pretty good defensively. They get up in you, and they really make you have to work to score the basketball,'' Woodson said. "That's everybody, all five guys that are on the floor kind of on a string from a defensive standpoint.

"Offensively they're pretty good. They have had their struggles here as of late, but some of the games that I've watched, I know the Wisconsin game was kind of back and forth and Wisconsin kind of got out and made a run late. I just think they're a solid team. Izzo has always had good teams on both ends of the floor. I don't see anything differently. They compete, man. They play hard. That's a big part of it.''

Michigan State was 14-2 at one point, and won its first five Big Ten games, good enough to be ranked in the Associated Press top-10 three weeks ago.

They are a deep team, a Spartans tradition, and Izzo plays nine guys regularly. Forward Gabe Brown, a senior from Ypsilanti, Mich., is the leading scorer at 12.7 points per game, but averages only 29.7 minutes of playing time. Forward Malik Hall averages 10.1 points, and freshman Max Christie and senior Marcus Bingham Jr. average 9.9 points per game.

Michigan State is shooting 38.8 percent from three-point range, second in the Big Ten to Purdue and No. 3 in the nation among major-conference teams and No. 11 overall. Six different players have made double-digit threes.

Indiana has made only 144 threes so far this season, which is now dead last in the Big Ten after Michigan made 12 on Thursday night in its upset win over No. 3 Purdue. It's been a problem area all year for the Hoosiers.

"I'd just like to make the threes that we're taking. It's not how many you take, it's how many you make,'' Woodson said. "We had some good looks the other night against Northwestern. I thought Anthony (Leal) had some good looks, Miller (Kopp) had some good looks. We just didn't knock them down. We've got to make them.''

Watch Mike Woodson's full pregame press conference

Related stories on Indiana basketball

• PLAYERS REINSTATED: Indiana basketball coach Mike Woodson reinstated the five players he suspended earlier this week, saying in a release from the school that they broke curfew. They will all be available for Saturday's huge road game at Michigan State. CLICK HERE 
• GOOD, BAD, UGLY FROM TUESDAY: HoosiersNow.com publisher breaks down the good, bad and ugly on the court from Tuesday night's loss at Northwestern. CLICK HERE
• WHAT TREY GALLOWAY SAID: Sophomore guard Trey Galloway scored 13 points for the Hoosiers before fouling out. Here's what he had to say following the loss in a postgame press conference. Read the full transcript, or watch the attached video. CLICK HERE.
• WHAT MIKE WOODSON SAID: Following five player suspensions, the Hoosiers fell to the Northwestern Wildcats 59-51 on the road. Indiana head coach Mike Woodson took to the podium to address the suspensions in a post game press conference. Read the full transcript, or just watch the attached video. CLICK HERE.
• TOM BREW COLUMN: Draw the lines. Five Indiana basketball players get suspended, and then Indiana loses at Northwestern in a very winnable game. So now, how much damage do these selfish suspensions do to this Indiana team that's trying to restore some pride and glory back into this program? We'll have to wait to see. CLICK HERE.
• GAME STORY: Indiana coach Mike Woodson suspended five players on Tuesday for breaking team rules, and the other half of his team fought gamely against Northwestern, but came up short after fading in the second half, losing 59-51. CLICK HERE
• HOOSIERS SUSPEND 5: Just minutes before Indiana's game with Northwestern, five players were suspended, including starting guards Xavier Johnson and Parker Stewart. CLICK HERE