IU to face Georgia in N.Y.

After beating North Dakota State and Sam Houston State by a combined 80 points in the first two games of the Progressive Legends Classic, the IU men’s basketball team travels to Brooklyn, N.Y. this weekend for the semifinals of the tournament.

Until the Hoosiers face UCLA or Georgetown on Tuesday, IU Coach Tom Crean will have to keep his players focused against another opponent much farther down in the depths of the NCAA.

On Monday, the Hoosiers (3-0) will take on Georgia (1-2) at the newly constructed Barclays Center.

The Bulldogs boast starting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who has caught fire early in the season. After earning a spot on the Freshman All-SEC Team after last season, the sophomore from Greenville, Ga., has averaged 20.3 points in the team’s first three games.

In those games, Caldwell-Pope also averaged four steals per game and six rebounds per game, both team highs.

Georgia sits outside the top 100 in the latest Pomeroy College Basketball Ratings, sitting at No. 113, three spots behind North Dakota State, whom IU took down 87-61 Nov. 12.

Besides the standout guard, Georgia’s offense has struggled. No other Bulldogs have averaged double-digit points in the team’s first three games, while Caldwell-Pope has provided one-third of Georgia’s offense.

And with four Hoosier guards, who Crean said have really stood out during the first three games of the season, IU may be able to stop Georgia’s leading scorer altogether.

“If (senior guard) Jordan (Hulls), (freshman guard Kevin) ‘Yogi’ (Ferrell), (junior guard Maurice Creek)Mo, (sophomore guard) Remy (Abell), if those four guys can guard, we’re just going to keep getting better and better,” Crean said.

During the beginning of the season, before IU gets into the meat of its schedule, Crean said that it’s important his players keep focus and try to compete for the full 40 minutes of every game.

After leading Sam Houston State by 27 at halftime Nov. 15, Crean said he told his players in the locker room to keep fighting because he doesn’t believe in going out and pretending the score is 0-0 for the final 20 minutes.

On Nov. 19, when his team faces off against Georgia in IU’s first game away from Assembly Hall this season, he said continuing the momentum the Hoosiers have built during their first three games just comes down to practicing the way they’ve been playing.

“Everybody works hard, but it’s the teams that compete time and time again who are the ones that separate,” Crean said. “They’re working hard, and they’re in the gym, and they’re spending their time at it, but it’s that passion on a daily basis that’s going to push them. It’s the time of their life.

“Part of that enjoyment is looking at everyday like, ‘I’m dominating, I’m impacting, I’m winning, and I’m going to feel like I got a lot better today when the day is over.’”