[IUFR] Indiana's Ball Screen Offense Isn't Working

Coach Adragna dives into Indiana's ball screen offense, particularly when the ball-handler keeps it. The numbers are staggering. Are there reasonable avenues for improvement?

Coming into the season, many Indiana fans were excited about the pieces the Hoosiers had and how they would look on offense.

Having a versatile big man in Kel’el Ware, an experienced point guard in Xavier Johnson, then other pieces like Mackenzie Mgbako, Trey Galloway, and Malik Reneau were exciting to Hoosier fans.

Personally, I was intrigued by what Indiana could do in their ball screen actions.

If you remember, a couple of years ago when Indiana made their late-season run to the NCAA Tournament, it was on the back of Xavier Johnson quarterbacking a ball-screen-heavy offense and often finding Trayce Jackson-Davis for lobs.

That’s what I envisioned for this Indiana roster. Granted, Xavier Johnson has missed some time, but what Indiana is doing offensively in their ball screens simply isn’t working.

On plays that involve a ball screen, Indiana is in the 14th percentile in the country. Last season, Indiana was in the 69th percentile.

When you dive a bit deeper, on plays where Indiana runs a ball screen and the ball-handler keeps it (ultimately either attempting a shot or turning it over), Indiana is in the SEVENTH percentile. In other words, 93% of teams in college basketball are better than the Hoosiers.

With the pieces Indiana has, how can that be?

First, I want to watch the film. After watching both sets of clips, we’ll try to make sense of all of it.

Ball Screen Film

In all, I took 79 clips from this season in which a ball-handler has come off a screen and the ball didn’t leave their hands again until a shot went up or a turnover happened.

Of those 79 clips, Indiana made a shot in 21 of them. Let’s watch those makes first.

If my math serves me correctly, that means the other 58 clips are misses. Now let’s dive into those.

If you made it through all five minutes of that clip, I feel for you. But what can we surmise from the two sets of clips above?