What: Indiana Hoosiers vs. Lindenwood Lions
Where: Assembly Hall in Bloomington, IN
When: Thursday, November 20 at 6:00 pm
How to Watch: The game will be broadcast on BTN
Opponent Glance
The Lindenwood Lions are a member of the Ohio Valley Conference and enter this contest at 2-3. Lindenwood is located in St. Charles, Missouri, and they have played once at home (a 116-51 win over the University of Health Sciences & Pharmacy in St. Louis…seriously) and four times on the road. That includes a 98-60 to Texas Tech and a 66-109 defeat to local rival Saint Louis.
The Lions have a win over Charleston Southern and a loss at common opponent Alabama A&M (74-65) in the “Bulldog Bash” in Huntsville. The head coach for the Lions is Kyle Gerdeman, in his seventh season in the program. Gerdeman previously spent time at Central Michigan, Southeast Missouri State and Moberly Area Community College.
Lindenwood is led by Milos Nenadic and top scorer Jadis Jones. Nenadic is a 6’10”, 240-pound graduate transfer that previously played for the Maine Black Bears and he’s averaging 12.4 points per game and leading the team with 7.4 rebounds per game. Jadis Jones is averaging 17.3 points per game and has been red hot from the field, making 28 of 34 shot attempts in four games. That’s extremely impressive efficiency from a 6’5” sophomore guard. Mekhi Cooper and Clayton Jackson both play 30 minutes per game but neither are taller than 6’2” so backcourt size could be a real problem for the Lions against guys like Tayton Conerway, Nick Dorn and Lamar Wilkerson.
Lindenwood is giving up nearly 10 three-pointers per game so this should be a chance for the Hoosiers to make sure the poor shooting against Incarnate Word does not turn into a pattern. As a point of reference, Texas Tech outrebounded the Lions by 16 and forced them into 14 turnovers while making 12 three-pointers.
Why it Matters for the Hoosiers
The Indiana Hoosiers struggled in their last time out, particularly in the second half, as they saw a near 20-point lead dissipate to five before finishing the deal for a nine-point win over Incarnate Word. The Cardinals hit some tough shots and Indiana struggled to knock down much of anything but IU’s ball movement on offense and defensive intensity and focus on defense both slipped as well and contributed to the poor second half.
The Hoosiers will have had four days to rest and regroup before this game against Lindenwood and it will be important to re-establish the dominance they displayed in the first three games, particularly before taking on the Kansas State Wildcats next week. In addition to a focus on getting back into a groove from the perimeter, the Hoosiers will be trying to flesh out the rotation and getting Nick Dorn into rhythm within the lineup is critical before reaching the tougher parts of the schedule. This is an opponent IU should comfortably be in front of with plenty of time available for players like Jasai Miles and Nick Dorn plus the walk-ons to get some valuable game minutes.