Entering Saturday's matchup at Ohio State, Indiana's NCAA Tournament chances are still up in the air. A win over the Buckeyes would move the Hoosiers to 10-10 in Big Ten play, and give them another Q1 road win to boost their resume. However, a loss would drastically hurt their March Madness hopes.
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Saturday's matchup in Columbus is made even more intriguing when considering the fact that Ohio State is hanging on to a tournament spot. The Buckeyes have found a groove down the stretch, and enter this matchup in much better shape when it comes to qualifying for the NCAA Tournament.
In Joe Lunardi's latest bracket projection, Ohio State is safely among the tournament's 68-team field, while Indiana is listed in the "Last Four In" category. That's definitely good news for Hoosier fans, but the cream and crimson have little room for error on Saturday against the Buckeyes.
Oddsmakers don't have much faith in IU making the NCAA Tournament
Professional oddsmakers aren't loving Indiana's chances to make the big dance. On DraftKings Sportsbook, the Hoosiers currently have odds of +140 to make the NCAA Tournament and odds of -180 to miss out on the action. The juiced odds to IU missing the tournament tells us that oddsmakers don't expect the Hoosiers to be in the 68-team field.
However, Saturday's tilt in Columbus gives Indiana a great opportunity to boost its resume in the final regular season game of the season. IU can prove the oddsmakers wrong with a massive victory.
The Hoosiers won five of six games from January 23 to February 9, and their tournament chances were looking strong. But things then went south as IU then suffered a four-game losing streak that included a brutal home loss to Northwestern on February 24.
Darian DeVries' squad got back on track earlier this week with a much-needed 30-point win over Minnesota on Wednesday. The dominating win was exactly what IU needed, and put them back in Lunardi's "Last Four In" category.
The stakes couldn't be higher for Saturday's regular season finale in Columbus, and Hoosier fans are eager to see what Lamar Wilkerson and company can do. Tip-off is slated for 5:30 p.m. ET.