Indiana entered the season as the top-ranked team in many of the pre-season polls. The Hoosiers accomplished one of their major goals in winning the Big Ten Regular Season Championship. Indiana earned a #1 seed in the NCAA tournament, but fell short in their primary goal of advancing to the Final Four and competing for a National Championship.
Syracuse defeated Indiana 61-50 at the Verizon Center in Washington D.C. Thursday Michael Carter-Williams led the Orange with 24 points. Indiana was paced by All-American Victor Oladipo who scored 16 points. Christian Watford scored 13 points in his final game with the Hoosiers.
Indiana fell behind early and trailed 34-22 at halftime. Despite a solid spurt to start the second half, Tom Crean’s bunch could not overcome the early deficit in the East Region Semi-Finals. Fourth-seeded Syracuse advances to face third-seeded Marquette for a spot in the Final Four. The Golden Eagles dominated Miami (FL) 71-61 in the Thursday’s other Verizon Center contest.
