The Game Ahead: Jacksonville

We've reached the final non-conference game of the season tomorrow night against the Jacksonville Dolphins.  It should also be the final cupcake game of the season, as Big Ten play starts for IU on December 31 at Iowa.

The Dolphins are 5-7 and are coming off of a 65-53 victory over Furman.  Their leading scorer is freshman Jarvis Haywood (11.2 ppg).  The only other Dolphin scoring in double-figures is junior Keith McDougald (10.0 ppg).  As a team, they are averaging 67.6 points per game on 42% field goal.  The grab about 35 rebounds and hand out 12 assists per game.

The Hoosiers are coming off of an 88-52 win over Florida Atlantic in which Cody Zeller scored a season-high 24 points (while going 12-13 from the free throw line).  There are five Hoosiers averaging in double-digit scoring: Cody (16.4 ppg), Victor Oladipo (13.5 ppg), Christian Watford (12.8 ppg), Will Sheehey (12.3 ppg), and Jordy Hulls (11.1 ppg).  The Hoosiers are leading the country in scoring at 89.1 points per game on 52% field goal (2nd in the country).  They are also 10th in rebounding and 12th in assists with 42 and 17 per game respectively.

According to the numbers, Jacksonville should be the weakest opponent IU will face this season, but at the same time, it is the first time in two seasons that the Hoosiers will have a game after the Christmas break before Big Ten play.  It is the perfect time for them to work on their ball handling; while it was of little consequence to the outcome, the Hoosiers turned the ball over 19 times against Mount St. Mary's and 15 times against Florida Atlantic.  On the other hand, they had 27 assists against the Mountaineers to counter the 19 turnovers.  But this will be a whole different story come Big Ten play, as the other teams won't let IU get away with such sloppy play without some penalty.  I'd also look for the Hoosiers to rebound the ball well, probably right around 40 or so (including quite possibly a ridiculously high amount from Hanner Mosquera-Perea, who grabbed 10 in 14 minutes of play against Florida Atlantic).  And once again, I'd expect at least five Hoosiers to score in double digits (probably Cody, Christian, Victor, Will, and Jordy or Remy).  I'm hoping for at least one double-double (Cody or Victor most likely), but I will settle for a solid all-around game against an underwhelming opponent.