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Indiana Basketball: James Blackmon Jr. is out indefinitely

By Carmine Carcieri

Jan 15, 2017; Bloomington, IN, USA;Indiana Hoosiers guard James Blackmon Jr. (1) dribbles the ball while Rutgers Scarlet Knights guard Corey Sanders (3) defends in the first half of the game at Assembly Hall. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 15, 2017; Bloomington, IN, USA;Indiana Hoosiers guard James Blackmon Jr. (1) dribbles the ball while Rutgers Scarlet Knights guard Corey Sanders (3) defends in the first half of the game at Assembly Hall. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports /
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With OG Anunoby already out for the season, Indiana basketball will now have to deal with the loss of James Blackmon Jr.

Indiana is currently sitting at 14-7 overall and 4-4 in the Big Ten. They are securely in the NCAA Tournament due to their victories over North Carolina and Kansas early in the season.

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However, the Hoosiers have major problems moving forward. Not only do they have to deal with the loss of OG Anunoby (who’s out for the season due to a knee injury), but they were dealt a major blow on Saturday when it was announced that their leading scorer, James Blackmon Jr., is out indefinitely.

This isn’t just bad news, this could be devastating news for the Hoosiers. Blackmon is averaging 17.6 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game this season while shooting 49 percent from the field and 43 percent from beyond the arc. Also, the junior might have legitimately saved the Hoosiers season with a buzzer-beating three-pointer to beat Penn State on the road and 33 points in a home win against Michigan State.

But now Indiana could be the verge of bubble status. Why? Their defense was already very bad with Anunoby and it has been even worse without him — it was especially poor in Saturday’s 30-point loss to the Michigan Wolverines. Add in the fact that the Hoosiers are missing their best offensive player, top three point shooter and the program’s best shot creator, and Tom Crean’s squad could be headed for irrelevance for the rest of the 2016-17 campaign.

Just take a peek at the schedule. They will play at Northwestern later tonight before getting a relatively easy home game against Penn State. But then things get brutal for the Hoosiers. They must travel to Madison for a date with Wisconsin, host a stingy and big Purdue team, host a Wolverines team that just beat them by 30 and then head on the road to face bubble team Minnesota.

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With a roster that plays very little defense, doesn’t have a point guard and is lacking true shot creators, this could get ugly for the Hoosiers. Crean’s job won’t be on the line, but Indiana certainly isn’t going to live up to the expectations they created when they knocked off the Jayhawks on the first day of the season.

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