Indiana men’s basketball missed the NCAA Tournament and will not accept any non-mandatory offers to other postseason tournaments.
The Hoosiers entered Sunday largely considered to be on the NCAA Tournament bubble, with most prognosticators including them in the field. They ultimately fell short for the second consecutive season to end head coach Mike Woodson’s four-year tenure.
Indiana compiled a 19-13 record and went 10-10 in Big Ten play. The Hoosiers were 4-13 in Quad 1 games, with wins over Purdue, Michigan State and two over Ohio State topping their resume. Indiana also didn’t have any losses in games against Quad 2 or lower opponents.
Still, the Hoosiers ranked No. 54 in the NET, which put them behind fellow bubble teams in No. 36 University of North Carolina, No. 39 University of Texas and No. 45 Xavier University, among others. All three programs received bids to March Madness.
Indiana rode a rollercoaster this season.
The Hoosiers were 4-0 and ranked No. 14 in the country entering the Battle 4 Atlantis in the Bahamas, but they suffered an 89-61 loss to the University of Louisville on Nov. 27 and an 89-73 loss to Gonzaga University on Nov. 28. Indiana was unranked in the following Associated Press poll and didn’t return to the rankings again this season.
But starting with an 89-73 win over Providence College on Nov. 29, the Hoosiers won nine of their next 10 games and began 4-1 in Big Ten play.
Then, the cream-and-crimson-colored wheels fell off.
Indiana lost by 25 points in back-to-back games, first to Iowa on Jan. 11 and then against Illinois on Jan. 14. The stretch started a span of six losses in seven games before Indiana Athletics announced Feb. 7 that Woodson would step down at the end of the season.
The Hoosiers lost their first game after the announcement, falling 70-67 to Michigan the next day, but they won five of their final seven regular season games to earn the No. 9 seed in the Big Ten Tournament. Indiana lasted only one day in Indianapolis, taking a 72-59 loss to Oregon on March 13.
When the Hoosiers packed up their locker for the final time after in Indianapolis, uncertainty filled the air. Optimism grew in the days that followed — but any dream of writing a storybook ending to Woodson’s tenure crashed Sunday night.
Follow reporters Daniel Flick (@ByDanielFlick) and Quinn Richards (@Quinn_richa) and columnist Mateo Fuentes-Rohwer (@mateo_frohwer) for updates throughout the Indiana men’s basketball season.
