The IDS basketball writers share their picks for the men's and women's individual competitions at Hoosier Hysteria on Saturday.
Men’s 3-point contest winner
Sam Beishuizen: This is a much deeper field than last season, but I’ll take Nick Zeisloft. At media day, he wasn’t shy about reminding Kevin “Yogi” Ferrell that he has had the hot hand in recent shooting contests at practice.
Evan Hoopfer: Nick Zeisloft will win this. He was brought to IU for his shooting and his shooting alone. But there will be several good shooters, including Kevin “Yogi” Ferrell and James Blackmon, competing this year.
Alden Woods: It’s a lot harder to pick the 3-point winner this year than last, considering there’s more than one guy who can shoot. I’m going with James Blackmon Jr. — picture-perfect shooting stroke, and it’s his first time in front of the crowd at Assembly Hall.
Casey Krajewski: James Blackmon Jr. gets a lot of hype but Robert Johnson is also a great freshman shooter who can go on a long run. If he gets hot, it’ll be hard to beat him.
Dan Matney: The Hoosiers have a good stock of shooters along the perimeter this year, but I’m going with the incoming freshman, McDonald’s All American James Blackmon Jr. Blackmon is a lights-out shooter and one of the more heralded back-court scorers from the incoming freshman class.
Women's 3-point contest winner
Sam Beishuizen: When Larryn Brooks heats up beyond the arc, not much can stop her. She’ll heat up Saturday night.
Evan Hoopfer: Tyra Buss averaged like a billion points per game in high school. Actually, it was 45.8 points per game in her senior year, which is downright ridiculous. Expect her to show flashes of her future greatness in the 3-point contest.
Alden Woods: Tough choice. There are a lot of good shooters on that team. I’ll go with Taylor Agler. She shot 37 percent from deep last year.
Casey Krajewski: All six of these women are good shooters, so it should be close, but Larryn Brooks is the team’s best scorer and shot .379 from behind the arc last year.
Dan Matney: Following a similar trend to the men’s prediction, the winner of the women’s 3-point contest will be freshman Tyra Buss. Buss is a lights-out shooter who averaged 38 points per game during her high school career, including 45.8 during her senior campaign. How do you pick against that?
Overall 3-point contest winner
Sam Beishuizen: The new guy’s going to like his first taste of Assembly Hall. Zeisloft will win against Brooks but just barely.
Evan Hoopfer: Not only was Tyra Buss the main option on her high school team, she was efficient. She shot 39 percent from behind the arc. Buss might just make every single shot she takes in the contest. It wouldn’t surprise me.
Alden Woods: Blackmon has played on the biggest stages in the country, but he’ll still want to make a good impression on Hoosier fans. It’s Blackmon for me.
Casey Krajewski: If it comes down to those two, Brooks will take it. She’s done this before and seems really confident this year.
Dan Matney: After the finals duo of Blackmon and Buss is serenaded with “freshman” chants from the crowd, I believe Buss will come out with the overall 3-point title.
Dunk contest winner
Sam Beishuizen: Troy Williams is an obvious pick, and there’s a reason for that. He’s added 5 inches to his vertical since last season, which is ridiculous considering how athletic he already was.
Evan Hoopfer: To say Troy Williams is a favorite is an understatement. He jumps super high and is pretty tall, always a good combination for a lethal dunker, which Williams is. He’ll win this easily.
Alden Woods: If you don’t pick Troy Williams for this, you’re crazy. Book it.
Casey Krajewski: Troy Williams will put on an Oladipo-esque show.
Dan Matney: Troy Williams. He jumps really high.
What to watch for
Sam Beishuizen: What does IU’s inside game look like with Hanner Mosquera-Perea? IU Coach Tom Crean and players have said he’s made improvements during the offseason, but this will be the first chance to see how Mosquera-Perea looks.
Evan Hoopfer: During the scrimmage, I would love to see IU Coach Tom Crean experiment with an ultra-small lineup. I’m thinking four guards, Ferrell, Blackmon, Rob Johnson and Stan Robinson, and then play Williams at the five. How will the Hoosiers respond to their lack of frontcourt talent this year? We’ll get our first glance Saturday.
Alden Woods: One of the biggest questions for the men’s team is who’s going to step up and take that third guard spot alongside Kevin “Yogi” Ferrell and Blackmon. At this point, it’s probably a competition between Nick Zeisloft, Robert Johnson and Stanford Robinson. If I had to choose, I’d say it’s Johnson, but it’s unclear. If Crean goes starters-against-backups in the scrimmage, we’ll get an idea.
Casey Krajewski: The women won’t be scrimmaging at all, but they will run some drills and show the fans what they’ve got. Watch how well this team puts the ball in the hoop. With a lot of elite scorers and not much size, this team could be in for a few track meets this season.
Dan Matney: Keep an eye on how the defense performs. New IU Coach Teri Moren made the defensive end of the ball the priority as soon as she arrived on campus, and both sides of the scrimmage will get to deal with guards that can produce points in high volumes.
