Darian DeVries began his tenure as Indiana’s head coach with a resounding 98-51 win over Alabama A&M. But now, the Hoosiers face a power conference opponent.

Indiana meets Marquette in the Waterkeeper Alliance Invitational at the United Center in Chicago on Sunday. The Golden Eagles have been a mainstay in recent NCAA tournaments, and the Hoosiers will get a legit chance to gauge how good their revamped roster is against an experienced squad.

Marquette is 2-0, as it won 80-53 against Albany on Monday and 100-82 over Southern on Wednesday. Marquette was picked to finish fifth in the Big East’s preseason poll, as it's looking to replace the production of All-American guard Kam Jones.

Let’s meet the Golden Eagles.

Key Players

• *G Sean Jones: 9 ppg/2 rpg/4.5 apg
• *G Chase Ross: 19 ppg/5 rpg/5.5 apg
• *F Zaine Lowery: 12.5 ppg/3 rpg/1 apg
• *F Caedin Hamilson: 7 ppg/1.5 rpg/0.5 apg
• *F Ben Gold: 7.5 ppg/8.5 rpg/0.5 apg
• F Royce Parham: 7.5 ppg/5.5 rpg/0.5 apg
• G Nigel James Jr.: 3.5 ppg/3 rpg/2.5 apg
• G Adrien Stevens: 6 ppg/0 rpg/2 apg
• G Tre Norman: 4.5 ppg/4 rpg/0.5 apg
• F Damarius Owens: 7 ppg/4.5 rpg/0 apg

*: Expected starter

Head Coach

Shaka Smart is in his fifth year as Marquette’s head coach. Smart previously coached at Texas (2015-21) and VCU (2009-15). Smart made the NCAA tournament in each of his first four seasons at Marquette. The Madison, Wis. native got his 100th win at Marquette on Wednesday. Indiana is 1-1 all-time against Smart-coached teams, as the Hoosiers defeated VCU in the Round of 32 of the 2012 NCAA tournament, and lost 66-44 to Texas on Dec. 1, 2020.

Strengths

The Golden Eagles are forcing 17.5 turnovers per game in their first two games. Smart’s defenses have always been known for their aggressiveness. Marquette got 18 steals in its season opener against Albany. Marquette has four different players averaging at least two steals per game. If Marquette’s defensive aggression isn’t forcing turnovers, it’s forcing missed shots. Marquette’s opponents are shooting 35.9% from the field and 21.3% on 3s. After Indiana shot 62% from the field and 42% from 3 against Alabama A&M, the Golden Eagles’ defense will provide a much stiffer test.

Weaknesses

Marquette has not been a very good rebounding team under Smart, and this year doesn’t appear to be much different. The Golden Eagles allowed Southern — which has just one player who’s above 6-9 — to tie them 39-39 in the rebounding battle on Wednesday, as Southern had a higher rebound percentage than Marquette. Marquette’s lack of an interior presence also showed up in free-throw numbers, as it allowed Southern to shoot 29 of them.

Series History

Indiana is 8-2 all-time against Marquette. The Hoosiers won the last meeting between the programs in a 96-73 victory in Bloomington on Nov. 14, 2018.

Indiana’s Keys to Victory

• Win Rebounding Battle: Indiana — like Marquette — doesn’t project as a great rebounding team. The Hoosiers won’t have a rebounding edge against most of their high major opponents, but they could on Sunday. DeVries needs to emphasize crashing the glass on both ends in this one.
• Play Patient Offense: Marquette’s perimeter defenders will try their best to flummox Indiana. Indiana can’t play rushed offense. Instead, it must rely on ball and player movement within DeVries’ motion offense to find good shots. These shots may come later in the shot clock, but they will come to the Hoosiers if they’re patient enough.
• Don’t Fall Far Behind: In games that didn’t count, Indiana suffered early deficits against equal opponents. Indiana had to overcome double-digit deficits in its last two wins in Puerto Rico in August and in its exhibition against Baylor on Oct. 26. On Tuesday, DeVries said, “You can't put yourselves in those positions over and over again and expect to be successful,” so look for the Hoosiers to avoid a large deficit against Marquette.