BLOOMINGTON — After burying a step back 3-pointer early in the second half on Tuesday night against Sam Houston State, Indiana basketball forward Luke Goode soaked in the ovation from the crowd at Assembly Hall.
The Illinois transfer surpassed his season-high in scoring (nine) by halftime in a 97-71 win over the Bearkats and gave his team a much-needed spark as IU looked to turn the page on a series of disappointing performances in the Bahamas.
That 3-pointer he hit with 14:48 to go in the second half brought Goode all the way back to his childhood when he regularly attended Hoosiers’ games as a fan and harbored dreams of one day donning their famed candy stripes warmups.
“I have pictures of me from behind the bench at the game sitting in my uncle’s seat when I was like ten years old,” the Fort Wayne native said, after the game. “…I hope people realize that when I go out there and play. I play as hard as I possibly can when I’m on the court to represent this program the way it should be represented.”
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Indiana basketball forward Luke Goode has a ‘fantastic’ performance
Indiana coach Mike Woodson signed Goode out of the transfer portal to help improve his team’s woeful 3-point shooting and give the Hoosiers a reliable scoring option off the bench.
He struggled with both assignments through the first month of the season. He came into Tuesday night’s game averaging just 4.3 points a game while shooting just 28.6% (6 of 21) from 3-point range.
Goode, who shot 38.8% from the outside during his three seasons at Illinois, broke out of that slump in a big way against Sam Houston State. He scored a career-high 18 points and set a new career-high with five made 3-pointers.
The only thing that slowed him down was foul trouble.
“It’s just a testament to the process,” Goode said. “I believe in myself and know I’m one of the best shooters in the conference, and I feel that way every day. I go through the same routine I do every day regardless if I shoot well, if I shoot well, and approach the game that way.”
Woodson, who described Goode’s play as “fantastic”, ran some plays to get the ball in Goode’s hands, but much of his offense came in the flow of the game. He got some open looks on the fast break and knocked down multiple shots on kickouts from the post.
“It opens up everything that you do from an offensive standpoint,” Woodson said, of Goode’s 3-point touch.
Goode was grateful of the confidence Woodson and his teammates had in him despite his early season slump.
“Coach Woodson and my teammates still have faith in me,” Goode said. “Every time I miss a shot, they give me high five and say, you’re the best shooter that we know. This is what you do. So it’s a lot of confidence that they give me, and I’m very appreciative of that.”
He helped IU’s bench have its most productive game of the season with 36 points. The group averaged 17 points through the team’s first seven games.
It was only the fourth time in eight games Indiana had a double-digit scorer off the bench and the Hoosiers are 4-0 in those games. Bryson Tucker did it twice (Eastern Illinois and UNC Greensboro) and Trey Galloway had 11 points against South Carolina.
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Indiana basketball forward Luke Goode has clear-eyed view of Hoosiers’ early season struggles: ‘All toughness’
Indiana’s back-to-back double-digit losses in the Battle 4 Atlantis to Louisville and Gonzaga left fans concerned about the state of the program. Goode was asked for his thoughts on the team’s struggles after the team had some time in recent days to view the film.
“At the end of the day, it comes down to who plays the hardest,” Goode said. “I think we just didn’t play the hardest. It’s something we fixed during the week. I think we came out today and played a lot harder on defense. Tweaked a couple things.”
“Coach Woodson obviously saw something that needed to change, and we changed that today. I think it’s continuing to come in every day and be the hardest playing team. I think that’s something we got to preach and that’s why we lost those games.”
Goode, who came to Bloomington with 76 career games under his belt, will be one of the veterans preaching that message. He’s become a respected voice in IU’s locker room with his run to the Elite Eight last season giving him instant credibility with his new teammates.
He’s a vocal presence on and off the court in hopes of helping the Hoosiers reach their full potential.
“I think we have one of the most talented teams in the country,” Goode said. “The day that I got here every single guy that’s getting major minutes and even the guys that aren’t, the talent on this team is ridiculous. I think it’s the best talent this program has had in a long time.”
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: Luke Goode’s career night comes at a good time for Hoosiers
