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Big Ten: Pretenders Or Contenders?

By Aaron Ferguson

Feb 22, 2015; Piscataway, NJ, USA; Indiana Hoosiers guard Yogi Ferrell (11) brings the ball up court during the first half against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at the Louis Brown Athletic Center. Mandatory Credit: Jim O
Feb 22, 2015; Piscataway, NJ, USA; Indiana Hoosiers guard Yogi Ferrell (11) brings the ball up court during the first half against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at the Louis Brown Athletic Center. Mandatory Credit: Jim O /
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Jan 2, 2016; Lincoln, NE, USA; Indiana Hoosiers forward Troy Williams (5) dribbles against the Nebraska Cornhuskers during the second half at Pinnacle Bank Arena. Indiana defeated Nebraska 79-69. Mandatory Credit: Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 2, 2016; Lincoln, NE, USA; Indiana Hoosiers forward Troy Williams (5) dribbles against the Nebraska Cornhuskers during the second half at Pinnacle Bank Arena. Indiana defeated Nebraska 79-69. Mandatory Credit: Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports /

Indiana Hoosiers

Big Ten Record: 9-2
Key Wins: @ Mich 80-67, vs. WIS 59-58
Key Losses: @ WIS 82-79, @ PSU 68-63

Pretenders

The Hoosiers are certainly off to a great start to the conference season, sitting among the top tier of the Big Ten standings with a 9-2 record. Their defense has improved during the conference season, allowing 66.6 points per game. That can be attributed to their great success to open up Big Ten play. However, so can their weak schedule.

Indiana has yet to play any of the heavy hitters in conference play. With seven games remaining, five of them are against ranked conference opponents. That includes playing fourth-ranked Maryland and fifth-ranked Iowa twice.

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3 takeaways from Ohio State football's win over Indiana
3 takeaways from Ohio State football's win over Indiana /

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    • What may be most remarkable about how the Hoosiers are playing is that they are doing it without guard James Blackmon Jr. He is ruled out for the rest of the season with an injured right knee, according to the Indy Star. In his 13 games this season, Blackmon was averaging 15.8 points per game on 48 percent shooting, including a three-point percentage of 46.3.

    Indiana has learned how to play without Blackmon. He has missed all 11 conference games this season, so the timing was certainly unfortunate. The Hoosiers are using eight players in games, and all eight are averaging double digits in minutes per game. So the depth is still there for Indiana, but they can’t afford to lose Yogi Ferrell or Troy Williams.

    The Hoosiers’ fate will be learned over the next four weeks. They have a prime opportunity to squash any doubt in whether they are contenders, but for now it remains to be seen if the Hoosiers are elite.

    Next: Iowa Hawkeyes