IU basketball picked to finish 7th in the Big Ten by Lindy’s Sports

Aiden Sherrell dunks the ball at an IU basketball practice.

The Lindy’s Sports 2026-27 preview magazine – an annual publication previewing the upcoming college basketball season – is now available on newsstands.

Here are some notes on Indiana and the Big Ten at large from the annual publication. (You can purchase the regional cover featuring Sam Alexis here.)

• Eleven Big Ten teams are ranked in the Lindy’s preseason 40, which is topped by No. 1 Florida.

The Big Ten teams in the top 40 include Illinois (No. 3), Michigan State (No. 4), Michigan (No. 10), USC (No. 18), Ohio State (No. 19), UCLA (No. 22), Indiana (No. 27), Purdue (No. 28), Maryland (No. 32), Iowa (No. 34) and Nebraska (No. 36).

• IU non-conference opponents ranked in the top 40: Arkansas (No. 8), Kentucky (No. 17) and Missouri (No. 26).

• Lindy’s projects IU to make the NCAA tournament and has the Hoosiers advancing to the Round of 32.

• Three Big Ten players earned Lindy’s preseason All-American honors. Michigan State’s Jeremy Fears and Michigan’s Elliot Cadeau earned first team honors and David Mirkovic of Illinois earned second team honors.

• Lindy’s ranked the top 150 players in college basketball and included Indiana’s Aiden Sherrell at No. 77 and Markus Burton at No. 90.

• Lindy’s picked Illinois to win the Big Ten, followed by Michigan State, Michigan, USC, Ohio State, UCLA, Indiana, Purdue, Maryland, Iowa, Nebraska, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Washington, Oregon, Rutgers, Northwestern and Penn State.

• Fears Jr. is Lindy’s pick for preseason Big Ten player of the year and UCLA’s Nikola Kusturica is the pick for newcomer of the year.

• Lindy’s first-team All-Big Ten: Cadeau, Fears Jr., Nebraska’s Pryce Sandfort, Mirkovic and Kusturica.

• Lindy’s second-team All-Big Ten: Ohio State’s John Mobley Jr., Michigan’s Trey McKenney, Wisconsin’s Nolan Winter, Ohio State’s Anthony Thompson and Maryland’s Pharrel Payne.

• Lindy’s third-team All-Big Ten: USC’s Rodney Rice, Stefan Vaaks of Illinois, Quentin Coleman of Illinois, Michigan State’s Coen Carr and Sherrell.

• Big Ten players in the top 150 players in college basketball: Fears Jr. (No. 1), Cadeau (No. 6), Mirkovic (No. 12), Kusturica (No. 21), Sandfordt (No. 23), Thompson (No. 33), Mobley Jr. (No. 39), Winter (No. 42), Payne (No. 44), McKenney (No. 49), Carr (No. 58), Rice (No. 61), Vaaks (No. 68), Sherrell (No. 77), Andrej Stojakovic of Illinois (No. 80), UCLA’s Trent Perry (No. 81), Tomislav Ivisic of Illinois (No. 84), USC’s Christian Collins (No. 85), Tariq Francis of Rutgers (No. 89), Burton (No. 90), Purdue’s Daniel Jacobsen (No. 103), USC’s Jacob Cofie (No. 105), Purdue’s C.J. Cox (No. 114), Iowa’s Cooper Koch (No. 125), Wisconsin’s Owen Foxwell (No. 135), Nebraska’s Braden Frager (No. 140), Marylamd’s Andre Mills (No. 142) and USC’s Alijah Arenas (No. 149)

(Photo credit: IU Athletics)

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