The Utah men’s basketball team (21-8) has never lost in the first round of the NCAA Tournament under coach Rick Majerus.
Meanwhile, its first round NCAA opponent, the Indiana Hoosiers (20-11), were bounced in coach Mike Davis’s first trip to the Dance last year by Kent State.
In addition, in spite of the Hoosiers making 17 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances, they have advanced to the second round only twice in the last seven years. The Hoosiers have not advanced to the second round since 1999, and haven’t made it to the Sweet 16 since 1994.
One of the streaks has to come to an end as the South No. 5 seed Indiana battles No. 12 seed Utah in first round action of the NCAAs at ARCO Arena in Sacramento, Calif. Tip-off is scheduled for 8:20 p.m.
The Utes/Hoosiers victor will play the winner of the preceding game, between No. 4 seed Southern Cal (22-9) and No. 13 seed North Carolina-Wilmington (22-9). The game for a berth into the Sweet 16 will be played March 16.
However, Majerus, who formerly coached in the Hoosier state as the head coach at Ball State, knows Utah cannot look past its Big Ten Conference opponent.
“In a very difficult league, they’re a great team,” Majerus said.
Indiana shared a chunk of the Big Ten regular season title with Wisconsin, Ohio State, and Illinois, as all four teams had 11-5 conference records.
In the postseason conference tourney, the Hoosiers were outed in the semi-final 62-60, when former Hoosier Luck Recker hit a 15-footer as time expired.
Before that game, the Hoosiers had won two straight and four of their last six.
Indiana is led by Big Ten Player of the Year Jared Jeffries.
“My NBA guys tell me Jeffries is a lock NBA lottery pick,” Majerus said.
“If you’re the Big 10 Player of the Year, you’re a hell of a player.”
Jeffries, only a sophomore, leads the team in scoring (15.2 ppg) and rebounding (7.5 rpg).
“I’m sure he’ll be the focal point of our defense,” said senior guard/forward Jeff Johnsen.
However, Jeffries hasn’t been the same player since he went down with a sprained right ankle Feb. 2 against Louisville. The ankle caused Jeffries to sit out a game. Jeffries had an MRI test done on the sprain, but the results were negative.
Before the injury, Jeffries shot 51 percent and averaged 18.4 points, 8.9 rebounds and 2.8 blocks a game. Since, he has tallied 9.5 points, 5.6 rebounds and 0.9 blocks per game in three less minutes.
To complement Jeffries, court savvy guard Tom Coverdale scores 12.3 points per game and ranks second in the Big Ten in assists (4.8 apg). Six-foot-8 forward Jarrad Odle contributes 9.2 points and 5.3 rebounds a game.
Still, if the Utes are successful in playing their game, they feel its anyone’s contest.
“I love our chances right now. With our style of defense, we feel we can beat anybody,” said junior guard/forward Trace Caton.