Reed Bailey is back in the starting five for IU.
IU basketball head coach Darian DeVries said on pregame radio he’s inserting Bailey into the starting lineup in place of Nick Dorn for the team’s opening game of the Big Ten Tournament.
So Indiana’s starting five will be Bailey, Sam Alexis, Tucker DeVries, Lamar Wilkerson and Conor Enright.
DeVries tinkered with playing Bailey and Alexis together in the second half of the Ohio State game on Saturday, and the team played well on the offensive end.
Bailey should also allow IU to keep a taller player on Northwestern and Big Ten leading scorer Nick Martinelli.
DeVries has not shied away from changing the first five. He started Tayton Conerway at the beginning of the season, replaced Bailey for Sam Alexis, and plugged in Dorn when he had a hot hand shooting the ball from three.
Bailey started the first nine games of this season, and every game during his three years at Davidson. He’s averaging 8.4 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game while shooting 57.5% from the field.
No. 10 seed Indiana and No. 15 Northwestern tip at 6:30 p.m. ET in Chicago.
