Ball State transfer forward Payton Sparks has committed to Indiana. The Winchester, Ind. product announced the news on his Twitter page on Wednesday morning. https://twitter.com/PaytonSparks6/status/1641074649080516611?s=20 The 6-foot-9, and 240-pound Sparks averaged 13.3 points, 8.7 rebounds and 1.9 assists for his sophomore season in Muncie. He earned second team All-MAC Conference. Primarily a post player, the left-handed Sparks shot 58.8 percent from the field overall in 2022-23, including 2-of-5 from three-point range. He was third in the country in free throw rate (FTA/FGA), and 16th with 6.8 fouls drawn per 40 minutes. Sparks shot 52.5 percent on 219 free throws this…
Author: Mike Schumann
Guard Tamar Bates is in the transfer portal after two seasons in Bloomington. The Kansas City, Kan. product was one of three Hoosiers to play in all 35 games during the 2022-23 season. He earned the first two starts of his career and averaged 6.1 points, 1.6 rebounds, and 1.1 assists for his sophomore campaign. Overall, Bates shot 39.2% (76-of-194) from the floor, 37.4% (37-of-99) from the 3-point line, and 88.2% (45-of-51) from the free throw line this season. After arriving at IU with a great deal of promise, Bates struggled to find consistency during his two seasons with the…
IU basketball assistant coach Kenya Hunter didn’t come out and say point guard Jalen Hood-Schifino is leaving for the NBA Draft, but he did confirm on Monday evening what has been widely speculated to this point. The bottom line — it would be a major surprise if Hood-Schifino suits up for the Hoosiers next season. After averaging 13.5 points, 4.1 rebounds and 3.7 assists while earning Big Ten Freshman of the Year honors, the 6-foot-6 Hood-Schifino has risen up the NBA Draft boards and is now a near consensus first round pick. If there was any doubt about Hood-Schifino’s potential…
Indiana will be visiting Minnesota transfer forward Jamison Battle, The Daily Hoosier can confirm. The IU staff will travel to his home in Minnesota today (Tuesday). Multiple outlets reported a possible visit. 247Sports appeared to have it first. The 6-foot-7 and 220 pound Battle has been a key player for Minnesota over the last two seasons. He averaged 17.5 points per game in 2021-22 while shooting 36.6 percent from three. While struggling with foot and back injuries on a bad team this season, Battle averaged just 12.4 points per game and shot just 31.1 percent from long range. Battle transferred…
The First Team All-American senior season Trayce Jackson-Davis had creates an intriguing opportunity at IU for centers in the transfer portal. On Monday afternoon, Virginia center Kadin Shedrick put his name in the portal, and don’t be surprised if Indiana is a key player in his recruitment. The 6-foot-11 Shedrick started 15 of 30 games for the Cavaliers and averaged 6.2 points, 3.8 rebounds and 1.4 blocks in 17.5 minutes per game in 2022-23. He shot 64.7 percent from the field and 79.4 percent from the free throw line. To this point in his career, Shedrick has not been a…
Ball State transfer forward Payton Sparks is visiting Indiana on Monday. The Winchester, Ind. product confirmed multiple reports of his Bloomington visit with The Daily Hoosier. The 6-foot-9, and 240-pound Sparks averaged 13.3 points, 8.7 rebounds and 1.9 assists in his sophomore season in Muncie. He earned second team All-MAC Conference. Sparks shot 58.8 percent from the field overall including 2-of-5 from three-point range. He made 115-of-219 (52.5 percent) from the free throw line. He was third in the country in free throw rate (FTA/FGA), and 16th with 6.8 fouls drawn per 40 minutes. Sparks also entered the portal a…
Transferring North Carolina wing Puff Johnson is the latest to report a contact from IU while in the portal. According to Jon Rothstein, Indiana is one of several schools showing interest in Johnson. In addition to IU, Rothstein reported involvement by Kentucky, Arizona State, TCU, West Virginia, Pitt, Oklahoma, LSU, Butler, Seton Hall, Tulane, Colorado State, Grand Canyon, UC Santa Barbara, and Duquesne. Born Donovan Christopher Johnson, his mother gave him the name Puff because he liked the cereal Cocoa Puffs. He is the younger brother of NBA player and former North Carolina star Cameron Johnson. The 6-foot-8 and 200…
Indiana’s actions suggest they believe they can land class of 2024 in-state 5-star center Flory Bidunga. IU sent their entire coaching staff — head coach Mike Woodson and his three assistants — to watch Bidunga’s Class 4A State Finals game on Saturday evening in Indianapolis. Even class of 2023 signee Gabe Cupps was there. Cupps sat alongside Bidunga at multiple IU games this past season and seems particularly focused on helping the staff land the Kokomo H.S. big man. Woodson’s wife and daughter were there too. In every conceivable way, Indiana made a statement on Saturday — they’re all in…
Dusty May has parlayed teenage yard work into the Final Four. The former IU basketball student manager turned Division I head coach at Florida Atlantic has the Owls in the 2023 Final Four after an Elite Eight win over Kansas State on Saturday evening. The 46-year-old May was at Indiana from 1996 to 2000. His last season as a student manager there was legendary IU coach Bob Knight’s last season in Bloomington. May grew up playing high school basketball in the shadow of Bloomington at nearby Eastern Greene High School. He knew he wanted to be a coach, and he…
When he had it rolling, Matt Roth couldn’t miss from three-point range for Indiana. After one season at Fort Wayne Blackhawk Christian H.S., he has the look of a can’t miss coach. Roth led the Braves to a 52-45 win over Linton-Stockton in the Indiana Class 2A State Championship game on Saturday at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. Class of 2025 forward Kellen Pickett had 19 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists to lead the way for Blackhawk. He was 2-of-5 from three. An IU recruiting prospect, the 6-foot-8 Pickett took a visit to Indiana for the Purdue game in January.…