NCAA Basketball: 5 breakout teams to watch in 2018-19
By Brian Rauf
2. Indiana Hoosiers
Indiana is a program that is desperately trying to return to national relevancy (which is why they fired Tom Crean and brought in Archie Miller), and I think this year is finally the year they make that return.
They’ve posted a winning conference record just once in the past five seasons, yet Miller has brought a new energy to this program. The Hoosiers were as inconsistent as you would expect from a developing team under a new head coach last year but still found a way to pick up wins over talented squads like Notre Dame and Maryland.
Eight of Indiana’s top 11 scorers return, all of whom are expected to take leaps forward in their second year under Miller. That group is led by versatile 6-8 forward Juwan Morgan, who averaged 16.7 points and 7.4 rebounds per game in a breakout campaign. He’s expected to be one of the Big Ten‘s best players as a senior.
However, the real reason for Indiana’s hype is the arrival of five-star freshman Romeo Langford. The 6-6, 215-pound Indiana native is a prototypical two-guard for today’s game with ideal size, range, and ability to create his own shot. Langford is projected to be a top 10 pick in the 2019 NBA Draft because of that. He’ll give the Hoosiers a true go-to wing player who is a threat to score every time he touches the ball, something they’ve been desperately lacking since Victor Oladipo left school.
Other teams will be forced to game plan specifically for Langford. If they leave him one-on-one, he’ll burn them. If they focus too much on stopping him, that creates more opportunities for everyone else.
Because of the way defenses will have to focus on Langford and Morgan, Miller explained at media day that he needs to get significant contributions from a number of players if Indiana is going to be successful.
"“This has to be a team of depth and togetherness this year. If we’re not playing nine, 10 guys, then we’re not getting the maximum out of everybody on the team.”"
What exactly would constitute this breakout for Indiana? I predict they’ll take advantage of another down year in the Big Ten and finish in the top three in the conference, returning to the Big Dance in the process.