IU Talking Points: Mike Woodson and his bench strategy, spring football roster surprises

BLOOMINGTON – Indiana basketball coach Mike Woodson bristled postgame Tuesday, when asked about his handling of first-half rotations in a 66-57 loss at Rutgers.

Quizzed specifically on his first-half turn through his bench — a stretch in which both teams struggle to score — Woodson defended both the move, and his reserves more broadly.

“I’m not gonna sit here and answer that question when it comes to the fans or you,” he said. “I’ve elected to go to my bench at times this season, and I’ve gotten some good results here or there.”

Complaints over Indiana’s bench production are not new. Some are valid. Indiana’s bench has struggled to gain traction this season, for a variety of reasons.

Kaleb Banks and Payton Sparks have persistent fouling issues. Gabe Cupps only recently returned to the second unit, after filling in for an injured Xavier Johnson. Anthony Walker has at times been the Hoosiers’ best reserve scorer, but the Miami transfer has just one point across the past two games.

CJ Gunn’s 10-point performance versus Ohio State marked the high point for a sophomore finding his jumper — Gunn is 6-of-12 on 3s in Big Ten play — and getting the minutes to match.

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Across the board, bench players have struggled. Per the website EvanMiya.com, IU’s top four bench players are all in the red in the season-long plus-minus, some substantially. Woodson’s good results “here or there” haven’t often been much more than that.

In fairness to Woodson, these discussions always require more nuance than prisoner-of-the-moment thinking allows.

Across his tenure, Woodson has tended to approach his bench with an open mind that closes as the season wears on.

He will deploy his reserves as a whole group early in the season, both to tinker with rotations and to save legs where possible for the grind of conference play. Indeed, even across closer-than-expected wins early in nonconference play, Indiana was often still going four deep into its bench, with plenty of minutes for players like Walker, Cupps and, depending upon matchups and performance, Banks and Gunn.

But history tells us Woodson narrows his thinking the further the calendar progresses.

He only used eight players, for example, more than 4 minutes in the Big Ten tournament win against Illinois in 2022, and only seven players more than 2 minutes in the loss to Iowa the next day. Last season, Woodson had effectively trimmed his rotation to seven players — five starters plus Malik Reneau and Tamar Bates — by the NCAA tournament.

There is evidence he’s entering that phase again. Only seven Hoosiers played more than 5 minutes against Kansas. Just eight saw more than 4 minutes in the Ohio State win, and only six played double-digit minutes in Tuesday’s loss.

Woodson will always need to go to his bench to some extent. He cannot play five starters 40 minutes. But complaints about rotation and complaints about performance are not always one and the same.

The bench was not quite as culpable Tuesday as perhaps perceived — IU’s advantage arguably crested in the first half at 20-13, a point at which four starters sat on the bench.

What is perhaps more troubling is the lack of consistent impact from a reserve group that, even as Woodson begins to pare down his options, still struggles to change games for the better without damaging tradeoffs, like fouls or sloppy mistakes. That will be what Woodson wants corrected foremost.

Xavier Johnson not facing Big Ten suspension

There will be no further discipline from the Big Ten regarding the Flagrant 2 foul assessed to Xavier Johnson on Tuesday night, a decision that prompted Johnson’s ejection.

Following referees’ review of an on-court tangle between Johnson and Antwone Woolfolk, the sixth-year point guard was assessed the more stringent flagrant penalty and ejected per NCAA rules. Woolfolk missed both free throws that followed.

Disqualification is standard procedure for that particular call. Further punitive action is possible, though not required and subject to further conference assessment.

A Flagrant 2 straddles the line between the most serious infraction that can be confined solely to one game, and those that might have longer-term ramifications. An ejection for fighting, for example, carries stiffer penalties that can stretch into longer suspensions. Flagrant 2 fouls don’t meet that threshold.

But they are subject to further review, in this case from the Big Ten. Greater punitive action is not automatic. In this case, there will be none, a decision the conference confirmed to IndyStar through a spokesman Wednesday.

Whether Johnson faces further internal punishment remains to be seen.

IU hosts Minnesota on Friday night.

Spring football roster brings surprises

A small handful of omissions popped off the page when Indiana published its Spring 2024 football roster.

None of running back Josh Henderson, tight end Bradley Archer or offensive lineman Max Longman appear on that roster. None of the three — each originally a transfer to Indiana from another FBS program — are with the Hoosiers anymore.

Henderson plans to pursue professional options. It’s unclear what’s next for the others. All three would have been entering their final season of college, Henderson exercising his unused redshirt year, and Archer and Longman opting into a COVID-allowed sixth season.

Some other notable takeaways from the roster:

∎ Linebacker Jacob Mangum-Farrar is back for one last year. It was unclear whether Mangum-Farrar, IU’s leading returning tackler, would use his final year of eligibility.

∎ Lanell Carr, Indiana’s leading returner in terms of tackles for loss (8.5 in 2023), is also back. So is Josh Sanguinetti, who like Mangum-Farrar ensures a veteran presence at a position that’s turned over via the transfer portal. Sanguinetti will be joined by Old Dominion transfers Shawn Asbury and Terry Jones.

∎ Early and midyear enrollees include: James Madison transfer DL James Carpenter, freshman DL Marion Landino, freshman edge rusher Daniel Ndukwe, freshman TE Brody Kosin, Wisconsin transfer OL Trey Wedig, James Madison transfer OL Tyler Stephens, James Madison transfer OL Nick Kidwell, Georgia Southern transfer LS Mark Langston, James Madison transfer TE Zach Horton, Louisiana-Monroe transfer K Derek McCormick, James Madison transfer RB Kaelon Black, North Carolina transfer RB Elijah Green, freshman DB Dontrae Henderson, James Madison transfer RB Ty Son Lawton, freshman QB Tyler Cherry, Old Dominion transfer S Terry Jones, Ohio transfer WR Miles Cross, James Madison transfer LB Aiden Fisher, Ohio transfer QB Kurtis Rourke, James Madison transfer WR Elijah Sarratt, Troy transfer LB Jayden McDonald, James Madison transfer DL Mikail Kamara, Wake Forest transfer RB Justice Ellison, Wake Forest transfer WR Ke’Shawn Williams, Texas Tech transfer WR Myles Price, James Madison transfer LB Jailin Walker, Old Dominion transfer S Shawn Asbury and freshman DB Josh Philostin.

News & Notes

∎ Curt Cignetti announced his full strength-and-conditioning staff this week. Derek Owings had already been confirmed as director of athletic performance for football, following Cignetti from James Madison. Owings’ staff will include Nate Adams, Carl Miller, Jared Myatt and Julian Whitehead.

∎ Two former Hoosiers — goalkeeper Roman Celentano (FC Cincinnati) and midfielder Aidan Morris (Columbus Crew) — received callups to the U.S. Men’s National Team training camp this month. The camp specifically includes MLS players, as it falls outside a FIFA international window, but it will involve a friendly against Slovenia.

∎ New contracts announced recently for Steve Aird (volleyball) and Erwin van Bennekom (women’s soccer) reflect athletic director Scott Dolson’s ongoing commitment to building a more robust women’s sports profile across the board in his department. Aird just led Indiana to a 21-win season, while Bennekom’s Hoosiers reached the NCAA tournament for the first time in 10 years and collected a program-record points total (20) in Big Ten play.

∎ Expect things to quiet down briefly in recruiting for Cignetti and staff. The Hoosiers can still add freshmen at the February signing deadline, including Carmel’s Christian Peterson. But portal recruiting won’t pick back up again in any meaningful way until probably April, when a fresh wave of new faces enter following spring practices.

Follow IndyStar reporter Zach Osterman on Twitter: @ZachOsterman.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indiana basketball: Mike Woodson gets criticism for bench decisions