IU Radio Analyst Errek Suhr Discusses Indiana vs. Oregon Rematch
Source: Soobum Im / Getty
INDIANAPOLIS–The Indiana Hoosier men’s basketball team (19-12) squares with the Oregon Ducks (23-8) in the Big Ten Tournament at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in downtown Indianapolis on Thursday.
Indiana comes into the game having won four of their last five while Oregon has won seven straight contests. These two teams played each other on March 4 with Oregon coming out on top 73-64. Oregon is highly likely in the NCAA Tournament field while Indiana is projected to be in the tournament by many experts, but there are no guarantees until the announcement is made on Selection Sunday.
“This should be a very competitive game. These are two very evenly matched teams that are still playing for something which is very exciting. This is a big opportunity for Indiana for sure,” said Indiana University Radio Network Color Analyst Errek Suhr.
At one point, Indiana had lost seven of eight games before winning four of their last five. Suhr says the change has been apparent in the team’s demeanor.
“This is a tougher team than we saw at one point in the season. This is a team that is playing like every possession matters. They’re playing fast. When they play fast, they play well at both ends. When you put pressure on the defense with ball movement and pushing the ball up the court, good things tend to happen. I think they’ve really hit their stride at this point in the season,” said Suhr.
Suhr says Oregon also plays with tenacity and toughness. They got to the free throw line 21 times against Indiana the first time and made 19 of those free throws. That’s just part of the reason why Suhr believes the free throw line will be a key factor in this game.
“If you’re getting to the free throw line, it means you’re doing some of the things that you should be doing offensively when it comes to winning like getting down hill and attacking the basket,” said Suhr.
This game Thursday will be in Indianapolis while the previous matchup was in Eugene, Oregon. Suhr says Indiana still needs to think of this as a neutral site game, despite its close proximity to Bloomington.
“Don’t worry about the crowd or what’s happening and where you’re playing. Just worry about the things you can control as a player, which is playing great defense and with great confidence on the offensive end,” said Suhr.
Suhr played at IU from 2003-2007. He’ll be on the call of Thursday’s game with Don Fischer. Tipoff is at noon. Pregame coverage starts at 11 am on 93.1 WIBC.
You can hear the full interview below.
