Malik Reneau and Jalen Hood-Schifino combined for 25 points in Indiana's 78-42 win over Marian, giving a hint of how much they can be counted on.
IU basketball got its first action of the season in an exhibition victory over MarianBLOOMINGTON -- Jalen Hood-Schifino had reason to expect he'd start for Indiana on Saturday with word of his excellent preseason work having spread far enough for draft experts to start musing about the possibility the freshman guard would be taken in 2023 NBA draft.
It helped, of course, that the No. 14 Hoosiers were playing an NAIA program in Marian, and their 78-42 cruise in the season's first exhibition came as no surprise. On their way to back-to-back high school national championships at Montverde, Hood-Schifino and Reneau saw plenty of more impressive collections of talent, and they practiced with and against a bevy of other prized recruits including Jalen Duren and Caleb Houstan, who were taken in the 2022 NBA draft.
Frankly, Reneau played like the fellow left-hander he was starting in place of. Jackson-Davis may have been a little more athletic when he arrived at IU, but not dramatically so. And Reneau may be every bit as skilled with even a little more variety in his offensive repertoire.And Hood-Schifino seems, in a manner of speaking, to be a monster wherever he is on the floor. He finished with 11 points on 5 of 8 shooting, four assists, three rebounds and a steal against just two turnovers.
He also showed off his skill as a passer with his four assists, including a pocket pass to Reneau on a pick-and-roll that Reneau turned into an easy layup. Hood-Schifino was aggressive, but under control, showing the maturity and polish of a player who was not just playing his first college game that didn't count.