After taking down South Carolina over the weekend in its first power conference test of the season, Indiana welcomes UNC Greensboro to Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall for a Thursday evening matchup.
The Hoosiers (3-0 overall, 0-0 in Big Ten play) enter the contest having won each of their first three games of the season by double-digits. The Spartans (2-1 overall, 0-0 in SoCon play) visit Bloomington with a pair of home wins over Florida Gulf Coast and North Carolina Wesleyan, as well as a road loss to SMU.
Prior to Thursday evening's battle in Assembly Hall, preview the matchup between Indiana and UNC Greensboro.
HEAD COACH PROFILE
Head Coach: Mike Jones
Record: 234-189 in 13th year overall, 60-39 in fourth year at UNCG
Mike Jones was hired as UNC Greensboro's 10th head coach in men's basketball history in April of 2021. He took over the program following nearly a decade as the head coach at Radford, where he led his Highlanders to a Big South championship and an NCAA Tournament.
Jones led Radford to a Big South championship and an NCAA Tournament appearance --for just the third time in program history -- during the 2017-18 season. He was also named the Big South Coach of the Year that year, and then once again in 2020.
Prior to Jones' head coaching stint at Radford, he worked as an assistant coach on Shaka Smart's VCU teams from 2009-11. Before then, he spent time as an assistant at Howard -- where he began his coaching career -- Furman, Richmond, West Virginia and Georgia.
THIS SEASON
Through the first three contests of the 2024-25 season, UNCG sits at 2-1 on the year. The Spartans won their season opener at home against FGCU before traveling to Dallas for a road matchup against SMU. The Spartans fell to the Mustangs 81-68 before heading back home last Saturday to take care of business against North Carolina Wesleyan.
On the season, UNCG is averaging 80.0 points per game, while shooting 45.3% from the floor. The Spartans have shot a sweltering 39.7% from 3-point range -- a top-50 mark in the entire country -- on 24.3 attempts a game. UNCG has shot 72.3% from the free throw line this season.
The Spartans have also been strong on the boards this year, out-rebounding their opponents by an averaging of 8.3 rebounds a game. They're averaging 15.7 assists a game on 27.3 field goal makes per contest.
Heading into Thursday night's battle with Indiana, UNC Greensboro ranks 167th in the nation in KenPom. The Spartans rank 177th offensively and 181st defensively in the country. UNCG plays at one of the slowest tempos in the country -- ranking 293rd in all of college basketball in pace.
KEY PLAYERS
- Guard Kenyon Giles: Junior guard Kenyon Giles is the Spartans' leading scorer to begin the season. Giles, a 5-foot-9 and 170 pound guard, is averaging 16.3 points per game this season on 50% shooting from the field. He's also been prolific from 3-point range, converting on 10 of his 20 3-point attempts (50%) so far this year. A native of Chesapeake, Virginia, Giles also has seven steals in just three games this year. The Radford transfer poured in 17 points off the bench in UNCG's season opener against FGCU before being inserted into the starting lineup for the following two games.
- Guard Donovan Atwell: A junior out of Huntersville, North Carolina, Donovan Atwell is the second leading scorer on the Spartans. He's averaging 12.3 points per game on just 34.4% field goal shooting. Despite his inefficient start to the season, the 6-foot-5 guard is still 7-for-18 (38.9%) from 3-point range. Atwell is just 4-of-14 from inside the 3-point arc this year.
- Akrum Ahemed: 6-foot-3 guard Akrum Ahemed hasn't started a game this season for UNCG. Despite that, Ahemed is the team's fifth-leading scorer. He's averaging 8.0 points a night. The graduate student from Hackensack, New Jersey has been a big time 3-point threat for the Spartans. He's yet to miss from distance this season, going 5-for-5 from downtown.
STORYLINES TO MONITOR
Can Indiana continue to get production out of its backcourt...
The issues Indiana had in the backcourt last season are well known. The Hoosiers didn't get enough from their guards a season ago, which prompted head coach Mike Woodson to go out and get two of the top guards available in transfer portal this offseason. Prior to Indiana's win over South Carolina, Myles Rice and Kanaan Carlyle looked like they hadn't yet found their footing. That changed in the Hoosiers' double-digit win over the Gamecocks. Rice got it goin early, especially from distance, looking like the true point guard Indiana lacked a season ago. Carlyle, after struggling to find his shot through the first two games of the season, finally managed to get the lid off the basket against South Carolina. For the Hoosiers to get where they want to go this season, Rice and Carlyle are going to have to turn in plenty of performances like they did over the weekend against South Carolina.
Can Mackenzie Mgbako develop even further...
Mackenzie Mgbako has been fantastic to start the season for Indian. The reigning Co-Big Ten Freshman of the Year poured in a career-high 31 points on opening night against SIUE. Mgbako has showcased an expanded offensive game in conjunction with being better on the glass and on the defensive end of the floor. The next step for Mgbako is doing all of those things that he's put on full display to begin the season on a consistent basis. If the sophomore can develop into a consistent, night in and night out threat to go four 20-plus points, Indiana's ceiling rises significantly. If the Hoosiers can go into every game knowing they're going to get an efficient 15-plus from Mgbako, it makes Indiana a tough team to beat.
QUICK HITTERS
Who: No. 16 Indiana (3-0) vs. UNC Greensboro (2-1)
Series History: Indiana leads 2-0 (Last Meeting: 87-79 Indiana won on Nov. 28, 2014 in Bloomington)
When: Nov. 21, 2024, 6:30 p.m. ET
Where: Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, Bloomington, Indiana
TV: Fox Sports 1: Connor Onion (Play-by-Play), Robbie Hummel (Analyst)
Radio: IU Radio Network: Don Fischer (Play-by-Play), Errek Suhr (Analyst), John Herrick
Vegas: Indiana -17.5, over/under at 145.5, Indiana given a 89.7% chance to win
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