For first time in nearly 2 years, IU basketball finally has all scholarship players available

• IU vs. Nebraska, 8 p.m., Friday, BTN

BLOOMINGTON – Lost in the ugly, cagey nature of Indiana’s win against UConn on Tuesday night in New York was the pestersome streak that finally died, before the game even tipped off.

With Rob Phinisee available to play 13 minutes against the Huskies, IU coach Archie Miller finally had every single scholarship player on his roster available at the same time. No injuries, no suspensions, no mysterious conditions.

“This is the first time all season we’ve had all 11 available,” Miller said Tuesday. “It helped tonight.”

That wasn’t just a first for this season.

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For the first time since a 71-61 loss at Wisconsin on Jan. 2, 2018, Miller had a full complement of healthy scholarship players available. Indiana endured 60-straight games over almost two full years without that luxury.

De’Ron Davis started that night in Madison, before rupturing his Achilles tendon in practice days later, ending his sophomore season. The following winter, Jerome Hunter would be forced to sit and redshirt his freshman year with a leg condition.

In the intervening time, the Hoosiers dealt with concussions, back problems, ankle sprains, abdominal issues, calf injuries, hamstring injuries and even a busted thumb. Miller’s second season in charge was submarined by health issues across his roster. Indiana began its current campaign with Phinisee, Davis, Devonte Green and Al Durham all carrying various problems.

Tuesday night marked the first time — hobbled or no — Miller could call on any member of his roster he wished.

And he did, using all 11 scholarship players in a grinding 57-54 win in which no Hoosier scored in double figures. The last remaining holdout had been Phinisee, who appeared in four of IU’s first five games before missing the next four.

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“Hopefully this is a good sign, getting him back,” Miller said. “It kind of showed, I thought, what we can be.”

As this team’s point guard, one of its best perimeter defenders and an undeniable steadying presence, Phinisee’s absence had weighed on the Hoosiers over the past two weeks. He alone wouldn’t have made the difference in the rout at Wisconsin, but Indiana nevertheless missed his calming influence in Madison.

Phinisee managed six points, four rebounds and two assists over 13 minutes Tuesday. He hit all four of his free throws, including a pair in crunch time late in a game only decided for good in the final seconds. Generally, he reminded Indiana almost immediately what it missed when he was away.

“I thought he went in there and did what he does,” Miller said. “Defensively, he impacted the game when he came in. and then offensively, he’s steady and he’s strong. He doesn’t just fire the ball all over the place. He keeps it tight.”

This is the team, at least roughly, Miller has envisioned from the earliest days of preseason. Versatile enough to match up anywhere, deep enough to rotate 10-11 players most nights, keeping everyone relatively fresh.

He hasn’t been able to do that with any team in almost two years, which should serve as a reminder of potential fragility going forward. But with just three games between now and the return (for good) of Big Ten play at Maryland on Jan. 4, Miller should be able to rest his roster in spurts over the coming weeks.

Maybe that will mean an end to nearly two full years of injury headache.

Follow IndyStar reporter Zach Osterman on Twitter: @ZachOsterman.

INDIANA VS. NEBRASKA

Tipoff: 8 p.m., Friday, Assembly Hall

TV: BTN