Indiana University Men’s Basketball gets a double-digit win over Rutgers with both teams playing without a key player The Indiana Hoosiers beat the Rutgers Scarlet Knights 84-74 Thursday Night at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall to restart the Big Ten Conference Season. Indiana is 11-3 overall and 2-1 in the Big Ten and will travel to Philadelphia to face Penn State on Sunday at Noon in the historic Palestra. Rutgers is 8-6 overall and 1-2 in the Big Ten. The Series is now tied 9-9 as the Hoosiers are 5-2 all time against the Scarlet Knights in Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. Rutgers played without leading scorer Dylan Harper who was sick and Indiana’s Malik Reneau who scored 4 seconds into the game on a dunk was injured 24 seconds later after banging knees and did not return to the game. Oumar Ballo returned for the Hoosiers after a one game absence and scored 17 points and pulled down 12 rebounds for his second double-double of the season. Indiana Head Coach Mike Woodson was asked if Oumar Ballo coming off the bench was discipline related: “Let’s just talk about his 17 and 12. That’s what I’d like to focus on.”
Myles Rice led the Hoosiers with 21 points and went 8-8 from the free throw line. Mackenize Mgbako scored 16 points and pulled down 7 rebounds and Trey Galloway added 11 points. Indiana finished 28-72 from the field for 39%, 12-27 from three-point range for 44% and 16-25 from the free throw line for 64%. The Hoosiers pulled down 48 rebounds, dished out 16 assists, 4 steals, 3 blocks, 34 second chance points, 25 bench points, 19 points off turnovers and committed just 8 turnovers. It’s the first time that the Hoosiers have hit double digit threes in a game since January 28, 2023. Indiana went 1-20 from three-point range against Winthrop on Sunday. Ace Bailey scored 39 points for the Scarlet Knights. The 6-10 Freshman from Chattanooga, Tennessee went 16-29 from the field, 4-8 from three-point range and 3-8 from the free throw line. Bailey pulled down 8 rebounds, 4 blocks and a steal. Bailey can score in a variety of ways and without Dylan Harper in the lineup he put the Scarlet Knights on his back as he was the only Rutgers in double figures. Rutgers finished the game 27-61 from the field for 44%, 6-21 from three-point range for 28% and 14-23 from the free throw line for 61%. Rutgers pulled down 36 rebounds, 7 assists, 4 blocks, 3 steals, 28 points in the paint, 18 bench points, 12 points off turnovers and committed 11 turnovers.
The game featured 4 lead changes and three ties. Indiana got momentum going into the locker room as Myles Rice drove to basket and Ace Bailey blocked the shot off the backboard as the Hoosier Fan wanted a goaltending call but did not get one. Anthony Leal got the offensive rebound and heaved up a turnaround three and went in at the buzzer as the Hoosiers lead 41-37 at halftime. Anthony Leal was asked after the game about that play, and he responded with “Weird things like that seem to happen to me.” Indiana outscored Rutgers 43-40 in the second half but the Hoosiers went without a field goal for the final three minutes of the game. Leal the hometown kid who was a 2020 Indiana Mr. Basketball for Bloomington South played 18 minutes and scored 5 points. Leal was given the defensive assignment on Ace Bailey and said he forced Ace Bailey to his left and play tough to force contested shots. Bailey and Dylan Harper are the 1-2 punch for a Rutgers team that has two promising Freshman that might not be on campus after this season. Harper’s absence was huge for Rutgers, but Bailey showed that he had to be the guy even though they came up short. Bailey stated his case for Big Ten Freshman of the Year with his performance, but the big picture is what do the professional scouts think about his skillset translating to the NBA and my guess is should he decide to enter the NBA Draft after the season he will be considered a lottery pick.
Top Ranked UCLA comes to Bloomington for Saturday Showdown with Indiana University Women’s Basketball The UCLA Bruins will visit Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall for the second time in program history when they face the Indiana Hoosiers on Saturday at Noon with the game televised on FOX. This will be the fourth all-time meeting between the two programs as UCLA leads the all-time series 2-1. UCLA won 74-61 in the 1975 National Women’s Invitational Tournament in Amarillo Texas. The Bruins beat the Hoosiers 68-58 on December 22,2019 in Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall and Indiana won at Pauley Pavillion in Los Angeles 67-65 on December 2, 2018. This will be the first meeting between the two teams as Big Ten Conference opponents since UCLA officially became a member of the Big Ten on August 2, 2024.
UCLA is ranked Number 1 in the Nation and will come to Bloomington with a 14-0 overall record and 3-0 in the Big Ten while the Hoosiers are 10-3 on the season and 2-0 in the Big Ten. This will be the fifth time in the Regular Season and sixth time overall that the Hoosiers have played the number 1 ranked team and its third time that Hoosiers played the top ranked team at home. The Hoosiers are 0-5 against the number 1 team in the country in the 1987-88 season Indiana lost to Tennessee 91-59 in Cincinnati, Ohio. The Hoosiers lost at Iowa 72-48 in Iowa City and 71-47 in Bloomington. Penn State beat Indiana 70-65 on February 13, 1994 in Bloomington which is the last time a number 1 team came to Bloomington. Indiana lost to defending National Champion South Carolina 79-75 in the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 in Albany, New York on March 29, 2024.
UCLA took down then Number 1 ranked South Carolina 77-62 on November 24, at home and took over the top spot and haven’t looked back. The Bruins beat Wahington 73-62 in Seattle to start Big Ten Play in early December and home wins against Nebraska 91-54 and Michigan 86-70 earlier this week. UCLA is averaging 83.6 points per game and commits 16 turnovers per game. The Bruins shoot 50% from the field, 33% from three-point range and 71% from the free throw line. Lauren Betts is averaging 19.3 points, 9.8 rebounds and 2.2 blocks per game which leads the Bruins. Betts is 6-7 Junior from Centennial, Colorado and look for Lilly Meister and Karoline Striplin to have the matchup on her. Kiki Rice averages 13.7 points per game and Gabriela Jacquez averages 10.7 points per game. Jacquez’s brother Jamie plays for the NBA’s Miami Heat and start for the Bruins. He was in attendance for a IU Men’s game earlier in the season when the Heat played a back-to-back in Indianapolis against the Pacers with former IU Players Kel’el Ware and Thomas Bryant on the team and Bryant since has been traded to the Pacers.
The Hoosiers are coming off an 83-52 win over Wisconsin last Saturday afternoon. Lilly Meister led the Hoosiers with 20 points along with 14 points from Shay Ciezki and 13 points apiece from Yarden Garzon and Sydney Parrish. The Hoosiers made Wisconsin’s Serah Williams work for her double-double of 13 points and 11 rebounds. The Hoosiers pride themselves on defense and held the Badgers to 6 second quarter points as the Hoosiers scored 21 to take a 42-23 lead into the locker room and put the game away in the second half outscoring Wisconsin 41-29 in the second half. The Hoosiers had a season high 10 blocks, 25 assists and committed 8 turnovers. Yarden Garzon leads the team with 14.8 points and 0.1 blocks per game. Shay Ciezki is averaging 11.9 points. Lilly Meister is averaging 11.8 points a team leading 5.5 rebounds per game. Sydney Parrish is averaging 10 points per game. Chloe Moore-McNeil is averaging 9 points along with a team leading 4.2 assists and 1.8 steals per game. The Hoosiers are averaging 72.8 points per game and committing 14.5 turnovers per game. Indiana is shooting 45% from the field, 35% from three-point range and 75% from the free throw line.
Indiana is not shy to have the big moment on them and the home court advantage with the last decade of the Indiana University Women’s Basketball being the best in program history. UCLA knows it has tough game ahead, but the Bruins closet game was the seven points to Louisville in the season opener in Paris, France November 4. This will be the first of three road trips to Eastern and Central time zones this season for UCLA as part of the new conference schedule. The Hoosiers will head to Oregon and Washington later in the season. It should be a loud crowd and electric atmosphere Saturday afternoon as these two collide in early season Big Ten Showdown.
Aymet Uzcategui Joins the Indiana University Women’s Tennis Staff as an Assistant Coach Indiana women’s tennis head coach Gabrielle Moore has announced the addition of Aymet Uzcategui to her staff as an assistant coach starting in January 2025. Uzcategui comes to the Hoosiers after spending two seasons (2023-24) under coach Moore at McNeese State and spent a total of four years as an assistant for the Cowgirls tennis team. A native of Merida Venzuela, Uzcategui also brings her experience as a former tennis pro. She has represented Venezuela in five consecutive Fed Cups (Billie Jean King Cup) and has extensive experience in the ITF and WTA tour.
Uzcategui was a member of the Billie Jean King Cup Team from 2014-20. As a team Captain for the 2023 Venezuelan National team, Uzcategui led the team to Group I of the Americas Zone group which Venezuela had not been a part of since 2020. As a pro, Uzcategui was ranked #601 by the WTA in singles and was part of a doubles team that ranked #190. She was part of a mixed doubles team that was a gold medalist in 2018 (Cochabamba) and a bronze medalist in 2014 at the Centro American Games Veracruz. Prior to her arrival at McNeese, Uzcategui was the head coach at Bruguera Tennis Academy from 2019-21. She began her coaching career as a part-time coach at David Lloyd Antwerp from 2017-18. She also holds a certification in psychology for high-performance sports. The Merida, Venezuela native, Uzcategui recently graduated from McNeese State with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Photography.
Three Indianapolis Colts Players named to the 2025 Pro Bowl Three Indianapolis Colts players earned places in the 2025 Pro Bowl on Thursday: Linebacker Zaire Franklin, left guard Quenton Nelson and running back Jonathan Taylor. Zaire Franklin enters the final week of the season leading the NFL with 165 tackles, 10 more than the player with the second-most tackles (Arizona Cardinals safety Budda Baker). He will look to be the first Colts player to lead the NFL in tackles since linebacker Shaquille Leonard (163 in 2018), and his 511 tackles over the last three seasons are 40 more than any other player. Franklin in 2024 has also set career highs in interceptions (two) and forced fumbles (four); he also has 10 tackles for a loss, two and a half sacks and three pass break-ups. This is the first Pro Bowl appearance for Franklin, a seven-year veteran and five-time team captain.
Quenton Nelson was selected for his seventh consecutive Pro Bowl, becoming the first Colts player since quarterback Peyton Manning to make seven straight Pro Bowls. Nelson also joined Richmond Webb and Pro Football Hall of Famer Joe Thomas as the only offensive linemen in league history to be selected to the Pro Bowl in each of his first seven seasons in the NFL. Nelson this season ranks among Pro Football Focus’ top five starting guards in run block grade (83.0) and pass block grade (78.8). He has started all 16 games and has played 100 percent of the Colts’ offensive snaps in 14 of those 16 starts.
Jonathan Taylor earned his second career Pro Bowl selection with 1,254 rushing yards (seventh in the NFL) and 11 total touchdowns over 13 games in 2024. Taylor in Week 16 became the second player in the NFL this season (joining the Philadelphia Eagles’ Saquon Barkley) to have multiple rushing touchdowns of 65 or more yards; his 11 rushes of 20 or more yards are tied with the Detroit Lions’ Jahmyr Gibbs for the third-highest total in the NFL. Only Barkley has more rushing touchdowns of 20 more yards than Taylor, who enters Week 18 with four. Taylor previously made the Pro Bowl in 2021.
Notre Dame knocks off Georgia in the College Football Playoff Quarterfinals at the Allstate Sugar Bowl Riley Leonard passed for a touchdown, Jayden Harrison returned a kickoff 98 yards for a score and Notre Dame’s defense made it hold up in a 23-10 victory over No. 2 Georgia in the College Football Playoff Quarterfinal at the Allstate Sugar Bowl on Thursday that sends the fifth-seeded Fighting Irish into the CFP semifinals. In a game that was delayed by a day because of a deadly terror attack in the host city, Notre Dame (13-1) made enough big plays and got some help from a clever move by coach Marcus Freeman. “Our coaches called the game aggressive. Our players executed, put everything on the line for this university and this football team,” Freeman said. “I’m really proud of them. Proud of the way they handled the events of the last 24 hours.”
Georgia (11-2) was in position to close within one score when Notre Dame stopped it on fourth-and-5 from the Irish 9-yard line with 9:29 to go. Minutes later, Notre Dame had a fourth-and-short deep in its own territory when Freeman sent the punt team out before running all 11 players off the field and sending the offense out. Georgia raced to match up and then jumped offside as the play clock ticked down, giving the Irish a clock-sapping first down with 7:17 left. “They were going to hard-count us. We prepare for that. We do it every week,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said. “We jumped offsides.” By the time the Bulldogs got the ball back, just 1:49 remained, and Notre Dame was well on its way to playing No. 5 Penn State (13-2, CFP No. 6 seed) in a semifinal at the Orange Bowl in Miami on Jan. 9. “That’s the aggressiveness in terms of our preparation that I want our program to have,” Freeman said. “That’s got to be one of our edges, that we are going to be an aggressive group and not fear making mistakes.”
The Irish opened as a 1.5-point favorite over the Nittany Lions, according to ESPN BET, while Ohio State remains the favorite to win the CFP at +110. Georgia entered the game without starting quarterback Carson Beck, who injured his right elbow in the Southeastern Conference championship game. He was replaced by Gunner Stockton, who was 20-of-32 for 234 yards and one touchdown. The Bulldogs outgained Notre Dame 296 yards to 244, but Georgia was stopped on all three of its fourth-down attempts and lost two fumbles – one deep in Notre Dame territory and one inside its own 20. “The turnovers are the difference in the game, guys,” Smart said. “I mean, you should know when you turn it over twice and they return a kickoff for a touchdown, you’re not going to have a lot of success.”
Leonard finished with 90 yards passing and a team-high 80 yards rushing, including a late first-down run in which he was sent head over heels as he tried to leap over a defender. “We’re in the playoffs,” Leonard said. “Everybody else can put their body on the line, I’m going to do it right there with them.” The game had been set for Wednesday night as part of a New Year’s Day playoff tripleheader, but it was postponed after an Army veteran inspired by the Islamic State group drove a pickup truck into a crowd on Bourbon Street early Wednesday, killing 14 revelers. Security was increased at the Superdome — which will also host the Super Bowl next month — and arriving fans said they felt safe. With some fans unable to alter their travel plans, attendance in the 70,000-seat stadium was announced at 68,400. There were some patches of empty seats in the upper levels, but passionate supporters made no shortage of noise trying to will their teams into the next round of college football’s first 12-team playoff.
The score was tied at 3 before Notre Dame scored 17 points in a span of 54 seconds. The unusual sequence began with Mitch Jeter’s 48-yard field goal with 39 seconds left in first half. Soon after, Georgia paid for an aggressive decision to attempt a dropback pass from its own 25. RJ Oben’s blindside sack caused Stockton to fumble at the 13, where Irish defensive lineman Junior Tuihalamaka recovered. Leonard found Beaux Collins over the middle for a touchdown on the next play for a 13-3 lead that stood at halftime. By the time 15 seconds had elapsed in the third quarter, Notre Dame led 20-3. Harrison took Georgia’s second-half kickoff to the end zone, slipping a tackle near the middle of the field, cutting toward the right sideline and outrunning everyone. Georgia closed the gap to 20-10 when Stockton hit reserve running back Cash Jones for a 32-yard score before Jeter’s third field goal of the game gave the Irish their winning margin.
Two Indianapolis Colts players Named as Pro Bowl Alternates The NFL on Thursday announced Indianapolis Colts defensive tackle DeForest Buckner and center Ryan Kelly were named 2025 Pro Bowl alternates. DeForest Buckner, who earned Pro Bowl nods in 2018, 2021 and 2023, enters Week 18 with 6 1/2 sacks, eight tackles for a loss and 13 quarterback hits in 11 games. Buckner’s 84.0 Pro Football Focus overall defense grade ranks sixth among defensive tackles.
Ryan Kelly, a four-time Pro Bowler (2019-2021, 2023), enters the Colts’ regular season finale with a 72.4 Pro Football Focus pass blocking grade, fourth highest among centers with at least 500 snaps. Only two centers – Kansas City’s Creed Humphrey and Denver’s Luke Wattenberg – have allowed fewer pressures than Kelly’s nine over his 523 snaps this season. Buckner and Kelly will hope to join three teammates in Orlando for the 2025 Pro Bowl Games on Feb. 1: Linebacker Zaire Franklin, left guard Quenton Nelson and running back Jonathan Taylor.