If you walked into Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall this past Saturday, you didn’t need to look at the scoreboard to know things were going south. The silence was heavy. It was the kind of quiet that only happens when a fan base is collectively realizing that the "rebuilding year" tag is no longer just a pessimistic theory—it’s the reality.
Losing 74-57 to Iowa at home isn’t just a bad afternoon; it’s a massive alarm bell for the 2025-26 season.
We’re currently sitting on a team that is 12-6 overall and a shaky 3-4 in Big Ten play. Honestly, after that 81-60 thumping at Michigan State and the late-game collapse against Nebraska, the vibe around Indiana University men's basketball news has shifted from "can they make a run?" to "how do they stop the bleeding?" This is Darian DeVries' first year at the helm, and while nobody expected a miracle, the way the team has cratered in second halves lately is enough to make even the most patient Hoosier fan a little twitchy.
The Mid-January Meltdown and the Iowa Disaster
It’s the same story every week lately.
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Indiana stays competitive for about 25 minutes, then the offense just vanishes. Against Iowa, they actually clawed back to within four points with about 11 minutes left. Then? They scored two points over the next seven minutes. You can't win in the Big Ten with that kind of drought.
Tayton Conerway was basically the only bright spot against the Hawkeyes, putting up 16 points. But when your stars like Tucker DeVries and Lamar Wilkerson go a combined 5-of-19 from the field, you're toast. Darian DeVries mentioned after the game that the energy just wasn't there. That's a scary thing to hear in January.
Defensive Identity is Missing
The defense is arguably more concerning than the shooting slumps. For the first half of the season, IU was holding teams to under 1.17 points per possession. Lately? They've given up over 1.24 in four of their last five games. Iowa shot nearly 60% from two-point range because they were getting whatever they wanted in the paint.
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Sam Alexis did grab eight boards, which is his best Big Ten output so far, but the team's overall rim protection has felt soft.
Indiana University Men's Basketball News: Recruiting a Way Out
If there is a silver lining, it’s that DeVries isn’t sitting still. He’s been incredibly vocal about the fact that they are "very active" in the 2026 recruiting class. They’ve already locked in two four-star prospects: Vaughn Karvala (a top-50 small forward) and Prince-Alexander Moody.
But the real news is how hard they’re hitting the international market. We've seen Serbian guard Aleksa Ristic and Bosnian forward Andrej Acimovic join the 2025 class, and the staff is currently chasing:
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- Lazar Stojkovic: A 7-foot Serbian center who is expected to visit Bloomington soon.
- Miikka Muurinen: A 6-foot-10 five-star from Finland.
- Jordan Smith Jr.: One of the top guards in the 2026 class (IU is in his top six).
Assistant Drew Adams has basically been living on a plane lately. They’re clearly trying to build a roster that doesn't just rely on the yearly chaos of the transfer portal, focusing instead on long-term development. It's a gamble in the NIL era, but with six seniors leaving after this season, they don't have much of a choice.
What's Next for the Hoosiers?
The schedule isn't getting any easier. They head to Ann Arbor to face Michigan on Tuesday, Jan. 20. Michigan is currently sitting near the top of the Big Ten standings, and after what we saw against Iowa and Michigan State, the Hoosiers are going to be massive underdogs.
Basically, the team has to find a secondary scoring option. When Wilkerson and Tucker DeVries are smothered, nobody else seems willing to take the big shot. Trent Sisley has potential, but he spent most of the Iowa game in foul trouble—four fouls in just eight minutes.
If you’re looking for a path back to the NCAA Tournament bubble, it starts with winning the games you’re supposed to win at home and finding a way to stay efficient when the "under 12:00" media timeout hits in the second half. Right now, that's where the wheels come off.
Actionable Next Steps for Fans and Analysts:
- Watch the Michigan matchup on Peacock (Jan. 20, 7 p.m. ET) to see if DeVries adjusts the rotation to give more minutes to Sam Alexis earlier.
- Monitor the 2026 Crystal Ball: Keep an eye on Lazar Stojkovic’s visit schedule; if Indiana can land a true 7-footer, the defensive outlook for 2026 changes instantly.
- Track the NET rankings: Indiana is currently sliding; they’ll need at least two "Quad 1" wins in the next three weeks to stay in the conversation for a postseason berth.