If IU can replicate that hot 3-point shooting, it could unlock so much offensive potential

BLOOMINGTON — Some of the keys to shooting well from 3, as it turns out, aren’t confined to what happens on the basketball court.

That’s the case for Miller Kopp. Obviously, there is the physical part. Getting shots up — Kopp is a gym rat. Then, making them during games. During his second season at Northwestern, Kopp shot nearly 40% from deep.

But there’s also the mental side. Kopp was among IU’s most-criticized players last season, his first with the Hoosiers. He wasn't the 3-point shooting flamethrower many had hoped. Before this season started, Kopp, a fifth-year player, talked about having a lot of weight off his shoulders as far as expectations. Part of how Kopp worked on his game was to get away from it. That might seem counterintuitive. In reality, it is likely important.

“I did a lot of work on my golf swing this summer and tried to get outside and get tan a lot,” Kopp said. “So mentally I think that helped, and I think, if you look at the best basketball players, they all — Michael Jordan, Steph Curry — they all are great golfers too. So I think that helped.”

Insider:Xavier Johnson, Jalen Hood-Schifino look the part pulling strings for improved IU offense

More IU basketball:With only so many minutes to go around, Jordan Geronimo makes most of his

Perhaps no one exemplifies IU’s impressive shooting performance in its 101-49 win over Bethune-Cookman last Thursday night more than Kopp. The veteran was 4-of-6 from deep. As a team, the Hoosiers shot 10-of-24 (41.7%) from behind the arc. Not to mention free throws, too. The Hoosiers were 21-of-22 (95.5%) from the free-throw line. Freshman Kaleb Banks was 6-of-6 from the line. Two of IU’s biggest weaknesses in recent seasons were a strength on Thursday.

“It didn't hurt us that we made shots from the perimeter and we made our free throws,” IU coach Mike Woodson said postgame.

It wasn’t just the rate at which IU made shots, but also the confidence it seemed to take them with. This was meaningful given the context. The Hoosiers’ 3-point shooting woes have hung over the program like a dark cloud during recent seasons. Even if it wasn’t this specific roster, it has haunted the program —at least externally. But on Thursday, IU seemed to let it fly with conviction.

“I think just shooting the ball with confidence is a big thing for us because we know we've got guys that can make shots,” junior guard Trey Galloway said. “So just continuous repetition of that and having guys be ready to step up and knock it down. And obviously, free-throws is pretty much mental. You've got to go up to the line with that mentality that you're going to step up and knock it down.”

It’s important to understand the caveats here. This was Bethune-Cookman. This was just one game. Shooting nearly 42% from 3 and better than 95% from the stripe might not be sustainable over the course of the season. But it does serve as a framework for what’s possible. These were tangible results. Yes, his team can shoot well. The question becomes whether this performance becomes an outlier or a trend.

And it wasn't just Kopp hitting 3s. Galloway hit two. Xavier Johnson, Malik Reneau, Tamar Bates and Jordan Geronimo each added one.

Each one of those players’ ability to hit from deep holds importance. Galloway, who has been most effective offensively as a slasher and creator during his career at IU, opens up new opportunities for both himself and the team if he can make shots from deep. Johnson’s ability to hit from 3 would make him even more difficult to contain. Though Bates only shot 1-of-4 from 3 Thursday, he looked like someone who believed the shot was going in, which underscores the overall confidence IU radiated. Kopp headlined the group, performing like the high-efficiency shooter IU needs him to be.

“He's put in a lot of time this summer shooting the basketball,” Woodson said of Kopp. “When we all got together, he was making them in practice. So I'm not shocked that he's making them now in the game. He's in a good space mentally-wise, and it's kind of nice to see him knocking them down because it helps us.”

Then there’s Geronimo and Reneau. That IU’s frontcourt can step out and make 3s is a fascinating dynamic. Geronimo looked dangerously comfortable when he hit a 3. Reneau’s lefty stroke is smooth and fluid. A few seasons ago, there were times when IU played three players together that weren’t threats from behind the arc — Justin Smith, Trayce Jackson-Davis and Joey Brunk. Now, IU has lineups with the potential for everybody on the floor to make 3s.

This contributes to the idea that IU’s offense has another dimension if the Hoosiers can shoot like this from deep. There were times last season, another campaign of collective 3-point shooting struggles, where the Hoosiers became too reliant on Jackson-Davis or the abilities of Johnson. Early evidence this season indicates this could be a team with a very good player on it (Jackson-Davis). Not a team carried by a very good player.

The ripple effects of good shooting are part of its importance. Good shooting should mean good floor spacing. Which could mean more room for Jackson-Davis to maneuver inside, along with more driving lanes for Johnson and Jalen Hood-Schifino. Suddenly, IU’s offense could become dynamic, which flashed moments last Thursday.

It’s still very early. Whether IU will be a good shooting team — from 3s and from the free-throw line — is still to be determined. But last Thursday was a small indication that it could open up another world of possibilities.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: IU basketball: If Hoosiers start hitting 3s, this offense could purr