PREVIEW: First Big Ten Road Trip Sends Hoosiers to Maryland

Tuesday, January 10

College Park, MD

9:00 PM

Indiana University

Maryland

PREVIEW: First Big Ten Road Trip Sends Hoosiers to Maryland

1/8/2017 5:00:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Indiana Game Notes (PDF)Live Stats Listen Online ($)Watch Online (WatchESPN)

OPENING TIP
• This season marks the 117th season of Indiana Basketball and the defending Big Ten Champions are ranked 25th in both major polls. The Hoosiers snapped a three-game losing streak on Saturday with a 96-80 win at home against Illinois.

UP NEXT
• The Hoosiers will host Rutgers at noon on Sunday, January 15.

FAST START
• The Hoosiers opened the Illinois game by outscoring them 15-0 in the first 5:54. IU was 5-of-8 from the floor and 2-of-5 3FG, while Illinois missed its first 8 shots.

#25/25 Indiana (11-5, 1-2 Big Ten) vs. Maryland (14-2, 2-1 Big Ten)
Date	Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017
Location	College Park, Maryland
Venue	XFINITY CENTER (17,950)
Tipoff	9:00 p.m. ET
TV	ESPN & WatchESPN (Dan Shulman, Dan Dakich, Molly McGrath)
Radio	IU Radio Network (Don Fischer, Errek Suhr, Joe Smith)
Live Stats	IUHoosiers.com

IU INSIGHT
• IU 4th in the nation in rebound margin, 6th in rebounding, 8th in field goal percentage and 16th in scoring.

• IU was 6-3 on the road last year en route to winning the Big Ten title.

• The 59.2 percent shooting against Illinois, was the 4th highest FG% in the Big Ten in the Crean Era.

• Since 2011-12, IU has had the most potent offense in the Big Ten, leading in points scored (78.4), field goal percentage (48.1), and 3-point field goal percentage (40.2). The Hoosiers lead all major conference schools in field goal percentage and 3-point percentage during that same time frame.

• The 2015-16 Hoosiers were just one of three teams in the last 20 years in college basketball to average more than 80 points, shoot better than 50 percent from the field and 41 percent from 3-point range. The others are the 2001-02 Kansas Jayhawks and the 2000-01 Stanford Cardinal.

• Since 2014-15, the Hoosiers have averaged 9.6 3FG per game, the most of any major college program. Villanova is 2nd (9.0). Junior James Blackmon, Jr. is 5th among major conference players making 2.5 triples per game during that time frame.

• With the 76-67 win over No. 3 North Carolina in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge, the Hoosiers are tied with took with a national-best 6 wins against top 3 programs since the 2011-12 season. IU also beat Kansas, 103-99 in overtime in the season opener at the Armed Forces Classic in Honolulu.

HEAD COACH TOM CREAN
• Tom Crean, the 2016 Big Ten Coach of the Year, begins his ninth year of leading the Hoosiers. Over the last five years, IU is 130-58 and leads the Big Ten with 25 regular season wins over ranked opponents during that time. IU has been nationally ranked for the sixth straight season. Eight players in his first six recruiting classes have scored 1,000 points in their career under Crean at Indiana. Yogi Ferrell (1,986), Christian Watford (1,730), Verdell Jones III (1,347), Jordan Hulls (1,318), Cody Zeller (1,157), Will Sheehey (1,120), Victor Oladipo (1,117) and Troy Williams (1,115) also have scored 1,000 points or more. Three players, Yogi Ferrell (2016), Cody Zeller (2013) and Victor Oladipo (2013) have been selected as All-Americans. In addition, Oladipo earned two National Player of the Year honors and was named National Defensive Player of the Year. IU won the 2013 and 2016 Big Ten titles outright. Last year's outright title is the team's second in a four year period with the last time that happened at IU coming in 1980, 81 and 83.

The Hoosiers are now tied for the Big Ten lead in overall championships (22) and outright titles (13).

THE SERIES
• IU holds a 7-4 lead in a series which began in 1933. Since Maryland joined the Big Ten, the teams have split 4 meetings. IU began its 1981 national championship run with a win over the Terrapins in the opening round and the teams squared off in the 2002 NCAA Championship game, won by Maryland, in Atlanta. Last year, the Hoosiers won the only meeting, 80-62 in Bloomington. Maryland won the last meeting in College Park, 68-66, in 2015.

DID YOU KNOW
• Though its early in the conference season, Maryland leads the Big Ten in 3-point shooting hitting 45.9 percent in its first three games, while the Hoosiers are second at 44.6 percent.

• Junior James Blackmon, Jr. matched his Big Ten career-high (Northwestern) with 25 points against Illinois. He also had 4 rebounds and 3 assists in 35 minutes.

• Junior Robert Johnson has increased his scoring average by 5.8 points this season (13.9 from 8.1). He had 18 points against Illinois and has made 11 of his last 15 field goal attempts and 4 of his last 6 3FG.

• IU leads the Big Ten in scoring (85.9), field goal percentage (50.5) and in rebounding margin (+12.7).

•Five former Crean-coached Hoosiers have been on active NBA rosters this season including Cody Zeller (Charlotte), Victor Oladipo (Oklahoma City), Noah Vonleh (Portland), Yogi Ferrell (Brooklyn)and Troy Williams (Memphis). Three of his former players at Marquette also are active, including Dwyane Wade (Chicago), Steve Novak (Milwaukee) and Wes Matthews (Dallas). Oladipo signed a 4-year, $84 million extension and Zeller got 4-years and $56 million earlier this season.

• The Hoosiers have three former head coaches on their coaching staff this season (Buckley, Martin, Judson). Associate Head Coach Tim Buckley begins his ninth year at Indiana. The former head coach at Ball State, his Cardinals beat No. 3 Kansas and No. 4 UCLA at the 2001 Maui Classic. Assistant Coach Chuck Martin is in his third year with the Hoosiers and was the head coach at Marist (2008-13). Assistant Coach Rob Judson is in his second year as an assistant coach after serving as Director of Operations in early 2014. He was the head coach at Northern Illinois (2001-07) and won the MAC West title in 2006.

• Sophomore Thomas Bryant was named Preseason All-American by Blue Ribbon Basketball Yearbook and NBCSports.com. He tied his Big Ten career-high (Minnesota) with 20 points against Illinois and made all six of his field goal attempts. With his 2 3FG on Saturday, he is now shooting 48.0 from long distance making 12 of 25 attempts. Last year, he made 5 of 15 3FG all season. He had his fourth double-double of the season with 17 points and 10 rebounds against Nebraska. He had a 15-point, 7-rebound performance against Butler. He had 19 points and 10 rebounds against Kansas. He had 18 points and 12 rebounds against Fort Wayne. He had 12 points and 7 boards against North Carolina. He is now 8th in the Big Ten in rebounding at 7.2 per game.

• Freshman De'Ron Davis made his first career start against Louisville and had 12 points off the bench against Wisconsin. He made all 6 of his free throw attempts against Illinois. He had back-to-back 14-point efforts against SIUE and SEMO. He is 34-for-60 from the floor this year and is averaging 6.6 points and 3.3 rebounds. He also has 12 blocked shots. He hit two key free throws in the final minute in the win over Kansas. He had five points, three rebounds and two blocked shots against North Carolina. The Colorado native is 4th on the team with 12 blocked shots.

• Junior James Blackmon Jr. is tied for the highest career average (16.1) of any player who has played for Crean at Indiana. He was National Player of the Week and Big Ten Player of the Week following his 26-point effort against Kansas. He is 6th in the Big Ten in scoring at 17.3 per game. He had 14 points and tied his career-high with 9 rebounds against North Carolina. He had 24 points against Austin Peay. He is 8th in the Big Ten shooting 44.4% from 3-point range. He had his first career double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds against Louisville.

Top 5 Career Scorers In Tom Crean Era
James Blackmon, Jr. 16.1
Cody Zeller                  16.1
Yogi Ferrell                 14.5
Christian Watford       13.1
Thomas Bryant           11.9

• Junior guard Robert Johnson is the most experienced Hoosier, having started 70 career games. Coming off of ankle surgery in the offseason, he is averaging 13.9 points and is second on the team with 37 assists. He had 20 points and made a career-high 6 three-point field goals against Austin Peay. He followed that up with 19 points and 4 rebounds against Nebraska. He has scored 16 points or more 8 times this season. He is shooting 51.6 percent from the field and is shooting 41.9 percent from 3-point range.

• Sophomore forward OG Anunoby is averaging 11.0 points and 6.0 rebounds in Big Ten play. He had 12 points and 2 blocks against Illinois. Against North Carolina, he had 16 points, 5 rebounds and 2 blocked shots. He is shooting 59.8 percent from the field. He had 19 points, 9 rebounds and a career-high 4 blocks against Delaware State. He had 14 points and 2 steals against Louisville. He is second on the team in blocked shots (19) and third in steals (13). He missed three games with a sprained ankle following the North Carolina game. He is 8th in the Big Ten in FG% at 60.2.

• Senior forward Collin Hartman is rehabbing his injured knee. He played three games in the 2016 NCAA Tournament with a fractured wrist and averaged 5.7 points, 4.0 rebounds and 3.3 rebounds.

• Junior guard Josh Newkirk had a career-high 11 assists against Austin Peay. He added 11 points for his first career double-double. He is averaging 7.5 points and 3.6 assists. A native of Raleigh, N.C., he scored 10 points and 3 assists in helping the Hoosiers to the win over UNC. He had 8 assists against SEMO and had 9 points against Butler. He had 11 points against Nebraska.

• Sophomore forward Juwan Morgan had 10 rebounds and had a career-high 4 blocked shots against Butler. On the season, he is contributing 7.4 points and 5.6 rebounds. He is third in blocked shots with 13. He has started 9 games this season and is shooting 60.0 percent from the field. He had 12 points and 7 rebounds against Wisconsin. He made a school-record 14 straight field goals over a three-game period earlier this season.

• When sophomore walk-on Zach McRoberts was in the game late against Illinois, the Hoosiers scored on 7 of 9 possessions, while defensively, the Illini converted on just 2 of 10.

• Freshman Curtis Jones had 11 points and 3 rebounds against HBU. He had seven of his 15 points in overtime in beating Kansas. He has made 2 of his 3 3FG in Big Ten play.

• Freshman Devonte Green had 5 points against Illinois and has averaged 4.0 points in 3 Big Ten games. Junior Freddie McSwain, Jr., had a season-high 8 points against Houston Baptist. McSwain also had 4 rebounds. Junior Tim Priller had a career-high 4 points against HBU and freshman Grant Gelon added 3 points in that game.