The Hoosiers got revenge against the Arkansas Razorbacks in their 63-60 victory in Bloomington, Indiana on Saturday. They will face Wichita State on Tuesday for the last home game of the season for the Hoosiers before the tournament heads to Madison Square Garden.
Tuesday’s match up will certainly be Juwan Morgan’s final appearance in Bloomington and potentially Romeo Langford, depending on whether or not he plays.
Indiana advances. The #1 seeded Hoosiers defeat Arkansas and now await the winner of Clemson and Wichita State for the third round of the #NIT. #iubbhttps://t.co/FGLrOTj2aK
After another rough start for the Hoosiers, they rallied to a close, hard-fought victory to end the Razorbacks’ season. Devonte Green continues to play stellar basketball with 18 points while adding 11 rebounds. This is the 6th game in a row that he has reached 10 points and is big reason the Hoosiers have been playing the caliber basketball they have been late in the season. His shot from behind the arc has developed incredibly and made the overall attack for the Hoosiers much more diverse.
Romeo Langford continues to be a matter of concern and debate. He sat out his second game in a row due to his back injury and there is no word about his availability for the next game. Both teams without their leading scorers gave fans a look on what their teams will look like for the upcoming season. Another area of concern was Justin Smith not adding any points and going 0-3 on his shots.
Jerome Hunter and Romeo Langford watching warm-ups here before Arkansas game. Too bad we never got to see these two play together this season. #iubbpic.twitter.com/jNMx6NQnnR
One thing that was great to see was the Hoosiers holding strong late in the game and holding the Razorbacks without a field goal for nearly the final 7 minutes of the game.
Wichita State was a team with high hopes this season and received an 8th place AAC preseason prediction voted by the coaches of the league. Kenpom’s computer rankings were a bit more optimistic, putting the Shockers at 5th in the conference preseason.
Considering that they are relatively new joiners to a surging American Athletic Conference, the Shockers are starting to get accustomed to the high level of basketball in the AAC. Wichita State’s late season play pushed the Shockers to 6th in the conference, but unfortunately that was not enough for the Shockers to get named on Selection Sunday.
The Shockers come into Bloomington winning 8 of their last 9 games, with the last loss coming from Mike Cronin and the Bearcats in the AAC semifinals.
In NIT play, the Shockers defeated a higher seeded Furman team on their home court, and a higher seeded Clemson team on their home court as well. They hope to sweep seeds #3, #2, and now Indiana at #1 on their path to New York.
Gregg Marshall’s star senior forward Markis McDuffie tallies over 18 points per game and hits 83% at the free throw line. Both of those are good for fourth overall out of all players in the AAC.
Archie Miller and Gregg Marshall have met in the post-season in history. In 2017 the two faced off in the first round of the NCAA tournament, where Gregg Marshall got the better of Archie Miller and his Dayton team.
Landry Shamet – 6’4″ / 213 lbs / Guard / Sophmore. Selected in the first round of the 2018 NBA draft. In terms of back court, Shamet was one of the top guards in the entire league.
Shaquille Morris– 6’7″ / 261 lbs / Center / Senior. Career big for Gregg Marshall that finished with 14 points per game and 5.6 rebounds per game.
Conner Frankamp – 6’0″ / 165 lbs / Guard / Senior. Averaged double digit points per game and was the second highest in assists behind Shamet for his final season.
— NBC Sports Philadelphia (@NBCSPhilly) June 22, 2018
Projected Starters
Markis McDuffie – 6’8″ / 218 lbs / Forward / Senior / Paterson, NJ. The main star of the show who is leading multiple categories in the AAC. McDuffie will be Indiana’s primary defensive scout and the success of the Shockers largely depends on how well this senior is playing.
Jaime Echenique – 6’11” / 258 lbs / Forward / Junior / Barranquilla, Colombia. Echenique is taking on the responsibilities opened up by graduating Senior Shaq Morris. The 6’11” big man is averaging almost 18 minutes per game and leads the team in rebounding.
Samajae Haynes-Jones – 6’0″ / 218 lbs / Guard / Senior / Wichita, KS. Haynes-Jones, the Wichita hometown hero, is playing his final year as a Shocker and adds experience to an otherwise freshmen backcourt.
Dexter Dennis – 6’5″ / 208 lbs / Guard/ Freshman / Baker, LA. One of two freshmen backcourt players for the Shockers. Dennis currently is tagging over 5 rebounds with his 8 points per game. He is the sharp shooter for the Shockers who overall do not shoot that great behind the arc.
Jamarius Burton – 6’4″ / 208lbs / Guard / Freshman / Charlotte, NC. Burton is the primary facilitator of the team, leading the team with over 3.4 assists per game.
The Rotation
Erik Stevenson – 6’3″ / 208 lbs / Guard / Freshman / Lacey, WA. One of Gregg Marshall’s first grabs from the bench. Stevenson is averaging over 20 minutes per game.
Brycen Bush – 6’0″ / 159 lbs / Guard / Sophomore / Wichita, KS.
Jacob Herrs – 6’2″ / 180 lbs / Guard / Sophomore / Wichita, KS.
What to Watch For
Post Season Rematch of Archie Miller and Gregg Marshall. The two head coaches met up in the first round of the 2017 NCAA tournament. At the time, Archie Miller was with a 24-8 Dayton Flyers team going up against 10th seeded Wichita State team. Gregg Marshall would take the game on Archie 64-58, only to lose to Kentucky in the next round.
How deep can each team go on the bench? Indiana has been struggling with roster depth due to injuries. Until recently, the team has not been at full force and with Romeo Langford out, there seems to be more injury issues upcoming. Like Archie Miller, Gregg Marshall prefers to go with a core line up and a shorter bench. It is unlikely we we will see 9 players off the bench like we did against the Red Flash however.
Will Romeo Return this postseason?Romeo Langford has been bombarded with opinions and thoughts about his absence from media and fans the past week. We all know he is likely not going to play another game for the Hoosiers this season, but depending on how far the team goes, it would be great to see him don the candy stripe warm-ups one more time this season.
Devonte Green continues to be Indiana’s most important player. Devonte has been the MVP as of late and against Arkansas he re-solidified those opinions with another dominating performance. He has not been a starter for most of the season, but has taken advantage of the opportunities presented to him when other players were injured. He will definitely be a focal point for the 2019-2020 Hoosier team and has a good chance of being a starter next year even without injuries giving him the opportunity.
Late-season surges. Besides a loss to Cincinnati in the AAC conference tournament, the Shockers have won 8 of 9 games to end their season. In the NIT, they have defeated #3 seeded Furman and #2 Clemson in two impressive road games. They are coming in hot into Bloomington. Indiana similarly has had a good stretch despite a loss to Ohio State in the Big Ten tournament. A road-tested Shockers team comes into Bloomington with very high confidence.
Injury Watch
Jerome Hunter will not be available due to a lower leg injury.
Romeo Langford did not play in the NIT first and second round due to back soreness and his status is still unclear.
Race Thompson was out due to illness and similarly has not yet had an updated status.