Game Day Essentials:
SIU Edwardsville (1-0) vs. Indiana (0-0)
- Tip Time: 8:00 p.m. Eastern
- Location: Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (17,222)
- Television: BTN (Connor Onion and Robbie Hummel)
- Radio: IU Radio Network (Don Fischer, Errek Suhr, John Herrick)
- Stream: Fox Sports
- Point Spread: Indiana is a 26.5 point favorite
- KenPom Projected Score: Indiana 86 SIU Edwardsville 62
- History: Indiana leads the series, 2-0.
- Last Meeting: IU 83, SIU Edwardsville 60 on Dec. 2, 2016 in Bloomington
SIU Edwardsville’s Brian Barone
Brian Barone took over as head men’s basketball coach in March 2019, and is now in his sixth season as head coach for the Cougars. It’s Barone’s first head coaching position across Division 1 basketball.
Across his tenure, Barone has earned an overall record of 64-91 with the Cougars. His best finish came last season, where SIU Edwardsville finished sixth in the Ohio Valley Conference, with an overall record of 17-16, and a conference record of 9-9.
Barone has had multiple stops across Division one basketball as an assistant, and has some Indiana connections as well. Barone started as an assistant with Illinois State, and coached under current Oklahoma head coach Porter Moser. From 2008-2009, Barone served as the coordinator of basketball operations and video coordinator at Marquette for Tom Crean, and followed Crean to Indiana for one season.
Barone then moved to Green Bay, where he was an assistant for four seasons and an associate head coach for one. Barone got his first head coaching job at Butler Community College in Kansas, but was only there for one season. Barone then got a job as an assistant with SIU Edwardsville in 2017, and was named their head coach in 2019.
SIU Edwardsville’s results and roster:
| DATE | OPPONENT | LOCATION | RESULT |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11/4/2024 | Westiminster | Edwardsvile, Ill | W 95-42 |
Of the five primary starters from the 2023-24 season, the Cougars only have one still with the team in Ray’Sean Taylor. Taylor averaged 13.6 points for the Cougars in that season, and led the team in 3P%, shooting 38 percent from beyond the arc. Taylor had 15 points against SIU Edwardsville’s first game against Westminster.
The Cougars also retain Brian Taylor II, who saw all of his action coming off the bench last season. Taylor also had 15 points in SIU’s win over Westminster, and made both of his three point tries.
Arnas Sakenis, Jordan Pickett, and Ring Malith also return for the Cougars, and all played limited roles for SIU Edwardsville a season ago. Sakenis is the Cougars’ tallest player, as he’s listed at 6-11 on their roster.
Game Notes (per Indiana Athletics):
• Indiana dished out 33 assists on 46-made field goals in a 106-64 exhibition win over Marian on Friday, Nov. 1 at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. Freshman wing Bryson Tucker led the Hoosiers with 19 points on 9-of-12 shooting from the floor. He was one of 13 Hoosiers to score in the contest.
• SIUE head coach Brian Barone was the Director of Operations/Video Coordinator for the Indiana Basketball program from 2008-10. Junior forward Kyle Thomas, son of 1987 National Champion Daryl Thomas, is in his first season with the Cougars after transferring from Bradley.
SERIES HISTORY
• IU topped SIUE by a score of 88-54 on Dec. 17, 2010, the debut matchup between the two sides. Indiana great Christian Watford tallied 18 points in just 19 minutes of run.
• Indiana also claimed an 83-60 victory on Dec. 2, 2016. Former All-Big Ten performer Juwan Morgan scored 18 points on 8-of-8 shooting from the floor and added 10 rebounds in the win.
OG’s Pick:
I’ll be keeping track of my scoring predictions throughout Indiana’s season for fun.
Indiana should have no trouble in this one, but we did see slower starts from the Hoosiers last season in these types of games. I would expect something similar, but Indiana still pulls it out by a large margin.
PICK: Indiana 92 – SIU Edwardsville 59
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