Few, if any, teams in college basketball play a must-win game in mid-January. Few play a must-win game in just the third conference game of the season.
Do must-win games at this stage in the season even exist? For Indiana, yes.
It shouldn’t be this way, however. Indiana could easily be 13-2, maybe even 14-1, at least 12-3, and comfortably in the tournament.
Instead, the Hoosiers sit at 10-5, have zero signature wins, and, frankly, don’t look very good. As a result, ESPN Bracketologist Joe Lunardi believes Indiana’s tournament chances “very slim.”
Indiana is 0-4 against RPI top 50 teams, and 0-5 against RPI top 100. Close losses to UCONN, Notre Dame, and Illinois are tough to swallow, as wins would have drastically altered this season’s prospects for the better. Indiana is left with a lot of work to do if it wants to play in March.
A victory at Penn State Saturday honestly won’t do much for a tourney résumé, since the Hoosiers would still be left without an RPI top 100 win. A loss, however, would make a shaky situation even worse.
Right now, IU’s tournament chances are estimated at about 20%. The Hoosiers are clinging to postseason life only because they don’t have a "bad" loss. Lose Saturday, and that all changes.
Penn State is currently 105 in the RPI, two spots ahead of Washington, Indiana’s best win. Road wins are hard to come by in the Big Ten, but this is Penn State we’re talking about. Indiana must win and win big.
If Indiana happened to lose, cries against Tom Crean would become deafening and fans could all but kiss the Hoosiers’ tournament chances goodbye. A loss would be worst case scenario.
Because of the poor start, there’s no room for bad losses - no room for error for that matter. From here on out, each game against a mediocre team is a must win.
Everything has seemed to go wrong, and Indiana just needs something good to happen. The fans, players, and coaches all need a positive spark. The Hoosiers just need a win.
Indiana didn’t have national title expectations to begin the year, but fans expected a tournament berth at the least. 15 games in, and those low expectations somehow appear too high. Indiana has disappointed, which must change Saturday.
An important six game stretch begins tomorrow, and, if Indiana has any shot of making the dance, it needs to start this stretch strong.
As crazy as it sounds, Penn State, the third conference game in mid-January, is a must-win. And that might be an understatement.
Recommended Comments
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now