Indiana men’s basketball (2-2, 0-0 Big Ten) is set to take on Milwaukee on Wednesday at Assembly Hall in Bloomington, Indiana.
The Hoosiers are coming off of a dominant 100-77 win over Marquette on Sunday
at the United Center in Chicago, Darian DeVries’ first win over a high major as Indiana’s head coach.
Here’s three things to know ahead of the game:
3-point shooting
Through two games so far this season, Indiana is getting 36.4% of its points from behind the 3-point line, putting the Hoosiers at 90th nationally. Neither Mike Woodson nor Archie Miller were ever top 300 category, making the new offense the most dramatic transformation for Indiana so far this season.
Tucker DeVries and Lamar Wilkerson have led the way against both Marquette and Alabama A&M, which suggests they’ll be the primary threats against any level of competition this season. With both shooting over 50% from deep on the year, there’s no reason to deviate from it at this point.
Freshman Trent Sisley is actually third on the team in 3-point attempts despite coming off the bench, so look for other guys to start getting more shots up as defenses key on Indiana’s primary shooters, DeVries and Wilkerson.
Milwaukee’s defense
The Milwaukee Panthers have not defended the three point line particularly well through three games this year, with opponents shooting 36.7% against them from deep. This should be a huge green light for an Indiana team shooting 46.2% from three on the year.
Overall, the Panthers’ defense is not their strength, but there are a few things Darian DeVries’ group will have to look out for in this matchup. Milwaukee is top 120 in both steal % and non-steal turnover rate, so they will challenge Indiana more than Alabama A&M.
So long as the Hoosiers can protect the ball though, we might see a lot of 3-point attempts in this one.
Milwaukee C Faizon Fields
While he isn’t one of the Panthers’ leading scorers, 6’10”, 220 lb. center Faizon Fields is a big part of Milwaukee’s game plan, with a usage rate higher than most guards on the roster. This will be a matchup to watch as Indiana has appeared to be a more perimeter-oriented group on both ends of the floor this year.
Look for Sam Alexis to play a bigger role in this game, given the matchup inside. In part due to foul trouble last game, Alexis actually has an edge on Reed Bailey at center minutes so far this year, but this was likely something that was going to be matchup-dependent anyway.
With the way Tucker DeVries and Wilkerson have shouldered most of the scoring and facilitating load on offense, Darian DeVries has opted for Alexis’ size and interior scoring over Bailey’s more versatile game. In a matchup like the one against Milwaukee, having the bigger, stronger defender inside also makes sense.
As of now, KenPom favors Indiana by 22 points and gives the Hoosiers a 98% chance of victory at home.
