Darian DeVries gets his first look at Indiana in a game setting tonight, and the Hoosiers’ exhibition against Butler should offer an early peek at how this roster wants to operate in 2026-27.
It’s the start of a busy preseason stretch for Indiana. After Butler, the Hoosiers play North Carolina in Indianapolis next Sunday and then wrap up the preseason against Western Kentucky in Evansville in two weeks. Under the NCAA’s revised exhibition rules, D1 teams can now face each other in front of fans multiple times before the games count, and Indiana is taking full advantage of that setup.
That longer runway has changed the feel of October. What used to be a hard midnight start to practice on October 15 has turned into a much earlier preseason ramp-up, with teams working all summer and fall before the exhibition slate even begins. It stretches the season out, and for the players, it means a long haul before the real thing starts.
Still, there’s a limit to what can be learned from Indiana-Butler. Rotations will be loose, scouting will be different, and the game plans won’t resemble what either team rolls out once the results matter. Big-picture conclusions from tonight would be a mistake.
What’s worth watching is the stuff underneath the box score.
The clearest one is leadership. Markus Burton said at Big Ten Basketball Media Day that leadership has been by committee so far, with each player serving as a leader in his own way.
That may work in practice, but Indiana is going to need a few players who can steady things when the season turns rough. Tonight is a chance to see whether any of those voices start to separate from the pack.
Effort and energy matter too, especially in a preseason game that won’t land in the record books. Production will matter less than the process behind it.
Who makes things happen with enthusiasm? Who brings a level of edge that lifts everyone else?
Those details are often the real story in an exhibition.
Then there’s the shot profile. Indiana should have a size advantage over Butler, which could mean more work around the basket than the Hoosiers showed last season.
At the same time, DeVries has made it clear that three-point shooting will still be a major part of the offense, regardless of the roster changes. That showed up on the summer trip to Peru, but tonight will give a better sense of whether the balance is starting to shift.
The freshman group is another place to keep an eye on. The newcomers showed flashes in Peru, even if the level of competition was weak. Vaughn Karvala may not play after missing last week’s intrasquad scrimmage because of an injury, so his status bears watching.
Prince-Alexander Moody has already earned praise from coaches and teammates for being outgoing and looking college-ready from day one. The question now is whether that carries over against live competition.
Trevor Manhertz started one game in Peru, helped by the fact that lineup combinations were in flux with Samet Yigitoglu unavailable because he was not an American citizen. That opened the door for DeVries to experiment, and it’ll be interesting to see whether Manhertz looks comfortable against a Big East opponent.
And with so many frontcourt options in the mix, Clemens Sokolov is another name to track. The German freshman could get valuable reps tonight and a first real test of how his game holds up against speed and better competition, even in an exhibition.
In Other News...
Curt Cignetti Revealed Where Indianas Winning Touchdown Came From
Indianas 20-17 win over Nebraska turned on a 44-yard touchdown from Josh Hoover to Nick Marsh, a strike that gave the Hoosiers the edge in a tight game that never really let either side relax. Afterward, Curt Cignetti pointed to an outside source for the design behind the decisive play, crediting the offensive creativity Kansas showed during Andy Kotelnickis time running that attack.
Cignetti said the concept came from that Kansas era and specifically from a fourth-and-1 idea that had become one of the calling cards of Kotelnickis record-setting offense. For Indiana, it was a reminder that big moments can come from borrowed ideas as much as bold execution, and the larger question now is how often the Hoosiers can keep turning that kind of creativity into game-changing touchdowns. [Read more 🡒]
Indiana Faces The Game That Could Change Everything Nationally
Indianas unbeaten run has set up a November-style spotlight in Bloomington a little earlier than expected, with Memorial Stadium now getting the kind of stage that can reshape a season in a hurry. The Hoosiers enter at 6-0 and ranked inside the top five, and the visit from Ohio State brings a familiar heavyweight into a building that has not often hosted a game with this much national pull.
Ohio State arrives with one loss and a top-five ranking of its own, which is what makes this matchup feel less like a milestone and more like a measuring stick. Between the history of the programs, the coaching matchup, the betting line and a full game day buildup around Bloomington, Indiana gets a chance to prove the opening surge is more than a hot start and maybe more than that if it can handle the moment. [Read more 🡒]
Indiana Showed Real Promise In One Area Fans Still Cant Ignore
Indianas exhibition win over Butler at Hinkle Fieldhouse offered a useful early look at what this group can already do well. The Hoosiers controlled the boards, with Aiden Sherrell pulling down nine rebounds, and they also showed some promising perimeter touch in a 96-68 victory that gave plenty of reasons for optimism before the games start counting.
Still, the same outing also reminded everyone of a familiar concern. Multiple players found themselves in foul trouble, and that kind of issue can quickly limit rotations and disrupt rhythm once the competition tightens, even as Indianas shooting from deep and contributions from Darren Harris and Markus Burton point to a team with more offensive balance than it has had in recent years. [Read more 🡒]