The Indiana Hoosiers head into the season with as much expectation as ever, with one of the best players in college basketball.
CBB Review is once again ranking the top 100 teams heading into the 2022-23 season. Each day we will reveal the next team until we reach the team slotted at number one. Coming in ranked number 17 are the Indiana Hoosiers.
The Indiana Hoosiers have only reached the Sweet 16 or further of the NCAA Tournament three times in the past 20 seasons. However, this year they have arguably their highest ceiling in quite some time, thanks to an experienced returning group led by one of the most dominant big men in college basketball.
It also helps that the Hoosiers have a gritty coach in Mike Woodson who seems to be the perfect fit. Woodson’s recruiting and in-game coaching led the Hoosiers to a 21-win season after falling below .500 the year before. However, there will be very high expectations on Indiana to make a deep run in March.
To those who have not, click here to learn more about our preseason top 100 teams in the 2022-23 college basketball season.
Head Coach: Mike Woodson (2nd season overall – both at Indiana)
2021-22 Record: 21-14 (9-11)
2022 Postseason Finish: Lost in first round of NCAA Tournament
Notable Departures: Khristian Lander (Transfer/Western Kentucky), Micahel Durr (Transfer/UCF), Parker Stewart (Transfer/UT Martin)
Projected Rotation
PG: Xavier Johnson (6-3, 200, Gr.-Sr.)
2021-22 stats: 12.1 points, 5.1 assists, 3.8 rebounds, 1.2 steals, 38.3 3P%
SG: Jalen Hood-Schifino (6-6, 213, Fr.)
247Sports Composite #23 overall ranked recruit
SF: Miller Kopp (6-7, 215, Gr.-Sr.)
2021-22 stats: 6.0 points, 2.5 rebounds, 1.1 assists, 36.1 3P%, 35.6 FG%
PF: Race Thompson (6-8, 235, Rs.-Sr.)
2021-22 stats: 11.1 points, 7.5 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 1.1 steals
C: Trayce Jackson-Davis (6-9, 245, Sr.)
2021-22 stats: 18.3 points, 8.1 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 2.3 blocks, 58.9 FG%
6: Trey Galloway (6-4, 203, Jr.)
2021-22 stats: 5.5 points, 1.8 assists, 1.7 rebounds
7: Jordan Geronimo (6-8, 225, Jr.)
2021-22 stats: 4.4 points, 3.6 rebounds
8: Malik Reneau (6-9, 233, Fr.)
247Sports Composite #29 overall ranked recruit
9: Tamar Bates (6-5, 198, So.)
2021-22 stats: 3.9 points, 1.3 rebounds, 33.8 FG%
10: Anthony Leal (6-5, 200, Jr.)
2021-22 stats: 1.9 points, 1.1 assists
11: Kaleb Banks (6-7, 215, Fr.)
247Sports Composite #89 overall ranked recruit
Team MVP: Trayce Jackson-Davis
People all over the college basketball world are calling 2022-23 the year of the big man. Trayce Jackson-Davis is at the head of that discussion.
TJD has been a problem at Indiana ever since he stepped foot inside Assembly Hall as a freshman. Now, it all culminates in his senior season with the Hoosiers.
Perhaps the biggest positive about Jackson-Davis is his ability to show out on the biggest stage. He dropped 31 at Syracuse last season in a 2OT thriller. TJD dropped a cool 27 points and 12 rebounds on E.J. Liddell and Ohio State. And despite a rough outing against Saint Mary’s, where the Indiana Hoosiers ultimately fell in the NCAA Tournament, Jackson-Davis was at his best in tournament play. He dropped 24 on Hunter Dickson and Michigan, 21 on Kofi Cockburn and Illinois, 31 against Iowa in the Big Ten Tournament semifinals, and 29 against Wyoming in the play-in round of the NCAA Tournament.
Jackson-Davis returns alongside four other starters from a year ago and will once again be looked upon to dominate a tough Big Ten conference.
Make or Break Player: Miller Kopp
Often viewed as a role player, Kopp will easily be the fifth-scoring option in the starting lineup. However, with better overall efficiency and the potential for more spacing, Kopp could be the difference maker this year for the Hoosiers.
The key to Kopp having a successful season will be Indiana’s ability to utilize his three-point range. Xavier Johnson is an elite playmaker and TJD draws a lot of attention inside. Jalen Hood-Schifino should also help in spacing this year, and Race Thompson is another problem that defenses have to pay attention to.
All of that should lead to more open shots for Kopp, who hit over 36% of his attempts from deep last season. However, there is a lot of potential for that number to be even higher.
Kopp might not be one of the top options for Indiana, but because of that, he can fall under the radar for opposing defenses that are forced to double-team TJD and pay attention to the flashy Johnson. Kopp could be in store for a career year.
Analytic to Know: 321st in 3PA per game in 2021-22
Last season, Indiana wasn’t exactly a team that would launch threes into the air. And other than Kopp, most of Indiana’s game plan was to get the ball inside to TJD or Thompson, or drive the ball with Johnson.
It’ll be interesting to see whether or not the Hoosiers try and adapt a bit more to the three-point line, or stick with what they do best. Despite adding Hood-Schifino, who will easily add more offense, he’s not a great three-point shooter, and won’t add much to that part of Indiana’s game.
Overall, it will be on Indiana to make the most of their attempts from downtown, but not to fix their style of play if it isn’t broken.
Team Outlook
On paper, Indiana has the highest ceiling of any team in the Big Ten. That’s just what happens after a fair amount of the top players in the conference left, while the Hoosiers return most of their top guys.
However, putting it all together will be the most important thing. The Hoosiers never completely got into a run last season, at one point losing five straight games in February.
Another interesting factor to keep in mind – the Indiana Hoosiers brought in ZERO transfers this offseason. Instead, Mike Woodson’s offseason was spent on getting key players to return and adding impact freshmen. It could speak to the Hoosiers having an uncanny amount of chemistry this year.
Lastly, Indiana might just have the toughest non-conference schedule in the country. There are plenty of teams who can try and claim that, and I might be a prisoner of the moment, but the Hoosiers went all in for their non-conference slate:
- Nov. 18 at Xavier
- Nov. 30 vs North Carolina
- Dec. 10 vs Arizona (Neutral)
- Dec. 17 at Kansas
While some teams may have longer lists of challenging games, those four stand out as increasingly difficult games, including both teams from last year’s National Championship game.
Ultimately, the Indiana Hoosiers have a roster that is primed to perform on paper. As long as they can play well with the pressure attached to them, it should be a season to remember in Bloomington.