Wearing “Courage” on the back of its crimson jerseys, Indiana summoned the fortitude to pull off a season-opening upset of No. 3 Kansas on Friday at the Stan Sheriff Center.
Indiana junior James Blackmon Jr. and freshman Curtis Jones certainly showed no fear in knocking down big shots late in the 11th-ranked Hoosiers’ 103-99 overtime win in the second game of a drama-packed Armed Forces Classic doubleheader.
Following Arizona’s buzzer-beating win over Michigan State in the opener, the Hoosiers and Jayhawks picked up on the vibe with a duel that included 17 lead changes and 16 ties, the last coming at 91-91 with 2:57 left in overtime.
Blackmon broke it one last time by draining a 3-pointer with a hand in his face for the last of his team-high 26 points. After Kansas closed to within a point, Jones drilled Indiana’s 15th 3-pointer of the night late in the shot clock with 1:43 left and the Hoosiers held on to win their 19th straight season opener.
“We’re in Honolulu and it’s Nov. 11, but it feels like March in here,” Indiana coach Tom Crean said, “and that’s exactly how that game played out.”
Both teams wore uniforms specially designed for the Veterans Day doubleheader, with “Honor” on Kansas’ blue jerseys.
Senior guard Frank Mason III scored a game-high 30 points and accounted for the Jayhawks’ last 11 points in regulation. With Mason repeatedly getting into the lane and earning trips to the free-throw line, Kansas erased a five-point deficit in the final 1:24 and forced overtime on two Mason foul shots with 2.3 seconds left.
The teams traded free throws early in the extra period before Blackmon and Jones gave Indiana just enough breathing room down the stretch.
Indiana sophomore center Thomas Bryant powered the Hoosiers early with 16 points on 6-for-10 shooting in the first half. He had just three points in the second half before fouling out with 52.5 seconds left in regulation.
But Indiana went 9-for-15 from 3-point range after halftime, led by Blackmon, who had just four points in the first half but finished 4-for-8 from behind the arc. Jones added 15 points off the bench and five Indiana players scored in double figures.
“Thomas had a huge first half, so we wanted to keep finding him in the second and keep taking what the defense was giving,” Blackmon said. “I was open a couple times and I was able to make a couple tough shots.”
Illustrating the tight nature of the contest, both teams hit 31 of 71 field-goal attempts.
“Our guys when they move without the ball, when we move the ball, you’re going to find open looks, but you still have to have the confidence to knock them down and I thought those guys did,” Crean said.
Kansas also had five scorers in double figures, with Devonte’ Graham complementing Mason with 16 points. Heralded freshman Josh Jackson was in foul trouble much of the night and finished with nine points and six rebounds.
While Indiana returns to Bloomington to face UMass Lowell on Nov. 16, Kansas has a quick cross-country turnaround to face No. 1 Duke on Tuesday in New York.
“Obviously a unique way to start the season. If we’d been down two late, we would’ve shot a 3. (If tied) we would’ve missed our flight,” Kansas coach Bill Self quipped. “We would’ve either won it or lost it. But certainly a long way to come over here and lose it.”
