Darian DeVries Hired as Indiana University Men’s Basketball Head Coach IU Vice President and Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Scott Dolson has hired former West Virginia and Drake Coach Darian DeVries as the new head coach of the IU Men’s Basketball program. The 49-year-old DeVries comes to Bloomington with 24 years of Division I coaching experience, including the last seven as a highly successful head coach at Drake (2019-24) and West Virginia (2025). His Drake and West Virginia teams went a combined 169-68 (71.3%) overall and 89-43 (67.4%) in conference play, and won three conference championships (one regular season, two postseason) along the way.
“We went into this coaching search with some very specific things we were looking for in our next head coach, and Darian emerged as someone who, on paper, met and often exceeded our criteria,” Dolson said. “Once we had a chance to talk to him, we knew we had the right person. Darian has a plan for building a championship culture that can compete at the highest level on a year-in, year-out basis. He has extensive D-1 coaching experience that includes 15 trips to the NCAA Tournament as a head coach or as an assistant. This past season at West Virginia, he inherited a last-place Big 12 team with no significant contributors returning and managed to more than double its win total despite a pair of significant season-ending injuries. Finally, he is passionate about the opportunity to lead our program. We are excited to welcome Darian and the entire DeVries family to our Hoosier family.”
“This is unquestionably one of the top jobs in America. As someone who grew up in the Midwest loving the game of basketball, I’ve always admired the IU Basketball program for its championship-level success, tradition, and fan support,” DeVries said. “There’s a passion to succeed at the very highest levels both within the Big Ten and in the NCAA Tournament, and that’s a desire that as a coach I share. On top of that, the alignment is there on a department and university level to make that happen. I’m excited for this opportunity and am ready to work relentlessly to assemble a staff and a roster that competes for championships.”
“As President of IU, it is my expectation that our university strives for greatness in everything we do from academics to athletics,” IU President Pamela Whitten said. “Darian has demonstrated that he embraces that elite standard. In fact, he has a well-established track record of elevating programs to new levels of success. This is a great day for IU Men’s Basketball and Indiana University.”
At each of his first two head coaching stops, DeVries quickly turned around programs mired in significant short and/or long-term struggles on the basketball court. DeVries’ first head coaching opportunity came at Drake in 2018, where he inherited a program that had been to one NCAA Tournament in the last 47 years, had five 20-win seasons in its 112-year history, and was a combined 40-87 (31.5%) in the six years prior to DeVries’ arrival. He immediately turned the Missouri Valley Conference program’s fortunes around, going 24-10 overall in year one and tying for the Missouri Valley Conference regular season championship. DeVries earned conference coach of the year honors for his performance, the first of his two MVC Coach of the Year accolades.
He continued to raise the bar at the Des Moines, Iowa, school in each of his final five seasons. His Drake teams won at least 20 games each year, including 25 or more in each of his final four seasons. During those final four seasons at Drake the Bulldogs were one of only three programs in Division I to win 25+ games each season along with Houston and Gonzaga. His teams won MVC postseason tournament championships in his final two seasons, led the league in scoring offense twice, and he finished his Drake career with a 150-55 record (73.1%). Compared to the six years before his arrival, DeVries’ six-year win percentage represented a remarkable 39.1% improvement, which stands up remarkably well against other high-profile coaches such as Alabama’s Nate Oats (+9.2% four-year win percentage improvement while at Buffalo), Michigan’s Dusty May (+22.3% four-year win percentage improvement at Florida Atlantic), and Louisville’s Pat Kelsey (+18.7% three-year win percentage improvement at Charleston). In addition to his personal successes and accolades, DeVries’ Bulldog players were highly decorated as well. He had four players combine to earn six first-team All-MVC honors. That list includes 2019 MVC Defensive Player of the Year Nick McGlynn; two-time first-team All-MVC guard Roman Penn; and 2023 and 2024 MVC Player of the Year and 2022 MVC Freshman of the Year Tucker DeVries, Darian’s son.
Darian’s extended run of success at Drake attracted the attention of West Virginia, which brought him to Morgantown, W.Va, last spring to resurrect the fortunes of a Mountaineer program that went 9-23 in 2023-24 and finished last in the Big 12. DeVries inherited a roster that returned only two players and 2.8 percent of its scoring from 2023-24 and was picked to finish 13th in the Big 12 in the league’s preseason poll. But the Mountaineers’ first-year coach enjoyed tremendous success in the transfer portal (including 2024-25 first-team All-Big 12 honoree Jovan Small from Oklahoma State and All-Big 12 Defensive Team member Sencire Harris from Illinois) and orchestrated one of the nation’s most impressive turnarounds.
West Virginia more than doubled its previous season’s win total, going 19-13 overall and 10-10 in the Big 12. The Mountaineers earned a series of signature victories this season, including three wins over top-10 teams (#2 Iowa State, #3 Gonzaga and #7 Kansas). Those successes came despite the extended absences of multiple players expected to play critical roles in the team’s fortunes this season, including Tucker DeVries (14.9 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 47.3% 3 pt. shooting in 2024-25), who missed all but eight games due to a shoulder injury. While the Mountaineers were enjoying a resurgence on the court, DeVries also had success re-establishing the program as a recruiting force. West Virginia signed a three-person class last fall that was ranked No. 23 nationally and included two top-75 players according to 247Sports.
A native of Aplington, Iowa, DeVries got his coaching start at Creighton, where he spent 20 years as a member of the Bluejays’ staff (including the final 17 as an assistant coach) under Dana Altman and Greg McDermott. Creighton went a combined 460-211 during his 20 seasons and earned 19 postseason berths (including 12 NCAA trips). Darian joined the Creighton staff in 1998 shortly after concluding a successful college player career at the University of Northern Iowa. A 1998 UNI graduate in elementary education, DeVries scored 1,084 points while playing for long-time UNI Coach Eldon Miller. Darian and his wife, Ashley, have one son, Tucker (22), and a daughter, Tatum (16).
Indiana University Men’s Basketball Sophomore Gabe Cupps has entered the Transfer Portal Multiple outlets are reporting guard Gabe Cupps has entered the transfer portal. Cupps arrived at Indiana as part of the class of 2023 and played two seasons with the Hoosiers. The 6-foot-2 Cupps was not expected to play a major role as a freshman in 2023-24, but he was thrust into significant minutes when veteran point guard Xavier Johnson dealt with multiple injuries. Cupps should be able to obtain a medical hardship waiver for the 2024-25 season, meaning he should still have three years of eligibility remaining. He saw action in four games before being shut down with a lower body injury in late November. He took four shots and didn’t score. Cupps had knee surgery during the season. A year ago, Cupps made 22 starts in 33 appearances. He was one of five freshmen in the Big Ten Conference to make at least 20 starts. The Dayton, Ohio product averaged 2.6 points, 1.8 rebounds, 1.2 assists, and 0.7 steals in 21.7 minutes per game. Cupps shot 36.4% (32-of-88) from the floor, 35.9% (14-of-39) from the 3-point line, and 61.5% (8-of-13) from the free throw line. Players who enter the transfer portal can return, meaning Cupps could come back to IU if there’s mutual interest with him and the next head coach. In a social media post, Cupps said he plans to keep track of the developing situation at Indiana.
7th Ranked Indiana University Women’s Swimming and Diving Competes at the NCAA Championships Having earned program-record seventh place national finishes the last two seasons, No. 7-ranked Indiana looks to keep climbing to new heights this week at the 2025 NCAA Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships in Federal Way, Washington. The four-day meet will start Today and run through Saturday inside the Weyerhaeuser King County Aquatic Center. Final sessions will kick off at 9pm each evening. Preliminary heats will begin at 10 a.m. every morning beginning Thursday. Fans can stream the competition via the ESPN+ digital platform. Fourteen Hoosiers combine to compete in every event. Six seniors lead the way for Indiana in what will be their final collegiate meet: Brearna Crawford, Mariah Denigan, Ching Hwee Gan, Skyler Liu, Kacey McKenna and Anna Peplowski.
Peplowski can end her collegiate career emphatically as the No. 1-seed in the 200-yard freestyle. Her 1:40.69 relay split from Big Ten Championships makes her the event’s only entrant under 1:41.00. That time also made Peplowski the joint Big Ten record holder as well as the ninth-fastest swimmer ever. Peplowski told Swimming World Magazine that she aims to become just the fourth swimmer to break the 1:40 barrier in the 200 free. Should Peplowski capture the title, she would become Indiana’s first women’s freestyle champion ever and first swimming champion since Lilly King won four straight in both the 100-yard breaststroke and 200-yard breaststroke from 2016-19.
The top three swimmers in the event all come from the Big Ten after Peplowski, Michigan sophomore Stephanie Balduccini (1:41.16) and USC sophomore Minna Abraham (1:41.29) battled for the Big Ten crown, with the Wolverine coming out on top on that occasion. Peplowski is the lone swimmer of the three that has ever swum under 1:41 and has done it twice – other than that relay, Peplowski went 1:40.97 during last year’s NCAA final to place second by seven hundredths to Florida’s Bella Sims. Sims elected to swim the 100 back over the 200 free at this year’s meet. Peplowski will get her first chance to swim a 200 free leading off Wednesday’s 800-yard freestyle relay. She also ranks No. 5 in the 500 free – which she placed third in a year ago – and ninth in the 100 free. She owns the program records in all three of her events.
Liu’s momentum, repeating as Big Ten Champion in both the 3-meter and platform events, could push Indiana to similar diving success it seen in recent championships with a medalist in each of the last four championships. The Big Ten diving finals may look like the NCAA finals as Liu defeated three Olympians in the 3-meter springboard and two on platform. A two-event finalist for Texas A&M last season, sophomore transfer Miranda Grana is ranked top 10 in each of her events. Grana finished 25th in the 100-yard butterfly a year ago but comes into the 2025 national meet as the No. 6 seed with her Big Ten title-winning 50.80. She also won silver in both the 100-yard and 200-yard backstroke events and will look to repeat A final finishes from a year ago as the No. 7 and No. 9 seed, respectively.
Joining Grana in the backstroke events are McKenna and junior Mya DeWitt. McKenna placed sixth in front of Grana in the 100 back at last year’s NCAA Championships and comes into this meet as the No. 13-seeded swimmer. Grana and McKenna earned silver and bronze medals at Big Ten’s and are the only Hoosiers ever under 51 seconds in the event. Indiana’s senior distance duo of Denigan and Gan will vie to reach the podium for a third consecutive season. Gan is a two-time NCAA medalist and Big Ten Champion in the event, and Saturday’s swim will represent one last opportunity to break Lindsay Vrooman’s 11-year-old program record; Gan posted a personal best 15:46.22 at Big Tens, and Vrooman’s standard sits at 15:44.45.
Junior and Bloomington native Kristina Paegle can continue to lower her 50-yard freestyle program record, which she reclaimed on her way to her first Big Ten individual title last month. Ashley Turak’s 21.73 captured the record at last year’s NCAA meet, but Paegle’s 21.63 in March took back the distinction and placed her ninth in the country coming into the NCAA meet. Paegle also ranks No. 17 in the 100 free, needing a top 16 finish to score for the Hoosiers. Indiana ranks top 10 in all five relays, highlighted by its No. 5-ranked 400-yard medley relay. If the Hoosiers can improve to finish top eight in each race, it would mark the first time in program history that every relay reached the podium.
Oumar Ballo Named All-Great Lakes District second team Indiana sixth-year senior center Oumar Ballo was named to the 2024-25 NABC Division I All-Great Lakes District Second Team, the National Association of Basketball Coaches announced on Tuesday morning. The Koulikoro, Mali, native started 29-of-31 games played in his lone season with the Hoosiers. He averaged 13.0 points, 9.1 rebounds, a career-high 2.1 assists, and 1.3 blocks per game. The 7-foot big man averaged a career-high 28.8 minutes per night. Ballo shot 62.3% (157-of-252) from the floor and 57.1% (89-of-156) from the free throw line. The Arizona transfer was one of 10 major conference players to average 13.0 points and 9.0 rebounds per game and the only player to do it on 60.0% shooting or better. He reached double figures in the scoring column on 19 occasions, posted 14 games with 10-plus rebounds, and notched 10 double-doubles. He produced nine multi-block games.
Indiana University Water Polo’s Louisa Downes Named MPSF Player Of the Week Indiana water polo junior attacker Louisa Downes has been named the MPSF Player of the Week, announced by the league on Tuesday. Downes picks up her first career honor and first weekly award winner for the Hoosiers since Sophia Sollie in April 2023. She helped lead No. 17 Indiana to four wins including a pair of Top 25 upsets over No. 12 Princeton and No. 8 Harvard along with victories over No. 20 SDSU and Cal State Fullerton at the Aztec Invitational.
The Queensland, Australia native scored 12 goals and had six assists for 18 total points along with five steals and four earned exclusions and two drawn penalties in four games. She had three hat tricks including a weekend-high four goals in the win over Harvard. Downes had two goals and two assists along with three steals and earned penalty in the win over No. 12 Princeton in the Aztec Invite opener. She put up her first hat trick of the weekend on a three goal, four shot effort against Fullerton where she also had a steal and earned exclusion. Her three goals and an assist with a steal and earned penalty helped IU to a win over host No. 20 SDSU. The tournament finale performance against performance No. 8 Harvard was the best of the weekend, where she tied a team-high four goals and three assists along with a steal, two earned exclusion and an earned penalty.
Four Finalists Named for the 2025 Indy Star Indiana Miss Basketball Award Four players have been named finalists for 2025 IndyStar Miss Basketball, presented by the Indiana Fever. The winner of the award will be announced noon Today. A reminder, this is a senior-only award voted upon by the state’s coaches and media members.
Addi Baxter Columbia City-Baxter capped her decorated career by leading Columbia City to its first sectional and regional titles since 1999-2000. The Butler-bound guard averaged 24 points, 6.3 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 5.3 steals for the semi state runner-up Eagles, who finished the season 24-5. Baxter holds the school records for career points (1,859), assists (523), steals (478) and field goals made, season records for field goals, points, assists and steals, and single-game records for assists and steals. Her career spanned 86 wins, two conference championships and the 2024 Hall of Fame Classic title.
Jaylah Lampley Lawrence Central-The record-setting Mississippi State commit led the Bears to new heights during her four seasons, collecting 81 wins and the first state championship in school history (2023-24). Individually, she set the school scoring record with 1,802 points, and rounded out her line with 580 rebounds, 209 steals, 201 assists and 52 blocks. Lampley enjoyed a career year as a senior, averaging 21.2 points, 5.6 rebounds, 2.4 steals and 1.6 steals over 24 games.
Maya Makalusky Hamilton Southeastern-The sharpshooting Makalusky led the Royals to their first sectional and regional championships since 2018-19, then nearly led them to a semi state crown, totaling 37 points, eight rebounds, four assists and five steals against Valparaiso and Warsaw. The IU commit finished the season averaging 22.1 points and 6.9 rebounds and is the program’s all-time leading scorer with 1,933 points.
Meredith Tippner Noblesville-Tippner’s athletic exploits include a state basketball title her freshman year, three consecutive state soccer championships and a 155-25-6 cumulative record between the two sports. She set the single-season scoring record as a senior, pouring in 623 points (26 ppg) against the state’s ninth-toughest schedule. The Miami commit also averaged 9.9 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 4.0 steals this season, and finished her career ranked second all-time in points (1,779), rebounds (913) and assists (337), and with a school-record 326 steals.
Indianapolis Indians Announce Broadcast Partnership with FOX59, CBS4 and The Dot for 2025 T Tuesday, the Indianapolis Indians announced that 15 games from Victory Field will be broadcast live to fans across Central Indiana during the 2025 season in partnership with FOX59, CBS4 and The Dot. The broadcast schedule begins with Opening Night on Tuesday, April 1 and continues with every Friday
night game throughout the season. Each contest of the 15-game slate will be broadcast locally on The Dot (ETTV), which can be accessed on channel 4.2 or 29.2 depending on location. “As Indy’s oldest professional sports team, the Indians have been at the center of the sports scene in the Circle City for nearly 125 years,” said Joel Zawacki, Indianapolis Indians vice president and Chief Commercial Officer. “Indians baseball has a robust and passionate fanbase, and we are excited to once again reach those fans across Central Indiana through our high-quality broadcasts and legendary on-air talent.”
Indians home broadcasts will feature play-by-play analysis from longtime Voice of the Indians, Howard Kellman, who has called nearly seven thousand Indians games across 48 seasons. For the 2025 season, he will be joined in the broadcast booth by Andrew Kappes, who has called the majority of Indians games since 2015. “This partnership is a win for local sports fans,” said Dominic Mancuso, Vice President and General Manager of FOX59, CBS4, and The Dot. “By teaming up with the Indianapolis Indians, we’re giving viewers greater access to live, local baseball while showcasing the talent and excitement that make our community proud. We’re committed to bringing high-quality, hometown sports directly to fans across Central Indiana.”
Full Broadcast Schedule
Tuesday, April 1 vs. Iowa Cubs (Chicago Cubs) – 6:35 PM
Friday, April 4 vs. Iowa Cubs – 6:35 PM
Friday, April 18 vs. Toledo Mud Hens (Detroit Tigers) – 6:35 PM
Friday, May 9 vs. Columbus Clippers (Cleveland Guardians) – 7:05 PM
Friday, May 16 vs. Louisville Bats (Cincinnati Reds) – 7:05 PM
Friday, May 30 vs. Nashville Sounds (Milwaukee Brewers) – 7:05 PM
Friday, June 13 vs. St. Paul Saints (Minnesota Twins) – 7:05 PM
Tuesday, June 24 vs. Omaha Storm Chasers (Kansas City Royals) – 7:05 PM
Friday, June 27 vs. Omaha Storm Chasers – 7:05 PM
Friday, July 4 vs. Louisville Bats – 6:35 PM
Friday, July 11 vs. Gwinnett Stripers (Atlanta Braves) – 7:05 PM
Friday, July 25 vs. Toledo Mud Hens – 7:05 PM
Friday, Aug. 8 vs. Omaha Storm Chasers – 7:05 PM
Friday, Aug. 29 vs. Buffalo Bisons (Toronto Blue Jays) – 7:05 PM
Friday, Sept. 12 vs. Iowa Cubs – 7:05 PM