Live Blog: Michigan @ Indiana

One thing IU ranks high in? Creating turnovers.

Peering at Ken Pomeroy’s ratings, you will see very high numbers next to Indiana’s stats. This is because they rank near the bottom of Division I basketball in a lot of categories. Here’s a quick run through as of yesterday, keeping in mind there are 344 Division-I basketball teams.

Some select offensive stats:

• Effective FG percentage: 46.9 percent (240th in the nation)
• Turnover percentage: 28.2 percent (341st in the nation)
• Offensive rebounding percentage: 32.9 percent (191st in the nation)
• Adjusted offensive efficiency: 91.6 points per 100 possessions (290th in the nation)

And onwards to defense:

• Effective field goal percentage: 51.6 percent (263rd in the nation)
• Turnover percentage: 24.5 percent (33rd in the nation)
• Offensive rebounding percentage: 35.0 percent (228th in the nation)

Notice anything that sticks out? (Hint: It’s in the title of this post and I’ve bolded it.) Yes, that’s right, you get the gold star: IU opponents are turning the ball over on 24.5 percent of their possessions, good for 33rd best in the nation. Out of all the Hoosiers’ stats, this is their outlier. (If you are unsure of what some of these stats are and would like them explained, peep this and this.)

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Know Thy Opponent: Michigan Wolverines

After six seasons under Tommy Amaker with no NCAA Tournament appearances, the early results this season suggest the John Beilein era is progressing well in Ann Arbor.

The Wolverines finished just 10-22 a year ago, but are 11-3 this season and own wins over a pair of top ten teams in UCLA and Duke.

The key to the turnaround: a balanced attack with 10 guys playing over 14 minutes per game and the play of sophomore guard Manny Harris and junior forward DeShawn Sims.

Harris is leading the Big Ten in scoring at 18.8 ppg and is making a living from the foul line. He’s connected on 83 of 95 free throw attempts (87%). The key to stopping Harris may be letting him shoot the three as he’s hitting just 30 percent.

Sims ranks third in the Big Ten in scoring with 16.6 ppg and is the conference leader with 8.8 rebounds per game.

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Crean, Williams and Dumes talk Michigan

In preparation for Wednesday’s home Big Ten opener with Michigan, Indiana coach Tom Crean and guards Devan Dumes and Nick Williams addressed the media earlier today. You can hear the complete audio at the following links:

• Coach Crean audio
• Devan Dumes audio
• Nick Williams audio

Crean Big Ten teleconference audio

Courtesy of the Big Ten Network, here is the audio from this morning’s teleconference with Tom Crean:

Related:

• John Beilein teleconference audio
• Bruce Weber teleconference audio

Report: Beas Hamga will not be a Hoosier

Beas Hamga, the transfer from UNLV who was rumored to be considering Indiana, will not be a Hoosier according to our friend John Decker of Hoosier Nation.

Hamga originally committed to Iowa when Steve Alford was the coach and ended up signing with UNLV. He left the Runnin’ Rebels after logging just 26 minutes this season.

Marques Teague will decide after Pike’s season

One of the top sophomores in the country, Indianapolis Pike’s Marques Teague, will decide on his college destination shortly after the high school season concludes.

Teague’s father Shawn, who played for Louisville coach Rick Pitino at Boston University, gave the scoop to The Courier-Journal’s Jody Demling:

“He’ll make a decision at the end of his high school basketball season,” said Shawn Teague.

The elder Teague said his son had a great time watching the Cardinals win over Kentucky and he said “without a doubt” U of L was high on the list.

“We had a great, great time,” he said. “He really likes Louisville a lot.”

I’m not going to overreact yet, but Teague is viewed as a pivotal recruit by the Indiana staff because he’s an outstanding player that has the potential to become an All-American. He’s exactly the type of player Tom Crean needs to bring to Bloomington not only because of his talent, but to show that the Hoosiers can recruit the best players from Indianapolis. With that said, there seems to be significant ground to be made up if IU has any shot of keeping Teague out of the grasp of Pitino.