BLOOMINGTON — Indiana basketball will probably have a spirited film session when it gets back from a long holiday layoff.
The Hoosiers (10-3) beat Sienna 81-60 on Monday night, but played sloppy basketball down the stretch and didn’t match the intensity they showed in the first half while jumping out to a double-digit lead before fans even had time to settle into their seats.
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Siena (9-4) went into halftime trailing by 26 points after shooting 24.1% from the field and going 0 for 9 from 3-point range. The Saints had as many field goals (seven) as turnovers in the first half that contributed to multiple extended scoring droughts.
“I thought the second half we just lost a little bit of our edge both ends of the floor,” Indiana coach Darian DeVries said.
Indiana guard Lamar Wilkerson led all scorers with 23 points, Tayton Conerway had 16 points with 12 of those coming in the second half and Nick Dorn had 11 points off the bench.
“We never really had any flow in that second half. But after a little lull there, I thought we were able to get it pushed back out,” DeVries said. “I thought Tayton did a good job getting downhill and getting to the rim and creating some things for us to open that thing back up again.”
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Indiana basketball limps to the finish line thanks to sluggish second half
Sienna showed signs of life early in the second half while IU went 2 of 12 coming out of the break. Indiana coach Darain DeVries burned a timeout with 11:42 left after Nick Dorn made a half-hearted attempt to secure a defensive rebound and allowed the Saints a layup to cut their lead to 17 points.
DeVries used another timeout with his team struggling to inbound the ball against Sienna’s full-court press only for Lamar Wilkerson to still throw the ball away.
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The exchange highlighted Indiana’s lack of focus in the second half that it won’t be able to afford once Big Ten play resumes.
“I thought these last maybe two weeks we’ve become a little more turnover prone,” DeVries said.
Indiana’s ball movement also ground to a halt in the second half with only two assists on nine field goals. That’s been a common theme whenever IU’s offense goes stagnant this season regardless of how they are shooting the ball from 3-point range.
Dec 22, 2025; Bloomington, Indiana, USA; Indiana Hoosiers forward Nick Dorn (7) celebrates after a play during the first half against the Siena Saints at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. Mandatory Credit: Robert Goddin-Imagn Images
Lamar Wilkerson can’t finish what he started against Siena
Wilkerson had the early hot hand with 19 points of his 23 points in the first half.
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He managed to top 20 points for the third time in four games, but never really got going down the stretch after picking up two fouls in less than 40 seconds midway through the second half (his third and fourth of the game) at a time when IU was struggling on the offensive end.
The Hoosiers had enough of a lead where it didn’t hurt them — he went scoreless for the final 10:29 — but he needs better situational awareness to avoid taking himself off the floor in critical situations. This was the fourth time this season he’s finished a game with at least four fouls.
Dec 22, 2025; Bloomington, Indiana, USA; Siena Saints guard Gavin Doty (4) forces a jump ball with Indiana Hoosiers forward Tucker Devries (12) during the second half at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. Mandatory Credit: Robert Goddin-Imagn Images
Indiana basketball looks to get Tucker DeVries back on track
Indiana opened the game by running a play for Tucker DeVries on its first possession in hopes of getting him into a rhythm. He shot just 32.3% from the field in IU’s previous five games and was just 12 of 47 (25.5%) from 3-point range during that stretch.
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The focus on running him off screens and getting the ball in his hands eventually paid dividends with him knocking down a couple of contested 3-pointers. He finished the game with his second double-double of the season with 11 rebounds.
“Even the really good shooters sometimes can get in a little slump and start to question themselves a little bit,” Darian DeVries said. “We even mentioned it the other night when Lamar had a little stretch earlier in the year just trying to find him an easy one. So we started the game out trying to get him a post touch to see if we could get something going a little farther in, see the ball go in, and hopefully get that started for him.”
Michael Niziolek is the Indiana beat reporter for The Bloomington Herald-Times. You can follow him on X @michaelniziolek and read all his coverage by clicking here.
This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Indiana basketball beats Siena to close out nonconference schedule