Miami, Florida native Malik Reneau has become one of the most consistent post scorers in the Big Ten over three seasons in Bloomington.
The 6-foot-9 senior led the Hoosiers in scoring as a junior and had the highest usage rate on the roster. Reneau scored double figures in 11 of IU’s first 13 games this season as he started alongside Arizona transfer Oumar Ballo.
His top early season performance came against Sam Houston State. Reneau stuffed the stat sheet against the Bearkats, finishing with 18 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and three steals in a comfortable 97-71 victory. He was 7-for-10 from the field and 4-for-4 from the free-throw line.
A knee injury, however, would alter the course of Reneau’s season. Early in IU’s January 2 contest against Rutgers, Reneau suffered an MCL sprain that forced him to miss the next three weeks.
When he returned, it was clear there was rust to shake off. After missing five games, Reneau came off the bench against Northwestern at Welsh Ryan Arena and struggled. The lefty was 0-for-6 from the field and finished with two points in 11 minutes.
The struggles continued in games against Maryland, Purdue and Wisconsin, all losses for IU. Reneau averaged 6.3 points over that three-game stretch and didn’t look 100 percent healthy.
On February 8 against Michigan – more than a month after suffering his injury – Reneau looked like himself again. In a narrow 70-67 loss to the Wolverines, Reneau tallied 16 points, five assists and three rebounds in 30 minutes.
That performance began an impressive four-game stretch for Reneau, during which he scored at least 14 points in each contest. He was unstoppable in IU’s most impressive win of the season at Michigan State on February 11. Reneau finished with 19 points and 12 rebounds in 29 minutes off the bench.
Reneau was also pivotal in IU’s win against Purdue at Assembly Hall on February 23. He scored 15 points and added six rebounds and four assists in 24 minutes. That was Reneau’s final start of the season as he missed the next game against Penn State with an illness and came off the bench for the final four games.
He dominated Washington with 22 points in a 78-62 win on March 1 and poured in 16 points in IU’s final victory of the season against Ohio State on March 8 in Bloomington. In IU’s final game of the season – a 72-59 loss to Oregon in the Big Ten tournament – Reneau paced the Hoosiers with 19 points in 24 minutes.
While Reneau showed some promise as a sophomore from the perimeter, that part of his game disappeared in his third season. He was just 3-for-24 on 3s, making his fit with Ballo difficult because the Hoosiers were unable to space the floor.
Reneau improved his free-throw shooting by five percentage points this season and his offensive and defensive rebounding percentages improved, too. His turnover rate also dropped by nearly six percent.
Bottom line: An All-Big Ten honorable mention selection, Reneau has one season of eligibility left and a decision to make about his future. While not a true center, that’s where he has to play because he struggles to guard away from the basket. He’s one of the most crafty post scorers in the country and will have plenty of interest if he opts to enter the transfer portal.
Quotable: “I can’t say enough about Malik because I went to him before the game and told him he wasn’t starting. “That didn’t sit well with him, but he said, ‘coach, whatever you need me to do.’ He came in and played his ass off. That’s all you can ask for. It’s about team.” – Woodson on Reneau following Indiana’s win at Michigan State.
