Assembly Ball “Failed” In the Basketball Tournament The Assembly Ball which is made up former Indiana University Men’s Basketball players started their quest to win the $1 Million Dollar winner take all Basketball Tournament with a first-round matchup against Fail Harder in the Indianapolis Regional at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. Fail Harder who is led by 2016 Indiana Mr. Basketball and Lawrence Central High School Kyle Guy with a team of Former Indiana High School and College Players knocked off Assembly Ball 89-76 and will advance to the second round Monday Night to keep their quest for the $1 Millon Dollar prize alive.
This was the second appearance for both teams in this tournament Fail Harder lost to Butler’s Alumni Team All Good Dawgs 90-67 in the first round and Assembly Ball beat The Cru 89-78 which is Valparaiso’s Alumni Team and Purdue’s Alumni Team Men of Mackey 68-55 and lost to Eberlein Drive 68-57 in the Third Round all at Hinkle Fieldhouse a year ago. Fail Harder had something to prove and after trailing 39-37 at halftime they outscored Assembly Ball 52-37 in the second half to send the crowd that was mainly IU supporters home disappointed.
Darius Adams who played at the University of Indianapolis led Fail Harder with 21 points including 16 in the third quarter to spark the run. Seven-Footer Reginald Kissoonlal who played at Marian University in Indianapolis scored 13 points and jawed at the crowd during the game put the exclamation point on the game with the game winning layup. Kobe Webster who played at Park Tudor in Indianapolis and at the University of Nebraska scored 12 points and Dijmon Henson who played at Warren Central High School in Indianapolis and Morehead State added 10 points. Fail Harder played eight 8 guys and all of them scored 7 or more points. Fail Harder knocked down 12 three pointers and drove to the basket at will making it hard for Assembly Ball to stop while struggling at the other end to knock down shots.
Al Durham led Assembly Ball with 23 points and went 10-14 from the free throw line. QJ Peterson who played at VMI added 20 points as Luke Fischer and Race Thompson scored 9 points apiece. Assembly Ball has a 15-player roster that features 11 that played for the Hoosiers during their college basketball careers and 4 that played for other teams. Christian Watford, James Blackmon Jr and Yogi Ferrell were all on the bench and did not play with Miller Kopp and Noah Vonleh not with the team.
Butler’s All Good Dawgs beat Valparaiso’s Shield 219 77-69 as they will battle Fail Harder on Monday at 8 PM in the second round. Tyler Wideman scored 23 points leading the charge in the fourth quarter hitting five three pointers scoring 19 points. Myles Tate added 18 and Ty Groce who had putback dunk to win the game added 15 points. Ben Krikee who played at Valparaiso and Iowa led Shield 219 with 19 points and pulled down 16 rebounds. Brandon Wood who played at Valparaiso and Michigan State added 15 and Marreon Jackson added 13 points he played at Toledo and Arizona State. All Good Dawgs led 31-28 at halftime and pulled away in the fourth quarter outscoring Shield 219 17-6 before heading to the Elam Ending which is a fun way to end a basketball game. After the Under four-minute timeout in the fourth quarter the game clock shuts off and whoever is leading at that point the target score is set to eight points, meaning that Butler had 68 points just needing to score eight more points to win the game and all games end with a made basket.
In the other matchup Monday at 6 PM it will be Fort Wayne Champs taking on Ohio State’s Alumni Team Carmen’s Crew who are the defending TBT Champions. Fort Wayne Champs beat Locked in Elite 103-56 and Carmen’s Crew beat Go Time Green Machine 78-67. The Winners of Monday Night’s Game will play Tuesday at 8 PM on Fox Sports 2 for the Regional Championship.
Teri Moren and Team USA Continue Thier Quest for Gold at the FIBA U19 Women’s World Cup The United States beat Spain 70-58 Saturday in the Semifinals of the FIBA U19 Women’s World Cup in Brno, Czechia and will face Australia today at 2 PM Eastern Time for the Gold Medal. The United States extends its winning streak to 27 games in this tournament and looking for its eleventh gold medal and fourth straight. The United States fell to Russia 86-82 in the Gold Medal Game in 2017 in Italy and since then they have refused to lose. Australia beat Canada 85-78 in the other Semifinal and will be looking to win its first Gold Medal since 1993 when they beat Russia 72-54 in Seoul, South Korea.
This will be the fourth time that these two nations will have met for the Gold Medal at this level with the United States winning all three matchups. The United States won 78-74 in Natal, Brazil in 1995, 74-70 in Bangkok Thailand in 2019 and 70-52 in Debrecen, Hungary in 2021. The United States beat Spain 69-66 in the 2023 Final in Madrid.
Indiana University Women’s Basketball Head Coach Teri Moren leads Team USA along with her Assistants Nielle Ivey from Notre Dame and Jose Fernandez from South Florida. Sanyiah Hall led the Red, White and Blue with 16 Points while Jordan Lee and Jasmine Davidson added 15 points apiece. UCLA bound Sienna Betts was held to 4 points and 7 rebounds after posting four double doubles in a row. The Americans used their depth to their advantage playing 11 of the 12 and 7 in the scoring column with only three players seeing more than 30 minutes of action in this game.
Indiana University Sophomore Zania Socka-Nugemen scored on her only field goal attempt and missed a free throw in 6 minutes and 52 seconds off the bench. Socka-Nugemen pulled down 2 rebounds, had a steal, committed 1 turnover and 3 fouls. In the Tournament she has scored 22 points, 20 rebounds, 3 steals and a block in 52 minutes through six games. Socka-Nugemen is 8-13 from the field for 61%, 1-1 from three-point range and 5-7 from the free throw line for 71%.
Aleksa Ristic and Serbia Fall in the Semifinals of the FIBA U20 European Championships Incoming Indiana University Men’s Basketball Freshman Aleska Ristic scored 8 points, dished out 7 assists, pulled down 4 rebounds and committed 5 turnovers as Serbia lost to Italy 85-78 in the Semifinals of the FIBA U20 European Championships on Saturday in Heraklion, Greece. Serbia will face France in the Third Place Game this morning at 11 AM Eastern Time. France lost to Lithuania 81-71 in the other Semifinal. France is looking to avenge their 84-65 loss to Serbia six days ago in the final group stage game. Serbia will be looking for its second ever Bronze Medal in this tournament with the first coming in 2014.
Ristic has started all six games for Serbia played 36 Minutes and 19 Seconds going 3-11 from the field, 1-5 from three-point range and 1-2 from the free throw line. Ristic has scored 73 points, dished out 42 assists, 8 rebounds, 3 steals and blocked 1 shot in 192 minutes in six games. Ristic leads Serbia with 32.1 minutes played and 7 assists per game and is third on the team in scoring with 12.2 points per game. Ristic is 6-3-point guard who will turn 20 years old on September 9. Ristic is 24-68 from the field for 35%, 7-34 from three-point range for 20% and 18-21 from the free throw line for 85%.
New York Liberty’s Sabrina Ionescu and Natasha Cloud Sweep WNBA All-Star Friday Night at Gainbridge Fieldhouse New York Liberty star Sabrina Ionescu won her second 3-point contest Friday night to kick off WNBA All-Star Weekend, becoming the second player to win multiple shootouts. Ionescu won by scoring 30 of the possible 40 points in the second round, beating reigning champion Allisha Gray, who had 22. Ionescu’s 30 points tied Allie Quigley for the second most in a WNBA 3-point contest. Ionescu holds the record of 37, set in 2023. “I knew I wasn’t going to get it when I missed a few on the front end,” Ionescu said of the record. “But I mean, I could have gotten close. I just missed some easy ones at the end. I think I knew I was high up there, and I kind of locked out a little bit and started like listening to the crowd. But I mean, 30 is not too bad. So, I’m happy with 30 as well.”
More than chasing her record, Ionescu was looking to avenge the last 3-point contest she participated in — a February 2024 shootout against Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry during NBA All-Star Weekend. Earlier Friday, Ionescu said going up against Curry was the most pressure she had felt at an All-Star event. This time around, she was focused on having fun and not taking it too seriously. Ionescu didn’t practice leading into the contest, and the first time she shot off a rack was during warmups just moments before the competition started. “I remember being a kid and always watching these events and finding my favorite shooter just by watching,” Ionescu said. “I want to be able to be that person that can show up when time permits and be a part of All-Star Weekend and kind of showcase to the world how you can believe in yourself, how you can put the work in. And whether you win or not, it takes guts to be able to go out there when the lights are the brightest.”
Ionescu wasn’t the only Liberty player to take home hardware Friday. In the opening event, teammate Natasha Cloud won the skills challenge, setting up what the duo called a “Liberty Biberty takeover” of the evening. Cloud recorded the fastest times in both rounds of the competition, clocking 34.1 seconds in the first round and 35.5 seconds in the second. She beat Erica Wheeler by 1.1 seconds in the final. Cloud won despite missing all three of her shots from the corner over a windmill — the hardest shot of the night. “I was really just making sure I was making those passes through the target, that I was sprinting in between to cut down on the time from making the passes and then the shots,” Cloud said. “And with the shots, if it didn’t feel right, I didn’t care.” As Cloud scored her final layup, Ionescu ran down the court to bear-hug her teammate. Cloud then went to center court and picked up her girlfriend, New York teammate Isabelle Harrison, and kissed her. Cloud said her prize money would go toward a down payment on a house for them. “That’s Izzy B’s money,” Cloud said. “She told me to go win this money for a home, and that’s what it’s going down to.”
Cloud received $55,000 from Aflac as part of a partnership with the Women’s National Basketball Players Association and an additional $2,575 from the league. Ionescu won $62,575 — $60,000 from Aflac and $2,575 from the league. Ionescu promised half of her winnings to Sonia Citron, the Washington Mystics rookie who was eliminated in the first round of the 3-point contest, and the other half to her charitable foundation, SI20. “I told Sonia that I would give her half if I won when we were sitting on the bench. Being the only rookie, she was nervous, and I was nervous for her,” Ionescu said. “Obviously have to hold up my end of the bargain. So half is going to go to her.” Cloud said the Liberty’s sweep Friday night should set them up for a strong second half of the season after an up-and-down first half. The Liberty are just the third team to win both challenges in the same year. “I’ve been talking about it since we both entered the skills and 3-point challenge, been talking to Sab about sweeping the night,” Cloud said. “But today is the day, and it was a good night. I was really thankful for the opportunity … to come out on top in the ‘Liberty Biberty’ night. I think it’s also just refreshing. … It’s a great night for the Liberty organization.”
Indiana Pacers Wrap Up the Las Vegas Summer League with a Win over the New Orleans Pelicans The Indiana Pacers will return home from Las Vegas as winners. In the Blue & Gold’s 2025 Summer League finale, the Pacers (3-2) dropped the New Orleans Pelicans (0-5), 113-104, at Cox Pavilion. Indiana led at the end of every quarter in the victory, outshooting the Pelicans 48.8 to 46.1 percent. The Pacers went up by 11 points at halftime before blowing the game open in the third, leading by as many as 24 points in the period. “This group was great to coach and be a part of,” Pacers Summer League coach Isaac Yacob said. “This staff was great. The players coming in, working hard, and doing what’s asked … it’s been a lot of fun.”
Harvard product Robert Baker led the Pacers with 26 points and 10 rebounds, Phillip Wheeler added 19 points, RayJ Dennis supplied 15 points and 11 assists, and Enrique Freeman posted 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Blue & Gold. Multiple Pacers players sat out of Friday’s game, including rookie Kam Jones, the 38th pick in this year’s draft, second year forward Johnny Furphy, and two-way guard Quenton Jackson. Jeremiah Fears, the seventh overall pick from Oklahoma, topped the Pelicans with 22 points and seven assists, Antonio Reaves had 18 points, and Keion Brooks Jr. finished with 16 points. Derik Queen, the 13th overall pick from Maryland, did not play for the Pelicans after recently undergoing wrist surgery. A couple of Indiana scoring bursts in the second quarter helped the Pacers to a 56-45 halftime lead.
Wheeler had 12 points, Baker added 10 points and seven rebounds off the bench, and Dennis had nine points and eight assists at halftime. Neither team led by more than four points in the first quarter, as the sides traded the lead 11 times. Dennis hit two 3-pointers and had eight points while Wheeler also supplied eight points to help the Pacers go up 27-23. Indiana used a 7-0 run early in the second quarter to get some distance, led by a 3-pointer from Creighton alum Steven Ashworth, before a 9-0 run, featuring five points by Keisi Tominaga, pushed the Pacers in front 47-37 with 3:30 on the clock. In the final 54 seconds of the half, Baker hit a 3-pointer and converted a layup, and Freeman threw down a dunk off a perfect pass from Dennis, to help the Pacers go ahead by 11. Indiana outscored New Orleans 32-22 in the third quarter, shooting 63.6 percent as a team, with Baker adding 14 points to his total, as the Pacers extended their lead to 88-67. A 13-0 scoring streak by the Pacers, where Baker scored eight straight points, propelled the Pacers to a 76-54 lead midway through the third quarter. He later grabbed an offensive rebound at the buzzer and scored to put the Pacers up by 21. In the fourth quarter, the Pacers cruised to the win despite a 16-3 Pelicans run to cut it to 13 points midway through the frame.
Indiana University Quarterback Fernando Mendoza Nominated for the AFCA Good Works Team IU quarterback Fernando Mendoza was named a nominee for the 2025 AFCA Good Works Team; it was announced earlier this week. The AFCA Good Works Team recognizes college football student-athletes from all levels of the sport for their commitment to community service and leadership beyond the gridiron. Last year Mendoza was involved in an initiative at Cal that was near-and-dear to his heart. His mother has multiple sclerosis, and that led him to partner with La Burrita in Berkley to launch the Mendoza Burrito. Honoring his Cuban heritage with the ingredients, all proceeds from each sale went to the National MS Society in honor and support of his mother, and to raise awareness for multiple sclerosis. Mendoza said in a recent interview with NBC Sports the initiative raised over $11,000 for the National MS Society. Mendoza was asked if he has similar plans in Bloomington this year. “Although I love football, I love getting involved in the community,” he said. “That’s something I look to do.”
On the field, Mendoza has arrived in Bloomington with big expectations. Overall, he has appeared in 20 career games with 19 starts over two seasons at California. Mendoza was ranked the No. 14 overall prospect in the Transfer Portal and No. 3 quarterback by 247Sports. He finished his time at Cal as the all-time leader in completion percentage (66.4%) and tied for No. 7 in 250-yard passing games (10), equaling the mark of legendary Cal quarterback Aaron Rodgers. As a redshirt sophomore in 2024, Mendoza produced just the ninth 3,000-yard passing season in California history (3,004 yards). He finished in the top-10 on Cal’s single-season charts in total offensive yards (No. 7; 3,109 yards), passing efficiency (No. 8; 144.59) and yards passing (No. 9; 3,004 yards). Indiana opens fall camp on July 30, and the 2025 season on Aug. 30 against Old Dominion.
Taylor University’s Hanak and Forbes Collect CSC Academic All-American Honors for Men’s Track and Field and Cross-Country The CSC Academic All-Americans for men’s track and cross country were announced earlier this week, with the Trojans having a pair of student athletes honored. Both Josh Forbes and Ryan Hanak were named CSC NAIA Second-Team Academic All-Americans, as the duo had outstanding years inside the classroom and athletically. Forbes was named an Academic All-American for a second-consecutive season after finishing 2024 as a CSC NAIA First-Team Academic All-American. The junior pole-vaulter capped a terrific year with a fourth-place finish at the NAIA Outdoor National Championships after competing at the Indoor NAIA National Championships. Forbes was fantastic inside the classroom, putting up an amazing 3.87 GPA throughout his computer science classes.
Hanak joined Forbes on the second team after completing his season with an NAIA All-American finish in the 5,000-meters during the outdoor season. The junior distance runner was also an NAIA All-American during the indoor season in the 3,000-meters and was within five spots of also collecting All-American honors during the cross-country season with a 45th-place finish at the NAIA National Championships. Hanak put up an outstanding 3.73 GPS as he studies computer science, with a focus in cybersecurity. Taylor student-athletes have combined for an NAIA-best 151 CSC Academic All-American honors in school history, with 149 of those awards coming since 2010. Of those 149 honors, 70 are of the First-Team variety. The 2024-2025 year has seen Taylor athletics pick up 12 total Academic All-American selections. The 2025 Academic All-American men’s track & field and cross-country teams, recognize the nation’s top student-athletes for their performances on the track, in the field, and in the classroom. To be considered for the award, student-athletes must hold a minimum 3.50 GPA, achieve at least sophomore academic status, and reach certain performance thresholds in their respective track events or cross-country races.