With the release of the 2011-12 IU men's basketball schedule, here are some notes and trends about what the Hoosiers have in store for this season.
-Of IU's 14 games before 2012, 12 of them will be played in the state of Indiana (Nov. 30 at NC State, Dec. 28 at Michigan State are only ones outside of Indiana)
-IU's first five games will be aired on the Big Ten Network with a Nov. 16 game at Evansville TBA
-The Hoosiers will take on Butler (Nov. 27) for the first time since 2006 when IU lost to the Bulldogs 60-55 at Hinkle Fieldhouse
-IU will face Notre Dame in the Crossroads Classic at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis on Dec. 17
-The last time IU faced Notre Dame was also at a neutral site when the No. 8 Irish beat the Hoosiers 88-50 in the Maui Invitational in 2008
-Three times IU will square off against BCS conference opponents before the Big Ten season (Nov. 30 vs. NC State, Dec. 10 vs. Kentucky, Dec. 17 vs. Notre Dame)
-In the Tom Crean era, the Hoosiers are 20-17 in non-conference games
-IU will play at Michigan State (Dec. 28) to kick off conference play
-The Hoosiers are 1-2 in Big Ten openers under Crean
-All of IU's first three conference opponents (at Michigan State, vs. Ohio State, vs. Michigan) made the NCAA Tournament last season
-This year marks the second straight New Year's Eve in which the Hoosiers will be playing Ohio State at Assembly Hall
-IU's Jan. 15 showdown at Ohio State will also be the second straight year the Hoosiers will play at Columbus on a Sunday CBS broadcast game
-On Jan. 18, IU will play at Nebraska for the first time in the Crean era
-The Hoosiers will take on in-state rival Purdue in the Big Ten regular season finale for the first time since 2001
