Indiana Hoosiers Eliminated With 81-76 Loss To Shockers
The Hoosiers were eliminated from the 2nd-round of the NCAA tournament Friday evening after falling short to the Wichita State Shockers, 81-76.
That didn’t take long.
After clamoring to get into the tournament in recent weeks, Tom Crean and the Indiana Hoosiers eventually squeezed in only to lose at the hands of the Wichita State Shockers, putting and end to what began as a promising season for the cream and crimson.
Indiana saw themselves off to a 15-4 start midway through the season as things were looking great. Kevin “Yogi” Ferrell appeared to be leading the team to something special.
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Soon after their remarkable start, the team collapsed.
After their 15-4 start, Indiana would go on to lose their next two games to Ohio State and Purdue in blow-out fashion.
It all went downhill from there.
The Hoosiers lost seven of their last twelve games to close out the season, and proceeded to barely make it into the NCAA men’s basketball tournament where it was revealed that they would be playing the seventh-seeded Wichita State Shockers.
And that’s where the journey ends.
For what was a tight game for the majority, Indiana’s flaws that had plagued them the second part of the season were shown against the Shockers as the Hoosiers failed to play defense when needed the most, and took too many ill-advised shots on offense.
Yogi Ferrell had 24 points for the Hoosiers but it was Wichita State’s Fred VanFleet who stole the show, scoring 27 and matching his career-high whilst shooting 50% from the floor and 90% behind the free-throw line.
For Indiana this game marks the end of what started off as a once-hopeful season that ended in a downward spiral. The Hoosiers will certainly look to have a different result next year with hopes of Yogi Ferrell and James Blackmon Jr. returning to the team next year.
For Wichita State, they take on the Kansas Jayhawks Sunday as they look to keep things rolling on their road to the championship.
But for now, Hoosier fans alike would like to put this one behind and forget about the disastrous end to the season as many wonder what the next season hold for Indiana and coach Tom Crean.