Indiana's season is teetering after seventh loss in 11 games
Thanks to an impressive list of quality wins that includes SMU, Butler, Maryland and Ohio State, Indiana has probably accomplished enough already this season to make the NCAA tournament without winning another game.
The Hoosiers appear unwisely hell-bent on testing that theory.
A non-competitive 77-63 home loss against Iowa on Tuesday night was Indiana's seventh loss in 11 games since cracking the national rankings on the morning of Jan. 23. All four of the Hoosiers' victories came over non-NCAA tournament contenders and the most recent three losses were home games against Purdue and the Hawkeyes and a road game at Northwestern.
Indiana (19-11, 9-8) still appears in virtually every mock bracket in spite of that stretch, but the Hoosiers would certainly be playing with fire if they lost their regular season finale against Michigan State on Saturday and again early in the Big Ten tournament. Although four victories against surefire NCAA tournament teams compares well with other bubble teams, Indiana's non-league strength of schedule was awful and it hasn't exactly left the strongest impression on the committee recently.
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Even if the Hoosiers do make it, their play of late doesn't inspire much hope of a deep NCAA tournament run.
They already were the Big Ten's worst defensive team over the course of the regular season because of a lack of rim protectors in the paint or lockdown defenders at the wing position. Their effort level on defense has gotten even worse in recent games because they've let their uncharacteristically poor shooting affect them at both ends.
Indiana shot below 40 percent from the field against both Iowa and Northwestern, settling mostly for jump shots in both games and erratic shooting nights from Yogi Ferrell, James Blackmon and Troy Williams. The Wildcats shot over 50 percent from the field against Indiana and the Hawkeyes answered every Hoosiers basket and got to the free throw line 17 more times.
The 11-game slide has brought back all the negativity that Indiana's strong play previously had negated.
A vocal segment of Indiana fans are unhappy with Tom Crean because they do not feel the program should be in danger of missing the NCAA tournament in back-to-back seasons in his sixth and seventh year. They are especially displaced with some of the off-court issues that preceded this season and with his inability to land a suitable replacement after big man Noah Vonleh turned pro last year.
It was only six weeks ago that Indiana was back in the AP Top 25 and one of college basketball's feel-good stories. Now the Hoosiers once again feel more like a program teetering on the verge of crisis.
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Jeff Eisenberg is the editor of The Dagger on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at daggerblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
