Stock Watch: Who's sizzling, fizzling as season nears end?
March is when the madness occurs, but February often reveals who is ready to perform when the pressure is really turned up.
Indiana's premier college basketball programs put themselves into position to make the NCAA tournament with strong Februarys, but all suffered hiccups. Indiana went 3-4, alternating wins and losses. Purdue went 5-1, losing only at Minnesota. Butler went 5-2, taking potential No. 1 national tournament seed Villanova to the limit but getting blown out by Xavier.
Who sizzled and who fizzled around the state?
INDYSTAR'S COLLEGE HOOPS COVERAGE:IU, Purdue, Butler
• Zach Osterman, IndyStar's Indiana basketball reporter
Who's hot: Yogi Ferrell really turned up his offense in February, scoring in double figures in all but one of Indiana's games. He scored 17 or more points four times and broke 20 twice, and in the one game where he did not score in double figures, his 11 assists cued a 19-point blowout of Minnesota.
Who's not: I'm not sure there's one player who fizzled – when Indiana was down, it was down as a team, more often than not. But if we've got to pick someone, James Blackmon Jr.'s road form was a concern at times. He shot just 1-of-10 at Northwestern and 2-of-14 at Rutgers, and if we're allowed to dip back into the end of January, he was a combined 8-of-25 in losses at Purdue and Ohio State. Blackmon hardly fizzled, but his road woes did raise an eyebrow at least.
• Michael Pointer, IndyStar's Butler basketball reporter
Who's hot: Kellen Dunham. The Bulldogs' leading scorer averaged 19.7 points and shot 60 percent (48-for-81), an extraordinary performance for someone who plays primarily on the perimeter. Butler went 5-2, with its worst performance by far coming in a 73-56 loss at Xavier on Feb. 21. That was the one game in which Dunham struggled. He got in foul trouble and scored just nine points in 25 minutes.
Who's not: This is a little unfair because Tyler Wideman had a strong performance in a victory over Marquette. But overall, he showed he's not ready to play starter minutes after Andrew Chrabascz's hand injury.
• Nathan Baird, JCOnline's Purdue basketball reporter
Who's hot: More than one opposing coach has said Purdue center A.J. Hammons is playing the best basketball of his career lately. The 7-foot junior averaged 12.5 points, seven rebounds and 3.8 blocks. He's also become much more efficient offensively and could become just the second Big Ten player to lead in field goal percentage and blocks during conference games. Assuming Purdue finishes well, Hammons probably pushed himself into contention for top-five votes on some All-Big Ten ballots.
Who's not: Kendall Stephens dropped off the most in February, but it wasn't necessarily his fault. The sophomore guard hasn't been the same since suffering finger and ankle injuries. That may help explain why he became more dependent than ever on staying behind the 3-point line, attempting only five two-pointers all month. Dakota Mathias took over the starting role while Stephens was on the mend. But it wouldn't be surprising at all to see Stephens hit a handful of 3s this week or in the Big Ten tournament.
This week's rankings
• Zach Osterman
1) Notre Dame -- The Irish suffered a tough loss, but they're still the best of the bunch here.
2) Butler -- The Bulldogs are fun to watch and easy to appreciate, given all they've been through.
3) Purdue -- Boilers might've climbed to No. 2, but for the late stumble in Columbus. Still an altogether impressive performance.
4) Valparaiso -- Sorry Hoosiers, but Valpo won its conference and, even with a loss last week, deserves a little time in the spotlight.
5) Indiana -- That sunshine comes at the expense of an Indiana team that was humbled at Northwestern. It was shocking to see this team go more than 10 minutes without a point.
6) Evansville -- It's a two-team race for the MVC tournament title, and the Aces are not one of those two teams.
7) Indiana State -- It's all about perspective – Greg Lansing is getting a little conference coach of the year love.
8) IPFW -- Shhhh, don't tell anybody, but I nearly picked the Dons to win their conference tournament. Nearly.
9) IUPUI -- The Jags are second in the Summit in league play alone in adjusted defensive efficiency. Of course, they're second-to-last in league play in adjusted offensive efficiency …
10) Ball State -- What else is there to say? Tough year in Muncie.
• Michael Pointer
1) Notre Dame – It was tempting to drop the Irish after a home loss to Syracuse. But no one else did enough to supplant them.
2) Purdue – Losing at Ohio State is no disgrace. But missing so many easy shots and free throws makes it difficult to take.
3) Butler – Bulldogs took care of business against inferior competition. Much tougher tasks are ahead this week.
4) Indiana – Two challenging but winnable games at home to end the regular season. No reason for Hoosiers not to make NCAA tournament.
5) Valparaiso – The Crusaders got what they wanted. Conference tournament is on its home court. They must win it to go dancing.
6) Evansville – Purple Aces were pretty competitive at Northern Iowa. Will try to keep season of ups and downs alive in MVC tournament.
7) Indiana State – Sycamores are No. 3 seed in MVC tournament. Does a Cinderella run await?
8) IPFW – Mastodons won eight of their past 10 and just might a contender in the Summit League tournament.
9) IUPUI – Any win from here on out is gravy.
10) Ball State – Bo Calhoun scores career-high 30 against Toledo. Rest of team shoots 21.7 percent in 70-59 loss.
• Nathan Baird
1) Butler – Moving the Bulldogs and their stellar defense to the top spot.
2) Notre Dame – Still capable of big things this month.
3) Purdue – Finale vs Illinois at Mackey Arena looms large for both teams.
4) Indiana – Two tough home games left, but opportunity to build momentum.
5) Valparaiso – Will Crusaders be a trendy 13 of 14-seed upset pick?
6) Evansville – Need to avenge two losses to Illinois State in MVC tourney to extend season.
7) IPFW – Can strong second half lead to big things at Summit League tournament?
8) Indiana State – Has alternated wins and losses in last 11 names. Needs to end trend in MVC tourney.
9) IUPUI – Up first in Summit League tourney? Oral Roberts, which already beat Jaguars twice.
10) Ball State – Prediction: losing streak ends in Muncie this week.