Pre-Game Primer: Gannon Edition
Written By: Josh Wilson (@_joshwilson33)
Well, it’s that time of the year ladies and gentleman! Your 2019-2020 Indiana Hoosiers take the floor tonight at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall in their first public appearance against an opponent. The game tips at 7 pm and you can stream it on BTN+ (yay!). The only good thing about dropping $9.95 is you get to experience the wonderful students within the IU media school during a broadcast. A lot of talent in that program! Now, back to the other program with some talent.
I have no idea what to expect from tonight’s game. No clue whatsoever. What I do know, is that Indiana is going to be without it’s starting backcourt. Coach Archie Miller announced yesterday at a press conference, that starting guards, Devonte Green (hamstring) and Rob Phinisee (uncommon lower abdominal) will not play tonight against Gannon. So what’s that mean? Well, in the interim, it means Al Durham is your starting PG and he is backed up by true freshman, Armaan Franklin. Long-term? Well, Archie doesn’t seem to think it’s a long-term problem for either Green or Phinisee. Although I’m slightly more nervous about Phinisee given the ominous statement about him from Miller. So with this information, I revert back to my initial take. I have absolutely no clue what to expect tonight. Here are some things I am excited about though!
Jerome Hunter!
We will actually get to see Jerome play basketball in an Indiana uniform! I am very curious to see how he plays on both ends, and how many minutes he plays. But most importantly, I am happy for him.
The Frontcourt.
De’ron Davis, Joey Brunk, Trayce Jackson-Davis, Race Thompson. Indiana will have a significant size advantage in tonight’s match-up. Eager to see these guys perform and handle that advantage.
Damezi Anderson and Armaan Franklin.
Intrigued to see how Damezi has developed since last year. And I’ve heard a lot of good things about Armaan. I think these two get more playing time than we all think.
The Coaching Staff.
Lastly, I want to see how Archie is going to deploy this roster and his scheme. And, Mike Roberts! I want to see how much he is involved, and what he does specifically with the bigs in game.
Let’s have some fun tonight. After all, it is an exhibition game. Indiana’s only exhibition of the season. I want to see some good basketball, effort, and most importantly a healthy team through tonight’s matchup.
As always, keep up with us at www.hoosiers-united.com.