Indiana Basketball: Hoosiers still not ranked in top 25 despite improved play

The Indiana basketball team picked up a big win last week against Michigan State and came up just short against Maryland. Despite this, they are still not ranked in the top 25.

The Indiana Hoosiers currently sit at 15-5 and 5-4 in the Big Ten after a week in which they picked up a huge win against league leader Michigan State and nearly pulled off another upset win against Maryland.

Had the Hoosiers beat the Terrapins they probably would have been ranked but they came up just short in losing to Maryland by one after a late shot by Jalen Smith. It was a game in which the Hoosiers could have easily been blown out as Maryland couldn’t miss early. Indiana not only stayed in the game they took a big lead in the second half but couldn’t quite hold on.

It was a far cry from where the Hoosiers were the last time they played the Terrapins and how the offense has sputtered at times this year.

So even with the loss against Maryland, should the Hoosiers be ranked? You could probably make arguments either way and they aren’t that far off as they are the fifth-highest team of the ones that receive votes, so they would be 30th in both the AP and coaches poll.

Right above the Hoosiers is Ohio State, a team in which they beat and get a chance at the sweep later on this week. Creighton, Arizona, and Texas Tech are the other three with votes above the Hoosiers and you could argue that Indiana has done more than almost every team there.

Indiana still has a 16 point win against the current 5th ranked team in Florida State and that is about as good a win as anybody near them has. Texas Tech does have a win against Louisville to their credit, but they sit at just 12-7 with losses in four of their last six games.

The first two ranked teams are fellow Big Ten members, Rutgers and Penn State. The Hoosiers get their shot at Penn State Wednesday night but lost to Rutgers in their only meeting of the year.

After that, you get into LSU, Houston, and Colorado. All of which have played well, but their resumes are very similar to the Hoosiers if not a little worse.

The end result is an argument that the Hoosiers have every right being in, but for now, they are on the outside looking in. They haven’t quite been able to break through the wall of the rankings this year, but with two road games against teams ahead of them they have another golden opportunity to prove they belong.

If the Hoosiers can pick up two road wins this week, then they should definitely be ranked. But have a split week again, and the Hoosier will likely see their name in the also receiving votes.