INDIANA OPENS WITH WIN OVER EASTERN ILLINOIS
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Markus Burton is more than numbers, although they were impressive enough in his Indiana Hoosier debut Monday night, just as they were in his three-plus seasons at Notre Dame.
Eastern Illinois had no answer at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall during IU’s 91-57 season-opening victory. Burton had a team-leading 19 points on 7-for-8 shooting, including 3-for-3 on 3-pointers. He added five assists in his 24 minutes with just one turnover.
It was the kind of point-guard performance the Hoosiers will need for a special season, and it came with perspective.
“We’ve got a team full of guys who can get in the paint and create,” Burton said. “For me, that’s always been who I am. It’s making my teammates better. That’s what I’m here to do.”
Guard Jaeden Mustaf, a Georgia Tech transfer, is fully appreciative.
“He makes it a lot easier,” Mustaf said. “Him coming here was a big reason why I came here.
“Everyone knows how great a scorer he is, but I don’t think he gets enough credit for how much of a playmaker he can be. He makes it a lot easier for us.”
Coach Darian DeVries said he saw this performance building from Burton over the last couple of weeks.
“His aggressiveness has really cranked up. It’s not just scoring. He’s being aggressive, making plays. He’s getting into the paint, making everybody collapse and then he’s passing it out. That’s exactly what we want from him.”
The one glitch was Burton’s defensive aggressiveness resulting in four fouls.
“He was great defensively,” DeVries said, “but we have to keep him from fouling and picking up cheap ones. I thought overall his tenacity on the ball was really good.”
Tenacity was a team effort. IU defended Eastern Illinois into nearly 10 minutes of first-half irrelevance during an 18-0 run to take control it never lost. It forced 22 Panther turnovers and converted them into a 29-8 advantage on points off turnovers.
Offensive diversity was on full display. With 12 minutes remaining, nine Hoosiers had played and nine had scored at least five points. It showcased the depth and versatility DeVries wants to fully exploit.
“I love being able to continuously sub. These guys, with their versatility, I know what I’m getting with them. They’ve proven themselves and I trust them.
“We can go deep in our bench. I thought that was certainly a positive for us.”
With four minutes left, IU had 13 assists and just seven turnovers while shooting 51 percent from the field.
Guard Bryce Lindsay came off the bench for 14 points. Freshman forward Trevor Manhertz added 11 off-the-bench points.
Still, the Hoosiers want more.
“There are a lot of new guys,” Burton said. “It will take time for us to be efficient. Tonight was a learning experience. We got the outcome we liked. I feel like we competed and played hard at a high level. That was all that mattered.”
The opener even drew Hoosier greats Isiah Thomas and Ted Kitchel.
One big negative came with DeVries announcing that heralded freshman guard Prince-Alexander Moody had suffered a knee injury and will be out for “an extended period of time.”
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DeVries’s second IU season opened with center Samet Yigitoglu, forward Aiden Sherrell and guards Burton, Darren Harris, and Mustaf in the starting lineup.
Mustaf started the Hoosier season with a pair of free throws. Burton quickly added a 3-pointer. Yigitoglu made a layup off a Mustaf pass, then had another. After four minutes, IU led 9-2.
A Burton 3-pointer made it 14-5 at the 13-minute mark as the Hoosiers went with a smaller lineup that included Sam Alexis, Trent Sisley, and Manhertz with Sherrell and Yigitoglu taking a break.
A 3-pointer from Sisley and three free throws by Manhertz made it 24-19 with 10 minutes left in the half. A Burton assist on a Sisley layup, then a Lindsay layup, a pair of Alexis free throws, a Burton jumper and an Alexis layup pushed IU’s lead to 32-21 with two minutes remaining.
Sherrell’s buzzer-beating jumper capped a closing 20-2 run for a 44-23 halftime score. Burton led the way with nine points and five assists. IU converted 14 Eastern Illinois turnovers into a 15-2 edge in points off turnovers.
A Harris dunk made it 50-25 two minutes into the second half. A Manhertz 3-pointer got the Hoosiers to 60 points with 14 minutes remaining. An Alexis spin and dunk followed by Burton’s reverse layup made it 64-40 as IU cruised from there.
The Hoosiers host Bellarmine on Thursday night.
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