Indiana will face Arizona on Saturday night in Las Vegas. The Wildcats won his Invitational in Maui and he is 7-1 overall.
Saturday’s game is set for 7:30 PM ET on FOX:
The third of Indiana’s four marquee non-conference games is Arizona. The Wildcats are currently in the top 20 of the KenPom team, having been selected second in the preseason Pac-12.
Tommy Lloyd is in his second season with Tucson, posting a 40-5 record after 20 years as Mark Few’s assistant at Gonzaga. The Wildcats have size and play with an uptempo style that’s fun to watch, and it’s been put to the test this season with wins over Cincinnati, San Diego State and Creighton.
It’s Lloyd’s testimony that Arizona continues to be a top 20 team despite losing Benedict Maturin, Darren Terry, and Christian Koroko to the NBA in the offseason.
meet a wildcat
Arizona won the Maui Invitational last month, but its return from the island was rocky.In the first game after Maui, Arizona lost to Utah by 15. Most recently, the Wildcats beat California at home last Sunday by 13 margins. His double-digit wins at conference home should be viewed favorably, but Cal is joining the conversation with the worst major team in the country with his 0-10.
Arizona’s scoring prowess lies in frontcourt duos Azoulas Tubelis When Umar Baro.
Both players can run the floor and like to seal defenders in transition for easy buckets.
The 6.11-inch junior from Lithuania is averaging 20.1 points and 8.3 rebounds in 27.1 minutes per game. He’s shooting 61.9 percent from the field and 44.4 percent in 3 seconds on nine attempts. He uses 28% of his Arizona possessions, which is the highest mark on the roster.
Barro, who followed Gonzaga’s Lloyd last season, is a frequently used and efficient post-scorer. After averaging 6.8 points and 4.4 rebounds in 15.2 minutes last season, the Mali native is in the middle of his breakout season as a junior. His 19.1 points per game is his second on the team, and his 76.9% shooting percentage from the field. Offensive Barro’s main wart is his free throw his shot. He has made 61 attempts, but his shooting percentage is only 54.1%. His efficiency at the rim is the main reason Arizona will enter Saturday’s game as his team his 2-point shooting his highest in the nation at 64.5%.
Pere Larson He started his career in Utah before moving to Arizona last season. The Swedish winger is his 3-point shooter with a career 38.3, but his distance to the first eight games was his 22-6. On the field in Arizona About half of his goal attempts are from three-pointers outside his line.
Wildcats’ starting backcourt consists of Texas transfers Courtney Ramey When Kar Kryisa.
Raimy was originally in Louisville as a high school player, but went to Texas with Shaka Smart. The St. Louis native chose to use the final season of his eligibility in Tucson after playing his three years with Smart and his year with Chris his Beard. He was suspended for the first three games of the season for participating in non-qualified pre-NBA draft camps in the offseason.
The 6-foot-3 guard is third on the team in scoring with 13.8 points per game and has sizzling 15-for-30 shooting from range in five games. His 32 minutes per game lead the Wildcats.
Kryisa, from Estonia, has run in the points and has had an excellent run this season. His assist-to-turnover ratio is 3.1 to 1, and he’s shooting 40.9% from 3 in 44 attempts. Kriisa is also his slow shooter with a career 83.8% free. Kleisa recorded his 14 points, 11 rebounds and 12 assists this season against Southern University, achieving his second triple-double of his career. The match between Kriisa and Xavier Johnson is a must-see.
Cedric HendersonA 6-foot-6 transfer from Campbell. The Memphis native is shooting 66.7 percent in 2 seconds and 40 percent in 3 seconds.
freshman Kiran Boswell One of the top 30 recruits in 2022 and Kryisa’s backup. He has struggled so far, with his 23.1% field goal percentage. In the long term, he will be an important backcourt role for Lloyd, but his role will be minimal behind Kryisa for now.
Two frontcourt backup names to know are sophomores Adama Bal and freshman Henri WiesarBal, originally from France, is a 3-point shooter with 14.4 minutes off the bench and a career 37.5%. Veesaar is from Estonia and in 2 seconds he is a 10-14 7-footer.
Tempo free preview
Indiana’s defense will be challenged at the MGM Grand Arena. According to KenPom, Arizona comes into Saturday’s matchup with her second-best offense and highest effective field goal percentage in the nation. Indiana has only one opponent this season that has allowed more than one point per possession, Xavier.
The Wildcats pick up the pace relentlessly, and the big men run across the floor to score quickly. Cryisa and Rummy can also put a lot of pressure on the defense with their 3-point shots.
Arizona is a solid defensive rebounding team, but they struggle with turnovers. The Wildcats are a 3-point shooting team, but they’re not focused on offense. Indiana has a higher score distribution from his 3rd than Arizona, 24.8% vs. 23.8%.
Defensively, Arizona has holes to exploit. Their perimeter defense can be beaten on the dribble, and they aren’t as good a shot-blocking team as Indiana.
what it brings
KenPom’s prediction is one behind Indiana, giving the Hoosiers a 54% chance of winning. Sagarin’s number is 3 like Indiana.
With Jalen Hood-Schifino’s status unknown, Indiana needs strong performances from Tamar Bates, Trey Galloway and Miller Kopp to succeed. Bates and Galloway were great against Nebraska, but ineffective against Rutgers.
This could also be a tricky matchup for the Hoosiers at Four against Tubulis. Race His Thompson has not been able to play to his normal level so far this season, and Tubulis’ size and versatility are a tough matchup.
Both fanbases need to be well-represented in Las Vegas, and the winner of this matchup will have a notch in their resume and value in Sunday’s NCAA Tournament selections.
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