Western Illinois Leathernecks vs Indiana Hoosiers Match Player Stats On Nov 05, 2019

Junior forward Justin Smith matched his career-high with 24 points and junior guard Al Durham added 21 points, lifting Indiana to a 98-65 victory over Western Illinois in its season opener Tuesday night in Bloomington, Ind.

The Hoosiers (1-0), entering their third season under head coach Archie Miller, were crisp and efficient throughout the night, finishing with an 18-to-11 assist/turnover ratio. Sophomore point guard Rob Phinisee had 14 points in 18 minutes off the bench as he continues working his way back from an abdominal injury. Freshman guard Armaan Franklin had five points and eight assists in his IU debut.

Indiana also was strong on the boards, outrebounding Western Illniois 47-28 with 15 second-chance points.

The Hoosiers shot 62.5 percent (20-32) and scored 12 points off turnovers to build a 46-25 halftime lead. Durham, who sat out an exhibition game against Gannon with a bruised knee, scored 15 points in the first half, going 6 of 6 from the field and 3 of 3 from 3-point range.

Down 15-12 early, Indiana went on an 18-0 run fueled by defense. Smith scored on a pair of dunks off steals and breakaways, and redshirt freshman forward Jerome Hunter added a steal and breakaway to put the Hoosiers ahead 28-15. Phinisee followed with a jumper to extend Indiana's lead to 30-15 as the Hoosiers held Western Illinois scoreless for a 4:25 stretch.

Indiana took its largest lead of the half, 46-22, on a dunk by center Joey Brunk with 1:16 left. Western Illinois guard Kobe Webster banked in a half-court shot at the first-half buzzer.

Webster's 18 points led the Leathernecks (0-1), who shot just 34 percent from the field.

--Field Level Media