How to Watch Indiana's Game Vs. Providence on Monday; Game Time, TV, Point Spread
ASHEVILLE, N.C. — Indiana missed out on a nice trip to Hawaii, but the Hoosiers still can get plenty out of the next three days here in the tough Maui Invitational.
It starts with a great battle with Providence today, and potential top-20 matchups down the road with Texas and North Carolina, if it all breaks a certain way. It's a rare Monday afternoon game, but here's how you can watch, and we'll also have a LIVE BLOG going live from Asheville, so follow along.
FOLLOW THE LIVE BLOG HERE DURING THE GAME: CLICK HERE
Here are the particulars on Monday's game:
- Who: Providence Friars (1-0, 0-0 in the Big East vs. Indiana Hoosiers (1-0, 0-0 in the Big Ten.
- What: First round of the Camping World Maui Invitational.
- When: 2:30 p.m. ET, Monday, Nov. 30
- Where: Harrah's Cherokee Center, Asheville, N.C.
- Latest Line: Indiana is a 2-point favorite as of Monday morning, according to DraftKings.com
- Poll rankings: Neither team is ranked in the top-25 polls, but both teams are receiving votes in both polls. Indiana would be ranked No. 30 in the Associated Press poll and No. 34 in the Coaches Poll; Providence would be No. 34 in AP and No. 42 in the Coaches Poll
- Kenpom.com rankings: Indiana is No. 25; Providence is No. 46.
- TV: ESPN2
- Announcers: Jason Benetti and Bill Walton
- Radio: Indiana Radio Network
- Announcers: Don Fischer, Errek Suhr, Joe Smith
- Streaming: IUHoosiers.com/broadcast
- Other Maui games on Monday: Texas vs. Davidson, Noon ET; North Carolina vs. UNLV, 7 p.m. ET; Stanford vs. Alabama, 9:30 p.m. ET
Here are three things I want to see from the Hoosiers on Wednesday:
1. Win the battle of the boards
Archie Miller wasn't pleased with how Indiana rebounded in the season-opener, but there also were some obvious reasons why that happened in the 89-59 win over Tennessee Tech. Center Joey Brunk didn't play at all, nursing a sore back. And forward Race Thompson, who started for Brunk, dealt with foul trouble most of the first half and played only 16 minutes.
Playing small has a lot of advantages, but rebounding certainly isn't one of them. Indiana's guard will have to pick up the slack on the glass. Miller said last week that Brunk was day-to-day, and there's been no announcement prior to Monday's tip as to his status,
2. Make your stinkin' free throws
Indiana was just 10-for-22 from the free throw line, and that will get you beat in close games.
Indiana shot just 67.9 percent as a team a year ago, and it is a point of emphasis during workouts. Trayce Jackson-Davis, who gets to the line often, was 115-for-168 a year ago (68.5 percent), and that's an area where he wants to see improvement. A lot of nights, Indiana's team percentage is going to be predicated a lot of his success.
What you don't want to see is someone like guard Al Durham missing both of his free throws. He was an 81 percent shooter a year ago. It was just one game, and nerves probably came into play in the season opener. But they need to shoot 70 percent every night no matter what.
3. Freshmen handle bigger moment
There's a huge upgrade in talent between Providence and Tennessee Tech, so it's going to be interesting to see how Indiana's four freshmen handle the moment on a larger stage.
Trey Galloway scored 13 points in his debut, and was really impressive. Khristian Lander, Anthony Leal and Jordan Geronimo all got plenty of minutes too, so watching rotations in this game will be something to pay attention to. This team needs that group to play well to have a successful season this year.
