BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (AP) James Blackmon Jr. scored 25 points in his college debut and Nick Zeisloft added 16 in Indiana's record-setting 116-65 rout over Mississippi Valley State on Friday.
The Hoosiers (1-0) set a school record for most points in their second-largest victory margin in a season opener. The previous marks came in Indiana's 110-64 victory at the start of the 1976-77 season. Indiana has now 17 straight openers.
Mississippi Valley State (0-1) was led by Jordan Washington with 17 points in Andre Payne's first game as the Delta Devils' coach.
Indiana trailed just once, 4-3, and took control by making 11 of its final 12 shots in the first half. The 7 1/2-minute barrage helped Indiana turn a 25-18 contest into a 54-31 blowout. The Hoosiers sealed it by opening the second half a three-point play and three straight 3-pointers to make it 66-33 and finished the game shooting 66.1 percent.
It was exactly what Indiana needed after a ragged offseason that included defections, arrests, injuries and, of course, critiques.
There were no complaints Friday.
Despite being short-handed, the Hoosiers finished with a 53-26 rebounding edge and limited Mississippi Valley State to just 34.2 percent shooting. The only real concern was 19 turnovers. But Blackmon & Co. made sure they didn't mean a thing.
Kevin ''Yogi'' Ferrell had 15 points, Hanner Mosquera-Perea finished with nine points and 12 rebounds and Colin Hartman had five points in his first game since tearing the ACL in his right knee in March. Indiana was 11 of 23 from 3-point range.
TIP-INS
Mississippi Valley State: Junior guard Tyler Corley hadn't played a game in his home state. He'd probably like to forget this one. Corley struggled mightily, going 3 of 14 from the field and finishing with nine points in front of his family, which wore green-and-red jerseys after making the roughly 1-hour drive from Indianapolis.
Indiana: The Hoosiers dominated despite being without four players Friday -- sophomores Stanford Robinson, Troy Williams and Devin Davis and freshman Emmit Holt. Robinson and Williams were suspended for violating team rules. Holt was suspended after injuring Davis in a car accident. The police report said both players had been drinking. Davis is still recovering from a serious head injury and there's no timetable for his return. The other three are expected to miss one more game before being reinstated.
UP NEXT
Mississippi Valley State visits Mississippi State on Monday.
Indiana hosts Texas Southern and former Hoosiers coach Mike Davis on Monday.
