Indiana 87, NC Greensboro 79: James Blackmon, Jr. had 24 points and nine rebounds as the Hoosiers bounced back against the visiting Spartans.
Yogi Ferrell added 15 points, six rebounds and six assists while Troy Williams and Robert Johnson chipped in 11 points apiece for Indiana (5-1), which had its 43-game non-conference home-winning streak ended Monday in an upset loss to Eastern Washington. Hanner Mosquera-Perea contributed 10 points and six rebounds for the Hoosiers.
Nicholas Paulos made 6-of-8 from 3-point range and scored 24 points while Clay Byrd shot 6-of-11 from long range and scored 20 for UNC Greensboro (1-5). Kayel Locke and Tevon Saddler added 14 points apiece but Saddler had seven of his team’s 12 turnovers.
The game was competitive for the first eight minutes before a 19-5 run by the Hoosiers put UNC Greensboro behind by double digits. Mosquera-Perea’s three-point play put Indiana ahead by double figures at 23-11 with 9:21 left and, after Byrd answered with a 3-pointer on the other end, a run of 10 straight Hoosiers points put the Spartans in a 19-point hole.
Up 50-34 at the half behind nine points apiece from Blackmon and Mosquera-Perea and eight from Williams, the Hoosiers extended their lead to as much as 21 before UNC Greensboro found a way to cut the deficit to eight with 8:52 remaining. The Spartans closed to within seven with 3:10 left but the Hoosiers held on by shooting 6-for-7 from free-throw line in the last 55 seconds.
GAME NOTEBOOK: The Spartans shot 14-for-23 from 3-point range. … The Hoosiers avoided losing two consecutive games in non-conference play for the first time since falling to Northern Iowa and Colorado at the Las Vegas Classic in December 2010. … R.J. White, who came in leading the Spartans in scoring with 16.2 points, went scoreless and missed his only two shots before fouling out with 55 seconds left.
NC-Greensboro | Indiana | |
Nicholas Paulos 24 | Scoring | James Blackmon Jr 24 |
Jordy Kuiper 5 | Assists | Yogi Ferrell 6 |
Nicholas Paulos 6 | Rebounds | James Blackmon Jr 9 |
Ben Dickinson 1 | Free Throws Made | Yogi Ferrell 8 |
Nicholas Paulos 3 | Steals | James Blackmon Jr 2 |
N/A | Blocks | Emmitt Holt 2 |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
NC-Greensboro | 79 | 49.2 | 14-23 | 3-7 | 17 | 24 | 0 | 9 | 12 |
Indiana | 87 | 50.0 | 9-24 | 22-29 | 13 | 37 | 3 | 8 | 13 |