News and notes from Inside IU basketball with Darian DeVries

Photos of IU basketball's 98-51 win against Alabama A&M.

Inside IU basketball with Darian DeVries returned on Monday night for the first time since early January.

The first-year IU coach spoke with the voice of the Hoosiers, Don Fischer, ahead of Indiana’s upcoming games against Purdue and UCLA.

Trent Sisley was this week’s player guest.

• DeVries, who joined Fischer via Zoom this week because Hoosier Hank’s in Bloomington was closed Monday due to the snowstorm, said he had to do some snow blowing the last few days to get out of his neighborhood and get to practice. DeVries said these types of storms happened frequently back in his days at Drake and he’s glad that they happen very seldomly in Bloomington.

• DeVries said that in IU’s four-game losing streak, the Hoosiers played well for stretches in each game, but weren’t able to avoid that three or four-minute stretch where a big run happened. “We’ve got to figure out a way to minimize those mistakes during those stretches.”

• DeVries said the Rutgers win was the first time in a while that his team was in control from start to finish. “In the second half, when Rutgers made a little run, I thought we did a much better job of minimizing it, putting the brakes on for it.” He mentioned the two second-half layups from Tayton Conerway as being important in the win.

• DeVries said that IU continues to put in the work and good things are going to happen. “Every night is a new opportunity and you hope each night that you can take advantage of it. That’s what the Big Ten and this schedule are. It’s tough, but it’s also a lot of opportunities that go with it every night. You can’t look backwards very long; you just have to continue to push forward.”

• DeVries believes the Big Ten is the best league in the country. “I think the No. 1 thing that you see here is on the interior. The size and the depth at that position. The centers and the forwards are just a much more physical league from that standpoint when you get in the interior. That’s something that every night we’re continuing to battle and we have to have all hands on deck to win those battles on the inside.”

• DeVries said that IU’s ability to move the ball and share it stood out in the win at Rutgers. The Hoosiers had three players score 22 or more points in the victory. DeVries added that getting inside-out touches was a pivotal factor.

• DeVries also mentioned rebounding and limiting turnovers as key factors in the Hoosiers winning their second road game of the season.

• According to DeVries, Nick Dorn did a good job in the Rutgers game of finding his spots for catch-and-shoot 3-pointers. DeVries said Dorn works hard every day to continue to add to his game on both ends of the floor and is a fun guy to coach.

• DeVries said Conor Enright makes a lot of winning plays and is in the right position: “He’s there, he’s where he’s supposed to be and it saves somebody else from maybe getting beat. He’s also great at covering up for guys when he has to be in rotation and things. He plays with incredible fire, incredible instincts and he’s been a joy to coach this year.”

• DeVries believes Sam Alexis has stepped up his game recently (Alexis finished with four points, 10 rebounds and six blocked shots in the Rutgers win). DeVries added that Alexis has a great personality and has entered the last few games with a great mindset.

• DeVries said Lamar Wilkerson has made it a point to be more aggressive off the dribble in recent weeks. He said that’s important because it gives him paint touches to either score or act as a facilitator. “He’s really good at both. We’ve really tried to get him to be more aggressive in that way over these last few weeks.”

• DeVries said signee Prince-Alexander Moody can play multiple guard spots, can facilitate, can shoot and has a great personality.

• On signee Vaughn Karvala: “Fans are going to love some of the dynamic plays he can make.”

• Fischer mentioned that Andrej Acimovic is redshirting this season. DeVries said Acimovic has done a good job in practice this year with the scout team and is continuing to improve.

• DeVries said the biggest rivalry game at Drake was Northern Iowa and at West Virginia, it was Pittsburgh. At Creighton, the primary rival was Nebraska.

• Sisley said his dad, Matt, and his brother, Blake, got him started in basketball. Blake is four years older than Trent and played at Heritage Hills, then went on to play Division I basketball at Evansville and Wright State. Sisley also has two sisters.

• Sisley said he’s studying sports marketing at IU.

• Growing up, Sisley said he remembers watching Yogi Ferrell, Cody Zeller and Victor Oladipo play for the Hoosiers.

• Sisley said he hasn’t hit a freshman wall and that he’s been used to the schedule and travel after spending last season at Montverde Academy.

• Sisley said his roommate from last season at Montverde, Hudson Greer, is playing at Creighton this season. He also has teammates from last season playing at Florida and Miami (FL).

• Sisley said the player he faced last season at Montverde that stood out the most was AJ Dybantsa, who is now a standout at BYU and a candidate to be the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA draft.

• Sisley said that Tucker DeVries has been a leader on the team this season because he’s familiar with the system, having played for his father, Darian, for five seasons.

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