INDIANAPOLIS - IUPUI shot a blistering 63.2 percent from the floor in the second half and held Valpo to just 7-of-22 shooting after halftime en route to a 68-54 win. The Jaguars overcame a halftime deficit for the first time this season, outscoring VU 43-23 after the break.
Meanwhile, the 54 points were the fewest by an IUPUI opponent since the season-opening 86-47 win over Alabama A&M at the BCA Classic.
Shooting wise, the second half was the exact opposite of the first. The Crusaders (13-12, 6-4 Mid-Con) shot 65.0 percent and held the Jags to just 30.8 percent shooting in the first half to surge out to a 31-25 halftime edge.
However, head coach Ron Hunter's team used a 32-19 advantage on the glass and held Valpo to just one offensive rebound in the win.
"We knew if (Valpo) were going to shoot the basketball that well, that we had to get the rebounds when they did miss," Hunter said. "We've really done a good job on the boards lately, and everyone was crashing. We knew they couldn't shoot over 60 percent the whole game, so it was key to limit them to one shot."
IUPUI (11-12, 4-5 Mid-Con) turned the tides early in the second half and held off a few different surges to claim its largest margin of victory ever over VU.
After Calum MacLeod made it 35-30 with 16:27 left on a sky hook, IUPUI orchestrated an 8-0 run to take the lead at 38-35. VU freshman Samuel Haanpaa tied the game by swishing a trey from the right wing, but sophomore Gary Patterson answered with a triple from in front of the IUPUI bench off a feed from senior David Barlow.
VU got within four on an Urule Igbavboa jumper with 8:03 left, but the Jags responded with seven straight points to put the game away. Sophomore Craig Swoope fired one of the final daggers, hitting a step back three as the shot clock was winding down.
Patterson and Austin Montgomery led four IUPUI players in double-digits with 15 each. Senior Angelo Smith added 14 on 5-of-10 shooting, while Swoope had 11 off the bench. Swoope was a perfect 3-of-3 from downtown and grabbed four rebounds.
Barlow finished with eight points and a game-high six assists.
"Our guys really responded well tonight," Hunter said. "David (Barlow) did a good job of getting everyone involved and we got points from a lot of different places. It was good to see us play as well as we did in the second half."
Brandon McPherson led with 15 points while Jake Diebler added 12. Diebler hit all four of his first half three-point attempts as VU hit 5-of-7 (71.4%) in the opening 20 minutes.
IUPUI scored the game's first nine points before Valpo was able to rally out to a 16-11 lead. Diebler hit two treys during the 16-2 run, including an off balanced hoist as the shot clock expired. The Jags crawled within one at the foul line, before the Crusaders took a six-point lead into halftime.
IUPUI concludes its current four-game homestand on Saturday when they host Western Illinois in The Jungle. The Jags have won the past 16 meetings between the two schools, including a 68-55 win at Western Hall back on Jan. 11.
Saturday's tip time is set for 7:00 p.m. with pregame coverage on Gold 95.9 FM starting at 6:30. Greg Rakestraw (pbp) and Scott McCauley (color) will call that contest.
