A win on Saturday could be IU's most convincing bid at making the Big Dance, and to preview the noon tip (FOX), The State News had a chance to talk with Cameron Drummond, one of the IU basketball reporters for the Indiana Daily Student. 

Here's what he had to say:

Editor's note: Some quotes have been changed for clarity.

Q: Despite losing five of the last six, Indiana has been in a ton of close games since upsetting MSU. What have you seen?

"Yeah, it's kind of weird. They beat Michigan State, and everyone thought that could have been a game that could kind of galvanize their season, kick-started them in the right direction and all that, but then they just went out and lost five in a row. A lot of those were tight games. It wasn't really too much of an effort level thing; it was more of just late-game execution. Their offense continues to be very hit or miss when it comes to making shots, shots from outside in particular."

"... The bottoming out for the season was, by far, the 21-point loss on the road at Minnesota where they gave zero effort. The game wasn't close from the opening tipoff and people kind of wrote them off in terms of any kind of reasonable postseason picture at that point. So, it was an effort thing the last couple weeks, especially the Wisconsin game as well, but they've also been playing a bit smarter basketball. They've incorporated redshirt freshman Race Thompson into the lineup, more out of necessity than him maybe earning playing time. He played 22 minutes against Wisconsin and shut down Ethan Happ super, super well, and he could really be kind of an unexpected x-factor here with a couple of games left in the season."

Q: Guard Romeo Langford is leading the Hoosiers with 17.1 points per game. In your eyes is he the Big Ten Freshman of the Year?

"I almost want to say no, just because it was kind of expected for him to be this big scoring presence for Indiana because the two guys that have done it most for this team have been Juwan Morgan and Romeo. Really nobody else has been a consistent third option or even popped up for a random good scoring game or two. And the thing that'd frustrating from a Langford perspective when it comes to the points he scores, he has the ball in these late-game situations, he doesn't necessarily do the right things with it. We saw at the end of the Michigan State game that instead of trying to drive to the basket and try and win the game like he did against Wisconsin, he settled for a deep setback 3 in the corner. He's done the same thing against Iowa, Purdue, Ohio State. So, he hasn't necessarily shown the maturity and the scoring development over the season for probably a Big Ten Freshman of the Year. But his defense has been something that's really been kind of a positive surprise for Archie Miller, just because people really weren't sure his intensity or buy-in on defense would be at that level that needed not to be a liability." 

Q: What do you predict what happens on Saturday?

"Predicting Indiana basketball is my least favorite thing to do on Earth, just because they are such a Jekyll and Hyde team. I've kind of talked myself into thinking about ways they can lose. I think it'll be just like it was in East Lansing, a competitive game. If you would have asked me then, I probably would have said Michigan State by 20 or something insane like that, but I really do think the Hoosiers will give an honest effort on Saturday. I think, that if nothing else, they kind of realize that this game is part of this final last stand to somehow make the NCAA Tournament, but I just can't see them replicating it, especially when they had so many emotional, tight games in a row." 

"I think they're prone, not necessarily a let down, but a game that they just can't that up for emotionally because all of the stars kind of align themselves against Wisconsin and I don't know if it can happen twice in a row."

"I'll take Michigan State 72, Indiana 60. Probably a game that gets a little away from the Hoosiers in the last 6-8 minutes of the game."