Zach Osterman

zach.osterman@indystar.com

IU at Penn State, 7 p.m., Wednesday, BTN

BLOOMINGTON — If Tom Crean knew it would be so easy, he might have tried it weeks ago.

Speaking on his pregame radio show Sunday, Indiana's basketball coach addressed a number of keys to success against Rutgers, the Big Ten’s last-place team. Among them: force more turnovers, a persistent problem all season.

So Indiana forced 21 turnovers, including 14 steals, an IU best under Crean in a conference game. The idea of it all starting with a radio show comment is admittedly tongue-in-cheek, but the performance certainly registered.

“We wanted to be active,” Crean said postgame. “No question about it. We wanted to set the tone with the defense, and we thought we did that.”

Competition is worth taking into account — Rutgers is currently 270th nationally in turnover rate. But so too is Indiana’s now months-long fight against defensive regression, a multi-faceted problem that has marked the Hoosiers’ backslide from the national top 10 to the NCAA tournament bubble.

In November, Indiana defeated Kansas and North Carolina in part because of defense, whether it be running the Jayhawks off the 3-point line or shutting down Joel Berry II, the Tar Heels’ lead guard.

Since then, the decline in defensive consistency has marked nearly every one of IU’s poor results, from Butler to Nebraska to Louisville to Wisconsin. It has manifested itself in a number of areas, with points per possession allowed sinking to 0.99 currently.

In Big Ten games alone, the Hoosiers are allowing 1.096 points per possession, ninth in the league.

It’s commonplace to couple that decline with IU’s persistent turnover problems, ill-timed giveaways too often leading to good looks in transition, where the Hoosiers are often at their worst defensively.

But quietly, the inability to force turnovers, and offer some counterweight to those issues, has been equally problematic. Crean-coached teams have rarely been prolific at creating takeaways, but this winter has proved especially barren.

If the season ended today, Indiana’s opponent turnover rate (16.4 percent) would be the second-lowest number in Crean’s nine-year tenure behind only 2014-15, statistically the Hoosiers’ worst defensive team in the past 10 years.

Hence the added emphasis this weekend.

“We’re at our best when we’re able to get stops and run out,” junior guard James Blackmon Jr. said, “because we have so many athletes on this team. That’s our main focus, and I feel like we did that (against Rutgers).”

They did, and it paid off. Indiana’s 21 turnovers forced led directly to 33 points, a season high. IU outscored the Scarlet Knights 21-2 in fast-break points, and Rutgers finished with just five assists. Sophomore forward OG Anunoby finished with seven steals, a number that tied the fourth-best single-game performance in program history.

Crean’s pregame message wasn’t just heard on the radio.

“Yea, we all did,” Anunoby said, when asked if the Hoosiers took that challenge personally. “We all tried to jump the gaps and be aggressive with our hands.”

The complicated part will be repeating the process.

Indiana has shown signs of improved ball security. Not since committing 19 turnovers against Nebraska have the Hoosiers posted as many in one game as their season average of 15.1.

Still, it’s unlikely the turnover issue will ever be entirely resolved this season. It would be better addressed with steady improvement in both directions, committing just a few less, and forcing just a few more. Because Blackmon is right — as poor as IU might be defending in transition, the Hoosiers are outstanding when they themselves get out in the open floor, thanks to those athletes and good spot-up 3-point shooters.

“It’s a priority not to gamble, because we’re not quick enough to get up and just overplay and then snap your head and grab the backdoor pass,” Crean said Sunday. “But that’s an awareness thing. When your awareness is high, and when your urgency level is high, then you’re much better.”

Follow IndyStar reporter Zach Osterman on Twitter: @ZachOsterman.

IU stock watch: Blackmon, freshmen and more are up

INDIANA at PENN STATE

Tipoff: 7 p.m. Wednesday, Bryce Jordan Center, State College, Pa.

TV: Big Ten Network.

Radio: WIBC-FM (93.1).

STORYLINES

• After suffering three defeats to Penn State (11-7, 3-2 Big Ten) between the Nittany Lions' entrance into the conference (1990) and 2007, IU has lost eight times in the series since, including two of the past three. A road win Wednesday would be a boost for an Indiana (12-6, 2-3) team trying to get its season back on track after a frustrating turn of the year.

• Penn State's rotation includes a pair of talented freshmen that were one-time IU recruits as well. Between them, Lamar Stevens and Tony Carr are averaging 23.2 points, 11 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game.

• After a rocky nonconference season, Penn State has recovered well in Big Ten play. The Nittany Lions opened with a home loss to Northwestern but have since won three of four, including a victory over Michigan State in Philadelphia and a home win over Minnesota.

— Zach Osterman