BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — It was sloppy at times, high energy at others, but there was an underlying theme that came out of Wednesday’s exhibition opener at Assembly Hall.

The future of Indiana basketball is bright.

On a night when all eyes were on IU’s highly-touted freshmen, they didn’t disappoint.

Christian Watford had 19 points and 11 rebounds and IU’s five freshmen combined to score 52 points in the Hoosiers’ 96-73 win over Grace before an announced crowd of 15,453.

“We’ve been looking forward to showing people what we can do,‘’ Watford said. "A lot of publications have us ranked last in the Big Ten in the preseason and we just think we’re better than that.

“And I think we’re all eager to prove people wrong.’’

Jordan Hulls had 14 points, hitting 5-of-6 shots from the field. Derek Elston had 10 points and seven rebounds in 17 minutes. Bobby Capobianco had four points and seven rebounds and gave the Hoosiers a physical presence inside. Maurice Creek had five points and was one of four players with three steals.

The Hoosiers freshmen combined to make all 13 of their free throws, led by Watford’s nine. That is significant for a team that ranked last in the Big Ten at 64.9 percent last season.

“I thought as a group we came out and gave a good showing of ourselves,‘’ Elston said. "We’ve been waiting for this night for a long time. It was just an exhibition game, but it was our first chance to show people the way we’re capable of playing.’’

IU was shaky early. Grace, an NAIA school from Winona Lake, Ind., shot well and led 16-12. The score was tied at 36 with 1:33 to play in the first half before the Hoosiers scored the final six points of the half, including the last two on a steal at halfcourt and layup by Creek.

In the second half, IU pressured the ball better and challenged shots, two of Indiana coach Tom Crean’s points of emphasis going into the game.

“Like everything else with this team, we’ve got a long way to go and a lot of room to improve, and a lot of things we did tonight we haven’t even covered in practice yet,‘’ Crean said. "But I love their mind-set. I love their attitude. I love their desire to get better. I thought we were competitive, and I thought at one point, when they smelled blood, they really went for it.’’

That moment showcased the inspired play of junior transfer Jeremiah Rivers.

Rivers stole the ball from Grace’s Kyle Plumlee and dunked at the other end. Seconds later, Verdell Jones III stole the ball from David Swanson and hit Rivers in stride for a second dunk. They were IU’s only dunks of the game.

“It all happened so fast,‘’ Rivers said. "I kind of wanted to do something a little fancier but it was my first dunk of the year and my legs didn’t feel right. Then Verdell came up with a steal and I sprinted down the floor and looked at him and I could tell he wanted to throw me an alley oop, but I think my eyes said, ‘No, just throw me the ball,’ and that’s what he did.’’

Swanson led the Lancers with 19 points and Elliot Smith added 14.

Grace represents

More than 300 students from Grace made the four-hour drive to Bloomington and appreciated their team’s effort.

Grace coach Jim Kessler, in his 33rd season as the Lancers’ coach, told his players that if they believed they could be competitive, they could get off the team bus and head into Assembly Hall.

“But if they didn’t believe it, I told them just to sit out there on the bus until they did, and then they could come in,‘’ Kessler said. "They all came in.’’