Myles Rice ‘was who we thought he was’ for Indiana basketball in exhibition win — showing glimpses of just how important he’ll be this season

The addition of Myles Rice this offseason was a critical step for the Indiana basketball program in terms of setting the tone for what it wanted to be during the 2024-25 season. After a very up-and-down year — and more down than up — from IU’s backcourt, getting consistent performances from its guards was a point of emphasis for Mike Woodson. He said it himself, ‘you need great guards to win’.

In Sunday’s 66-62 exhibition win against preseason No. 12 Tennessee, it was the first time fans saw Myles Rice in action. He didn’t disappoint.

“Myles (Rice) was who we thought he was going to be in terms of running a ball club,” Woodson said of Rice’s performance during his weekly radio show on Monday.

Rice was not only terrific at scoring the ball, but his pace, playmaking and clutch moments stood out from start to finish. He finished with 20 points on 7-of-14 from the field with four assists and zero turnovers in 31 minutes and had a game-high +/- at +12.

His ability to score the ball stands out, then his ability to make plays for his teammates. But, he isn’t scared of any moment and that’s what stands out the most. He iced the game with a critical pull-up jump from just inside the three-point line, an assist on the next possession and then a defensive rebound and free throw to seal the game.

That ability was what stood out most for Mike Woodson.

“I trust him a lot,” Woodson said after the game. “You saw him tonight. He makes basketball plays, winning plays. And he can score the ball. And he can make free throws, so that’s a bonus.

“Myles was good coming down the stretch, making basketball plays for us offensively.”

Despite it being an exhibition, it was as physical a 40-minute game that you may find during the season. Tennessee brings the defensive pressure from 94-feet, and did so on Sunday. And, that was a concern for the Hoosiers early on — who were struggling to get into sets or find any rythym in the half court.

“They physically took us out of a lot of things we tried to do,” Woodson said. “That’s something I need to help us do — get better offensively.”

Indiana scored just 25 points in the first half and shot just 33.3 percent from the field. There were also 10 turnovers and just four assists. Then, things flipped. Indiana would score 41 second-half points while shooting 51.9 percent from the floor — with seven assists to just three turnovers.

“He just pushes the pace,” IU junior forward Malik Reneau said. “It’s just hard to keep up with him — especially defensively, when he’s pushing it down and they’ve got to set up their defense, he’s just getting past it. It just makes it easy to dish off and finish at the rim when you’re down there. He just makes the game so easy.”

Rice, who averaged 14.8 points per game as a redshirt freshman last season for Washington State, is going to be asked to do a lot for Indiana. Not only does he need to score, but he needs to be the all-around leader and floor general that IU has been missing for quite some time.

He continues to check the boxes, says Woodson.

“That’s a tough position because everyone is crying for the ball,” Woodson said on Monday. ” … Last night he picked his spots in terms of how he wanted to go score the basketball and did a great job getting downhill, scoring at the rim. I like everything about Myles.”

As for Indiana basketball as a whole — while Sunday’s game didn’t and won’t count for its record, it’s a massive confidence builder for a team still figuring each other out.

“I hope it pays off big time for us,” Woodson said. “You can learn a lot from a game like this … I like the competition like that, man. These guys have been beating up each other but not like this. this team physically got after us tonight.”

SEE ALSO: Key takeaways from the Indiana basketball 66-62 exhibition win over Tennessee

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