ESPN'S TAKE   with Quinn Buckner   The Hoosiers can go as far as Jared Jeffries can take them. He's a tough player, and I'd be surprised if he is not the Big Ten player of the year. Indiana led the Big Ten in 3-point shooting. And when the Hoosiers are hitting their 3-point shots, they are a very effective team that causes opponents a lot of problems. With Tom Coverdale, Kyle Hornsby and even Dane Fife hitting 3s, teams don't have anyone to come off and double-team Jeffries. But if he gets in foul trouble, they are depleted on the inside. The Hoosiers have a chance to get to the Sweet 16. Player to Watch     Jared Jeffries       Jeffries, the Big Ten player of the year, made a huge jump from his freshman year to his sophomore season. The 6-10 Jeffries is the only player in the Big Ten who can legitimately play all five positions on the floor. Stronger this season, Jeffries is more comfortable banging inside. He can also take the ball on the perimeter and either put it on the floor or shoot the 3-pointer. Simply put, he's one of the most difficult defensive matchups in the country. Team Statistics   Points Per Game 71.2 Rebounds Per Game 38.6 Assists Per Game 13.8 Steals Per Game 9.0 Blocks Per Game 3.2 Turnovers Per Game 16.4 Field Goal % .438 Free Throw % .592 3-Point % .410 3-Pointers Per Game 0.9 Scoring Margin 8.3

How They Got Here
This spot was supposedly reserved for Duke, but that changed in the South Regional semifinals when the Hoosiers upset the defending champs by rallying from a 17-point deficit and watched Jason Williams miss a potential game-tying free throw in a 74-73 victory. Indiana then buried Kent State under an avalanche of 3-pointers -- 15 to be exact -- in its 81-69 South Regional final victory.

But the two wins couldn't have been more diverse. In beating Duke, the Hoosiers relied on superstar Jared Jeffries' inside play, as the sophomore lit up the Blue Devils for 24 points and 14 rebounds. So, when Kent packed in its defense against IU, it opened up shooters Dane Fife, Tom Coverdale, A.J. Moye and Kyle Hornsby -- who hit 13 of 17 treys -- including eight straight to start the game.

Coverdale, however, severely injured his ankle midway through the second half against Kent and his health will be watched closely all week leading into the semifinal matchup with Oklahoma.

In getting to Lexington, Ky., the Hoosiers beat Utah -- handing Rick Majerus his first first-round loss in his career -- and then ended Cinderella NC Wilmington's stay in the second round.

But, just getting to the NCAAs weren't exactly smooth for the Hoosiers in the non-conference season. It's not overly surprising considering Indiana opened the season with six games away from Assembly Hall. Indiana played nine potential NCAA tournament teams in November and December and lost to Marquette, Southern Illinois, Miami, Kentucky and Butler.

When the Hoosiers opened Big Ten play at Northwestern on Jan. 2, Indiana was 7-5 and second-year coach Mike Davis wasn't too popular -- especially with the crowd that still wished the man in the red sweater was coaching the team.

But Davis credited that difficult schedule -- and the inordinate number of road games -- for helping the Hoosiers get ready for the Big Ten season. Indiana quickly rolled off seven victories in the first eight games of Big Ten play and remained at or near the top of the league standings the rest of the way.

While Indiana lost at Michigan State and at Illinois late in the season, the Hoosiers defeated Northwestern in the final game of the regular season to grab a share of the title -- Indiana's first since 1993.

The Hoosiers then made it to the Big Ten semifinals before falling to surprising Iowa, 62-60.

What We Like
While the first thing people notice about the Hoosiers is Jared Jeffries and the way they can shoot the 3-pointer, Davis' team is very fundamentally sound on the defensive end of the floor. Only Northwestern -- which slows the pace of the game more than any Big Ten team -- allowed fewer points than Indiana.

Only two Big Ten teams scored more than 70 points against the Hoosiers. On the other end of the floor, Indiana's guard group of Dane Fife, Kyle Hornsby, Tom Coverdale and A.J. Moye helped the Hoosiers average more than seven 3-pointers per game. This team also plays together more than any group of Hoosiers in recent years.

What We Don't Like
Sometimes the Hoosiers rely too much on the 3-pointer. When the shots don't fall, defenses can collapse on forward Jared Jeffries. The Hoosiers offense hasn't exactly been rolling of late. In the final six games of the regular season, Indiana scored 65 points or more just twice. Defense is nice, but a team needs to score some points as well.