BLOOMINGTON — Indiana basketball coach Darian DeVries’ lone trip to Mackey Arena came during the 2021 NCAA Tournament amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.
There were only a few thousand fans for the game between Drake and Wichita State.
DeVries is expecting a much different atmosphere when the Hoosiers (17-9, 8-7 Big Ten) travel to West Lafayette on Friday night for a sold-out game against No. 7 Purdue (21-4, 11-4). The Hoosiers won the first matchup between the teams, but they know completing the season sweep will be quite a challenge.
“They have been playing incredibly well,” DeVrires said on Thursday. “They had a tough night with Michigan the other night, but Michigan on that night, they played as good as anyone in the country.”
Indiana is also looking to match its longest win streak in the series since beating Purdue in four straight games from 2011-13.
Here are four things to watch on Friday night:
Indiana basketball’s ‘shooting lulls’ aren’t what’s holding team back
DeVries has been pleased, for the most part, with the way Indiana has played on the offensive end. They are always going to be a team that relies on 3-point shooting — that’s just how the roster was built — but the effort and energy have improved on nights when they are off the mark.
The Hoosiers’ focus down the stretch will be on finding answers to their recurring rebounding issue and more consistency on the defensive end. Illinois exposed IU’s rebounding problems more than any opposing team had all season long with 15 offensive rebounds and 17 second-chance points.
“Illinois got us pretty good,” DeVries said. “We knew it was going to be a challenge going into that game because of their sheer size. We got to do a better job there if we are going to win this game; you can’t give that many second-chance opportunities.”
Purdue will have a size advantage as well, with 6-foot-9 Trey Kaufman-Renn and 6-foot-11 Oscar Cluff both in the starting lineup. The Boilermakers fell short of their season averages in the first meeting between the two teams, with nine offensive rebounds and 32 total rebounds.
On defense, DeVries pointed to the success IU had slowing down Purdue guard Braden Smith during the first meeting between the teams as the type of team-wide defensive effort he’d like to see going forward.
Indiana basketball starting guard Nick Dorn looking to break out of shooting slump
Indiana would have a much easier time winning at Mackey Arena on Friday night if Nick Dorn breaks out of his shooting slump. He’s averaged just 4.5 points over the Hoosiers’ last four games while shooting just 14.3% from the field and 4 of 26 from 3-point range.
He didn’t have a single field goal in IU’s recent games against Wisconsin (0 for 4) and Illinois (0 for 5).
The slump came on the heels of Dorn’s most successful stretch of the season after he moved into the starting lineup in place of an injured Tayton Conerway. In his first three starts for the Hoosiers, he shot 47.1% from 3-point range on 34 attempts and averaged 22.3 points per game.
That version of Dorn makes IU hard to beat.
“Keep shooting,” DeVries said of his advice to Dorn. “The numbers are going to average themselves out at any moment. He’s a really good shooter; that next game could be the 6-for-8 game.”
It’s the same advice DeVries shared with Lamar Wilkerson and his son Tucker earlier this season when they experienced similar struggles.
“I think for all of our guys, just remain confident, it doesn’t do any good to not be,” DeVries said.
Indiana basketball rotations in flux: ‘Little bit game-to-game’
Jasai Miles and Trent Sisley have swapped places in the rotation in recent weeks, while Reed Bailey hasn’t topped 20 minutes in any of IU’s last four games.
DeVries told reporters on Thursday that those decisions have largely been matchup-based, with the team looking to Miles as a defensive stopper on the perimeter and Alexis giving the Hoosiers more of a scoring punch on the inside.
The coaching staff has emphasized getting Alexis more paint touches and he’s responded by averaging 15.3 points while shooting 81.5% from the field over the team’s last three games.
“Those minutes will be a little bit game-to-game as we see how everybody is playing,” DeVries said. “Still have great faith in all those guys, when their number is called, they are ready to go, and they give us great effort, which they always do.”
It’s a little more unclear what Tayton Conerway’s role will be going forward
Conerway, who missed time with an ankle injury in January, has only played a combined eight minutes in the last two games. DeVries remains committed to keeping Dorn in the starting lineup while Enright has a stranglehold on playing time (30.4 minutes per game) at point guard.
Indiana basketball not worrying about NCAA Tournament chances
DeVries doesn’t want his team thinking about what a win or loss to Purdue will do for the team’s NCAA Tournament chances.
“Number one thing is you have to keep winning games,” DeVries said. “We talk a little bit of coach speak, but the only thing we are concerned about is our next one and right now that’s Purdue, when you start to look past that you start to get yourself in trouble.”
It helps for now that IU is firmly on the right side of the bubble.
While the Hoosiers’ 2-8 record against Quad 1 opponents is lacking, they have much better metrics than they did a year ago, when they entered Selection Sunday with a No. 54 NET ranking. They head to West Lafayette, ranked No. 32 in the NET rankings, and that ranking has remained steady ever since IU beat Purdue the first time.
Indiana will have additional chances to bolster their resume as well with upcoming Quad 1 games against Michigan State at Assembly Hall on March 1 and against Ohio State in Columbus on March 7.
It would likely take an upset loss at home to Northwestern or Minnesota to derail the Hoosiers’ tournament chances.
“Our focus will just be every night on who is next,” DeVries said.
Michael Niziolek is the Indiana beat reporter for The Bloomington Herald-Times. You can follow him on X @michaelniziolek and read all his coverage by clicking here.
This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Indiana basketball eyes season sweep of Purdue