My Two Cents: Brutal Starts Finally Prove Fatal For Indiana

Slow starts have been a season-long issue for Indiana, but they've been able to escape with victories anyway lately. But that didn't happen Saturday in an ugly 78-59 loss to No. 4 Ohio State.

COLUMBUS, Ohio – It would save time, I suppose, if the game just started with Indiana trailing 21-7. Then we wouldn't have to watch these brutal starts to every game that have become a tradition this season.

That was the deal Saturday in Columbus, when the Buckeyes jumped out to a big lead exactly like Northwestern had done a few nights earlier, and Iowa had done – twice – before that.

But this time, there was no comeback victory. Oh, there were comebacks, twice, and the Hoosiers got within five early in the second half But No. 4-ranked Ohio State, who's legitimately good, used a 20-4 second-half run to win easily, 78-59. With the loss, Indiana is 11-9 now, and 6-7 in the Big Ten. but this was just the second loss (Texas) all season where Indiana didn't have chance.

What Ohio State reminded us on Saturday is that Indiana is what we thought the were – a middle-of-the-pack Big Ten team. At their best, they can beat good teams. At their worst, though, they've got no chance. And somewhere in between will be a nightly crap-shoot

When give up a 19-0 run in the first half and a 20-4 run in the second half to a team like Ohio State, you've got no chance to win. That's too much to overcome. And we saw that right before our eyes on Saturday. 

The slow starts are very concerning, of course. But there's plenty of other things to worry about, too. 

But let's start with the brutal beginnings. 

"We were ready to play, but at the same time, I thought at the beginning of the game we weren't finishing, and then our defense collapsed,'' said sophomore Trayce Jackson-Davis, who scored 22 points on 10-of-14 shooting and had nine rebounds. It didn't wither against Northwestern, but it did this game and it enabled them to get a lead early.''

Ohio State, which has won nine of its past 10 games to go from unranked to No. 4 in the country in just five weeks, is strong and physical at all five spots, and they get even more physical when the bench guys come in.

Archie Miller feared that coming in, and it played out exactly as he feared. Indiana had no answer early, and Ohio State's physicality controlled the game on both ends. Especially defensively, they made Indiana very uncomfortable.

There is, of course, plenty of blame to go around. You can blame the starters, blame the bench and blame the coaches. 

To an Indiana fan base that still lives in the 1970s and expects a victory every night of the season, this has become unacceptable. 

You can't have a four-year Big Ten run of being fifth, tied for fourth,  tied for sixth and tied for eighth. Right?

Something not seem right with those facts? It's not, if you're thinking about Archie. No, that bad Big Ten run? Those were Bob Knight's last four years at Indiana. And that wasn't acceptable, either.

So can we blame Bob Knight, too?

Common thread in slow starts

The question to Archie Miller was direct and to the point. Why does this happen all the time, and what are you going to do to fix it? 

"We have a major starting problem in how we start,'' Indiana coach Archie Miller said. "We've been down big. It's something we're mindful of, because our starts have been slow. If you look at our starts though, at the end of the day it comes down to making a couple layups, making a couple free throws.

"Against a team like this, you're not going to be able to function at 17-4. You're going to be playing uphill all the time. But it starts with a lot of easy baskets that we aren't converting. Ohio State should get a lot more credit though for how tough-minded and how physical they are. We lost our momentum because of offensive turnovers.''

Indiana got early three-points from Armaan Franklin and Al Durham to go up 6-2, but then everything went wrong in a 19-0 Ohio State run that lasted more than seven minutes. During that stretch, Indiana had 12 possessions and went 0-for-7 from the field and had six turnovers. And by the way, the rest of the game, Franklin and Durham were a combined 1-for-10 shooting and had seven turnovers. 

That's a bad and brutal seven minutes and change of basketball. And Indiana has no chance of winning games when Franklin and Durham don't show up.

"Our offense is having a hard time of keeping pace,'' Miller said. "The physicality of the game, they're the most physical team we'll play all year and you have to be prepared for that. We're going to have to play a lot more forceful on the backboard, and being more physical around the rim and how you drive to the basket. You can't just let them strip the ball so easy.''

Jackson-Davis said Ohio State took them out of what they wanted to do.

"They were getting to their spots on the floor, the guards were crashing big-time and the post players were getting underneath us,'' said Jackson-Davis, who missed his first two shots but then was 10-for-12 shooting the rest of the day.

"With me, it's just mentally. I'm in my head a lot,'' he said of the slow start. "I got taken out for a second and I just cleared my head and when I went back in, I felt like I was ready to go Just taking my time at the rim and finishing my shots. I thought I did better on that as the game progressed.''

VIDEO: Archie Miller talks slow starts

How much truth to being 'soft' is there?

Jackson-Davis was allowed to answer only three questions during his two-minute interview after the game. When asked about Miller's comments on Ohio State's physicality, he got a little terse. He seemed upset at some postgame criticism from his coaches.

"At the end of the game we got called soft,'' he said. "But i know me and my teammates are not soft. We just need to work harder and get ready for the next game.''

Ohio State's E.J. Liddell is turning into a potential Big Ten Player of the Year candidate. He led Ohio State with 19 points, and was a hand-full inside, but he also made two three-pointers as well. He's only 6-foot-7, but he's a rock-solid 240 pounds and his first move is often a bump to the chest that creates some space. He was a tough cover, but Jackson-Davis and Race Thompson, who had nine points, made the interior game a wash.

What Indiana didn't have an answer for was Justice Sueing, their small forward. He was too big for Armaan Franklin to cover and he went nuts, scoring 16 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. He had five offensive rebounds and his backup, Zed Key, had five more.

That, to me, is where the soft came from. And let's be honest. Indiana's guards were completely outplayed once again. It wasn't even close.

Nowhere to turn, either

It's easy to say ''bench Rob Phinisee'' or bench "Al Durham,'' but there's no obvious belief that the move would fix anything, because the four freshmen didn't do anything either on Saturday. They absolutely get some of the blame, too.

Khristian Lander, Trey Galloway, Anthony Leal and Jordan Geronimo played a combined 44 minutes against Ohio State – and didn't score a single point. Not one. Even worse, they don't even look for shots. They were a combined 0-for-4 from the field, and Geronimo missed all three of his free throw attempts.

Lander had some great passes, and he had three assists. Galloway had two assists that were pretty. But this group HAS TO look to score more. You just can't play 44 minutes and not score a single point. They spurred the comebacks the last couple of games, but they definitely could have done more Saturday.

Redshirt sophomore Jerome Hunter had a nice game, and it helped that Miller used his at the three position to offset Sueing, but not long after that, Thompson got in foul trouble, and then Hunter did too, picking up a third foul and then getting a technical. That hurt, too.

But still, it's just one game

Yeah, I know, it's another glass half full moment, but it's true. That one's over. Watch the film Sunday, and move on. Because, in the big picture, this is still an NCAA Tournament team. This is still a team that can win games in the Big Ten Tournament.

In other words, this season is a long way from being over.

This week is huge. The Hoosiers have two home games, against Minnesota on Wednesday night and with Michigan State on Saturday. Both are games that Indiana should win – and need to win. Two victories puts them over ,500 in the Big Ten for the first time would pretty much lock up that tournament bid.

If that's not something to focus on – to zero in on – then nothing will work to fix that.

But there are two common threads to this group of players compared to their predecessors the past few years. They work hard in practice, and they respond to adversity. Those lazy practice players from a year ago, they're gone. This group is different.

We didn't see that on Saturday, not enough anyway, but that was more on Ohio State. They're legitimately good. We've seen Indiana fight back before, and I feel confident we'll see them fight back again this week.

Or at least we hope so. With this team, I really have no idea what to expect. But I won't be the least bit surprised if they win twice this week.

Related stories on Indiana basketball

• OHIO STATE POUNDS INDIANA: Here's the game story from the 78-59 loss to Ohio State on Saturday in Columbus. CLICK HERE
• LIVE BLOG: Relive the Indiana-Ohio State game in real time as we provide news and commentary along the way. CLICK HERE
• TIPOFF TIMES THIS WEEK: We finally know when the Minnesota and Michigan State home games will start this week. Here's your answer. CLICK HERE
• INDIANA'S FULL SCHEDULE: Here is the complete Indiana basketball schedule, including links to all the game stories and Tom Brew columns from throughout the season. CLICK HERE