Hoosiers tip-off season with Florida Gulf Coast

After a glorious recruiting day on Thursday, Tom Crean and his IU basketball team must focus on the present, as the Hoosiers host Florida Gulf Coast to Assembly Hall.

Indiana vs. Florida Gulf Coast
First ever meeting
6:30 PM

Broadcast:
TV: Big Ten Network (Tom Hamilton and John Laskowski)
Radio: IU Radio Network (Don Fischer, Royce Waltman and Joe Smith) and Sirius 91
Stats: GameTracker

Meet the foe: Florida Gulf Coast

Tonight will be the eighth straight season in the program’s nine-year existence that the Eagles have opened up away from home. They were 3-5 in those games. FGCU opened the 2008 season at then-defending national champ Kansas and at No. 2 Michigan State last season.

The Eagles went 8-21 last year including a 5-15 record in the Atlantic Sun conference. Indiana is not the only Big Ten matchup for the Eagles. They will travel to Ohio State on December 15th.

FGCU returns eight players from last year’s squad including its top two scorers. Redshirt sophomore Anthony Banks averaged 12.9 ppg and 6.6 rpb (both led team) last season and senior Reed Baker was just behind with 11.4 ppg. Banks at 6-6, 210, was named to the A-Sun Preseason All-Conference team and will play limited minutes after having surgery this summer to repair a broken bone in his right foot. The Hoosiers will have to guard the perimeter, especially Baker who notched a team-best 49 three-pointers last season.

Dave Balza is in his ninth year as the head coach at Florida Gulf Coast and has compiled a 143-101 record with the Eagles. Prior to taking the reigns of FGCU, Balza was the head coach at St. Joseph’s (Ind.) for three years.

Hoosier standouts:

Indiana opens its 111th season in program history tonight at Assembly Hall. IU has not lost a home opener in 25 years.

Jeremiah Rivers is the lone senior on this young Indiana team that looks to improve on their 10-21 record last year, 4-14 in the Big Ten.

Indiana easily defeated Franklin College in their first exhibition game 89-37 but it took an overtime period for IU to overcome Ferris State in their final exhibition game.

Sophomore forward Christian Watford led the way, averaging 25 points and six rebounds in those contests.

Junior guard Verdell Jones, who missed both exhibition games due to an ankle sprain, is expected to play.

Crean hasn’t set the starting lineup yet but if Victor Oladipo starts, it will be the fourth consecutive year IU has had a freshman in the starting lineup to begin the season.

7-foot center Guy-Marc Michel will not play tonight because he is still awaiting clearance from the NCAA.

Maurice Creek is the team’s leading returning scorer at 16.4 points per contest. He did miss the final 19 games of the year after suffering a season-ending knee injury before the Big Ten season.

Coach Crean enters his third season atop the IU basketball program (16-46). Crean previously spent nine seasons as the head coach at Marquette University where he was 190-96 and made five NCAA Tournament appearances, including the 2003 Final Four. He is 206-142 all-time as a head coach.