Three-point shootings helps Indiana edge out Penn State for back-to-back wins

On the season as a whole, Indiana has shot a disappointing 31% from beyond the three-point line. In their 83-78 win over Penn State on Wednesday night, the Hoosiers went 10-15 from deep, shooting 66.7% from beyond the three-point line.

The three-point shooting is truly what made a difference for Indiana against the Nittany Lions, as their free throw shooting seriously hurt the Hoosiers. Indiana shot better from deep than they did from the foul line, as they went 15-for-25 from the line, a whopping 60%.

While Oumar Ballo was the leading scorer for the Hoosiers with 20 points, Trey Galloway certainly was the sharpshooter from deep with four of Indiana’s 10 three-pointers. Galloway finished the game with 16 points, and Mackenzie Mgbako and Myles Rice finished with 13 points. Luke Goode finished with 10 points, making it five Hoosiers scoring in double digits.

While a lot of people would say this game should never have been as close as it was, Indiana knew they were going to get everything Penn State had to offer as they are fighting to get into the Big Ten Tournament right now. The Nittany Lions certainly were a handful for the Hoosiers to handle, but every time Penn State made a push to try and take the lead away from Indiana late, the Hoosiers seemed to always hit a clutch shot, or get a foul and get to the free throw line.

Indiana was without their second-leading scorer as Malik Reneau came into the afternoon questionable for the game, was a late scratch with an illness, and wasn’t even on the bench for the Hoosiers. It is that time of year when sickness is going through locker rooms, so head coach Mike Woodson was probably safer than anything else, keeping Reneau out of this game.

Even without Reneau, Ballo took over the game just like he had in Reneau’s absence before. Ballo finished the game with 20 points, 12 rebounds, and five assists, playing roughly 36 minutes on the court, the most of any Hoosier.

With this win, Indiana continues their late-season push for the NCAA Tournament. A loss against Penn State would have been pretty detrimental for the Hoosiers, but a win now keeps their hopes alive. If Indiana can run the table in their final three games, they would finish with 20 wins on the season and have the Big Ten Tournament to prove themselves in.

The fight isn’t over, but Indiana just needs to keep their heads down, play basketball, and just keep winning.