INDIANAPOLIS — Five minutes before tipoff, Indiana men’s basketball took the court to a series of boos, jeers and taunts Sunday at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. While a few fans wore cream and crimson, the majority of the crowd donned blue and white.
Though it was just an exhibition game, the Hoosiers faced a hostile road atmosphere against Butler University.
Butler led for just 58 seconds, but the contest remained tight in the first half. The Bulldogs strung together a series of runs to stay within striking distance. However, in the second half, Indiana pulled away, securing a 96-68 victory.
Indiana is the only team in the country without a road nonconference game. The Hoosiers’ next — and first — regular season road game will be at Iowa on Dec. 7.
For a team still learning how to play together, Sunday's exhibition offered an opportunity that Indiana's nonconference schedule won't provide. With seven newcomers arriving through the transfer portal and four freshmen coming into the program, the Hoosiers had yet to experience a hostile environment together.
Against Butler, the Hoosiers were forced to respond to momentum swings, a rambunctious home crowd and a narrow halftime lead before eventually pulling away. The experience offered an early glimpse of how Indiana head coach Darian DeVries' revamped roster might handle the challenges of playing away from Assembly Hall later in the year.
Despite shooting 43.2% from the field and committing seven turnovers and 13 team fouls in the first half, Indiana held a 44-41 advantage at halftime.
The game remained close through the first six minutes of the second half. At the 14:54 mark, Butler graduate student guard Jalen Jackson hit a three-pointer to cut Indiana’s lead to 54-53.
As the Butler fans erupted, Indiana senior guard Bryce Lindsay drilled a deep three-pointer to silence the home crowd.
After Lindsay’s shot, the Hoosiers went on a 36-4 run over the next 10 minutes and 45 seconds, putting the game out of reach. Indiana outscored Butler 52-27 over the final 20 minutes.
The once energized crowd headed to the exit. Rows that were filled at the beginning of the contest were empty with seven minutes left in the game.
DeVries said postgame that playing on the road was a valuable first test for his group.
“We wanted to be in that atmosphere,” DeVries said. “We wanted to have a true road game. It was a chance for us to see how we would react to adversity.”
The new-look Hoosiers showed they could gel. Indiana tallied 16 total assists and outrebounded Butler 53-33. The Hoosiers also scored 25 second chance points and 40 bench points.
The road atmosphere was nothing new for junior guard Darren Harris, who transferred from Duke University after playing for two years inside Cameron Indoor Stadium.
Still, being with a new program is a challenge. Blowing out Butler on the road is a monumental learning experience for Harris and his teammates.
"It was a pretty rowdy environment,” Harris said. “Most of us are new to the program, so getting used to settling in, seeing stuff we hadn’t seen before. It was good.”
While the result won't count toward Indiana's regular season record, the experience could be key when the Hoosiers eventually begin road play in December.
“We had to respond,” DeVries said. “Those are such invaluable things to get out of an exhibition game.”
Indiana’s next exhibition will be Oct. 18 against the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Tipoff is set for 5 p.m. inside Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, and the game will be streamed on Big Ten+.
Follow reporters Elakai Anela (@elakai_anela and eanela@iu.edu) and Kasey Watkins (@KaseyWatki87731 and kaslwatk@iu.edu) and columnist Nathan Shriberg (@NShriberg and naashri@iu.edu) for updates throughout the Indiana men’s basketball season.
