In his latest preseason power rankings, CBS Sports’ Jon Rothstein ranked the Indiana Hoosiers at No. 15 in the Big Ten Conference, reflecting skepticism after a major offseason overhaul and a coaching change.
Speaking on his Inside College Basketball podcast, Rothstein predicted Indiana will finish 15th in the Big Ten, ahead of only Rutgers, Minnesota, and Penn State.
> “It’s hard to get a gauge on the Hoosiers right now.”
— Jon Rothstein
Rothstein offered a deeper look at Indiana’s outlook for the 2025–26 season:
> “A lot of people are going to look at this and say, ‘Well, how is Indiana 15?’ I’m just studying Indiana’s roster, and I’m looking at the makeup of things, and I see a slew of players — while productive — who are all coming in without a great deal of power conference experience.
Until you see it on the court, it’s tough for me to put Indiana above certain teams. Only three players on Indiana’s roster — Tucker DeVries, Conor Enright, and Sam Alexis — have tangible power conference experience.”
Indiana is coming off a 19–13 season under former head coach Mike Woodson, marking a second consecutive year without an NCAA Tournament appearance.
New head coach Darian DeVries takes over after leading West Virginia to a 19–13 record and a seventh-place finish in the Big 12 last season — a remarkable turnaround from a 9-win campaign the year prior, though the Mountaineers were controversially left out of the NCAA Tournament.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, Rothstein has high expectations for Indiana’s in-state rival. He projects Purdue to win the Big Ten and ranks the Boilermakers as a top-four team nationally. He follows Purdue with Michigan and UCLA in the conference standings.
Rothstein’s Preseason All-Big Ten First Team:
Trey Kaufman-Renn, Purdue
Nick Martinelli, Northwestern
Bennett Stirtz, Iowa
Donovan Dent, UCLA
Braden Smith, Purdue
Leave a Reply