Indy Eleven has started to improve from their slow Spring 2017 season start. After picking up seven points and not winning a game through their first 12 games, they have now won two consecutive games and drew away against the Cosmos last Tuesday. As they head back to Indianapolis trying to ride this wave, it is important to try and understand why they have improved, and who is at the center of that improvement.

One player who has flourished over the last few games is striker, Justin Braun. He was involved in both goals during their second win of the season against North Carolina FC and has been a great distributor as well. His stats show that he has improved drastically.

Braun has excelled in the central striking role. He boasted an incredible 90% pass success rate in their game on June 24th against North Carolina and created three clear-cut chances with his passing, which was not only successful, but also incredibly well balanced, as Braun passed at least 20% of the time to all four directions around him.

His assist against North Carolina FC to give Indy Eleven a 2-1 lead on June 24th was the perfect example of how his game has improved. Afraid of his passing ability and unsure as to what direction he would pass in, Carolina’s defense dropped off the striker. Braun kept his head up and was able to thread a perfect pass through to Éamon Zayed, who duly obliged and put the ball in the back of the net.

Although he did not score or assist against the New York Cosmos, Braun’s distribution caused the Cosmos problems all night. Braun’s improvement continued, as his passing on the 4th of July was 92%. Even though Indy Eleven took a defensive approach against the Cosmos and Braun was left isolated for long periods of time, he was still able to create good chances for his team.

Braun displayed a wide range of passing ability. While he played a large amount of his passes to the right side of the field, he played a minimum 19.2% of his passes in every direction, making sure that when he got the ball, the Cosmos would be unable to predict his passing. Unlike North Carolina, the Cosmos center backs challenged Braun when he got the ball, and yet he still had an incredible pass success rate.

When the Cosmos travel to Indiana on Saturday, they will have to make sure they keep him contained like they did in the past game.

Catch the game on Saturday, July 8 at 7:30 pm on MSG Networks and ESPN3.