Indiana’s Three Headed Monster Leads to Road Win at Rutgers Lamar Wilkerson, Tucker DeVries and Nick Dorn combined for 72 of Indiana’s 82 points as the Hoosiers snapped a four-game losing streak on Friday Night with an 82-59 win over the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at Jersey Mike’s Arena in Piscataway, New Jersey. Indiana is 13-7 overall and 4-5 in the Big Ten and will host archrival Purdue Tuesday Night at 9 PM in Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. Lamar Wilkerson scored 27 points, going 11-17 from the field and 5-11 from three-point range. Nick Dorn, who got his first start as a Hoosier, scored 23 points, going 6-10 from three-point range talking just one shot from inside the arc and 5-5 form the free throw line. Tucker DeVries scored 22 points and pulled down 10 rebounds for his third double-double of the season. DeVries went 4-12 from downtown. The Hoosiers were 15-35 from three-point range for 43%, 30-60 from the field for 60% and a perfect 7-7 from the free throw line.
Sam Alexis pulled down 10 rebounds and scored 4 points along with 6 points from Tayton Conerway in 16 minutes after the bench after an ankle injury held him to just 2 minutes and no points Tuesday Night against Michigan. Conor Enright, Reed Bailey, Trent Sisley and Jasai Miles all played but did not score. Indiana pulled down 40 rebounds, dished out 15 assists, 7 blocks, 4 steals and committed 11 turnovers. Tariq Francis scored 28 points off the bench to lead the Scarlet Knights. Francis, who played two seasons at the New Jersey Institute of Technology went 10-23 from the field, 1-4 from three-point range and 7-8 from the free throw line was the only Rutgers player in double-figures. Rutgers finished 21-58 from the field for 36%, 5-19 from three-point range for 26% and 12-14 from the free throw line for 86%. Harun Zrno who was signed with the Hoosiers under former Head Coach Mike Woodson before the coaching change to Darian DeVries played 10 minutes off the bench missing his only shot attempt from three-point range had a rebound and a turnover. Rutgers is 9-11 overall and 2-7 in the Big Ten and have lost three in a row and four of their last five games.
The Hoosiers jumped out to 5-0 lead and never looked back as the big three combined for 43 of the teams 47 first half points. DeVries had 16, Dorn 14 and Wilkerson 13 in the first half shooting 15-29 from the field, 8-18 from three-point range and Dorn made all five of his free throws. Alexis and Conerway had 2 points each in the first half. Francis scored 21 of the teams 32 points in the first half as he carried the load for his team throughout the game. Indiana outscored Rutgers 35-27 in the second half as the Scarlet Knights would put together a couple of mini runs but the Hoosiers hot shooting ended though runs. Rutgers struggled down the stretch, making just 1 of their last 10 field goals and missed the last 7 and did not hit a field goal for the last five minutes and 53 seconds of the game. Indiana leads the all-time series 10-9 as the Hoosiers have won two in a row and three of the last four meetings in the series. This is the Hoosiers’ first win in Piscataway since February 5, 2018, when the Hoosiers won 65-43 as Indiana won the first three meetings at Rutgers and snaps a five-game losing streak in Jersey Mike’s Arena as the Hoosiers are 4-5 all-time in Piscataway.
This was a game that Indiana needed to get things in the right direction. When the Hoosiers are shooting well, they are shooting well and when they are not as we have seen the last four games it is a long night. Indiana will come into their game against Purdue Tuesday Night with their second Big Ten Road Win off the season and with Purdue coming to town Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall will be electric in the first of two meetings between the two teams the season with the rematch coming Mackey Arena in late February.
Indiana University to Celebrate its National Championship Football Team Despite the Cold Weather The IU football is team ready to celebrate with all of its Hoosier fans. A celebration at Memorial Stadium will be held this afternoon at 1 PM as the team is fresh off its first National Championship in program history. The stadium will be filled with over 50,000 screaming fans cheering on the team on Saturday. IU said if you plan to help the team celebrate, you need to get there early. “We want that parking lot full,” said Senior Athletic Director Jeremy Gray. “We want the overhead drone shots showing the majesty of our fanbase in full bloom.” The parking lots will open at 10 a.m., and fans can find their seats when gates open at 11:30. Gray says they have a lot planned for the celebration, including special guests, speeches from the team and the team’s traditional walk to Heps rock. “We encourage everyone from the city of Bloomington, the state of Indiana and any surrounding areas that want to travel here to come enjoy the celebration of the greatest team in IU football history, and the 2025 national champion IU Hoosiers,” said Gray.
The celebration will be held outside with bitter cold temperatures expected. IU thought about having the celebration inside but wanted to celebrate in a place with a larger capacity. Memorial Stadium seats about 36,000 more fans than Assembly Hall. “We just don’t want anyone to miss out on this,” said Gray. “They braved the cold weather before, whether it was to pick up towels or storm Kirkwood after the game, we know they’ll do it one more time.” Also on the mind for IU is safety. IUPD and other staff will be out in full force to keep everyone safe. The school recommends that if you’re going to be outside for the entire celebration to take precautions to stay warm. “If you notice things like shivering, or you’re starting to feel clumsy or drowsy, that probably means you’re starting to get too cold,” said Indiana University Director of Emergency Management Amanda Roach. “Step inside and warm up a bit, then go enjoy yourself again outside.” IUPD said to treat this like a home game and arrive at the stadium early to ensure you don’t miss out on the celebration.
Indiana’s D’Angelo Ponds to Skip His Senior Season and Enter the NFL Draft After a national championship and three straight years as an All-American, IU football cornerback D’Angelo Ponds said Thursday morning he intends to enter the NFL Draft. Ponds made the comment to the assembled media at an event at Raising Cane’s in Bloomington. A true junior, Ponds has a year of eligibility remaining, but little to prove at the college level. Ponds is currently the No. 5 rated cornerback on ESPN’s Mel Kiper, Jr.’s 2026 NFL Draft board. He was named Defensive MVP of both the Rose Bowl and Peach Bowl on Indiana’s postseason journey to a 16-0 season and a national championship. He got the Hoosiers off to a dramatic start in their national semifinal win over Oregon with a interception and a touchdown on the game’s first play from scrimmage. Ponds earned All-American and All-Big Ten honors in each of the last two seasons in Bloomington, and he was a freshman All-American at James Madison in 2023. The 5-foot-9 and 173-pound Ponds has seven interceptions, 169 tackles and 10.5 tackles for loss over his three-year career. He added 37 pass breakups, blocked two punts, and has two punt returns scores for a touchdown.
Indiana’s National Championship Win over Miami was the Second Most Watched Game in the College Football Playoff Era The Nielsen ratings are out for IU football’s CFP national championship win against Miami (FL) on Monday night and the Hoosiers drew a significant audience for ESPN. The 27-21 win for the Hoosiers was the second most-watched college football game since January 2015, according to a release from ESPN this afternoon. With 30.1 million viewers, the IU-Miami matchup was the second most-watched championship game in the College Football Playoff era. Only Oregon-Ohio State drew more (33.9 million) back on January 12, 2015. The ratings for the title game were up 36 percent year over year from last year’s final between Ohio State and Notre Dame.
According to ESPN, Monday’s game was the most-viewed non-NFL sports telecast since Game 7 of the 2016 World Series, the fourth-most-watched college football game in the past 30 years and the network’s eighth-most-watched production ever. Indiana’s playoff quarterfinal win against Alabama in the Rose Bowl drew 23.9 million viewers, the highest rating of the four quarterfinal games. And IU’s playoff semifinal win against Oregon in the Peach Bowl drew 18 million viewers, more than the 15.8 million who tuned in to Miami vs. Ole Miss. Overall, viewership for this year’s College Football Playoff was up four percent year over year.
Indy Ignite Women’s Volleyball Remain Unbeaten with a Win at Orlando The Indy Ignite are showing off their immense depth in just the third match of the season! On Thursday night, the team traveled to Orlando to take on the 2025 Major League Volleyball champion Valkyries — completing a three-match road trip to start the new season. The Ignite rolled out a new starting lineup almost completely different from just over the weekend when they beat the Columbus Fury in a five-set thriller. Just like Saturday, the Ignite came out on top of some of the MLV’s finest. Indy’s 25-18, 23-25, 27-25 and 25-18 win puts the team at 3-0 before they’ve even hit on their home court — and they set a new franchise record for most kills in a four-set match (66) and most points scored by their offense in a four-set match (86).
“Very happy with the team’s performance,” Ignite head coach Lauren Bertolacci said. “I think we wanted to play aggressive in transition, we wanted to do our best to slow down Abercrombie; she’s a superstar for a reason. I think we did a pretty good job slowing her down and being able to take advantage in transition, so it’s a really good win. I’m happy to be 3-0. It’s early in the season but one step at a time.” Six Ignite players scored double-digit points, while their defense stuffed the 2025 MLV Most Valuable Player, Brittany Abercrombie, to just seven kills on 34 swings. Making her first start of the year, Kayla Lund led Indy with 14 kills, a block, two aces and 13 digs. Bertolacci said switching the lineup and still performing at a top level goes to show how even the level of talent is across the whole roster.
“We’re early in the season, so right now is a really good time for me to find out honestly what everybody can do and in what moments they can do it,” she said, “as well as making sure we are managing the load. We fly tomorrow and we have our home opener on the next day, and we have a couple girls that are recovering from some injuries, so we thought if we can win with this lineup –which I really thought we could, and we did – then we would want to go with it and make sure that we are managing the load over the season as well and being prepped hopefully for May.” The Ignite will look to maintain their perfect season tonight in their home opener against the Omaha Supernovas. The game starts at 7 p.m. with a pre-match fan fest inside Fishers Event Center at 5 p.m.
Noblesville Boom on a Three Game Win Streak with a win at the Wisconsin Herd The Noblesville Boom (7-6), the NBA G League affiliate of the Indiana Pacers, earned their third-straight win after defeating the Wisconsin Herd (6-8), 95-90, Thursday afternoon at Oshkosh Arena. Two-way guard Ethan Thompson nearly recorded a triple-double with 18 points, nine rebounds and nine assists to lead the way for the Boom. Jalen Slawson filled the stat sheet by matching a game-high 23 points on 8-of-13 shooting from the field, including 4-of-6 from beyond the arc, to go along with six rebounds and six assists, while tying a career-high in blocks (5) and steals (4). Gabe McGlothan came off the bench to add 16 points, five assists, three rebounds and two steals.
The Herd were paced by Cormac Ryan, who finished with 23 points and seven rebounds while shooting 9-of-12 from the field, including 5-of-8 from three-point territory. Victor Oladipo sparked the bench with 13 points, four assists and three rebounds, while John Butler Jr. (12 points, 13 rebounds) and Jeremiah Tilmon (10 points, 11 rebounds) each posted a double-double. After surrendering an opening three-pointer, the Boom responded with eight consecutive points and remained in front for the rest of the half. Noblesville forced eight turnovers, resulting in six points, helping build an 11-point lead after 12 minutes of action. Trailing by 13, the Herd used an 8-0 run to cut their deficit to four points until Gabe McGlothan pushed the Boom back ahead by double digits. McGlothan recorded a quarter-high nine points with three made three-pointers, while the team shot 57.1 percent (8-of-14) in the period, taking a 54-43 advantage into halftime.
The Herd kept things close throughout the third quarter and closed the period on a 13-4 run, outscoring the Boom 27-18. As a team, Wisconsin shot 52.9 percent from the field, including 62.5 percent from three-point range to trail by just two (72-70) entering the fourth. Wisconsin carried its momentum into the final period by scoring six straight points, taking its first lead since the opening minutes and going up by four early in the quarter. Trailing by three, the Boom responded with three consecutive three-pointers, including back-to-back makes from RJ Felton, to reclaim a six-point lead with 6:26 left in regulation. Clinging to a two-point lead down the stretch, Ethan Thompson sealed the win by scoring the Boom’s final seven points, securing the 95-90 victory. The two teams will meet once again to conclude the two-game series this evening. Coverage streams live on NBAGLeague.com, tipping off at 8:00 p.m. ET.
Taylor University Collects 44 Academic All-Crossroads League Awards from the Fall Semester The Academic All-Crossroads League honors from the fall semester were announced by the league office on Thursday, with Taylor ranking second in the league with 44 of 343 awards from the sports of soccer, volleyball and cross country. The Taylor women’s soccer program led all TU teams with 11 Academic All-Crossroads League honors, while volleyball and women’s cross country grabbed nine awards each, men’s cross country claimed eight honors and men’s soccer took seven. In order to be eligible for Academic All-Crossroads League recognition, a student-athlete must have reached junior status academically during the semester in which they competed and must possess a cumulative grade-point average of 3.5 and above. Individuals must have also been on their team’s roster for the entire season and must have been nominated by their respective institution.
Taylor’s 2025-2026 Fall Semester Academic All-Crossroads League Awards WOMEN’S SOCCER-Brooke Cimini, Morgan Fletemeyer, Naomi Harvey, Maegen Hill, Shaylyn Hussey, Abigail Kary, Evie Kerr, Eliza Luttrell, Campbell Massey, Kiana Siefert and Libby Thomas. VOLLEYBALL-McKaylah Flagle, Ellie Frey, Margo Hernandez, Tori Kik, Selah Kolpien, Alexa Mader, Reagan Salzbrenner, Lindsay Springer and Suzanne Storey. WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRY-Noel Bass, Madelyn Borchelt, Kaitlin Burden, Zoe Dinius, Addie Draper, Rebekah Firestone, Emersyn Funk, Jackie McCoy and Malarie Pinwar. MEN’S CROSS COUNTRY-Andrew Bryant, Jordan Burden, Paul Gabrielsen, Ryan Hanak, Zach McWatters, Joel Mumaw, Bryce Noble and Kyle Sweeney. MEN’S SOCCER-Brock Carpenter, Carter Glover, Caleb Hodel, Levi Kelly, Bryce Medina, Luke Stimpson and Matt Yoder.