The regular season is over, and the road to Indy has begun. The victors in each contest will head on the road on Thursday to face the top three tourney seeds. For the losers, it’ll be the end of the season and, perhaps, the start of some tough decisions to be made about the future. All times ET and on ESPN+.
IUPUI at Cleveland State, 7pm: If you’re feeling some déjà vu here, well, this will be the first of two times this happens on Tuesday (the third being with Northern Kentucky and Wright State on Thursday). In the last game of the regular season, the Jaguars couldn’t overcome their various miscues and fell to the Vikings, marking their 11th straight loss. This first-round contest isn’t going help IUPUI get any advantages, as it was clear that the Jags had no answer for Tristan Enaruna, not to mention that CSU seemed to take the ball away from IUPUI with ease. One thing that the Vikings will want to improve is their three-point shooting, and it’s been rough going down the stretch. With a loss, this would be the last game for IUPUI, as the school transitions to IUI next season, and it may also mark the end of the Matt Crenshaw era in Indianapolis.
Robert Morris at Purdue Fort Wayne, 7pm: Even though the two teams split the regular-season series, The Mastodons trampled on the Colonials in the finale. They meet once again in the first round, and it’s clear that Purdue Fort Wayne has the edge in this match-up, with Robert Morris still not able to get out of its six-game slide. It looks likely that the Colonial losing streak will extend to seven games, and it will carry over to next season. Should that be the case, the question will remain as to whether Andy Toole carries over with the team next year as well.
Detroit Mercy at Milwaukee, 8pm: The Panthers are riding high after pummeling their in-state rival Green Bay on Saturday, while the Titans were themselves pummeled by Youngstown State. Both of the regular-season tilts between these two squads ended in double-digit victories for Milwaukee and given how the Panthers have fared as of late, there’s no reason to think they won’t come out with a third win. Detroit Mercy will try to stave off some history of its own, as a 31st loss would tie an NCAA record, even though a win here would only temporarily stave off that prospect. Mike Davis will have some decisions to make afterwards regarding his roster, although it’s not clear if Davis will return for another season after this.
Well… that was a fun game between Milwaukee and Detroit Mercy. Certainly gave Panther Jimmy a heart attack.