Column: Season predictions, part two

This is part two of columnist Evan Hoopfer’s predictions for the rest of the men’s basketball season. Part one can be found in Monday’s Indiana Daily Student or on
idsnews.com.

Vs. Penn State, Wednesday, Feb. 12 — WIN
 
IU will come back to Bloomington for some much needed home cooking.

The Hoosiers knocked off Penn State in State College, Pa., earlier this season, and now the Nittany Lions are coming to Bloomington.

Penn State is 1-6 in the conference. They are the worst team in the Big Ten. IU should win this one fairly easily.

Emphasis is on the word “should.”

At Purdue, Saturday, Feb. 15 — WIN

The rivals’ only meeting this year will take place in West Lafayette.

Mackey Arena will be alive with “IU Sucks!” chants. It may be the most hostile place the Hoosiers will play this season.

This will be a great step for the young IU team. I can’t wait to see how IU will respond to the adversity, hostility and hatred that will emanate from the stands.

I doubt either team will play in the NCAA tournament, so this will be the big game for both Indiana schools. The young Hoosier team will feed off that hatred and roll the Boilermakers.

This is Indiana, after all.

Vs. Iowa, Tuesday, Feb. 18 — LOSS

Coming off two wins, according to my predictions, the Hoosiers will be riding high. And the distant pipe dream of the NCAA tournament will be a little more attainable, at least in the minds of IU fans.

Then the Hawkeyes will come to town.

The casual IU fan may not know about Iowa, but this team is really, really good this year. The Hawkeyes have the fifth-best offense in the country and the 19th-best defense in the country. Iowa will make a deep run come March and will be the dark horse in a lot of people’s brackets.

Aside from the Purdue matchup, this is the game I’m most looking forward to. Iowa, the 16th-fastest team in the nation, likes to push the ball.

IU also likes to run. The Hoosiers are the 31st-fastest team in the country. This won’t be a Big Ten slugfest that makes you want to bring a pillow to the game.

This will be a fast-paced, high-scoring affair. I think IU will be much closer in this game than pundits think, but Iowa will prove too much and pull out a close one.

At Northwestern, Saturday, Feb. 22 — WIN

The loss at home to Northwestern is still fresh in the minds of IU fans, and, I suspect, the players.

IU is the better team. Northwestern did a spectacular job scouting for the game. They packed the paint and made IU shoot jump shots.

But IU will learn from its mistakes. And a team can’t shoot 25 percent from the field again, right?

IU will get its revenge in Evanston, Ill.

At Wisconsin, Tuesday, Feb. 25 — LOSS

IU hasn’t won at Wisconsin since the dawn of time, pretty much.

The Badgers have beaten the Hoosiers 11 straight times in Madison, Wis. IU got the Badger-monkey off its back when the Hoosiers pulled off the upset earlier this season.
I don’t see the Badgers taking IU lightly. The Hoosiers played out of their minds when they won, so it will be hard to replicate a win.

But it doesn’t even matter. IU slayed the Badger-dragon earlier this year, isn’t that enough?

Vs. Ohio State, Sunday, March 2 — WIN

Ohio State has struggled this season. The Buckeyes lost four straight games before beating Illinois on Jan. 26, and three of those four losses came on the road.

Much like how Assembly Hall was a sixth man for the Wisconsin win, I see the hall rising up again and willing the Hoosiers to a win.

Ohio State has a scary good defense. The team is second in the nation in defensive efficiency, but it has had a lot of problems scoring.

I see IU winning this game. The next question is, will IU fans rush the floor?

Vs. Nebraska, Wednesday, March 5 — WIN

Remember how I raved about Nebraska at home and how good the team was? Well, that’s not the case on the road.

The Huskers are pretty abysmal away from Lincoln, Neb., this year. They are 0-6 on the road including losses to Purdue, Cincinnati and Penn State.

IU will split the series with the Huskers.

At Michigan, Saturday, March 8 — LOSS

Michigan could be the No. 1 team in the country at this point in the season.
If IU can’t beat the Wolverines in Bloomington, the team isn’t beating them in Ann Arbor, Mich. It’s that simple.

The projected loss to Michigan puts IU at 18-13 (8-10 in the Big Ten) on the year.
This record isn’t good enough to earn an NCAA tournament berth, but this team is looking promising.

IU will lose seniors Will Sheehey and Jeff Howard to graduation and probably freshman Noah Vonleh to the NBA draft. Graduate student Evan Gordon will exhaust his eligibility this season.

But I like the nucleus this team is putting together. Add 5-star recruit James Blackmon, and this Hoosier team will be fun to watch next year.

That makes this year a rebuilding or transition year that will have the IU fans saying, “Just wait ‘til next year.”

­— ehoopfer@indiana.edu