# 2023–24 Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball team

The 2023–24 Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball team represented Indiana University in the 2023–24 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. They were led by third-year head coach, and former Indiana standout, Mike Woodson. The team played its home games at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall in Bloomington, Indiana, as a member of the Big Ten Conference. The season officially began with the annual event, Hoosier Hysteria (featuring Gucci Mane), on Friday, October 20, 2023.
On November 1, 2023, legendary Hall of Famer IU men's basketball coach Bob Knight died at the age of 83. During his 29 seasons at IU, from 1971 to 2000, Knight led his teams to three national championships and 11 Big Ten titles. In remembrance of his excellence and many contributions to the program, the sport, and the university, the men's team donned "RMK" patches with three stars arced above on their home and away jerseys for every game this season. They debuted during an exhibition game against Marian on November 3, 2023.
Following the conclusion of the season, the team was invited to compete in the 2024 National Invitation Tournament but declined the invitation.
The Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball team drew an average home attendance of 16,468 in 18 games in 2023-24.

## Previous season

The Hoosiers finished the regular season ranked No. 19 in the Associated Press poll. The team spent 16 weeks among the top-25 teams in the nation. The Hoosiers also captured a share of 2nd place in the Big Ten Conference with a 21-10 overall regular season record, 12–8 in Big Ten play, and the No. 3 seed in the Big Ten Conference tournament. IU advanced to the semifinals before losing a close game to Penn State. For the second year in a row, the team found themselves in the NCAA Tournament this time as a No. 4 seed, where they improved upon their performance last year by making it to the Round of 32 but falling to the No. 5 seed Miami (FL), 69–85.

## Offseason
### Coaching changes

On May 23, 2023, it was announced that Hoosier legend, Calbert Cheaney, would be returning to the men's basketball staff as the new Director of Player Development. Over the last three years, Cheaney filled the role as an assistant coach with the Indiana Pacers. This will be his second stint with IU. He was Director of Operations in 2011-12 and then also began overseeing the players internal and external player development for the 2012-13 season.

### Departures

Indiana departures :
| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Reason for departure |
| Jalen Hood-Schifino | 1 | G | 6'6" | 213 | FR | Pittsburgh, PA | Drafted #17 in 1st Round by Los Angeles Lakers in 2023 NBA draft |
| Michael Shipp | 4 | G | 6'3" | 195 | SR | Cincinnati, OH | Graduated |
| Miller Kopp | 12 | F | 6'7" | 215 | SR | Houston, TX | Graduated |
| Nathan Childress | 14 | F | 6'6" | 212 | SR | Zionsville, IN | Graduated/ Transferred to Indiana Wesleyan |
| Jordan Geronimo | 22 | F | 6'6" | 225 | JR | Newark, NJ | Transferred to Maryland |
| Trayce Jackson-Davis | 23 | F | 6'9" | 245 | SR | Greenwood, IN | Graduated/ Drafted #57 in 2nd Round by Golden State Warriors in 2023 NBA draft |
| Race Thompson | 25 | F | 6'8" | 235 | SR | Plymouth, MN | Graduated |
| Logan Duncomb | 51 | C | 6'10" | 241 | SO | Cincinnati, OH | Transferred to Xavier |
| Tamar Bates | 53 | G | 6'5" | 198 | SO | Kansas City, KS | Transferred to Missouri |

### Incoming transfers

On March 29, 2023, Indiana landed its first transfer from the transfer portal when former Ball State center, Payton Sparks committed to the Hoosiers. He arrives at IU with two years of eligibility remaining. Sparks appeared in 62 games at Ball State and averaged 13.4 points, 8.6 rebounds, 1.7 assists and .7 blocks. The Hoosiers added 7'0 center Kel'el Ware from Oregon on April 10, 2023. As a freshman at Oregon, Ware averaged 6.6 points, 4.1 rebounds and 1.3 blocks in 15.8 minutes last season. Coming out of high school, he was a 5-star recruit, McDonald's All-American, and a Jordan Brand All-Star. A third addition from the transfer portal came on April 29, 2023 when Anthony Walker from the 2023 Final Four Miami (FL) Hurricanes committed to Indiana. Walker averaged 2.8 points and 1.2 rebounds last season.
Indiana incoming transfers :
| Name | Number | Pos | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Previous school | Years remaining | Date eligible |
| Payton Sparks | 24 | F | 6'9" | 240 | Junior | Winchester, IN | Ball State | 2 | October 1, 2023 |
| Kel'el Ware | 1 | C | 7'0" | 210 | Sophomore | North Little Rock, AR | Oregon | 3 | October 1, 2023 |
| Anthony Walker | 4 | F | 6'9" | 215 | RS Senior | Baltimore, MD | Miami (FL) | 1 | October 1, 2023 |

### Recruiting classes
#### 2023 recruiting class

College recruiting information :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Jakai Newton CG | Covington, GA | Newton High School | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | Oct 22, 2021 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: N/A ESPN grade: N/A ||||||
| Gabe Cupps PG | Dayton, OH | Centerville High School | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 165 lb (75 kg) | Nov 16, 2021 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 84 ||||||
| Mackenzie Mgbako PF | Gladstone, NJ | Roselle Catholic | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | 210 lb (95 kg) | May 12, 2023 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 92 ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: ||||||
| 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: "2023 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. ||||||

## Roster

Note: Players' year is based on remaining eligibility. The NCAA did not count the 2020–21 season towards eligibility.

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition |||||||||
| October 29, 2023* 1:00 pm, BTN Plus | | UIndy | W 74–52 | – | 14 – Tied | 8 – Mgbako | 5 – Johnson | Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (17,222) Bloomington, IN |
| November 3, 2023* 6:30 pm, BTN Plus | | Marian | W 94–61 | – | 20 – Ware | 11 – Ware | 7 – Johnson | Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (17,222) Bloomington, IN |
| Regular Season |||||||||
| November 7, 2023* 6:30 pm, BTN | | Florida Gulf Coast Bill Garrett Game | W 69–63 | 1–0 | 16 – Galloway | 12 – Ware | 4 – Ware | Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (17,222) Bloomington, IN |
| November 12, 2023* 7:00 pm, BTN | | Army Salute to Service | W 72–64 | 2–0 | 20 – Ware | 7 – Reneau | 5 – Tied | Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (17,222) Bloomington, IN |
| November 16, 2023* 7:00 pm, BTN | | Wright State | W 89–80 | 3–0 | 22 – Ware | 12 – Ware | 6 – Galloway | Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (17,222) Bloomington, IN |
| November 19, 2023* 1:00 pm, ESPN | | vs. No. 5 UConn Empire Classic semifinals | L 57–77 | 3–1 | 18 – Reneau | 8 – Ware | 2 – Cupps | Madison Square Garden (–) New York City, NY |
| November 20, 2023* 4:30 pm, ESPNU | | vs. Louisville Empire Classic consolation game | W 74–66 | 4–1 | 14 – Johnson | 8 – Banks | 5 – Johnson | Madison Square Garden (–) New York City, NY |
| November 26, 2023* 4:30 pm, BTN | | vs. Harvard | W 89–76 | 5–1 | 28 – Ware | 8 – Tied | 5 – Tied | Gainbridge Fieldhouse (8,469) Indianapolis, IN |
| December 1, 2023 7:00 pm, BTN | | Maryland | W 65–53 | 6–1 (1–0) | 18 – Ware | 14 – Ware | 6 – Galloway | Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (17,222) Bloomington, IN |
| December 5, 2023 9:00 pm, Peacock | | at Michigan | W 78–75 | 7–1 (2–0) | 15 – Reneau | 8 – Ware | 2 – Tied | Crisler Center (11,396) Ann Arbor, MI |
| December 9, 2023* 2:00 pm, ESPN2 | | vs. Auburn Holiday Hoopsgiving | L 76–104 | 7–2 | 15 – Reneau | 8 – Ware | 3 – Reneau | State Farm Arena (8,623) Atlanta, GA |
| December 16, 2023* 12:30 pm, CBS | | No. 2 Kansas | L 71–75 | 7–3 | 28 – Galloway | 15 – Ware | 4 – Reneau | Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (17,222) Bloomington, IN |
| December 19, 2023* 6:30 pm, BTN | | Morehead State | W 69–68 | 8–3 | 18 – Walker | 9 – Tied | 3 – Banks | Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (15,852) Bloomington, IN |
| December 21, 2023* 8:30 pm, BTN | | North Alabama | W 83–66 | 9–3 | 25 – Reneau | 7 – Reneau | 9 – Galloway | Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (15,865) Bloomington, IN |
| December 29, 2023* 6:00 pm, BTN Plus | | Kennesaw State | W 100–87 | 10–3 | 34 – Reneau | 11 – Reneau | 7 – Galloway | Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (16,689) Bloomington, IN |
| January 3, 2024 9:00 pm, BTN | | at Nebraska | L 70–86 | 10–4 (2–1) | 20 – Ware | 10 – Ware | 5 – Reneau | Pinnacle Bank Arena (13,446) Lincoln, NE |
| January 6, 2024 8:00 pm, FOX | | Ohio State | W 71–65 | 11–4 (3–1) | 23 – Reneau | 7 – Reneau | 7 – Galloway | Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (16,584) Bloomington, IN |
| January 9, 2024 7:00 pm, Peacock | | at Rutgers | L 57–66 | 11–5 (3–2) | 13 – Tied | 17 – Ware | 7 – Reneau | Jersey Mike's Arena (8,000) Piscataway, NJ |
| January 12, 2024 6:30 pm, FS1 | | Minnesota | W 74–62 | 12–5 (4–2) | 19 – Mgbako | 14 – Ware | 7 – Galloway | Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (17,222) Bloomington, IN |
| January 16, 2024 7:00 pm, Peacock | | No. 2 Purdue Rivalry/Indiana National Guard Governor's Cup | L 66–87 | 12–6 (4–3) | 17 – Galloway | 9 – Reneau | 5 – Galloway | Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (17,222) Bloomington, IN |
| January 19, 2024 8:30 pm, FS1 | | at No. 11 Wisconsin | L 79–91 | 12–7 (4–4) | 28 – Reneau | 8 – Reneau | 2 – Tied | Kohl Center (15,271) Madison, WI |
| January 27, 2024 3:00 pm, FOX | | at No. 10 Illinois Rivalry | L 62–70 | 12–8 (4–5) | 21 – Reneau | 12 – Mgbako | 2 – Tied | State Farm Center (15,544) Champaign, IL |
| January 30, 2024 7:00 pm, BTN | | Iowa | W 74–68 | 13–8 (5–5) | 23 – Ware | 10 – Ware | 4 – Galloway | Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (17,222) Bloomington, IN |
| February 3, 3024 12:00 pm, FS1 | | Penn State | L 71–85 | 13–9 (5–6) | 25 – Ware | 11 – Ware | 6 – Galloway | Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (17,222) Bloomington, IN |
| February 6, 2024 7:00 pm, Peacock | | at Ohio State | W 76–73 | 14–9 (6–6) | 26 – Reneau | 14 – Reneau | 4 – Galloway | Value City Arena (11,157) Columbus, OH |
| February 10, 2024 8:00 pm, FOX | | at No. 2 Purdue Rivalry/Indiana National Guard Governor's Cup | L 59–79 | 14–10 (6–7) | 13 – Gunn | 8 – Ware | 7 – Galloway | Mackey Arena (14,876) West Lafayette, IN |
| February 18, 2024 3:00 pm, FS1 | | Northwestern | L 72–76 | 14–11 (6–8) | 22 – Ware | 16 – Ware | 12 – Galloway | Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (17,222) Bloomington, IN |
| February 21, 2024 8:30 pm, BTN | | Nebraska | L 70–85 | 14–12 (6–9) | 22 – Mgbako | 12 – Ware | 6 – Reneau | Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (17,222) Bloomington, IN |
| February 24, 2024 12:00 pm, BTN | | at Penn State | L 74–83 | 14–13 (6–10) | 27 – Reneau | 8 – Ware | 5 – Galloway | Bryce Jordan Center (11,578) University Park, PA |
| February 27, 2024 7:00 pm, Peacock | | Wisconsin | W 74–70 | 15–13 (7–10) | 27 – Ware | 11 – Ware | 12 – Galloway | Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (17,222) Bloomington, IN |
| March 3, 2024 2:00 pm, CBS | | at Maryland | W 83–78 | 16–13 (8–10) | 24 – Mgbako | 15 – Ware | 6 – Johnson | Xfinity Center (16,540) College Park, MD |
| March 6, 2024 9:00 pm, BTN | | at Minnesota | W 70–58 | 17–13 (9–10) | 26 – Ware | 11 – Ware | 11 – Galloway | Williams Arena (9,002) Minneapolis, MN |
| March 10, 2024 4:30 pm, CBS | | Michigan State Senior Day | W 65–64 | 18–13 (10–10) | 28 – Ware | 12 – Ware | 5 – Reneau | Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (16,304) Bloomington, IN |
| Big Ten Tournament |||||||||
| March 14, 2024 9:08 pm, BTN | (6) | vs. (11) Penn State Second round | W 61–59 | 19–13 | 18 – Ware | 14 – Ware | 5 – Johnson | Target Center (12,338) Minneapolis, MN |
| March 15, 2024 9:00 pm, BTN | (6) | vs. (3) Nebraska Quarterfinals | L 66–93 | 19–14 | 17 – Gunn | 7 – Tied | 5 – Johnson | Target Center (12,625) Minneapolis, MN |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||

## Player statistics

Individual player statistics (final) :
| | | | Minutes | Minutes | Scoring | Scoring | Total FGs | Total FGs | Total FGs | 3-point FGs | 3-point FGs | 3-point FGs | Free-Throws | Free-Throws | Free-Throws | Rebounds | Rebounds | Rebounds | Rebounds | | | | |
| Player | GP | GS | Tot | Avg | Pts | Avg | FG | FGA | Pct | 3FG | 3FGA | Pct | FT | FTA | Pct | Off | Def | Tot | Avg | A | Stl | Blk | TO |
| Banks, Kaleb | 21 | 0 | 222 | 10.6 | 54 | 2.6 | 20 | 51 | .392 | 5 | 20 | .250 | 9 | 19 | .474 | 13 | 24 | 37 | 1.8 | 17 | 4 | 5 | 9 |
| Burke, Shaan | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1.0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Creel, Jackson | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1.0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Cupps, Gabe | 33 | 22 | 715 | 21.7 | 86 | 2.6 | 32 | 88 | .364 | 14 | 39 | .359 | 8 | 13 | .615 | 2 | 58 | 60 | 1.8 | 41 | 22 | 0 | 27 |
| Galloway, Trey | 31 | 31 | 1034 | 33.4 | 328 | 10.6 | 131 | 281 | .466 | 26 | 100 | .260 | 40 | 75 | .533 | 27 | 62 | 89 | 2.9 | 143 | 36 | 6 | 66 |
| Gunn, CJ | 29 | 0 | 371 | 12.8 | 113 | 3.9 | 41 | 120 | .342 | 17 | 50 | .340 | 14 | 21 | .667 | 6 | 22 | 28 | 1.0 | 16 | 24 | 4 | 16 |
| Johnson, Xavier | 20 | 13 | 514 | 25.7 | 151 | 7.6 | 48 | 113 | .425 | 11 | 30 | .367 | 44 | 64 | .688 | 12 | 39 | 51 | 2.6 | 56 | 16 | 6 | 45 |
| Leal, Anthony | 21 | 0 | 308 | 14.7 | 51 | 2.4 | 16 | 36 | .444 | 9 | 19 | .474 | 10 | 16 | .625 | 9 | 36 | 45 | 2.1 | 24 | 8 | 5 | 14 |
| Mgbako, Mackenzie | 33 | 33 | 895 | 27.1 | 404 | 12.2 | 131 | 332 | .395 | 50 | 153 | .327 | 92 | 112 | .821 | 34 | 101 | 135 | 4.1 | 43 | 14 | 12 | 41 |
| Newton, Jakai | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Reneau, Malik | 33 | 33 | 945 | 28.6 | 508 | 15.4 | 198 | 355 | .558 | 15 | 45 | .333 | 97 | 142 | .683 | 59 | 138 | 197 | 6.0 | 88 | 18 | 19 | 93 |
| Sparks, Payton | 24 | 2 | 179 | 7.5 | 51 | 2.1 | 18 | 35 | .514 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 15 | 36 | .417 | 14 | 30 | 44 | 1.8 | 6 | 5 | 9 | 8 |
| Stephens, Ian | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1.0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Walker, Anthony | 32 | 1 | 452 | 14.1 | 162 | 5.1 | 56 | 115 | .483 | 2 | 17 | .118 | 48 | 64 | .750 | 15 | 60 | 75 | 2.3 | 25 | 6 | 11 | 21 |
| Ware, Kel'el | 30 | 30 | 962 | 32.1 | 478 | 15.9 | 188 | 321 | .586 | 17 | 40 | .425 | 85 | 134 | .634 | 63 | 233 | 296 | 9.9 | 45 | 18 | 56 | 47 |
| Total | 33 | | 6600 | 200.0 | 2386 | 72.30 | 879 | 1848 | .476 | 166 | 513 | .324 | 462 | 696 | .664 | 293 | 861 | 1154 | 35.0 | 504 | 171 | 133 | 400 |
| Opponents | 33 | | 6600 | 200.0 | 2452 | 74.30 | 845 | 2013 | .420 | 284 | 829 | .343 | 478 | 637 | .750 | 363 | 792 | 1155 | 35.0 | 446 | 247 | 101 | 341 |

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking — = Not ranked RV = Received votes :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | Final |
| AP | RV | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Coaches | RV | — | — | — | — | RV | — | RV | N/A | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |

## Awards and honors
### Pre-season awards

| Name | Award | Date |
| Xavier Johnson | Almanac Preseason Second Team All-Big Ten | September 28, 2023 |
| Xavier Johnson | Fox Sports Second Team All-Big Ten | October 9, 2023 |
| Mackenzie Mgbako | 247 Preseason Freshman Third Team All-American | October 12, 2023 |
| Kel'el Ware | Preseason Watchlist for the 2024 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award | October 27, 2023 |

### In-season awards

| Name | Award | Date |
| Malik Reneau | Empire Classic All-Tournament Team | November 21, 2023 |
| Mackenzie Mgbako | Big Ten Freshman of the Week | January 2, 2024 February 26, 2024 |

### Post-season awards

| Name | Award | Date |
| Kel'el Ware | Big Ten All-Defensive Team | March 12, 2024 |
| Kel'el Ware | Second Team All-Big Ten (Media) | March 12, 2024 |
| Kel'el Ware | Third Team All-Big Ten (Coaches) | March 12, 2024 |
| Mackenzie Mgbako | Big Ten Co-Freshman of the Year (Coaches) | March 12, 2024 |
| Mackenzie Mgbako | Big Ten All-Freshman Team | March 12, 2024 |
| Trey Galloway | Indiana's Big Ten Sportsmanship Award | March 12, 2024 |
| Malik Reneau | Big Ten Honorable Mention (Coaches and Media) | March 12, 2024 |
| Kaleb Banks | Academic All-Big Ten | March 20, 2024 |
| Shaan Burke | Academic All-Big Ten | March 20, 2024 |
| CJ Gunn | Academic All-Big Ten | March 20, 2024 |
| Anthony Leal | Academic All-Big Ten | March 20, 2024 |

## NBA draftees

| Year | Round | Pick | Name | Team |
| 2024 NBA draft | 1st | #15 | Kel'el Ware | Miami Heat |