Tyson Helton's group has had two weeks to patch what went wrong against the Wolf Pack, but there's no easy fix for lining up across from the No. 4 team in the country this early in the season. Indiana hasn't had to sweat much either — North Texas and Howard combined for just 16 points against the Hoosiers' defense — so this is as much about whether the Hilltoppers can slow the pace as it is about who wins.
That gap between the two rosters is exactly why the number attached to this one looks the way it does, and neither side has played anyone remotely like the other yet. Memorial Stadium should be packed for a top-5 home date, and warm, muggy conditions in the upper 80s with a decent shot of rain shouldn't change much about how either team wants to play.
Where Western Kentucky can find some relief is that Helton's staff isn't shy about grinding out possessions and mixing tempo, and a defense that got gashed for chunk plays against Nevada has had extra reps to tighten up its edges. It won't be enough to flip the scoreboard, but it could be the difference between another rout and a game that at least looks competitive into the third quarter.
Whatever happens on the field, this is the kind of game Indiana's schedule-makers built for exactly this stretch — get the roster reps in before conference play tightens things up. For Western Kentucky, it's about walking out of Bloomington having learned something real about where the program still needs to grow.