On Saturday at 2:00 ET, the top-ranked Indiana Hoosiers (9-0) will take on the Butler Bulldogs (7-2) as part of the Crossroads Classic at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.

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

IU-Butler Gameday Info

Date: Saturday, December 15th

Time: 2:00 ET, 1:00 CT

TV: CBS

Announcers: Spero Dedes and Clark Kellogg

Point Spread: Indiana by 12

Over-Under: 142

KenPom Prediction: Indiana 78-63 with a 91% chance of winning

Peegs: IU Gameday

Inside the Hall

IU-Butler live tweet coverage: @AssemblyCall

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

IU-Butler Preview

Butler: Three Things to Watch

1. Tempo

If the Bulldogs want to spring the upset, the game will have to be played at their tempo. Butler currently ranks outside of the Top 250 in adjusted tempo, while IU is creeping toward the Top 50.

The Bulldogs have eclipsed 67 possessions just twice in their first nine contests, while the Hoosiers have been held under 67 possessions just once (although they were under that mark in regulation against Georgetown as well). The reality is that Butler needs and wants this to be more of a grinder, so it will be important to see if Indiana can push the tempo and speed them up.

To be fair, North Carolina sped the Bulldogs up a bit and nearly got run out of the gym in Maui.

2. Rotnei Clarke

The IU defense did a nice job of slowing down Central Connecticut State’s Kyle Vinales last Saturday, but they’ll have their hands full again with Clarke, who transferred to Butler from Arkansas and is one of the nation’s top shooters.

He leads the Bulldogs in scoring at 17.3 points per game and has been held below 13 points just once. Clarke has already taken 80 three-pointers this season, but since he’s making 45.0 percent of his shots from long range, that seems like a viable strategy.

Clarke started the season at the point, but freshman Alex Barlow has started in that spot the last two games, which has allowed Clarke more time to play off the ball. For what it’s worth, he’s 8-of-12 from three-point range in those two contests.

For the Hoosiers, Victor Oladipo seems likely to draw the defensive assignment, but given the number of screens Butler will set for Clarke, communication will be key for the IU defense as a whole. They need to force Clarke to put the ball on the floor and score off the dribble or heading toward the basket.

On the other end of the floor, the Hoosiers must put pressure on Clarke to be a defender. He picked up a couple early fouls against Northwestern, but the Wildcats weren’t able to take advantage.

3. Rebounding

As has been the case for the previous four seasons, the Bulldogs have been outstanding on the defensive glass. Their 73.2 defensive rebounding percentage ranks inside the Top 30 nationally, but they will be put to the test against an Indiana squad that comes in having rebounded over 41 percent of its own misses.

Butler has also done a solid job on the offensive glass, ranking inside the Top 50 in offensive rebounding percentage. Andrew Smith, Khyle Marshall, and Erik Fromm all have strong OReb%, so the Hoosiers will have their work cut out for them if they hope to maintain their own lofty ranking on the defensive glass.

The Bulldogs don’t have a ton of size, which makes their work on the glass that much more impressive. Just three of their key rotation players stand over 6-6, but effort and toughness have become a trademark of Butler basketball, so the Hoosiers will certainly earn any second chance points they get.

Indiana: Three Things to Watch

1. The Debut of Hanner Perea and Peter Jurkin

After serving a suspension for the first nine games of the season, freshmen Hanner Perea and Peter Jurkin will be in uniform for the Hoosiers. While both are relatively raw, they give IU some additional bulk up front and should be able to contribute immediately from a rebounding and shot-blocking perspective.

It’s unclear just how big of a role either player will serve in this game, but as I said after the game last Saturday, I’m not sure this is an ideal proving ground given what should be a tough, physical game against a strong opponent.

I’d be surprised to see either one log over 10 minutes, but the final three games of the non-conference season should provide far more opportunity to get them up to speed prior to the Big Ten slate.

2. Inside Scoring

As mentioned above, the Hoosiers hold a size advantage inside, and the numbers suggest they should be able to score effectively from inside the arc. On the season, IU ranks fifth in two-point shooting at nearly 58 percent, while Butler ranks outside of the Top 240 in two-point shooting defense.

Cody Zeller will square off against veteran big man Andrew Smith, and he’ll hope to replicate some of the success he had against Smith last season. Zeller was only 4-of-9 from the field but got to the line 10 times and grabbed eight rebounds while limiting Smith to just three points.

Both players come into the game following their best performances of the season, with Smith scoring 24 points and grabbing 10 rebounds in a win over Northwestern and Zeller posting 19 points and 19 boards against Central Connecticut State. The Bulldogs desperately need Smith to play Zeller to a near stalemate while staying out of foul trouble.

Butler also has one of the worst block percentages in the country, so guys like Victor Oladipo and Will Sheehey will continue to attack the basket without fear of a looming shot-blocker. The Hoosiers have been racking up points in the paint of late, and if that trend continues, I like their chances in this matchup.

3. Victor Oladipo

No Indiana player is playing better all-around basketball than Oladipo right now. The IU junior has tallied at least 12 points in the last seven games and is averaging 14.6 points, 5.4 rebounds, 2.3 steals, and 1.0 blocks over that span. He’s also shooting an absurd 77.1 percent on two-pointers.

Obviously those numbers are impressive, but his intensity and activity level on the defensive end have gone to another level. He’s setting records for deflections, and at times, it seems like there are about three of him on the floor at the same time.

As mentioned above, Oladipo will likely get the first crack at slowing down Rotnei Clarke, and you can be sure he’ll be putting pressure on the Bulldogs on both ends of the floor.

Final Thought

This should easily be IU’s toughest remaining test before Big Ten play gets rolling, and the Bulldogs have shown time and again that you can never count them out. It will be important for the Hoosiers to start fast and assert themselves early.

In the end, I think the Hoosiers have too much firepower, particularly inside. They should have the advantage on the glass, in the paint, and at the free throw line. Indiana has been extremely adept at getting to the stripe this season, while the Bulldogs have put their opponents there frequently while rarely getting there themselves.

Last season’s matchup between these two teams ended in a 16-point Hoosier victory, and I think Saturday’s margin should be right around that mark.

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