Indiana Basketball: Hoosiers team to watch come NCAA Tournament?

One analyst believes that Indiana basketball is a team that can make noise in the NCAA Tournament if it gets in the big dance.

Whether you want to believe it or not, the college basketball regular season is slowly winding down and with that comes immense pressure for multiple programs to win big games coming down the stretch. One of those programs is Indiana basketball.

While the Hoosiers have been in the projected NCAA Tournament field for the majority of the season, they still have work to do, following a three-game skid, in order to solidify their chances come Selection Sunday.

In the Big Ten, however, there are opportunities left and right to boost tournament resumes, and Indiana will face off against seven possible NCAA Tournament teams in the final nine games of the season.

This week, Big Ten Network analyst Andy Katz spoke about the Hoosiers and had some interesting things to say about the program and their possible NCAA Tournament run.

"“… If Indiana gets in, they certainly can win a game, and maybe two,” Said Katz. “Think about what Indiana has done this season. At home, they beat Florida State, and they’ve also beaten Michigan State, so, it is there for the Hoosiers to knock off an elite team…”"

Just by looking at Indiana’s past month or so, the play on the floor hasn’t resembled a team that can pull off a couple of big wins in the tournament, but then you think of the big wins that the Hoosiers have had this year, and you can see the potential.

Indiana fan’s have heard it all year ‘IF the guards can do this and do that then they can win games’. Katz highlighted that and mentioned that if the Hoosiers get good guard play from Al Durham, Rob Phinisee, and Devonte Green, then they can compete with any backcourt in the entire country.

https://twitter.com/BigTenNetwork/status/1225522419626061831

One thing that is keeping Indiana out of the conversation of being a lock for the tournament is its play away from Assembly Hall. With just one true road win this season, coming against Nebraska, there needs to be some change in the final month if they want to show the committee they are one of the best 68 teams in the country, and they can show up to play on any court. What is helping slightly, albeit not great wins, is the two neutral site wins against Notre Dame and UConn earlier this season.

Despite the potential for Indiana, none of that will matter unless Archie Miller can get his group to buy in fully and start to actually produce on a consistent basis.

The Hoosiers can start off on a great note this Saturday with a win over Purdue, but none of it will matter if they can’t follow it up down the stretch of February and early March.