BLOOMINGTON – Christian Watford grabbed a rebound off Jeremiah Rivers’ miss, went back up between two defenders and scored.

The next time down the floor, Watford took a feed from Verdell Jones III under the hoop and scored an easy layup.

The back-to-back baskets extended a double-digit Indiana lead midway through the second half, and the Hoosiers eventually pulled away for a 96-73 victory over Grace in Wednesday’s exhibition game in front of 15,453 fans at Assembly Hall.

Watford was one of five freshmen who played in the first game of the year.

The 6-foot-9 forward from Birmingham, Ala., recorded a double-double with 19 points and 11 rebounds.

“It was a great experience. I had never played in front of a crowd like that so, of course, you want to come out and do the best you can, don’t mess up,” Watford said. “I’ve been working on rebounding. I think it’s paying off.”

Fellow freshmen Jordan Hulls, last year’s Indiana Mr. Basketball, had 14 points, three assists and three steals; Derek Elston finished with 10 points and seven rebounds; and Bobby Capobianco had seven rebounds.

“I don’t put a lot of emphasis on the points, I put more emphasis on the rotations, playing through fatigue, and I thought we took quality shots,” IU coach Tom Crean said. “… I thought all our freshmen came in and contributed and made strides as they got better.”

Rivers had 12 points in his first game as a Hoosier. The junior sat out last year with Indiana after transferring from Georgetown.

It wasn’t all newcomers.

Sophomore Tom Pritchard scored 12 points, and Jones finished with 10 points and eight assists.

Watford was the highest rated of a six-member recruiting class ranked nationally in the top 10 (Bawa Muniru did not play against Grace as he awaits an eligibility ruling from the NCAA).

Watford was ranked No. 34 in the class of 2009 by Rivals.com, the sixth-best small forward. He averaged 25 points and 13 rebounds as a senior at Shades Valley High School.

Wednesday, he was aided by getting to the foul line. Watford made all nine of his free throws. “I’m just trying to make plays,” Watford said, “do whatever I can to help the team win.”

It took awhile to shake off Grace, which trailed 48-46 with 15:22 remaining. David Swanson led the Lancers with 19 points, and David Henry made four three-pointers for 12 points.

“When they would get a little bit of a lead, we would knock a three,” Grace coach Jim Kessler said.

IU then went on a 14-2 run. Watford’s consecutive baskets stretched the lead to 14, at 62-48, with 10:11 to go.

The double-digit lead grew from there. Indiana’s final tuneup for the season will be Monday against Saint Joseph’s.

lpope@jg.net