Interesting match up against a good, but not great Big 10 opponent. The Hoosiers have not been to the tournament since 2016. Mike Woodson is their coach, former coach for the New York Knicks. Listening to his post Selection Sunday interview, he gave me flashbacks to AE. "Again at the end of the day, we got in". He seemed irritated about being in the First four and their media is already pissed about the quick turnaround to Portland, never mind the fact that it is much closer to Dayton from Bloomington than Laramie. Maybe they need to worry about the Pokes first before worrying about traveling on Thursday.
Indiana is a quality defensive team that is long but not necessarily big. Their offense is inconsistent and that led to their 9-11 conference record. They are dependent on a senior PG in Xavier Johnson that likes to drive and score or pass and lob to forwards Race Thompson and Trayce Jackson-Davis. Jackson Davis is their best scorer, rebounder and shot blocker. Jackson-Davis was second team All Big 10 and all defensive team. He reminds me of Roddy a little bit. Race Thompson might actually be the toughest matchup for the Pokes as he is another long forward with good offensive skill. Cutting off Johnson and keeping him from penetrating will be crucial. They have good 3 point threats and their best 3 baller is Parker Stewart, son of the late Anthony Stewart, a former assistant at UW.
Indiana balled out at times during the Big 10 tournament and Iowa banked in a 3 to knock them off in the semi finals. Late in their conference season they suffered a 5 game losing streak and lost 7 of their last 9. They definitely can go into lulls scoring, just like the Pokes but do have several skilled offensive players that can get hot.
In conclusion, this is a winnable game for the Cowboys but they will have to play like they did in January and early February and not so much like they have played lately. The short turn around hurts the tired Cowboys and it will interesting to see if they have the services of Brenden Wentzel. HOWEVER the short turn around could also HELP the Cowboys because we play such an unorthodox offense. Who else has a post up point guard and post player? Again, the key will be stopping Johnson from penetrating and getting in a rhythm offensively. Jackson-Davis is going to get his points and Ike will have to be careful not to get into foul trouble because Jackson Davis will dine on everyone else. Indiana is athletic enough to bother Ike if he hesitates so he needs to be decisive and look for the open shooters. Maldo against their guards will be interesting. Drake and X are going to have to hit their threes for the Pokes to win, plain and simple. Go Pokes!
Indiana is a quality defensive team that is long but not necessarily big. Their offense is inconsistent and that led to their 9-11 conference record. They are dependent on a senior PG in Xavier Johnson that likes to drive and score or pass and lob to forwards Race Thompson and Trayce Jackson-Davis. Jackson Davis is their best scorer, rebounder and shot blocker. Jackson-Davis was second team All Big 10 and all defensive team. He reminds me of Roddy a little bit. Race Thompson might actually be the toughest matchup for the Pokes as he is another long forward with good offensive skill. Cutting off Johnson and keeping him from penetrating will be crucial. They have good 3 point threats and their best 3 baller is Parker Stewart, son of the late Anthony Stewart, a former assistant at UW.
Indiana balled out at times during the Big 10 tournament and Iowa banked in a 3 to knock them off in the semi finals. Late in their conference season they suffered a 5 game losing streak and lost 7 of their last 9. They definitely can go into lulls scoring, just like the Pokes but do have several skilled offensive players that can get hot.
In conclusion, this is a winnable game for the Cowboys but they will have to play like they did in January and early February and not so much like they have played lately. The short turn around hurts the tired Cowboys and it will interesting to see if they have the services of Brenden Wentzel. HOWEVER the short turn around could also HELP the Cowboys because we play such an unorthodox offense. Who else has a post up point guard and post player? Again, the key will be stopping Johnson from penetrating and getting in a rhythm offensively. Jackson-Davis is going to get his points and Ike will have to be careful not to get into foul trouble because Jackson Davis will dine on everyone else. Indiana is athletic enough to bother Ike if he hesitates so he needs to be decisive and look for the open shooters. Maldo against their guards will be interesting. Drake and X are going to have to hit their threes for the Pokes to win, plain and simple. Go Pokes!
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