Tennessee road trip offers preseason test for revamped Indiana roster
Indiana’s anticipated return to the floor will come on Sunday against Tennessee in a charity exhibition in Knoxville at Thompson-Boling Arena.
This season’s roster looks much different than it did a year ago, as the Hoosiers welcome seven new faces.
Sunday’s exhibition will be Indiana’s first time stepping on the floor in a competitive environment with its revamped roster. This will allow Indiana to determine its standing against a quality opponent.
“We’ve kind of revamped our team, and they revamped their team,” Mike Woodson said Friday morning. “They had some guys that they lost as well but brought guys in. And so it gave both teams an opportunity, at this early stage, to kind of gage a little bit on where their team is.”
An early test against a quality opponent
This preseason matchup will not affect either team’s win or loss record, but it is the first time since last season that either team will play against someone other than themselves.
This is good news for both Woodson and Tennessee’s Rick Barnes, as their teams will have an opportunity to see how they fare against an opponent ranked in the Associated Press preseason top 25 poll.
The Volunteers were five spots ahead of the Hoosiers in the preseason poll. They are coming off a strong 2023-24 season, finishing with a 27-9 record as SEC regular-season champions. Last spring, the Vols reached the Elite Eight.
“I’m just anxious to see how we fare against someone different,” Woodson explained. “Tennessee is not a pushover team. Their team is going to be ranked. They’re well-coached. And I just, I’m anxious to see how we play offensively. I’m anxious to see how we defend. So, all those things play a role in building a basketball team and seeing where you need to improve and continue to grow as a basketball team.”
Like IU, Tennessee also added a few new faces to its roster. Although it lost four of its five starters from this past season, it reloaded in the transfer portal. Chaz Lanier, a senior guard from North Florida, nearly averaged 20 points per game last season.
Tennessee also added some size to its lineup, with Igor Milicic (Charlotte) and Felix Okpara (Ohio State) as additions from the transfer portal.
The status of Trey Galloway and Jakai Newton is uncertain for Sunday
When Woodson was asked if Galloway and Newton would play in the Tennesee exhibition, his answer was simple and direct.
“Don’t know,” the fourth-year IU coach said.
There is still no clear timetable for the return of either Indiana guard, but progress is being made, according to Woodson. He mentioned Friday that both players saw some time on the floor in Indiana’s most recent inter-squad scrimmage. According to Woodson, they played around 15-18 minutes, and he liked what he saw from both of them.
“We have been slow-walking them back because it is a long season, and they have not fully recovered,” Woodson said. “You know, they might tell you guys that, but you know that that’s the whole reason why we are being very cautious in terms of how we’re approaching their practices and not trying to kill them in terms of the minutes because they’re just not fully ready yet. But I thought in the scrimmage the other day, both played well for the minutes they played.”
Neither player has been practicing daily but is taking steps in the right direction.
Galloway and Newton have hinted at their return in the past few months, talking with the media at Indiana and Big Ten media day. Woodson will take some time to speak to both his players and the Indiana medical staff to gauge their status for Sunday.
“It’s kind of hard to throw them right in the game and say, you know, let’s go play 25-30 minutes,” Woodson said.
“So, I don’t know. We’ll see the next couple of days and engage it from there.”
The debut of the Kanaan Carlyle, Myles Rice backcourt
This game will give a small taste of what is to come for Indiana’s new offensive identity, which is exciting for Woodson and the rest of the team.
Carlyle and Rice will play significant roles in Indiana’s success this year, and for the first time, they will be functioning together in the same backcourt with the Indiana script on their jersey.
Both players were instrumental pickups this offseason in the transfer portal. Indiana, under Woodson, has had a heavy post-style offense. That could change this year as the Hoosiers will look to adopt more of a quick small-ball style of play.
And it starts with the former Pac-12 guards. Woodson wants to see one thing from both this Sunday: growth.
“Taking what we’ve taught them and given them over the last four months, since summer,” Woodson said about what he’s looking to see on Sunday. “And how it translates into a real game.”
Win or lose, that will be Indiana’s main takeaway from Sunday. Woodson wants to see progress from every player on the roster.
“That’s not just those two; it’s everybody who’s new, and the guys that are with me. I’m just anxious to see where we are because we have given them a lot, and they have been working their asses off. And I just want to see if some of this will pay off for us.”
Filed to: Tennessee Volunteers