Author: Mike Schumann

Only seven players that saw the floor from the 2018-19 Indiana basketball team will be back for the 2019-20 campaign as of this writing.  While formal practices have concluded, the work never stops for high major college basketball players.  Growth and development happens in the offseason, in individual workouts and permitted organized team activities. If you could talk to each of the seven returning players about their 2018-19 season and what they need to improve going forward, what would you say?  We play Archie for a day and give it a shot with “Exit Interviews.” JUSTIN SMITH Quick 2018-19 Recap: Smith…

The annual Indiana vs. Kentucky All-Star events will be held once again in early June at multiple locations in each state. Indiana University will be well represented with incoming senior signees and junior recruiting targets. Here is a brief overview of who is playing and where the events will be held next month. THE PLAYERS WITH IU CONNECTIONS Senior Boys The following players have signed with the IU men’s basketball program. Armaan Franklin, Cathedral — Franklin averaged 23.8 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 2.3 steals per game.  The 6-foot-4 Franklin shot 54% overall from the field and 39% from…

Indiana’s two leading scorers from the 2018-19 season are well into their respective processes for preparing to play professionally. For Juwan Morgan, that means working out for teams prior to the June NBA Draft.  The 6-foot-8 forward had a workout with the Memphis Grizzlies today. https://twitter.com/929espn/status/1125846000415969281 Via a source, Morgan will also have a workout with the Minnesota Timberwolves on Thursday. Morgan was not invited to either the NBA Draft Combine or the G-League elite mini-camp.  The Missouri native does not appear on NBA Draft projections and appears likely to begin his career in the G-League or overseas after possibly…

Indiana head coach Archie Miller recently made a trip up to Culver, Ind. to visit with class of 2020 guard Trey Galloway and extend a scholarship offer. Although Indiana has been watching Galloway for a couple years, the visit and offer were no doubt influenced by Galloway’s improved level of play thus far during AAU competition. Playing for Indiana Elite (along with fellow IU targets Anthony Leal and Khristian Lander) on the Adidas Gauntlet circuit, the 6-foot-4 Galloway has taken his game to another level, including two weeks ago in Dallas with Miller and other IU coaches in attendance. Through…

Based on a tweet today by Jon Rothstein, Indiana will play in the 2019 Jimmy V Classic against one of Louisville, UConn or Texas Tech. https://twitter.com/JonRothstein/status/1125864027601756161 The annual event is held in December in New York at Madison Square Garden. Indiana’s known 2019-20 schedule is below. 2019-20 SCHEDULE Gavitt Tipoff Games: Possible contest vs. Big East team to be announced in May 2019. vs. Arkansas, at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. Big Ten-ACC Challenge: TBD.  Should be a home game.  Announced summer 2019. Jimmy V Classic:  Madison Square Garden, New York.  Possible opponents are Louisville UConn and Texas Tech. Crossroads Classic: vs. Notre…

You might have first heard the name Trayce Jackson-Davis when he was a freshman at Center Grove High School. Somewhere in that initial introduction to the name, you almost certainly also heard that he was the son of former Indiana Pacer Dale Davis. Of course having an NBA pedigree is an interesting story, but for an awkward freshman out of Greenwood, Indiana, that was the story. Jackson-Davis was a kid that wasn’t good enough to make the “A” team in middle school, and wasn’t even sure if he would continue to play basketball coming into high school. Now, less than…

Class of 2021 point guard Khristian Lander is playing up a year for spring and summer AAU basketball. He looks right at home playing with the big boys. The Evansville native led his Indiana Elite team in scoring with 18 points in the championship game of the Bill Hensley Memorial Run-N-Slam in Fort Wayne this past weekend. Lander’s high level of play to this point has put him firmly on the national radar. According to the 247Sports Composite, Lander is ranked as the No. 18 player in the class of 2021 overall, and he is the No. 1 point guard…

For the second straight year, Indiana’s Mr. Basketball is headed to Bloomington to play college basketball. Center Grove’s Trayce Jackson-Davis is the 2019 winner of the prestigious honor signifying the best high school player in the state of Indiana.  The Greenwood, Ind. native follows in the footsteps of Romeo Langford as an Indiana Mr. Basketball award recipient that will play for IU after high school. The back-to-back honor for IU signees is significant and highlights the success of head coach Archie Miller’s focus on recruiting within the Hoosier state..  Prior to Langford, no Indiana Mr. Basketball had gone to IU…

As an Indianapolis native, Mike Saunders, Jr. has been on the IU basketball radar for a long time. While the 6-foot-1 class of 2020 point guard no longer plays in his hometown, the Hoosier coaching staff has continued to monitor him from afar, and a recent performance at the GEICO Nationals against 2019 5-star Cole Anthony sharpened that focus. https://twitter.com/Mod_Hines/status/1113945420332457984 Saunders started as a freshman at Lawrence North High School in Indianapolis and played there for two years before transferring to Wasatch Academy in Utah where he played the 2018-19 season. Known for his speed, athleticism and defense, his head…

The Warren Central (Indianapolis) basketball program opened a lot of eyes when they knocked Romeo Langford’s New Albany team out of the state tournament in 2018. The Warriors went on to win the 2018 state title that year, and before they were finished they had won 46 in a row.  The team that snapped that streak that extended into January 2019?  Indianapolis neighbor Lawrence Central — led by point guard Nijel Pack. Pack actually led Lawrence Central to two wins over Warren this year, including a win in the sectional finals of the state tournament. After that second win Warren…