Hot 3-point shooters collide in Kentucky

From day one, it was evident the 3-point shot might be vital to the IU men’s basketball team.

The Hoosiers attempted 28 long-range shots in their season-opening victory against Florida Gulf Coast, knocking down half. IU had a 30-point advantage from the 3-point line, two points more than its margin of victory.

IU now ranks fourth in the Big Ten in 3-point field goal percentage, led by sophomore guard Jordan Hulls and his 58 percent average from deep, second in the conference.

But the Hoosiers (7-1) will get their stiffest test of the season when they travel to Kentucky for the 54th meeting with the No. 17 Wildcats (6-2) at 5:15 p.m. Saturday in Rupp Arena.

“This will be one of the more hostile and enlightening environments they’ll see in their time in college basketball,” IU coach Tom Crean said of his team’s second road game. “I know our team is excited. It’s felt a lot different this week not preparing for numerous games, but it’s given us a chance to work on getting better at a lot of different things on both sides of the ball.”

Kentucky enters the weekend second in the Southeastern Conference in 3-point defense. The only time the Wildcats have allowed a team to shoot better than 40 percent from deep was Nov. 24 in a loss against Connecticut.

“It’s very simple,” Crean said, when describing why Kentucky defends the perimeter so well. “They move well, and they’ve got good feet, and they’ve got the athleticism, but they have tremendous length.”

Hulls, who has made 10 of his last 15 shots from long distance, said it will be important for the team’s perimeter men to simplify their games.

“We’re just going to have to take open shots,” he said. “If they’re flying at us, we’ll have to pump fake and go by them. But as long as we move the ball on offense and play team basketball, I think we’ll be all right.”

IU has only shot worse than 40 percent from beyond the arc three times, including at Boston College in its only loss this season. The Hoosiers are seventh in the conference in 3-point defense, though, allowing opponents to make 32.8 percent of their attempts.

The Wildcats’ deep attack is best in the SEC, making 40.9 percent of their attempts. Junior guard Darius Miller, who has made 15-of-28 3-point shots this season, leads the team.

In fact, the majority of Kentucky’s offensive prowess is led by freshmen.
Freshman forward Terrence Jones is the team’s top first-year player, averaging 20 points and 10.5 rebounds per game.

At 6-foot-8 and 244 pounds, Jones makes most of his points driving the paint. But even he has shown efficiency shooting from beyond the arc, making 37.5 percent of his 3-point shots.

Kentucky has won eight of the last 10 meetings with IU, including a 90-73 decision in Bloomington last year. But Kentucky lost five players, including No. 1 pick John Wall, from last year’s squad to the NBA Draft.

Crean said IU is also a different team than it was last season, and he doesn't expect the moment to be too big.

“I’m sure they know obviously that this is a big deal,” Crean said. “They’re going to walk in, and they’re going to hear that group of crowds, and they’re going to line up for the jump ball and see all that athleticism and talent on the court. They’ll be locked in to how hard they’ve got to play — I know that.”