BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Indiana basketball is back in action Thursday night, acting upon a quick turnaround to welcome the North Alabama Lions to Bloomington.
By all means, the Hoosiers (8-3, 2-0) were far from impressive in a one-point victory over Morehead State on Tuesday evening. IU can't lick its wounds though, needing to flush the result just 48 hours later when the ball is tipped at 8:30 p.m. in Assembly Hall.
The opportunity to do so comes in the form of North Alabama (6-6, 0-0). The Lions come into the contest on the heels of a loss to Tennessee Tech this past Saturday. This team's faced a few opponents of value, but of most notable interest to Indiana, the Lions pushed Kansas State to overtime at the beginning of December. On its home floor, UNA lost to the same Morehead State team that nearly upset the Hoosiers by nine.
The Lions are one of two remaining 'buy games' left on the calendar, but Indiana can't afford to look over anybody. On the quick rebound, take an early look at the matchup.
Opponent Profile
Head Coach: Tony Pujol
Sixth year, all at North Alabama
Career Record: 69-92
Pujol has navigated the Lions through the transition to Division I play and into ASUN play. In 2022-23, Pujol lead the the Lions to the highest win total in just under a decade (2013-14) with an 18-15 record. As a result, UNA earned an appearance in the CBI – first NCAA Division I postseason game.
Pujol has made stops as an assistant with Wyoming, Appalachian State, VCU and Alabama in his career.
This Year
KenPom: 225th
Torvik: 214th
EvanMiya: 212th
NET ranking: 226th
There isn't much of a particular strength or weakness compared to the rest of the sport that an analytic profile showcases as a true outlier on either side of the spectrum. Sub-200 offense and defense means the Lions are just that – a below-average team on paper. Outside of Army and Florida Gulf Coast, the Lions are the lowest ranked team on the Hoosiers' schedule this season.
Of course, Indiana needed all 40 minutes to eek out victories over the Eagles and Knights to begin the season. These types of advantages Indiana would otherwise be favored to capitalize upon have gone largely unrealized.
UNA scores 78.8 points a game and totes an average margin of +5.1 points per game.
Heading into this season, UNA was tabbed to finish around the middle of the pack in the league – seventh in both the coaches and league media poll.
– Sophomore guard Jacari Lane was a preseason All-ASUN selection heading into the season. Lane is one of just two double-digit scorers for UNA this season, averaging 13.4 points a night. He's a go-to guy for North Alabama when he's on the floor as the 6-foot guard uses 28.5% of the possessions and takes 26.6% of the shots.
– Senior guard KJ Johnson is the backcourt mate of Lane and the other double-digit per game point scorer for UNA. The 6-foot-3 former Lipscomb transfer scores 13.9 points a night on a 51.4% effective field goal percentage and 57.7% true shooting percentage. With him accounting for 27.2% of the shots, the dup of Lane and Johnson's high shot volume dictate the style of play UNA could potentially look to utilize.
The Lions, similar to Auburn's pattern of substitutions and bench usage, with 10 players averaging at least 13 minutes a night.
Tim Smith Jr. and Detalian Brown are each shooting a team-high 43% from three this season, and smith's 65% true shooting percentage is tops of the Lions' roster. Damian Forrest, in scoring 9.6 points a night, shoots 53.7% from the field, the best such mark on the Lions' roster, and is UNA's top rebounder – the owner of the 53rd-best defensive rebounding rate in the country. Will Scoucie is the fifth and final starter of the UNA starting five, with a 54.5% three-point percentage – albeit on just 11 attempts this year.
Storylines to monitor...
Can Indiana's frontcourt round back into shape?
IU's vaunted pairing down low, which has been the best aspect of Indiana's offense for most of the season, has looked a tad off as of late. In conjunction with Mackenzie Mgbako, who's slotted into the starting five's wing role in every single outing thus far, the trio of him, Malik Reneau and Kel'el Ware was just 9-of-26 from the field in Tuesday's Morehead State contest.
Indiana's guard play has been inconsistent and well-documented in being so, but the ability to find offense down low is where the Hoosiers are supposed to be proficient. Indiana's got to get more all over the board, but if there's an absence of production where IU is supposed to be establishing success in a given matchup.
The Hoosiers' frontcourt should be able to thrive if playing to its potential and turning early season glimmers into a more prominent picture of how the Hoosier offense can operate. IU should have a chance to do over North Alabama. In many ways, it needs to.
Shake off... whatever that was Tuesday night
The best part about Tuesday night's contest wasn't the fact that Indiana pulled out a victory, although a win is what saved the night and potentially any prospect of a postseason.
No, the best aspect of the contest is that the next opportunity to put it beyond the Hoosiers is a mere 48 hours after it. Back on home floor, Indiana will have to find its own energy again with a late tipoff and a largely reserved crowd due to the absence of students on campus.
It's the last matchup ahead of the Christmas holiday for Indiana. There's nothing the Hoosiers could have higher on its list this holiday season than a comfortable, wire-to-wire win.
Quick Hitters
Who?: Indiana (8-3, 2-0 in Big Ten play) vs. North Alabama (6-6, 0-0 in ASUN play)
Series History: Indiana leads, 2-0. (Last Meeting: IU 87, MSU 52 on 12/13/20 in Bloomington)
When?: Thursday, December 21, 8:30 p.m. ET
Where?: Assembly Hall, Bloomington, Indiana
TV: BTN: Cory Provus (play-by-play), Trent Meachem (color)
Radio: IU Radio Network, Don Fischer (play-by-play), Errek Suhr (analyst), John Herrick
Vegas: Indiana -13.5, o/u 147.5
KenPom: Indiana 81-68, 87% chance of an Indiana victory
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