Victor Oladipo carries Hoosiers to win over Spartans on bum ankle
Victor Oladipo “wasn’t even close” to 100% healthy, Indiana Coach Tom Crean said of his star player Tuesday night. He was referring to the junior guard’s sprained left ankle, which had kept him out of the second half of the Hoosiers’ previous game three days earlier.
But mentally Oladipo was all there, and that was enough to help No. 1 Indiana get past No. 4 Michigan State, 72-68, to take sole possession of first place in the Big Ten.
“There’s no doubt his foot hurt,” Crean said of Oladipo. “That mind was right, and that was the biggest thing.”
Oladipo led the way for the Hoosiers with 19 points, including all six of the team’s points during the crucial final minute. After trailing by as many as four during the final two minutes, Indiana took a 68-67 lead with 47 seconds remaining when Oladipo got the tip-in on a missed shot by teammate Kevin Ferrell.
Still nursing the one-point lead, Oladipo got a wide-open dunk off an inbound bomb from teammate Christian Watford for a 70-67 lead with 10 seconds left. But Michigan State still had life when Gary Harris was fouled on a three-point attempt with four seconds left.
Harris missed the first shot, made the second and intentionally missed the third. Oladipo sealed Indiana’s first road win against the Spartans since 1991 by snagging the defensive rebound and making his final two foul shots.
All of that on a bum ankle.
“I’m not going to lie, it hurt a little,” Oladipo said. “But I wanted to win.”
ALSO:
Jose Canseco explains gravity via Twitter
Chicago not interested in 2024 Olympic bid
Get our high school sports newsletter
Prep Rally is devoted to the SoCal high school sports experience, bringing you scores, stories and a behind-the-scenes look at what makes prep sports so popular.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
