2015–16 Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball team
American college basketball season
The 2015–16 Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball team represented Indiana University in the 2015–16 NCAA Division I men's basketball season . Their head coach was Tom Crean , who was in his eighth season with the Hoosiers. The team played its home games at Assembly Hall in Bloomington, Indiana , as a member of the Big Ten Conference .
This season marked the 40th Anniversary of the 32–0 and National Championship 1975–76 Hoosiers team , a feat still unrivaled. To commemorate the anniversary, players' jerseys featured a commemorative patch on the back of the jersey. The Hoosiers also held a public recognition of the undefeated team during halftime of the home game against Wisconsin on January 5, during which the announcement was made that a statue of the seniors and starters will be erected outside the south entrance of Assembly Hall. A new banner was also revealed honoring the '76 team as NCAA's #1 All-Time March Madness Team. Tom Abernethy and Bobby Wilkerson , two players from the team, were inducted into the IU Athletics Hall of Fame.[ 1]
IU's season-opener victory against Eastern Illinois was a milestone game, as it marked 1,000 home wins in Indiana basketball history. IU finished the regular season by winning their 22nd conference title, tying them with in-state rival, Purdue , for the most conference titles.
Indiana finished the season 27–8 overall, 15–3 in the Big Ten to win the Big Ten regular season title outright. They received the #1 seed in the 2016 Big Ten men's basketball tournament , where they made an early Quarterfinals exit by losing to Michigan . The Hoosiers received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament . Indiana defeated Chattanooga and Kentucky to advance to the Sweet Sixteen for the third time in five years; however, in the Sweet Sixteen they fell to the North Carolina Tar Heels , 86–101.
Previous season
The 2014–15 Hoosiers went 20–14 overall and 9–9 in the Big Ten Conference (tying for seventh place). Much of the Hoosiers' difficulties were caused by a lack of defense and post presence. The Hoosiers improved over the 13–14 season , in which they did not appear in any postseason tournament, by being selected to play in the NCAA Tournament as a #10 seed in the Midwest region. They made an early exit as the #7 Wichita State Shockers knocked them off in the second round.
Following the season, assistant coach Steve McClain was hired as the new head coach at the University of Illinois-Chicago .[ 2] Tom Crean named Rob Judson , who spent the 2014–15 season as Indiana's Director of Basketball Operations, as McClain's replacement.[ 3]
Preseason
Departures
Recruiting class
Thomas Bryant at the 2015 McDonald's All-American Boys Game
On April 4, 2015, McDonald's All-American and Jordan Brand All-Star, Thomas Bryant committed to IU. With this commit, IU landed their fifth McDonald's All-American in a row, as well as secured a 6'10" rim-protector, which was something drastically missing from the previous season. Bryant made the announcement live on ESPN during the Dick's National Tournament.[ 4]
Max Bielfeldt transferred from Michigan
In addition to the three high school recruits, Indiana received a commitment from Michigan graduate transfer Max Bielfeldt .[ 5] The senior forward is eligible immediately to play for the Hoosiers.
A late addition of junior Pittsburgh transfer, Josh Newkirk, filled IU's last 2015–16 scholarship. Due to transfer rules and rehabilitating a knee injury from May, Newkirk will sit out the '15–'16 season. He will have two remaining seasons of eligibility left.[ 6]
US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name
Hometown
High school / college
Height
Weight
Commit date
Juwan Morgan F
Waynesville, MO
Waynesville HS
6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
220 lb (100 kg)
Sep 10, 2014
Recruiting star ratings : Scout : Rivals : 247Sports : ESPN :
OG Anunoby F
Jefferson City, MO
Jefferson City HS
6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
200 lb (91 kg)
Oct 14, 2014
Recruiting star ratings : Scout : Rivals : 247Sports : ESPN :
Thomas Bryant F
Rochester, NY
Huntington Prep
6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)
220 lb (100 kg)
Apr 4, 2015
Recruiting star ratings : Scout : Rivals : 247Sports : ESPN :
Overall recruiting rankings: Scout : N/A Rivals : 26 247Sports : 24 ESPN : 26
Note : In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.
Sources:
Roster
2015–16 Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball team
Players
Coaches
Pos.
#
Name
Height
Weight
Year
Previous school
Hometown
F
0
Max Bielfeldt
6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
240 lb (109 kg)
GS
Peoria Notre Dame HS / Michigan
Peoria, Illinois
G
1
James Blackmon Jr.
6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
190 lb (86 kg)
So
Marion High School
Fort Wayne, Indiana
G
2
Nick Zeisloft
6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
190 lb (86 kg)
RS Sr
Lyons Township HS / Illinois St
La Grange, Illinois
F
3
OG Anunoby
6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
215 lb (98 kg)
Fr
Jefferson City High School
Jefferson City, Missouri
G
4
Robert Johnson
6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
195 lb (88 kg)
So
Benedictine High School
Richmond, Virginia
F
5
Troy Williams
6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
215 lb (98 kg)
Jr
Oak Hill Academy
Hampton, Virginia
F
10
Ryan Burton (W)
6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
220 lb (100 kg)
RS Sr
Bedford North Lawrence HS / Bellarmine
Bedford, Indiana
G
11
Yogi Ferrell (C)
6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
180 lb (82 kg)
Sr
Park Tudor School
Indianapolis, Indiana
G
12
Josh Newkirk
6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
185 lb (84 kg)
Jr
Word of God Christian Academy / Pittsburgh
Raleigh, North Carolina
F
13
Juwan Morgan
6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
205 lb (93 kg)
Fr
Waynesville High School
Waynesville, Missouri
G
15
Harrison Niego (W)
6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
185 lb (84 kg)
Fr
Lyons Township High School
Western Springs, Illinois
G
22
Quentin Taylor (W)
6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
180 lb (82 kg)
Fr
Brebeuf Jesuit Prep School
Indianapolis, Indiana
G
24
Jackson Tharp
6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
205 lb (93 kg)
Sr
Zionsville Community High School
Zionsville, Indiana
F
30
Collin Hartman
6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
220 lb (100 kg)
Jr
Cathedral High School
Indianapolis, Indiana
C
31
Thomas Bryant
6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)
245 lb (111 kg)
Fr
Huntington Prep School
Rochester, New York
C
35
Tim Priller
6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
225 lb (102 kg)
So
Richland High School
North Richland Hills, Texas
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
(W) Walk-on
Roster Last update: 3-09-2016
Schedule
Date time, TV
Rank#
Opponent#
Result
Record
High points
High rebounds
High assists
Site (attendance) city, state
Exhibition
Nov 3 *7:00 pm
No. 15
Ottawa
W 82–54
15 – Blackmon, Jr.
11 – Bryant
6 – Blackmon, Jr.
Assembly Hall (17,302)Bloomington, IN
Nov 9 *7:00 pm
No. 15
Bellarmine
W 73–62
21 – Ferrell
8 – Tied
4 – Ferrell
Assembly Hall (17,174)Bloomington, IN
Non-conference regular season
Nov 13 *7:00 pm
No. 15
Eastern Illinois
W 88–49
1–0
17 – Blackmon, Jr.
9 – Bryant
6 – Ferrell
Assembly Hall (17,472)Bloomington, IN
Nov 16 *7:00 pm, BTN
No. 14
Austin Peay Maui Invitational Opening Round
W 102–76
2–0
22 – Ferrell
6 – Tied
9 – Ferrell
Assembly Hall (17,472)Bloomington, IN
Nov 19 *7:00 pm, BTN
No. 14
Creighton Gavitt Tipoff Games
W 86–65
3–0
19 – Blackmon, Jr.
9 – Ferrell
6 – Ferrell
Assembly Hall (17,472)Bloomington, IN
Nov 23 *5:00 pm, ESPN2
No. 13
vs. Wake Forest Maui Invitational Quarterfinals
L 78–82
3–1
16 – Williams
8 – Bryant
5 – Ferrell
Lahaina Civic Center (2,400)Lahaina, HI
Nov 24 *2:00 pm, ESPN2
No. 13
vs. St. John's Maui Invitational Consolation Second Round
W 83–73
4–1
22 – Ferrell
9 – Williams
7 – Ferrell
Lahaina Civic Center (2,400)Lahaina, HI
Nov 25 *5:00 pm, ESPN2
No. 13
vs. UNLV Maui Invitational Fifth Place Game
L 69–72
4–2
17 – Zeisloft
7 – Blackmon, Jr.
9 – Ferrell
Lahaina Civic Center (2,400)Lahaina, HI
Nov 30 *7:00 pm, BTN
Alcorn State
W 112–70
5–2
33 – Blackmon, Jr.
8 – Williams
6 – Johnson
Assembly Hall (17,472)Bloomington, IN
Dec 2 *9:15 pm, ESPN
at No. 7 Duke ACC–Big Ten Challenge
L 74–94
5–3
17 – Williams
6 – Johnson
5 – Ferrell
Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314)Durham, NC
Dec 5 *7:00 pm, BTN
Morehead State
W 92–59
6–3
16 – Williams
6 – Bryant
7 – Ferrell
Assembly Hall (17,472)Bloomington, IN
Dec 9 *7:00 pm
IPFW
W 90–65
7–3
38 – Ferrell
19 – Williams
5 – Ferrell
Assembly Hall (17,472)Bloomington, IN
Dec 12 *6:30 pm, BTN
McNeese State
W 105–60
8–3
24 – Blackmon, Jr.
9 – Bryant
7 – Ferrell
Assembly Hall (17,472)Bloomington, IN
Dec 19 *2:00 pm, ESPN2
vs. Notre Dame Crossroads Classic
W 80–73
9–3
18 – Williams
10 – Williams
3 – Tied
Bankers Life Fieldhouse (19,156)Indianapolis, IN
Dec 22 *6:00 pm, BTN
Kennesaw State
W 99–72
10–3
20 – Tied
5 – Tied
6 – Williams
Assembly Hall (15,721)Bloomington, IN
Big Ten regular season
Dec 30 1:00 pm, ESPN2
at Rutgers
W 79–72
11–3 (1–0)
20 – Ferrell
14 – Bielfeldt
7 – Ferrell
The RAC (6,002)Piscataway, NJ
Jan 2 4:00 pm, BTN
at Nebraska
W 79–69
12–3 (2–0)
24 – Ferrell
6 – Bielfeldt
7 – Ferrell
Pinnacle Bank Arena (13,831)Lincoln, NE
Jan 5 7:00 pm, ESPN
Wisconsin
W 59–58
13–3 (3–0)
19 – Ferrell
7 – Tied
3 – Tied
Assembly Hall (14,098)Bloomington, IN
Jan 10 1:30 pm, CBS
Ohio State
W 85–60
14–3 (4–0)
23 – Williams
13 – Bryant
6 – Tied
Assembly Hall (16,382)Bloomington, IN
Jan 16 12:30 pm, BTN
at Minnesota
W 70–63
15–3 (5–0)
20 – Ferrell
8 – Williams
7 – Ferrell
Williams Arena (11,176)Minneapolis, MN
Jan 19 7:00 pm, ESPN
No. 25
Illinois Rivalry
W 103–69
16–3 (6–0)
21 – Williams
8 – Bielfeldt
9 – Ferrell
Assembly Hall (17,472)Bloomington, IN
Jan 23 12:00 pm, ESPN2
No. 25
Northwestern
W 89–57
17–3 (7–0)
17 – Ferrell
7 – Williams
6 – Ferrell
Assembly Hall (17,472)Bloomington, IN
Jan 26 7:00 pm, ESPN
No. 19
at Wisconsin
L 79–82 OT
17–4 (7–1)
30 – Ferrell
7 – Tied
3 – Johnson
Kohl Center (17,287)Madison, WI
Jan 30 2:15 pm, BTN
No. 19
Minnesota
W 74–68
18–4 (8–1)
23 – Bryant
8 – Tied
3 – Tied
Assembly Hall (17,472)Bloomington, IN
Feb 2 9:00 pm, ESPN
No. 22
at Michigan
W 80–67
19–4 (9–1)
17 – Ferrell
7 – Bielfeldt
9 – Ferrell
Crisler Center (12,312)Ann Arbor, MI
Feb 6 8:00 pm, BTN
No. 22
at Penn State
L 63–68
19–5 (9–2)
14 – Zeisloft
8 – Bryant
5 – Tied
Bryce Jordan Center (10,351)University Park, PA
Feb 11 9:00 pm, ESPN
No. 4 Iowa
W 85–78
20–5 (10–2)
14 – Ferrell
7 – Tied
2 – Tied
Assembly Hall (17,472)Bloomington, IN
Feb 14 1:00 pm, CBS
at No. 8 Michigan State
L 69–88
20–6 (10–3)
15 – Bielfeldt
10 – Bielfeldt
7 – Ferrell
Breslin Center (14,797)East Lansing, MI
Feb 17 8:30 pm, BTN
No. 22
Nebraska
W 80–64
21–6 (11–3)
18 – Williams
6 – Anunoby
4 – Ferrell
Assembly Hall (17,472)Bloomington, IN
Feb 20 8:30 pm, ESPN
No. 22
No. 17 Purdue Rivalry /Indiana National Guard Governor's Cup
W 77–73
22–6 (12–3)
19 – Williams
6 – Bielfeldt
4 – Ferrell
Assembly Hall (17,472)Bloomington, IN
Feb 25 9:00 pm, ESPN
No. 18
at Illinois Rivalry
W 74–47
23–6 (13–3)
27 – Ferrell
8 – Bryant
5 – Ferrell
State Farm Center (12,857)Champaign, IL
Mar 1 9:00 pm, ESPN
No. 12
at No. 16 Iowa
W 81–78
24–6 (14–3)
20 – Ferrell
10 – Bryant
5 – Ferrell
Carver-Hawkeye Arena (15,400)Iowa City, IA
Mar 6 4:30 pm, CBS
No. 12
No. 14 Maryland
W 80–62
25–6 (15–3)
23 – Williams
8 – Bryant
4 – Ferrell
Assembly Hall (17,472)Bloomington, IN
Big Ten tournament
Mar 11 12:00 pm, ESPN
(1) No. 10
vs. (8) Michigan Quarterfinals
L 69–72
25–7
16 – Williams
7 – Bryant
8 – Ferrell
Bankers Life Fieldhouse (18,355)Indianapolis, IN
NCAA tournament
Mar 17 *7:10 pm, CBS
(5 E) No. 14
vs. (12 E) Chattanooga First Round
W 99–74
26–7
20 – Ferrell
8 – Williams
10 – Ferrell
Wells Fargo Arena (16,774)Des Moines, IA
Mar 19 *5:15 pm, CBS
(5 E) No. 14
vs. (4 E) No. 10 Kentucky Second Round/Rivalry
W 73–67
27–7
19 – Bryant
5 – Tied
4 – Ferrell
Wells Fargo Arena (16,824)Des Moines, IA
Mar 25 *9:57 pm, TBS
(5 E) No. 14
vs. (1 E) No. 3 North Carolina Sweet Sixteen
L 86–101
27–8
25 – Ferrell
8 – Bryant
4 – Ferrell
Wells Fargo Center (20,686)Philadelphia, PA
*Non-conference game.
# Rankings from
AP Poll . (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
E=East Region.
All times are in
Eastern Time .
Player statistics
Individual player statistics (Final)
Minutes
Scoring
Total FGs
3-point FGs
Free-Throws
Rebounds
Player
GP
GS
Tot
Avg
Pts
Avg
FG
FGA
Pct
3FG
3FA
Pct
FT
FTA
Pct
Off
Def
Tot
Avg
A
TO
Blk
Stl
Anunoby, OG
34
0
466
13.7
165
4.9
66
116
.569
13
29
.448
20
42
.476
42
48
90
2.6
18
28
26
27
Bielfeldt, Max
35
5
612
17.5
286
8.2
113
219
.516
29
64
.453
31
44
.705
59
99
158
4.5
25
39
16
29
Blackmon, Jr., James
13
12
319
24.5
206
15.8
73
152
.480
37
80
.463
23
27
.852
17
37
54
4.2
22
25
5
16
Bryant, Thomas
35
35
791
22.6
415
11.9
157
230
.683
5
15
.333
96
136
.706
70
132
202
5.8
34
58
32
17
Burton, Ryan
22
0
77
3.5
14
0.6
5
9
.556
4
7
.571
0
1
.000
3
7
10
0.5
1
1
0
1
Ferrell, Yogi
35
35
1215
34.7
607
17.3
196
428
.458
79
188
.420
136
164
.829
34
99
133
3.8
195
88
1
38
Hartman, Collin
35
24
765
21.9
175
5.0
65
144
.451
29
81
.358
16
19
.842
35
74
109
3.1
60
37
10
28
Johnson, Robert
30
22
747
24.9
242
8.1
84
187
.449
51
114
.447
23
36
.639
12
88
100
3.3
94
51
5
19
Morgan, Juwan
30
0
273
9.1
71
2.4
21
41
.512
5
11
.455
24
30
.800
23
41
64
2.1
5
15
11
9
Niego, Harrison
23
0
110
4.8
11
0.5
4
13
.308
2
8
.250
1
3
.333
5
10
15
0.7
6
4
0
7
Priller, Tim
11
0
17
1.5
4
0.4
1
3
.333
0
2
.000
2
2
1.000
3
2
5
0.5
0
1
0
2
Taylor, Quentin
7
0
9
1.3
3
0.4
1
2
.500
0
0
1
2
.500
0
2
2
0.3
0
0
0
0
Tharp, Jackson
4
0
5
1.3
0
0.0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
Williams, Troy
35
34
916
26.2
464
13.3
163
318
.513
26
75
.347
112
162
.691
50
154
204
5.8
70
93
28
39
Zeisloft, Nick
35
8
703
20.1
228
6.5
72
172
.419
65
156
.417
19
21
.905
11
46
57
1.6
29
17
3
7
Total
35
7050
2891
95.3
1021
2034
.502
345
830
.416
504
689
.731
364
839
1203
38.8
560
458
137
239
Opponents
35
7050
2447
69.9
905
2037
.444
218
636
.343
419
615
.681
361
698
1164
33.3
424
458
106
215
Rankings
Ranking movementsLegend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking — = Not ranked RV = Received votes Week Poll Pre 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 Final AP 15 14 13 RV RV — — — RV RV 25 19 22 RV 22 18 12 10 14 N/A Coaches 15 15 14 RV RV RV RV RV RV 25 23 17 21 22 21 15 11 10 12 9
See also
References
^ Bozich, Alex (November 6, 2015). "Indiana to honor undefeated 1976 team throughout 2015–2016 season" . Inside the Hall . Retrieved November 17, 2015 .
^ "Archived copy" . Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved September 15, 2015 .{{cite web }}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link )
^ "Crean confirms Judson promotion, staff addition | Indiana Hoosiers basketball, football, soccer and more: The Hoosier Scoop" . Archived from the original on September 7, 2015. Retrieved September 15, 2015 .
^ Bozich, Alex (April 4, 2015). "Thomas Bryant Commits to Indiana" . Inside the Hall . Retrieved April 4, 2015 .
^ Eisenberg, Jeff (June 3, 2015). "Indiana adds much-needed frontcourt depth with Max Bielfeldt" . Yahoo Sports . Retrieved June 7, 2015 .
^ Bozich, Alex (August 23, 2015). "Indiana adds Pittsburgh transfer Josh Newkirk" . Inside the Hall . Retrieved August 23, 2015 .
Venues Rivalries Culture & lore People Seasons NCAA national championships in bold; NCAA Final Four appearances in italics