1. Trayce Jackson-Davis vs John Mooney
The battle of the big men.
Both John Mooney and Trayce Jackson-Davis are leading their respective teams in scoring and rebounding. Mooney is extremely experienced and a relentless rebounder, snatching 13.4 boards per game. With nine straight double-digit rebounding games in a row, after eight in the season opener, Mooney has five 15+ rebound performances.
He’s very fundamental on the glass and can score in a variety of ways, but Jackson-Davis’ athleticism could pose a problem for him, as other athletic big men have before. One part where Mooney can hurt Jackson-Davis is on the perimeter. Mooney is shooting just 32 percent from three, but has made at least one three in six games this year.
If the Hoosiers are going to walk away from Banker’s Life Fieldhouse with a win, they’re going to need Jackson-Davis to continue his dominance on the glass and continue to rack up free throw attempts.
The freshman is taking almost seven free throws a game and hitting them at a 73 percent clip. If he can get Mooney into some foul trouble early on, by using his length and athleticism, Indiana could be set up for a relatively easy win.
On the flip side, if Mooney dominates this matchup, it could spell trouble for the Jackson-Davis and the Hoosiers.