Fiery Kel’el Ware flexes his muscle for Indiana basketball with season on the line

BLOOMINGTON — The pain of the past few weeks gave way to joy when Indiana basketball center Kel’el Ware threw down a two-handed slam in the final minute of a 74-68 win over Iowa on Tuesday night.

The Hoosiers soft-spoken big man spent an extra beat on the rim, but once his feet were on solid ground he screamed and flexed as the sold out crowd at Assembly Hall rained down applause.

“He actually showed some emotion,” Indiana coach Mike Woodson said. “I mean, one time — hadn't seen that all pretty much all year with him, but it was kind of nice to see.”

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The play leading up to the moment was much like the final 10 minutes — a mad scramble between programs in desperate need of a win.

After Indiana forward Mackenzie Mgbako missed a 3-pointer from the corner, Trey Galloway ended up with a loose ball. Indiana’s 7-foot-0 center was standing under the basket without a defender in sight.

The flood of emotions that ensued had been building up throughout the game.

Indiana lost Malik Reneau (ankle) and Xavier Johnson (arm) to injuries while Ware himself was hobbling around the court in varying degrees of pain.

This was Ware’s first time back in the starting lineup since suffering a right foot injury in the days leading up to a 91-79 loss to Wisconsin. He was listed as questionable on Tuesday night, but his right foot wasn’t the issue.

With 7:40 to go, Ware landed awkwardly on his left leg when he down a tomahawk slam that sent Iowa forward Owen Freeman tumbling into the front row.

The pain on Ware’s face was plain to see.

He tweaked the injury again after picking up an offensive rebound a few minutes later. Woodson had to take a timeout to help Ware regroup and get some treatment.

“We needed him back in the worst way,” Woodson said. “Games like this, man, it's huge for our ball club. He gets 23 and 10 and three blocks. We were missing his length and ability to block shots. We just didn't have it.”

Ware shouldered all that discomfort to carry IU across the finish line and snap a three-game losing streak.

The center’s length and athleticism was a big reason why Iowa shot 35.4% as a team and were limited to four second-chance points. The Hawkeyes leading scorer Ben Krikke — a 6-foot-9 forward averaging 15.7 points this season — had two points on 1 of 9 shooting.

He had three offensive rebounds in the final 5:08 and was fouled each time.

“Whenever he was out, it really took a toll on him, mentally, emotionally,” Leal said. “Obviously physically he was out, but he loves us as teammates and he wants to win more than anything. So it was good to see him show some emotion and fight through some nicks and bruises and whatnot.”

The performance should further quiet any lingering doubts about Ware’s toughness that followed him from Eugene. The former five-star prospect spent long stretches of his freshman year at Oregon warming the bench while coach Dana Altman openly questioned his effort.

Indiana’s coaching staff helped Ware shed some bad habits during the offseason. Woodson has praised Ware’s transformation throughout the season— he’s re-emerged as a possible first-round draft pick — and his continued development into a consistent two-way player.

“The first two or three weeks with him was a nightmare in terms of his energy and his get-up-and-go,” Woodson said. “And we've kind of coached him into playing better, playing with a little more energy.”

If Indiana is going to make a run back into tournament contention, Ware will need to put that growing confidence on display more frequently.

“That's the thing we need from him,” Cupps said. “He's obviously super talented, super skilled. And a lot of people's knock on him is that he's not tough. And I think he shows it in spurts, but once he can be consistent in that -- and he showed that tonight -- he's an unstoppable player.”

Michael Niziolek is the Indiana beat reporter for The Bloomington Herald-Times. You can follow him on X @michaelniziolek and read all his coverage by clicking here.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: IU's Kel'el Ware overcomes injury in fiery performance against Iowa