Bloomington, Indiana: With a critical home game against Northwestern at 3 p.m. ET on Sunday, Indiana has had more than a week to prepare. The Hoosiers, who are now 14-10 overall and 6-7 in the Big Ten, have lost five of their past seven games after falling to No. 2 Purdue 79-59 on February 10. In addition, Northwestern has lost three of its previous five games and most recently suffered a 63-60 setback against Rutgers on Thursday. The Wildcats have not triumphed on the road since Jan. 10 at Penn State, despite being tied for fourth place in the Big Ten with a 17-8 overall record and an 8-6 record in league play.
In addition, Indiana coach Mike Woodson will have one more opportunity to tick off a bucket during his three seasons in Big Ten play on Sunday. Northwestern is the only league opponent he hasn’t yet defeated, and he has a 0-3 record against them.
In the 2021–22 season, Woodson suspended five players prior to the Hoosiers’ loss against Northwestern. Last season, Indiana lost both games—84-83 at home and 64-62 at Northwestern, thanks to a Boo Buie floater in the final seconds. In search of his first victory over Northwestern, Woodson’s Hoosiers will need to focus on three important things at Assembly Hall on Sunday.
QUITS BUIE, WHO? Boo Buie, one of 30 nominees for the Naismith Trophy midseason, and a first-team All-Big Ten favorite, saved his best season for last at Northwestern. The 6-foot-2 point guard, who is currently a fifth-year senior, averages career-highs of 19.2 points, 5.2 assists, 3.6 rebounds, and 1.4 steals per game. With 5.8 attempts per game, his 3-point percentage is 41.7%, about 10% higher than it was the previous season.
He’s becoming one of the top point guards in college basketball because to his increased assist rate and decreased turnover rate. Although Buie currently averages 36.6 minutes per game and attempts around three more shots than any of his teammates, Ty Berry’s season-ending meniscus tear could cause him to assume even more responsibility for Northwestern’s offense.
If Xavier Johnson’s elbow injury keeps him out indefinitely, Indiana guards Trey Galloway and Gabe Cupps will probably be the ones defending Buie the most. Normally strong on-ball defenders, Galloway and Cupps struggled to contain Braden Smith and contain Purdue’s pick-and-roll offense in a 20-point defeat on February 10. After a week off, Indiana needs to adjust their strategy to make every shot for Buie difficult, starting with the perimeter with Galloway and Cupps. WARE HANDLING PHYSICALITY, RENEAU
Leading scorers Malik Reneau (16.0 ppg) and Kel’el Ware (14.6 ppg) are looked upon inside for most of Indiana’s possessions; however, on Sunday, they must be prepared for Northwestern’s pressure.
The physical interior defense of Northwestern is well-known, particularly when facing skilled centers and forwards like Reneau and Ware. Northwestern big men Matthew Nicholson, Blake Preston, Luke Hunger, and Nick Martinelli are crucial members of the Wildcats’ defense even though they aren’t frequently required to score points. Nor are they frightened to foul. Those four players consistently harassed Zach Edey against Purdue, totaling 17 fouls, three of which resulted in fouls.
It wouldn’t be shocking to see Northwestern try to double-team Reneau and Ware to force them into mistakes or to send the ball outside. Reneau has struggled with turnovers, averaging a game-high 2.7 for the squad. When this pressure mounts, neither he nor Ware can back down. The physicality of the contest on Sunday can make making free throws a crucial aspect. In terms of opponents’ free throw percentage, Northwestern is ranked 331st in the US, indicating that they frequently force opponents to foul. In terms of free throw attempt percentage, the Hoosiers are ranked 18th in the country, but they haven’t fully capitalized on that ranking, as they only shoot 66.4% (328th nationally) from the free throw line.
Three-point disparity On opposite extremes of the 3-point shooting spectrum are Indiana and Northwestern. With a 32.8% 3-point shooting percentage, the Hoosiers are ranked 224th nationally and 12th in the Big Ten. The Wildcats are ranked sixth nationally and second in the Big Ten with 39.4%. Northwestern shoots 21.4 3-pointers per game compared to Indiana’s 15.5 attempts.
Berry was Northwestern’s top 3-point shooter (43.3%), so his injury presents an additional challenge. Northwestern shot a combined 37.8% from three-point range in two whole games without Berry: six against Penn State and eight versus Rutgers on Thursday. The Wildcats shot a cumulative 67-for-143, or 46.9%, in those six games, making at least ten 3-pointers per game. That represents a dramatic decline from those performances. Northwestern has a full roster of talented shooters, even without Berry. From beyond the arc, Buie, Ryan Langborg, Brooks Barnhizer, and Nick Martinelli all shot between 34.2% and 41.7%. Without maybe its greatest shooter, Northwestern will need to make some outside shots, and Indiana could need some help from Anthony Leal and CJ
