The typically long wait between I.U. basketball seasons was significantly shortened by an undefeated football start. At the same time, however, the recruiting wars were not going well thanks to Dan Hurley’s UConn program. He first locked onto Montverde Academy’s Liam McNeeley after decommitting from I.U. and then wooed Eric Reibe and Braylon Mullins, two key Mike Woodson targets. Fortunately, we were able to land Montverde’s 6’7″ forward Trent Sisley, at least “temporarily,” as happens too frequently these days. We’ll have to once again rely on the portal to be competitive in the future.

The fruits of the 2024 recruiting class and portal were on public display for the first time at Hoosier Hysteria, during homecoming weekend, and in a charity exhibition game at the University of Tennessee a week later. Bryson Tucker, Langdon Hatton, Luke Goode, Kanaan Carlyle, Oumar Ballo, and Myles Rice joined last year’s regulars Mackenzie Mgbako, Gabe Cupps, Anthony Leal, Malik Reneau, and Trey Galloway on the court. Galloway and Tucker are still recovering from injuries, along with Jakai Newton. The rest of the team includes Shaan Burke, Jordan Rayford, James Goodis, Jaden Bobbett, Jackson Creel, Ian Stephens, and Dallas James – “Your 2024-25 Indiana Hoosiers!”

It was a challenging first assignment against a preseason Top 25 team that finished last year 27-9, won the SEC Championship, reached the Elite 8, and are coached by a well-respected veteran Rick Barnes. IU entered the game ranked 17th, while the Volunteers were judged 12th. Both teams had significant personnel losses from the previous year, and the ugliness of regrouping was obvious. 

Indiana started the game with four straight turnovers on offense, then proceeded to miss all eleven of their 3-point attempts. The Volunteers weren’t much better, going just 3-of-20 from distance. In the second half, the shots started to fall, as both teams eventually settled from opening jitters. Six points was the largest margin in Tennessee’s favor, but a Malik Reneau 3-pointer put the Hoosiers ahead 55-54, headed to that magic mark of 60. 

Myles Rice was credited with the reason for I.U.’s four-point victory. The Washington State transfer finished with 20-points and four assists. The Hoosiers got to 60 first and won 66-62. Reneau led all scorers with 21-points and a game-sealing dunk. Mgbako had 12-points, while Ballo pulled down 11-rebounds and added 6-points. “Exhibit A” was a solid way to start the season, before “Exhibit B,” the final exhibition game, on November 1st against Marian.