Malik Reneau Posts Career-High 34 Points in Indiana's 100-87 Win Over Kennesaw State

Indiana struggled to slow down Kennesaw State’s fast-paced offense most of the night, but a 21-3 run near the midway point of the second half included defensive adjustments and stops required to win. Malik Reneau led Indiana with 34 points, and six Hoosiers scored in double figures.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – No one could have predicted the lineup that sparked Indiana’s 100-87 win over Kennesaw State Friday at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall.

Playing without leading scorer and rebounder Kel’el Ware for the first time and missing starting point guard Xavier Johnson for a seventh consecutive game, Indiana had to look to others for the knockout punch.

And when Terrell Burden’s three put Kennesaw State ahead 68-64 with 13:16 left in the game, there was a real chance the Hoosiers could lose this game. Indiana led by as much as 13 points in the first half, but it wasn’t able to pull away as 3-pointer after 3-pointer continued to fall for the Owls.

Enter senior guard Anthony Leal, who replaced freshman starter Gabe Cupps with 12:59 left in the game. That made for a lineup with Leal, Trey Galloway, Kaleb Banks, Anthony Walker and Malik Reneau. That’s three bench players, and Leal had played just 30 minutes across four games all year.

However unlikely, that group led Indiana on a quick 10-0 run, which extended to a 21-3 run with 6:49 left. By the time Woodson changed the lineup with 2:50 remaining, the Hoosiers had a 93-80 lead, and they comfortably finished out the victory.

Woodson said Leal had two practices after Christmas break that warranted increased minutes, and his effort Friday could help continue that trend.

“[Leal] gave us a hell of a spark when he came in,” Woodson said. “I mean, just from a defensive standpoint he did a lot of things that we didn't do early in that spot.”

Indiana’s offensive numbers stand out, but it was the defense in that roughly six-minute stretch in the second half that gave the Hoosiers the boost they needed to pull ahead. Indiana began switching all positions down the stretch, which helped disrupt Kennesaw State’s potent offense.

Reneau said this coaching adjustment from Woodson helped Indiana more quickly close out on shooters. It didn’t entirely stop Kennesaw State’s offense, but the Owls scored just nine points in an important nine-minute stretch in the second half.

A blocked shot by Reneau led to a layup of his own, and Assembly Hall gave its loudest roar of the night when a Walker steal led to a Galloway-to-Leal fast break layup with 9:45 remaining. Mid-range jumpers from Walker on back-to-back possessions gave Indiana a lead that would remain in double figures the rest of the way.

Indiana Hoosiers forward Malik Reneau (5) shoots the ball while Kennesaw State Owls forward Rongie Gordon (25) defends in the first half at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall / Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports

The Owls entered the game having played the nation’s fastest tempo, along with a whopping 30 3-point attempts per game. The only chance they had of upsetting the Hoosiers was by hoisting threes all night and pushing the pace every possession, and it nearly worked.

Exposing familiar holes in Indiana’s defense, Kennesaw State made 17-of-35 3-point attempts and got long-range contributions from six different players. The backcourt trio of Burden, Simeon Cottle and Jusaun Holt combined for 60 points on 13-of-24 3-point shooting.

The shots never stopped falling, but Kennesaw State failed to get the defensive stops required to win the game. That was largely because of Indiana’s size advantage down low, highlighted by Reneau.

The 6-foot-9 sophomore was coming off a career-high 25 points on Dec. 21 against North Alabama, and he topped that with 34 points and 11 rebounds on Friday. Reneau did so in an efficient manner, too, making 13-of-19 attempts from the field and 7-of-11 free throws. It was an understandable drop-off from his four 3-pointers against North Alabama, but his perimeter development continued to show with one three and four assists.

“Everybody talks about development and who is being developed and this and that,” Woodson said. “And Malik, based on where he started with us last season and where he is today, he's a lot better. I think there's a lot of room still to grow as a player. He's just got to keep pushing, and we've got to keep pushing him to get better.”

Without Ware, Woodson started junior Payton Sparks, who transferred from Ball State to Indiana this season. While he entered the contest averaging just 8.2 minutes per game, Sparks logged 14 minutes, scored 10 points, grabbed eight rebounds and blocked four shots. Woodson said they found out Ware wouldn’t play on Friday morning, and he thought Sparks played “tremendous” in his replacement.

Mgbako added 14 points and made four 3-pointers in the first half alone, and Galloway’s seven assists, not to mention 14 points, revealed continued development running Indiana’s offense without Johnson.

Indiana's Trey Galloway (32) runs the offense during the first half of the Indiana versus Kennesaw State men's basketball game at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall on Friday, Dec. 29, 2023 :: Rich Janzaruk/USA TODAY Sports

Indiana wrapped up nonconference play Friday night and resumes Big Ten play Wednesday at Nebraska. While there have been a few close calls like Friday’s game, which included 18 turnovers and 21-for-33 free throw shooting, the Hoosiers improved to 10-3 overall and 2-0 mark in Big Ten play.

“We won. That's what matters,” Woodson said. “They made a lot of shots, some tough shots. It's part of the game, but we didn't fold. When we went down four, our defense kicked in, got stops. We executed on the other end, and got the lead and was able to bring it home.”

Related stories on Indiana basketball

• PHOTO GALLERY: Indiana wrapped up the nonconference portion of their 2023-24 basketball schedule on Friday night with a late rally to beat Kennesaw State 100-87. Malik Reneau led the way with 34 points. Here are the best photos from the game. CLICK HERE
• LIVE BLOG FOR REAL-TIME ACTION: Welcome to our live blog, where we'll share live updates, highlights and thoughts on Friday's game between Indiana and Kennesaw State from press row at Assembly Hall. CLICK HERE