BLOOMINGTON — Troy Williams has found the Big Ten spotlight, and if he has to share it with Penn State’s Brandon Taylor, does it matter?
It certainly doesn’t to the Hoosiers, who thanks to Williams’ renewed game-changing play have returned to the Top-15 status they last enjoyed in November.
Oh, yes. They also have the Big Ten lead.
Williams, a 6-foot-7 junior swingman, earned Big Ten Player of the Week honors for the second time in his career after averaging 18.5 points, 3.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 2.5 steals in wins over Purdue and Nebraska. He was 15-for-20 from the field, 3-for-6 from three-point range. He also surpassed 1,000 points for his career.
Taylor shared the weekly honors by averaging 17.5 points, 11.5 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.5 blocks as Penn State beat Iowa and Rutgers.
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Williams has bounced back in a big way after a scoreless effort at Michigan State eight days ago. As one of the conference’s better players, with NBA aspirations, he had to be better than that, one of several points coach Tom Crean made when the two met for a here’s-how-we-fix-it conversation.
“The worst thing that could happen when somebody is struggling is you keep reminding them of it,” Crean said. “There’s enough talk on the outside (about a slump). That’s not what is relevant.
“The last thing we want to do is dwell on what’s not working. We want to make sure we’re spending enough time on what is, and try to refine it.”
And that meant taking the play to the opposition.
“It was key, not only that we talk about (Troy) being more aggressive, but that we actually put him in situations where he can be, in practice, and hold him accountable a bit more, which I do,” Crean said. “Then it just carries to the game.
“His focus is really strong. He’s just getting better all the time.”
Williams averages a career-best 13.2 points while shooting 54.4 percent. He also averages a team-leading 6.1 rebounds. He shares the team lead in steals with Yogi Ferrell. Both have 33.
Still, Williams remains a work in progress. He has a career-high 74 turnovers in 27 games, three more than he had in 31 games last season.
On his Monday night radio show, Crean said of Williams and his big week: “He responded. He didn’t play very well (against Michigan State). He knew it. We knew it. He did something about it.”
Crean also said on his radio show that sophomore guard Robert Johnson has a sprained left ankle and his status for Thursday’s game at Illinois is uncertain. Johnson averages 8.1 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.1 assists. He’s also one of IU’s top three-point shooters, averaging 44.1 percent.
The Hoosiers (22-5, 12-3) jumped to No. 15 in the weekly coaches’ poll and No. 18 in the Associated Press poll. It’s their best ranking since being No. 13 in late November before poor performances at the Maui Invitational and then at Purdue knocked them out of the polls.
Four-star football commit: Did coach Kevin Wilson’s new six-year contract help him land the most highly rated recruit of his Hoosier career?
It didn’t hurt.
Ohio athlete Lynn Bowden has become Wilson’s fourth commitment for the Class of 2017. He’s a four-star recruit. Scout.com rates him as the best athlete prospect in the Midwest. Michigan, Tennessee and West Virginia are among the schools to offer him scholarships.
The other IU commitments are Avon defensive back Bryant Fitzgerald, Florida offensive tackle Tyler Knight and Arkansas receiver Josh Johnson. They are all three-star prospects.
Yes, this means the Hoosiers must sweat out the next 12 months before national signing day, but they’re off to a good start.
The 6-foot, 185-pound Bowden, expected to play either running back or defensive back for the Hoosiers, is a dual-threat quarterback for Warren G. Harding High School. Last year as a junior he threw for 640 yards and eight touchdowns, rushed for 1,827 yards and 20 TDs.
Bowden was rated by 247 Sports as the No. 81 player nationally and No. 3 in the state of Ohio.
Also, incoming freshman defensive lineman Allen Stallings from Oak Park-River Forest won the Class 3A 220-pound state title in Illinois over the weekend.
Finally, four former Hoosiers are participating in this week’s NFL Combine in Indianapolis — quarterback Nate Sudfeld, left tackle Jason Spriggs, running back Jordan Howard and defensive lineman Darius Latham.