When Paul Corsaro took on the gig as IU Indianapolis coach, sooner or later he would have to take on the challenge of finally defeating a Division I caliber foe to show that, yes; he can win at the Division I level. IU Indy has amassed a 4-5 record as of this post, but three of those wins came against lower-level opposition; IU Columbus, Goshen, and Trinity Christian, and although those count as wins in the record book, they don’t really count in the long run (and I don’t say that just because I’m a stickler for the NET rankings). IU Indy was supposed to win those games, and if they hadn’t, then you’d certainly hear about it on the podcast or in passing on ESPN’s Not 10.
No; they had to beat someone their level… which, obviously wasn’t going to be Xavier or Iowa State. The Xavier loss, 84-70, was one in which the team fought hard in suburban Cincinnati, led by Paul Zilinskas and his 20 points, but couldn’t overcome the Musketeers getting hot late in the first half and erasing the Jags’ 5-point lead almost instantly. Iowa State, however, was no contest, as the sixth best team in the country absolutely demolished them in Ames later in November, 82-57, forcing 19 turnovers, and putting the team behind the proverbial 8-ball where they had to shoot (and miss) a lot of three pointers to try and keep up with the Cyclones. Iowa State is currently looked at as having a deep run in the tournament, so I wasn’t expecting anything to happen that night… I just wished for my ego the score was closer.
With the so-called “buy games” briefly examined, it was time to look at opponents closer to IU Indy’s level, such as Eastern Michigan in the team’s true home opener at the Jungle. The Jaguars fell behind early in that contest and were down six at the half, then tried to recover, but unlike the previous game in Xavier, they struggled from beyond and would ultimately lose, 74-71, in a heartbreaker. I would comment on Eastern Michigan also beating Oakland, but the Golden Grizzlies are having a terrible season so far out of conference, so it may not factor whatsoever in the Horizon League.
Still looking for that first win, Corsaro took the team to Huntsville, Alabama, for the Bulldog Bash, where they played two games against Coastal Carolina and South Carolina State before culminating with host Alabama A&M. IU Indy had yet another awful night of shooting against the Chanticleers, leading to… you guessed it, a loss. South Carolina State seemed to be a far more reasonable foe for the Jags, and had a huge lead against them in the first half, only to yet again freeze up when shooting at the basket in the second, allowing SC State to come from behind to win.
Finally, last Monday, IU Indy secured their first win against host Alabama A&M, 88-83. It took five non-conference games for Corsaro to get his D1 flowers, which at least was faster than Matt Crenshaw, who waited 25 games and the short-handed win against Robert Morris. Paul Zilinskas scored 32 points in the triumphant effort, and set up the team in the right direction heading into conference play, which was away from the basement.
Now, what I’ve encountered from these is that Zilinskas has been a consistent highlight for the team, much like I predicted in season preview, but support has been inconsistent with the rest of the roster. Jarvis Walker has been the closest to a No. 2 guy, but some nights, he just doesn’t show up. Timaris Brown seems to be getting there as a top utility player, but when the team has rough nights like they had against Coastal Carolina or Iowa State, you don’t see it.
Unlike last year, where the team just could not shoot whatsoever, it feels like they’re living and dying off of shooting from beyond the arc (28th in threes made according to Sports Reference), creating a feast or famine scenario. When Zilinskas, Walker, and the rest are able to nail them, the team gets to score, but when they can’t, it’s rough. Although this seems to be an elementary observation, the fact is this team does rely a bit too much on 3-pointers so far this season. I do hope that with additional work on defense, they can wean off of this crutch, with tonight’s game against Green Bay hopefully proving to be that kind of test.
