In today’s edition of Banner Morning:
• Penn State presents a tricky matchup for an IU team that has struggled on the road.
• Keys to victory for IU.
• Will Juwan Morgan play?
• Indiana not in either top 25 poll … how far did they drop?
• What is the latest on Keion Brooks’ current thinking?
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Transcript
Welcome to another edition of Banner Morning. Indiana faces its first Big Ten road test tonight at Penn State.
In team news …
Indiana plays at Penn State tonight in the second of its two December Big Ten games. The game tips at 7:00 Eastern and will be televised on BTN. Kevin Kugler and Shon Morris will be on the call.
The Nittany Lions are just 4-3 and opened Big Ten play with a loss at Maryland. But they are still ranked #39 in KenPom thanks to an impressive victory over Virginia Tech in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge. In fact, KenPom predicts a 69-67 win for the Nittany Lions in this contest.
I did an in-depth IU-Penn State preview on yesterday’s edition of Banner Monday. The verdict: this is a dangerous and tricky matchup for the Hoosiers.
You won’t be surprised to learn that two major keys to victory in a road game for Indiana will be limiting turnovers and keeping Juwan Morgan out of foul trouble. The Hoosiers also need to be strong on the defensive glass and limit Penn State’s opportunities to get out in transition.
Don’t expect anything to be pretty tonight, as these are two defense-oriented teams that have struggled to find offensive rhythm. The Hoosiers will have to be ready to grind for 40 minutes if they want to come away with their first road W of the season.
Speaking of Morgan, we still haven’t gotten official word from IU on whether he will play or not. All indications I’ve received suggest that he will, so I’m operating on that assumption until proven otherwise.
In rankings news …
As expected, Indiana is not in the new top 25 polls. In fact, the Hoosiers dropped quite a bit after their recent 1-1 week. Indiana is now 35th in the AP Poll and 37th in the coaches’ poll.
Seven Big Ten teams are in the AP top 25, led by Michigan at #5. The coaches’ top 25 includes eight Big Ten teams.
In recruiting news …
Kyle Neddenriep of the Indianapolis Star caught up with Keion Brooks recently to talk about his recruitment.
Brooks said he expects to make a decision within the next month or so, though some people think it could come even sooner. And he said that Trayce Jackson-Davis and Armaan Franklin have been putting the full-court press on him to make sure it’s Indiana. Brooks also discussed the natural chemistry he and Jackson-Davis had on the court when they played together this summer.
Brooks’ 247Sports Crystal Ball is currently 75% Indiana, with all of the recent picks siding with the Hoosiers. You never know until the commitment is made and the LOI is signed, but this recruitment continues to look good for Indiana.
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For the links mentioned in this edition of Banner Morning, visit assemblycall.com. And join us at our website immediately following tonight’s IU-Penn State game for our live postgame show.
Also, remember to use the URL iutickets.shop to visit SeatGeek for the best prices on IU basketball tickets. That’s iutickets.shop, promo code ASSEMBLY for $10 off your first purchase.
We’ll be back tomorrow with a brand new edition of Banner Morning. Until then, keep your elbows in and your eyes on the rim, and go Hoosiers.
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