FORT WAYNE – Jeremy Hollowell scored more than 1,000 points during his high school career.

He’s continued to provide some scoring punch off the bench as a freshman for No. 1 Indiana.

Hollowell reached double figures in scoring in both of the Hoosiers’ games.

He had 12 points in the 97-54 victory against Bryant in the season opener Friday.

The 6-foot-8 forward added 14 points Monday against North Dakota State.

“I just want to play within myself, come in off the bench and provide a spark for the team and bring energy,” Hollowell said after the 87-61 win against North Dakota State at Assembly Hall.

Hollowell’s transition to the college game has impressed his coaches and teammates.

“It’s always tough going from high school to college,” IU sophomore forward Cody Zeller said. “He worked hard this summer, and it’s carried over to the first few games. He’s going to be big for us this year. He has to just keep on improving.

“… He’s very skilled. He can go inside or outside. You want to play with guys like that. It makes it a lot easier on everyone. He should be big for us this year.”

Hollowell concentrated on attacking the basket Monday. He was rewarded with trips to the foul line.

Hollowell made 5 of 6 free throws.

“I don’t want to settle too much on the outside,” Hollowell said. “I want to use my body and drive the ball to the basket and get fouled.”

IU coach Tom Crean liked what he saw out of Hollowell on both ends of the court.

“He made some strides (Monday) defensively,” Crean said. “We can do a lot of things with him. He’s got to continue to bring that emotional level to the game. He will get neutralized. He’s very, very smart. There’s not one play, for a freshman this is unique, (Kevin) “Yogi” (Ferrell) and Jeremy really have the stuff we’re trying to run down.

“… Jeremy will peak if his emotional level doesn’t continue to rise like it needs to, but we knew that when we recruited him, he knew we knew that when we recruited him, and he knows that we’re going to keep pulling it out of him until it’s there. And as that grows, he’ll grow as a player without a doubt because he can stuff that stat sheet, can’t he?

“He’s always been able to do that, but he’s got to be able to impact winning on both sides of the floor, and (Monday) and last Friday night he did that.”

Hollowell was ranked the No. 41 player overall for the Class of 2012 by Rivals.com. He averaged 23.9 points as a senior at Lawrence North.

He’s added depth to a bench that is averaging 38.5 points this season.

“On this team with the amount of talent we have, you just have to get in and find your role,” Hollowell said. “I just want to come in and maximize my minutes and play to my strengths and provide energy.”

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