ROSEMONT, Ill. — Indiana men’s basketball’s new-look team will be tested early and often in non-conference play this season.
The Hoosiers have four big challenges outside of the Big Ten this season, with two at neutral sites, one on the road, and one at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. They take on Marquette at United Center in Chicago on Sunday, Nov. 9, and they host Kansas State on Tuesday, Nov. 25. Then IU faces Louisville at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis on Saturday, Dec. 6, before playing Kentucky in Lexington on Saturday, Dec. 13.
Those sorts of challenges are exciting to the Hoosiers.
“I think it’s great,” redshirt senior Tucker DeVries said Thursday at Big Ten Media Days. “Obviously, it’s going to be some tough games, and we’re going to be tested really early, too. I think Marquette’s second game of the year, so we’re going to find out really quickly how the offseason really went, but I think the great thing about those games is it’s a long year, so win or lose, there’s a lot you can learn from that either way.”
Marquette and Louisville are coming off NCAA Tournament appearances that ended in first-round defeats. Kentucky reached the Sweet 16 last season before falling to Tennessee. Kansas State missed the tournament last year, but still presents a good test for the Hoosiers.
But Indiana’s tough non-conference challenges actually begin before the regular season tips off. The team is playing an exhibition game against Baylor in Indianapolis on Sunday, Oct. 26.
That game won’t count for postseason résumés, but it’s still valuable for head coach Darian DeVries. His team can get acclimated to Gainbridge Fieldhouse around six weeks before returning to the venue for the Louisville game. And it’s an opportunity for him to see the Hoosiers against a high-caliber opponent before the games start to count.
“What I love about it is, A, you get to get in front of fans, which is great. Play another high-level opponent. They’re always really good. We thought it would be a great game for both of us,” coach DeVries said Thursday. “Give us a real barometer of, ‘Where are we at?’ We got a short period of time here to get some things figured out, but really gives us a real clear picture of some things we need to clean up before we get into wins and losses.”
Of the regular-season games, the Kentucky matchup is the headliner.
IU and UK begin a four-year revival of the series that hasn’t taken place in the regular season since 2011, when Christian Watford drained a memorable buzzer-beater against a No. 1-ranked Wildcat team that went on to win a national championship. The Hoosiers play at Rupp Arena this year, and again in 2027; Kentucky will play IU at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in 2026, and then at Assembly Hall in 2028.
DeVries is new to Indiana men’s basketball, but he understands the significance of that rivalry. And, more importantly, he knows how important those types of games are for his players.
“I think it’s an awesome series for both programs, but I think for college basketball too. Indiana-Kentucky, really excited about that,” DeVries said. “Exciting games, non-conference games. That’s what we want. We want to create those type of stages for our guys to be on and go compete, and challenge ourselves before you get into Big Ten play, and what better way to do it than to go on the road this year and have them come back the following year.”
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