Caleb Houstan was wide-open at the wing four minutes into the second half. He had time to position his feet behind the three-point line but couldn't get his right toes far back enough.
The shot went in which heightened Michigan's double-digit lead over Indiana, but the baseline ref called it a two-point basket, much to the chagrin of the former five-star small forward.
Houstan chirped and complained and the sideline referee had enough, signaling the technical foul with 15:50 remaining at Assembly Hall. Visibly upset about the call, Houstan knew to compose himself in order to not be thrown out of the game.
"I was more like trying to hype myself up and talking to myself" he said. "I guess the ref heard what I was saying. From there, obviously he gave my the technical. I just have to watch out and have say things a little quieter."
Considering the performance he put on against the Hoosiers on Sunday, an ejection would have been a disappointing finale to a career-high feat for him. The 6-foot-8 native of Canada would score 19 points on 7-of-12 shooting, including five-made three-pointers.
Houstan was one of four Wolverines to notch double-digit points and finished with a team-high in triples to lead Michigan to a 80-62 win down in Bloomington. Facing a hostile Indiana crowd, who were coming off a rightful high of the upset to No. 4 Purdue at home, Houstan wiped out any questions of whether his shooting improvement would continue on the road.
Coming off a 16-point outing in which Houstan shot 6-of-7 on Tuesday against Maryland, he continues to prove why he was the No. 9 ranked recruit and No. 1 small forward from the 2021 class.
"Obviously it feels good to make shots," Houstan said. "I think I'm in a really good place right now for sure."
To be in a spot mentally where self-doubts are lacking and confidence is high will be crucial for Houstan to remain at the pace he's playing with Big Ten play in full swing.
Earning arguably its best win on the season at Indiana before heading back home against Northwestern and a matchup with Michigan State in East Lansing starts the building block for the Wolverines of adding to their resume for a spot in the NCAA Tournament.
"(Caleb's) has always been rock solid every time and all the time," head coach Juwan Howard said. "He comes into practice, getting his work in, watching film, learning the game, and staying dialed in mentally. It's beautiful for a young man to be wired that way
Houstan's performance on Sunday might be a microcosm of how Michigan runs its offense moving forward. Reiterating what Daniel Dash wrote in his takeaways article, If opposing clubs are forced to be honest in guarding Houstan around the perimeter, it opens up the paint for the big men down low.
That showed with Hunter Dickinson posting 25 points on 9-of-12 shooting. Moussa Diabate would add 10 points on two shots and six made free throws.
Spacing was one of the things Michigan struggled with to open up the season. Now, it appears that the chinks in the armor are starting to be patched up at an important time of the year.
Houstan will have his off-nights but Sunday delivered a heavy remainder of what he can do on the offensive end.
"Special things is going to happen for (Caleb) in this game of basketball because of just how his mindset is designed," Howard said. "I just admire being around a guy like Caleb because I see so much growth from him game-after-game."
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