Indiana men’s basketball knew the importance of its final four regular-season games after it road losses to then-No. 8 Illinois and then-No. 7 Purdue.
After losing to the Boilermakers, Hoosiers head coach Darian DeVries had no question his squad would return home for its three-game homestand and be prepared. Redshirt senior forward Tucker DeVries deemed the final four games “massive” with the Hoosiers’ March Madness hopes at stake.
The Cream and Crimson have since dropped each of the first two contests. Indiana fell to Northwestern on Feb. 24 before losing to then-No. 13 Michigan State on Sunday.
Hoosier fans booed sporadically inside Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall throughout both losses, upset their squad couldn’t string together victories. Now, Indiana (17-12 overall, 8-10 Big Ten) closes its home slate against Minnesota (14-15 overall, 7-11 Big Ten) at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday in Bloomington.
Indiana looks to avenge early-season loss
After the Hoosiers opened their season with seven consecutive victories, their first loss came on the road to the Golden Gophers 73-64 on Dec. 3. Darian DeVries was disappointed that night after his squad gave up several open shots throughout the contest.
Sixth-year senior guard Tayton Conerway scored a game-high 18 points. Fifth-year senior guard Lamar Wilkerson and senior forward Sam Alexis were the only other Hoosiers in double figures.
Minnesota’s starters accounted for all but one of its 73 points, as all five players scored double-digit points. After the victory, Golden Gopher fans stormed the court and celebrated with first-year head coach Niko Medved’s maiden Big Ten victory at Minnesota.
DeVries and Wilkerson leading
With the Hoosiers hanging around the NCAA Tournament bubble, both Tucker DeVries and Wilkerson have led Indiana, looking to end their collegiate careers on a high note.
Wilkerson scored a game-high 29 points against the Spartans, while Tucker DeVries added 20. Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo called the duo “Batman and Robin” after the contest, but no other Hoosier managed to score in double figures.
For all the success the two have had, their supporting cast has largely fallen flat throughout the season’s stretch run. While players like junior guard Nick Dorn and Alexis have had dominant games, they’ve been isolated to small stretches of the season.
Must-know Minnesota
The Golden Gophers enter Wednesday at a game under .500 and are coming off a five-point victory over UCLA on Saturday. Senior forward Cade Tyson leads the team in scoring at 19.6 points per game while also adding 5.6 rebounds.
Four other Golden Gophers — senior guard Langston Reynolds, junior forwards Jaylen Crocker-Johnson and Bobby Durkin and sophomore guard Isaac Asuma — all average double-digit points.
Darian DeVries recognized the quality opponent the Hoosiers are tasked with Wednesday during his “Inside IU Basketball” radio show Monday, but Minnesota’s rotation consists mainly of six players.
Freshman guard Kai Shinholster is the lone Golden Gopher to come off the bench in three of the last four games. In comparison, the Hoosiers often deploy three players off the bench.
“They are a really good team,” he said, “but they’re just not deep.”
Senior Night festivities
Indiana’s contest Wednesday serves as its final inside Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall this season. The Hoosiers’ six seniors — Tucker DeVries, Wilkerson, Conerway, Alexis, guard Conor Enright and forward Reed Bailey — will be honored 15 minutes before tipoff.
Although there have been rough patches throughout Darian DeVries’ first year at Indiana, his senior class has allowed him to lay the groundwork for his program.
“I’m incredibly grateful for this group,” Darian DeVries said. “When you’re committing to something that’s basically invisible, I think it says a lot about their belief in their coaches, their school and the program, and wanting to be a part of it.”
The senior core will look to break the Hoosiers’ second four-game losing streak of the season and push toward an NCAA Tournament berth.
NCAA Tournament outlook
While projecting the 68-team March Madness field isn’t an exact science, there’s several bracketologists who take their crack at it. Here’s where Indiana stands in some projections:
- ESPN’s Joe Lunardi: Last team in
- CBS Sports: Out
- Fox Sports’ Mike DeCourcy: First team out
- Sports Illustrated's Kevin Sweeney: First team out
- Hoops HQ’s Brad Wachtel: Second team out
Wednesday serves as a Quad 2 contest for the Hoosiers, while their regular-season finale Saturday against Ohio State is their final Quad 1 opportunity before the Big Ten Tournament.
Indiana currently sits at 4-12 in Quad 1 and 2 games, while being a perfect 13-0 in Quad 3 and 4.
The game
Tipoff is slated for 6:30 p.m. Wednesday inside Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall in Bloomington. Play-by-play announcer Cory Provus and analyst LaPhonso Ellis will have the call on the Big Ten Network.
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.
