Indiana men’s basketball cruised to a dominant 61-point victory over Marian University on Oct. 17. However, that was against an overpowered National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics squad.
Now, the Hoosiers close their exhibition slate with a matchup at 1 p.m. Sunday against Baylor University inside Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
The contest marks just the second meeting between the Hoosiers and Bears. The last came in the 1980-81 season, when Indiana earned its fourth national championship and second under legendary head coach Bob Knight.
Here’s what to know about Sunday’s game:
Behind Baylor
Head coach Scott Drew enters his 24th season at the helm of the Bears. He first arrived in Waco, Texas, in August 2003, after the program was marred by scandal. Bears forward Patrick Dennehy was murdered by teammate Carlton Dotson two months prior to Drew’s arrival.
The NCAA then investigated allegations of money being paid to players and drug use within the program. Drew then built the once-in-shambles program over the years and took it to a national championship in 2020-21.
The Bears finished 20-15 last season before falling to Duke University in the NCAA Tournament Round of 32. However, Baylor’s entire roster left after the season via the transfer portal, graduation or the NBA.
Drew compiled a seven-player portal class, which ranked 23rd in the country, according to 247Sports. Senior power forward Michael Rataj and fifth-year senior guard Obi Agbim headlined the group alongside three guards and two centers.
The Bears’ four-man freshman class was the 21st-best in the nation, with five-star power forward Tounde Yessoufou ranked as the 14th-best player in the 2025 class. Freshman shooting forward Andre Iguodala II — four-time NBA champion Andre Iguodala’s son — is also on the Bears’ roster.
Baylor opened its two-game exhibition slate with a 79-74 victory over Grand Canyon University on Oct. 10. Yessoufou led the Bears in scoring with 21 points and four rebounds, while redshirt sophomore guard Cameron Carr added 20 points and three boards.
Another exhibition, another opportunity
While Sunday’s result doesn’t count toward Indiana’s record, sixth-year senior guard Tayton Conerway views the contest as Indiana’s first opportunity to play a higher-quality team.
“So, I mean, we're attacking this just like a normal game, Big Ten championship, man,” Conerway said during a press conference Friday. “We want to go in there, we want to play hard, we want to win and we ain't going to stop until that buzzer goes off.”
The Hoosiers begin their regular season against Alabama A&M University on Nov. 5, before facing Marquette University on Nov. 9. The University of Louisville, the University of Kentucky and Kansas State University are on Indiana’s nonconference slate.
Sunday is also the first of two scheduled contests at Gainbridge Fieldhouse — the other being versus Louisville on Dec. 6.
Ahead of the Hoosiers’ victory over the Knights over a week ago, Indiana head coach Darian DeVries said his squad would “experiment some” over the two exhibitions. And they don’t want to show much of their offensive sets either.
“Even though we want to win the games,” DeVries said Oct. 16, “we also understand that the regular season games are more of a priority to us.”
Offensively, DeVries said the Hoosiers will work on functioning with their motion. Defensively, they want to “try some different things.”
“Exhibition games are really challenging,” DeVries said. “We know it's not counting for anything. We're just working on ourselves.”
Who’s injured?
Junior guard Nick Dorn is still recovering from an offseason foot surgery. DeVries previously explained Oct. 16 that Dorn wouldn’t play against Marian and would be doubtful versus Baylor. However, Dorn appears to be inching closer to a return as he went through warmups Oct. 17.
Junior guard Jason Drake remains sidelined with an undisclosed injury while freshman guard Aleksa Ristic recovers from a right leg injury sustained during a September practice. The latter didn’t sport a boot when the Hoosiers faced the Knights as he did before.
Sophomore forward Josh Harris suffered an apparent right leg injury. During an open-to-the-media practice Sept. 30, Harris was sidelined. He wore a boot on his right leg and used a scooter to maneuver Oct. 17. It’s unclear how long he’ll be sidelined.
The game
Tipoff is slated for 1 p.m. inside Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The matchup will stream on Big Ten+ with Bob Brainerd and Brian Butch on the call.
Follow reporters Dalton James (@DaltonMJames and jamesdm@iu.edu) and Nathan Shriberg (@NShriberg and naashri@iu.edu) and columnist Kasey Watkins (@KaseyWatki8773 and kaslwatk@iu.edu) for updates throughout the Indiana men’s basketball season.
