On Monday at 7:00 ET, the top-ranked Indiana Hoosiers (1-0) will host the North Dakota State Bison (1-0) on BTN.com.

As always, Jerod, Ryan, Zach, and Andy will be here with another episode of The Assembly Call after the game.

IU-North Dakota State Gameday Info

Date: Monday, November 12th

Time: 7:00 ET, 6:00 CT

TV: BTN.com

Announcers: Greg Murray and Darrin Horn

Point Spread: IU by 20

Over-Under: No line

KenPom Prediction: Indiana 84-64 with a 94% chance of winning

Peegs: IU Gameday

Inside the Hall

IU-North Dakota State live tweet coverage: @AssemblyCall

Assembly Call IU Postgame Show: https://assemblycall.com/live

IU-North Dakota State Preview

North Dakota State: Three Things to Watch

1. Three-point shooting

The Bison canned 10-of-22 (45.5%) from long range in their season-opening win over Valley City State, including six triples from guard Mike Felt. Obviously the competition played a factor in North Dakota State’s torrid shooting, but they hit nearly 37 percent as a team from three-point land last season. Felt connected on 43.1 percent of his threes last year, while guard Taylor Braun hit a gaudy 45.0 percent of his shots from downtown.

2. Defending Cody Zeller

I may just leave this here all season, but once again Zeller will be facing a team with limited height on the frontline. Just three NDSU players stand over 6-foot-7, but two of those players, Marshall Bjorklund and Chris Kading, scored in double figures in the opener.

Zeller was effective at getting Bryant’s big men in foul trouble on Friday, as two of them picked up three fouls in the first half. He did the vast majority of his damage in the paint, and you can be sure IU will look to pound it inside to Zeller early and often.

Getting Bjorklund in foul trouble would be critical for Indiana, as the junior big man shot an astounding 67.1 percent from the field last year and averaged 11.6 points and 5.7 rebounds.

3. Taylor Braun

Braun, a 6-foot-7 junior guard, led the Bison in scoring and rebounding last season with 15.4 points and 6.6 rebounds per contest. As mentioned above, he shot extremely well from three-point range but was also effective inside the arc, shooting 54.5 percent on two-pointers.

Braun also ranked inside the Top 100 nationally in True Shooting Percentage and Defensive Rebounding Percentage, both of which contribute to a high overall efficiency rating. Expect Victor Oladipo to draw the initial assignment defensively, but I would expect a number of guys will get a crack at slowing down North Dakota State’s star.

Indiana: Three Things to Watch

1. Defending Lawrence Alexander

For the second straight game, the Hoosiers will be tasked with defending a talented point guard. As a freshman last season, Alexander averaged 12.8 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 4.6 assists en route to being named the Summit League Newcomer of the Year. He had a solid all-around performance in the opener with six points, seven rebounds, and five assists in 23 minutes of action.

The Hoosiers did a nice job limiting Bryant’s Frankie Dobbs on Friday night, holding him to 4-of-12 shooting and forcing four turnovers compared to just three assists. Alexander will be a good early challenge for freshman Yogi Ferrell, but don’t be surprised to see Remy Abell spell him at times defensively.

2. Christian Watford

After playing some of his best basketball late last season, Watford had a strong debut with 15 points and a career-high 15 rebounds.

His work on the glass was particularly impressive, as Watford aggressively crashed the defensive glass and wound up grabbing 14 of Bryant’s 42 missed shots. Watford also played solid defense on Bryant’s best player, Alex Francis, forcing him into six turnovers on the night.

Offensively, he did most of his damage from the free throw line, making 8-of-9 from the stripe.

Watford should have a size advantage in this one since he is likely to match up with TrayVonn Wright, who gives up one inch and about 50 pounds to Watford.

3. The Bench Mob

IU’s “Bench Mob” has a few new faces and is missing three members due to either injury or suspension, but the reserves combined for 40 points, 12 rebounds, three steals, and two blocks in the win over Bryant.

Freshman Jeremy Hollowell scored 12 points in his Indiana debut, including a stretch where he scored eight straight for the Hoosiers. With Derek Elston, Hanner Perea, and Peter Jurkin out, Hollowell’s play up front will be a major factor for the team early this year.

Remy Abell also chipped in 12 points and seems to have carried his strong offseason play into the 2012-13 campaign. His shooting was perfect, going 2-for-2 from long range and making all six of his free throw attempts, but his key contribution may well be his ability to play strong defense on the perimeter.

Sixth man Will Sheehey was the third Hoosier reserve to score in double figures with 10 points, but he logged just 12 minutes before fouling out. I’ll be looking for him to bounce back against North Dakota State, but he certainly proved last season how important he can be as first man off the bench.

Maurice Creek also made his regular season return with six points and three rebounds, and Jeff Howard, who is now the main reserve for Zeller, grabbed a couple rebounds. Indiana’s depth is one reason the Hoosiers sit atop the polls, and continued strong play from the bench will give them an advantage over North Dakota State on Monday night.

Final Thought

North Dakota state will not be a pushover for the Hoosiers.

The Bison return seven players who logged at least 10 minutes per game last season, including their top five scorers. NDSU won 17 games and played in the CBI, and this season they are expected to challenge South Dakota State for the Summit League title.

In 2011-12, North Dakota State ranked ninth nationally in effective field goal percentage and finished in the Top 90 in both free throw rate and turnover percentage. Consequently, defense will be critical for the Hoosiers, and this game should provide a better test of just how improved IU’s defense is. Perimeter defense will be particularly important, as the three-point shot can be an equalizer in a matchup like this.

On the flip side, North Dakota State finished 248th in adjusted defensive efficiency last season, which is a huge concern for the Bison with IU posting gaudy offensive numbers both last season and in this year’s opener.

Expect Yogi Ferrell and Cody Zeller to put pressure on the Bison defensively, and if Zeller can get his opponents in foul trouble again, he and Watford could have a field day inside.

On the perimeter, the Bison did not defend the three-point line well last season, while the Hoosiers were among the top three-point shooting teams in the nation. Indiana also connected on 8-of-21 (38.1%) from long range against Bryant, and I wouldn’t be shocked to see Jordan Hulls get free for a few triples in this one.

The Hoosiers just have too much offensive firepower for the Bison, and the addition of Yogi Ferrell, who tallied seven assists in his IU debut, gives Tom Crean’s club another dimension on the offensive end.

North Dakota State has some solid pieces of its own, but the Hoosiers should slow them down enough to win by around 15-20 points.

**********

Listen to Andy Friday on The Assembly Call. Follow him on Twitter at @AndyBottoms.